✨ARC Review✨

This was one of my highly anticipated reads for the Spring, and sadly it was a let down. When three friends become enamored with the new man moved into the neighborhood, it becomes obsessive. Friendships are tested, marriages are tested, and dare it turn deadly? Jen, Kittie, and Cynthia become so enthralled with Will Harding, that eventually each of their lives is revolving around him.

With this book being told from multiple point of views and dual timelines, I felt engaged. It was a page turner that kept the story flowing, and I constantly wanted to know what happened next. However, the plot was predictable and I had hoped to get a large twist to only be left feeling unfulfilled with the ending on this one. If you had this one on your radar, I say give it a shot, because you just might enjoy it more than I did!

Read If You Love:
-thrillers
-love triangles
-catty wives
-a little steam

✨Rating✨
⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
Steam Factor: 🔥/5
Scream Factor: 😱/5

A special thank you to NetGalley and Berkley for this eARC! My Summer Darlings is out May 17th!

This was my first book by May Cobb and I had high expectations, unfortunately this book was so slow for the first 75%. In my opinion, this book should have been marketed as more of a romance than a thriller/mystery. Get ready to read a soap opera! If you 1) love romantic reads, 2) are a Colleen Hoover fan, or 3) love Sex and the City, you probably would love this! The first 75% was not thrilling and a major slow romantic build. While the ending was great, this book really fell flat for me.

***** Many thanks to Berkley Publishing, May Cobb, and NetGalley for the gifted copy as it was provided to me in turn for my honest opinion.

Hot on the heels of THE HUNTING WIVES, May Cobb's MY SUMMER DARLINGS has everything you want in a summer thriller: a dazzling setting, saucy characters, and bold twists. Cobb immerses readers a wealthy East Texas town and the lives of three friends, all of whom fall under the spell of their handsome new neighbor. Cobb is in full command of a plot that whispers secrets and culminates in a conclusion that left me gobsmacked. Pour an ice-cold cocktail, stretch out by the pool, and relish this punchy new thriller.

My Summer Darlings is the first book by May Cobb that I have read. This was a quick read, but unfortunately I didn't like the book as much as I'd hoped. There is not a single likable character in this book. The women are catty, weak and make extremely poor decisions because of a man that they barely know. The twist at the end was a complete turn off for me.

This was not a book for me. The characters are awful. They are mean and ridiculous and so petty. It's okay to have flawed characters, but they have to have some redeeming quality, and these women had none. I just couldn't stand any of them. I struggled with the multiple POVs, and I didn't enjoy the pacing. I wouldn't recommend this one, but I know that there are people who will enjoy this, it's just not me.

I was really excited for a fun summer thriller but this one missed the mark for me. I'm tired of mean women who pretend to be friends with one another!! This book was a little too raunchy and not for me.

This smart, sexy thriller kept me guessing as I frantically devoured every masterfully written page.

Everyone in this book is awful. The women were all portrayed as weak and idiotic, obsessed with some dude who held all this power over them that they just couldn't help themselves and turned into morons.. Give me a break. It is not sexy. It is not cute. It's just demeaning and gross.

Also *spoiler alert* this author also has a very weird trope obsession with pedophiles. Having this once again appear in the author's work is enough for me. At least it wasn't glorified like it was in her previous book, but I am done.

This is a Thriller/Mystery. I just could not get into the story. The characters felt catty and man crazy, and that is just not my thing. I wanted more mystery/suspense, and I did not want catty drama which is what I got. I ended up DNF this book at around 35%. I received an ARC of this book. This review is my own honest opinion about the book like all my reviews are.

Recently divorced Jen, is down on her luck and back to living in her childhood home. Finding her footing and grappling with becoming a single mom, she finds herself immediately drawn to her newest neighbor, Will. Lucky for Jen, Will seems to be smitten with her too and she immediately finds herself falling head over heels. The kicker, her friends Kittie and Cynthia, coming to terms with their own aging teenagers and self worth, may also have their eyes on Will.

With his European accent and charm, Will is the hottest and most interesting thing to happen to this small Texas town in years. But is his charm authentic or is his seduction game have a dark side to it?

The number 1 thing I loved about this book is it’s set in Texas. Ya’ll know I love my Texas books and very similar to Katherine Center, I love that May Cobb not only lives in Austin, but also that her books generally take place in Texas. And that’s pretty much the only thing I LOVED about this book.

This has all the Desperate Housewives vibes, and I was really looking forward to a thriller filled with snarky adult women and petty neighborhood drama. Occasionally I need a bit of petty drama in my life. While there is definitely drama in this story, it’s so ridiculous I could barely stop rolling my eyes.

First we have Jen. A completely realistic depiction of a 40year old women navigating through a divorce with her teenage son. I could get on board with her obsession of Will, but at some point it was so exaggerated that I just wanted to shake her. She’s basically a 12 year old girl with a crush, who goes on one date and thinks she’s in love. She has zero sense of self worth and there is no way this character is in her 40s.

Next up, we have her friends Cynthia and Kittie. Both are dealing with their own sense of self worth and even though they’re both married and have never cheated, are suddenly obsessed with Will. I heard someone mention that Cynthia was a ‘worse version of a Sex and City’s Miranda’ and that’s the truest statement I’ve come across. Both these two characters are the worst.

And lastly we have Will. Assumingly wealthy Will, with his good looks and charm literally grabs every females attention when he arrives. We never really ‘get to know’ Will. We get some glimpses into his life. I can see to some extent why a few of the women would be attracted to a new handsome man, but for all the women and to the extent that their infatuation ranged was just way over the top for me.

I won’t say I hated this one, but it could have used a bit more development. It is a fast paced read and the plot definitely keeps you wanting to know more. So if you