You guys, this book!! I can’t properly explain how much I loved it. I teared up at the end (which is suuuper rare for me) and I could not get enough of Percy and Sam’s story. I very rarely enjoy romance stories this much, but this book is definitely a favourite of 2022 for me. You don’t even need to read any more of this review, just go buy this book and soak it all in (and then message me so we can cry about it).

The childhood best friends to lovers trope is not done nearly enough for me and I LOVED it. The description of cottage life in a small town with the family restaurant and the boat and the horror movie nights and the chill nights reading together and I CAN’T DEAL WITH THIS.

Percy was such a fun main character. I loved that she had an obsession with horror movies (I used to be this way too until I got older and became a giant chicken). I loved that her best friends were Sam and Charlie, but she didn’t have that “I’m just one of the boys” vibe that I can’t stand. And let’s just face it, Sam was perfection. And Charlie wasn’t too bad either.

My only complaint is that everyone in this book was way too sexy and that is just not realistic. But maybe I shouldn’t be complaining because the steamy scenes were, uh, hoooot.

I’m so unbelievably sad that I’m done reading this book. I will be thinking about this one for a very long time and I can’t recommend it enough.

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for my eARC! This review has been posted on Goodreads and on my Bookstagram account (@janinesbookcorner).

EVERY SUMMER AFTER is the debut novel by author Carley Fortune, and I can’t wait for more. Her writing drew me in from the beginning, and I became entrenched in the lives of the characters. Sam and Percy are the main characters, but the supporting characters— whether friends or family—all play an important role.

There are emotional highs and lows for teenagers Sam and Percy, who become best friends as teens when they meet at the lake. Percy’s family are mainly summer people, and she travels to the lake with her parents sometimes for holidays too. But Sam and his family live on the lake year round. Their friendship grows into more, but they get in the way of their own feelings too many times to count. Emotions run high, and the author does a fantastic job of showing this.

The book begins in the present and then delves into the past in alternating chapters. We start seventeen years ago and count down until twelve years before, when things become broken. We don’t learn what happened twelve years ago until almost the end of the book, and it was not what I was expecting—it was better. The end of the book continues in the present for several chapters and then ties up loose ends in the epilogue, which takes place a year later. I would have liked the epilogue to go on a little longer, unless there are plans for us to meet up with the characters again. Charlie needs his own book, as does Delilah and maybe even Chantal (hint, hint!!) I love the cover which emulates what their summers at the lake were like.

A satisfying read that had me on an emotional roller coaster and living their lives by their side.

I rated the book 4.5 stars but rounded to 5 stars here and on other sites.

Really enjoyed this. Liked the dual timeline and the writing style. Definitely very well written for a debut.

I love a book that has well-done dual timelines, and this second chance romance exceeded all my expectations. I loved watching Persephone and Sam fall for each other as teens and come back to each other as adults.

I couldn't put this book down, I was desperate to find out what pulled them apart 12 years ago. I loved Persephone and Sam as characters and their development was fully realized. I did wonder what Sam was thinking at times, but I appreciated seeing their relationship's ups and downs through Percy's eyes. I just loved the way that this second chance romance came together. I would have loved a little more at the end, but I loved the epilogue and it felt like an authentic love story.

I can't wait to read more by Carley Fortune!

Thank you to Berkley and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

CW: Cancer, death of parents (both off screen, one more involved than other), heart attack, cancer, anxiety, panic attack (on page).

Thank you Berkley Publishing for an eARC of this novel. All thoughts are of my own and honest.

This book was so good. I consumed it in one day--in one sitting. I couldn’t put it down. That being said, I do wish it had a bit more to it. I definitely think that this will be a book that will be really well received by people who aren’t romance readers (romance folks will love it too). The dual timelines, the weird moments of teen years together with the regret of adulthood. So a second chance romance from childhood with a touch of “it’s always been you” to it, i.e. Perfection. It’s a lot and Fortune does a fantastic job juggling it all.

Loves:

Percy, Sam, and Charlie were such real, complex characters that I loved going on the journey with. When you start with characters from the age of 12 to 30 there’s a lot of history that you get to venture through. And that’s where the heart of the novel is. The summers of teenage years. Learning and growing and figuring out who you are. It’s just magical and Fortune nails it.

Percy was an amazing main character. She’s not perfect at all, but it’s all the trip ups that really endear her to you. I loved how real she was. I loved her moments of confusion and unsureness. I was truly rooting for her the entire time and so wanted to know the cause of the breakup.

The plot was phenomenal. I’m a sucker for those “we were close, until we weren’t and now I have to see them again oh no” books and this was it. ALL THE ANGST! And I truly loved how Fortune didn’t make everything alright with the plot. There was the fallout, which did have major implications for both Sam and Percy and everyone in their lives. It didn’t get fixed and there were going to be some lifelong regrets from it and that’s what made it perfect.

Meh:

I know I said the characters were amazing, but I needed more of the NOW. There were twelve years between the “event” and the present happenings. I felt like I got a lot out of the then and not so much of the now. I wanted more conversation between Sam and Percy, exploring who they were now and how they had changed. There were some unnecessary, in my opinion, side plots in the now that just clunked things up and didn’t give me the emotional-character driven plot of the now. This was truly my only issue with this otherwise perfect book. I wanted to see more development from the characters. I needed more connection between them because twelve years is a VERY long time.

Long Story Short:

Do I recommend this book? Yes! I think that whether you’re a romance reader or not you’ll enjoy it. There are a lot of elements of lit-fic that will make Every Summer After a fantastic read. Yes there are like two explicit scenes in the book but if you aren’t comfortable with them you could easily skip over them and not miss anything. For the romance reader I think you’ll get a lot out of this too. There’s a lot of building of relationships and characters and the angst and tension is at a HIGH in this book. Like so much yearning. I will definitely be getting a physical copy for myself as I need it on my shelf.

This book would be perfect for those who love Emily Henry as it definitely has People We Meet On Vacation and Beach Read energy (I think Book Lovers too but haven’t read that yet so idk).

Outlier alert!
Let me start out by saying that there are many great reviews for this book, so if the synopsis appeals to you, go read those reviews and take mine with a grain of salt. One of the reasons this book didn't connect with me was that I just got finished reading another coming of age novel (Our Little World ) which I thought was much better and rang more authentic, so I couldn't help but compare.

This is a story told in two timelines: When Persephone is thirteen, her parents buy a lake house on Barry's Bay and she meets brothers Sam and Charlie, and they become friends. Sam and Percy develop a very close friendship over the years, which eventually turns to romance. Something happens that splinters the relationship and Sam and Percy haven't spoken for twelve years. Until Charlie calls with the news that their mother has died, and since she was like a second mom to Percy over the years, Percy returns to Barry's Bay for the funeral and to see Sam again.

The Canadian setting is fantastic and well described. I got a real sense of place with this book and would love to visit the places the author talks about.

What didn't really work for me:
So much of this book feels like a really bad YA novel. The dialogue is stilted and unrealistic, and I realize that teenagers are super focused on sex but some of the scenes involving those situations were just cringey to me. Instead of talking about their feelings, everyone is jumping into bed at the slightest provocation (even as adults).

I could never get a real sense of the time period. If the present day was really the present day, then Sam would have gone to college in 2010. Why was she calling him on the "dorm phone"--why didn't he have a cell phone? She mentions texting a little bit and email, but it felt off the with the way they were communicating with each other.

I called the "big twist" way before it was revealed, I know that others might like that the author waited until 80% into the book to reveal it, but it felt to me as if it was drawn out for longer than it needed to. Plus...anyone who has read my reviews knows how I feel about (view spoiler)

Overall, I don't feel like I read the same book as everyone else who adored it. I didn't connect with the characters and got alternately bored and annoyed with them throughout the book. You may like this if you're looking for a beach read, and I'm definitely the outlier because many of my trusted reviewer friends loved it.

As a teen, Persephone (Percy) Fraser spent six summers at the lake. She also spent these six summers falling in love with the boy next door, Sam Florek. A decade later, Percy is still reeling from their fallout when she finally returns to the lake for Sam’s mom’s funeral.

If you’re like me and absolutely loved Love and Others Words and The Summer I Turned Pretty, this is the PERFECT mashup for you. We’re talking flashbacks to six different summers, a current timeline, summers on the lake, brothers. Basically all the reasons I love both of those books have all come together to make this one.

This is my favorite type of second chance romance. We slowly see Percy and Sam go from childhood friends to secret teenage crushes to much much more. And now in the current day chapters, we see them finally together again. Plus, Sam is just so sweet and dorky.

Something about this type of book always feels so nostalgic (even though I sadly never spent summers on the lake). It’s the perfect summer read filled with lake days, swimming, lounging, a summer job at the family restaurant.

If you’re looking for a beautiful but heartbreaking second chance lake romance, this is the perfect book for you.

Thank you Berkley and Netgalley for my eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Summer after summer. Percy and Sam became best friends. As the years passed. they began to mature, and started noticing each other. However, they eventually parted ways. Now adults, with the loss of Sam's mother Sue. old feelings and the reminder of a broken heart shine through.

Will they be platonic friends or will their future include a happily ever after? This dual timeline story goes back to their past when they were kids and how they spent each summer together. As they got older, something pulled them apart and they hadn't seen each other since. The only reason that Percy is back is because Sam lost his mother, a woman who was once very important to Percy. There just might be a second chance between these two, but only once they can deal with their past hurts.

This is a gentle love story that gives Percy and Sam a second chance, a chance to get past previous hurts and explore the feelings the two have for each other. Feelings that never went away. Forgiveness plays a role in this wonderful debut by Carley Fortune.

Many thanks to and to NetGalley for this ARC for review. This is my honest opinion.

Please also enjoy my YouTube video review - https://youtu.be/4c_Re6vkfVE

Who says you can't go home again? When Percy receives a late night visitor from someone she never thought she would hear from again, she feels like here world has completely has stopped. Her old summer neighbor Charlie has tracked her down to let her now that his mother has passed away and she should come home again, but can she? Percy hasn't seen Sam, the man she fell hard for all those years ago and hasn't seen in 10 years.
As she drives back to the lake house where she essentially grows up, all her feelings come back to her.

I devoured this book quickly, Percy is the daughter of 2 professors and they want to get her out of the city each summer, so as a young girl, they buy a lake house and Sam and Charlie happen to be here neighbors and the 3 of them grow inseparable over the years, especially Sam and Percy.

The book is told over the past and present of Sam and Percy's relationship and what happened all those years ago that caused them to not speak. The authors dives deep into Percy's feelings and Sam's and we do learn what made them drift apart. Will they repair what broke?

This was such an emotional read, but sure to be a hit of Summer 2022.

Anyone who knows me, knows I LOVE the second chance romance trope. I live for it. AND childhood friends to lovers? COUNT ME IN. Percy and Sam deserve the world!!! I think this will be my new favorite book for the summer. AND past/present chapters?! My fav. This is perfect… perfect, perfect, perfect.

Sometimes "then" and "now" does not work when you're doing both the childhood friends to lovers trope and the second chance trope at once as you tend to favor one storyline over the other. I feel like I may have enjoyed this more if one timeline was favored over the other story-wise.

*4.5 stars - sharing May 11th on my sites!*

BINGE WORTHY.

These types of reads both haunt me and make me the happiest. Why? Because the format of dual timelines where you’re not quite sure what caused the fallout causes LACK OF SLEEP. I binged this in a day chasing down the reason Percy and Sam fell apart and hoping they’d find their way back together.

It was an interesting tiny tidbit that when they ran into each other again there wasn’t immediate animosity. I really liked that they were able to already find some common ground to reconnect and rehash what happened between them.

The trope of childhood friends to lovers was written beautifully. I loved the sweet friendship that started to become longing looks and brief touches to finally saying OH HEY I LIKE YOU. Ah, young love. Percy and Sam definitely get in their own ways sometimes, but somehow it was endearing. Fortune’s ability to craft this story was amazing. All the mess that can come with first love and rekindling that love years later had me glued to my book.

I do stand by that I just didn’t love the last big piece of information needed to answer why there’s been so many years apart. I AM grateful that it was handled really well. The drama had already been thrown down so at this point, I thought the characters all approached it in a realistic way. Which all led to a sweet ending.

Great read, highly recommend. Perfect for summertime!

Overall audience notes:
- Contemporary Romance
- Language: a little
- Romance: multiple brief open door
- Trigger/Content Warnings: loss of a parent(s), infidelity, on page panic attacks, anxiety

This book has me ready for the lazy days of summer.

I love this tagline…. Six summers to fall in love. One moment to fall apart. A weekend to get it right.
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That right there just sucked me in. Persephone spends her days as an adult in the city trying to never remember her summers at the cottage or the love she left behind.
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Dual timelines worked perfectly for this one and I loved the “then” when Percy and Sam were falling in love. This book is full of raw emotion of coming of age, making mistakes and putting your life back together.
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Such a small moment in this book that really spoke to me is how young Percy makes friendship bracelets. I used to spend my summers with a safety pin and thread trying to find the perfect colors. This tiny moment comes back full force later in the book and I loved it!
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This one is full of emotion, second chances and made me so nostalgic!
This book comes out tomorrow!
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Huge thank you to @berkleypub @berittalksbooks @thephdivabooks and @dg_reads for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.
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Say hello to my new favorite book, fam! Gosh, this book broke my heart into a million pieces and then fixed it all over again. I am pretty sure I will remember how I felt while reading this book for many, many months to come. I think I lost count of how many times I ended up crying while reading it, and believe me, I know I am a crier, but with Every Summer After, it felt as if the floodgates were open constantly 😂 Please don't think that that's a reason for you to not read the book, it's a me thing; and  you pick ESA up, you're definitely going to stay with the characters to see how their story ends.

Percy and Sam's story was really beautiful. I love reading books that are told in alternating timelines. I loved how the author connected the past and present timelines in consecutive chapters ~ it was so clever! Percy and Sam's friendship was so pure, so to see the devastating turn it took, even while reading the first few chapters broke my heart. The plot was really intricately crafted, with plenty of twists and turns along the way. I HAD to give this book my undivided attention (because I was 100 percent invested) and ended up reading the book in 4-5 hours.

With books like Every Summer After, it's hard to write an in-depth review without spoiling the plot, so I will stop here. I hope you guys pick it up soon. Reading the book was a memorable ride for me, and I hope you guys feel the same way while reading it too. Oh and, keep a lot of tissues nearby!

I love love love generational romance stories, my favorite authors Josie Silver and Emily Henry do it so well. I can now add this story to the list because I was obsessed with this novel.

why my nose was in this book:
i've always dreamed of having a summer home on a lake and living vicariously through Percy and her parents, as they have a home on the water, living next to a family with kids her own age in a small town was the perfect getaway
the buildup from friendship to something more between Percy and Sam was fun to read
I also loved the questionable "breakup" between Percy and Sam, as Percy heads back to the small town, where she is forced to confront what happened years ago between her and Sam
I was 100% team Percy and Sam and even amongst the complications that were thrown their way once Percy arrives back into town

Perfect second chance/ friends to lovers story! I loved getting to watch from the beginning how everything started and I always enjoy stories that time jump a little. This is a great book to read if you're a fan of the summer I turned pretty.

Thank you #Netgalley for providing me with an early read of #EverySummerAfter

I LOVE friendship to lovers and second chance romances so if that's in your wheelhouse, definitely check this out! This reminded me so much of the books The Summer I Turned Pretty, and I couldn't put it down because of the joy it brought me.

Thank you #Netgalley for an early read of this!

This is a perfect summer read and is so nostalgic to me. I loved the dual time line showing us a then and now of the relationship of Sam and Percy.
No spoilers just prepare for secrets and lies, grief and anxiety. Very well developed characters and great story building.
Highly recommend!!

Percy hasn't been home for a long time. Blossoming love dashed on the rocks by a mistake that couldn't be taken back. Life in the city is cold, unfeeling, safe, and nothing like the carefree moments of her youth by the shore. A call from home brings her back, and brings the past to the forefront. Sam, who she loved, is also here, yet things may never be the same. Six summers of being inseparable turned into the greatest relationship she ever knew, and then it was gone. Percy aches for Sam now more than ever, but the past is almost sure to get in the way. This weekend may be the only chance that Percy and Sam have to rekindle the dream of summers past, if only they can seize it.

I'm not sure what you think of young love, but it's heartwarming to think about it working out, isn't it? Unfortunately for Percy and Sam, it didn't. In this story, we get to experience each of six summers with them, alternating back to the present many years later as they reconnect and discover for themselves where time and life have taken them, and whether there is a place for each other in their hearts still.

The story is a slow burn, as the big secret behind their separation isn't revealed until all their lakeside summers have been experienced, but I really liked that they got a second chance, and though mistakes were made, they were willing to spend time trying to see each other for who they've become, and where they are now, though the past can be difficult to move forward from.

I liked that this story blended coming of age with mature post-relationship heartache. Every Summer After is the story of young love built across six summers, destroyed at the end of them, and given the chance for a new beginning years later. Recommended for readers who enjoy friends becoming more, second chance love, and alternating timelines that play off each other until the truth is uncovered and the chance for true love hangs by a thread.

Every Summer After
By: Carley Fortune
Release: May 10th – Out Now!

“Six summers to fall in love. One moment to fall apart. A weekend to get it right.”

This book had me from the very beginning. Part of it due to my love of first loves and the other part was the author’s writing.

One thing I really loved was how the romance grew between Percy and Sam from childhood to adulthood, including the teenage awkwardness of friendship and desire. I HAD to know what it was that ripped these two apart.

“Betrayals don’t cancel each other out. They just hurt more.”

The author did a great job writing out the pain shared between Sam and Percy as well as the desire that continues to pull them together even after so much time apart. I also liked the switching between timelines to layout the full story.

At first, I was disappointed in what caused Percy and Sam to fall apart, but I fell the author fully closed the loop making the full story and characters involved come together. I was in love again with the book by the end.

4.5 stars – Rounded to 5 stars for Goodreads

Thank you to @netgalley @carleyfortune @letstalkbookspromo and @berkleyromance for a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. Also, thank you to @berittalksbooks @thephdivabooks and @dg_reads for hosting the buddy read chat!

#books #bookishlife #booklover #readingisfun #iowabookstagrammers #iowabookstagram #netgalley #berkleyromance #carleyfortune #everysummerafter #berkleywritesstrongwomen #berkelybuddyreads #letstalkbookspromo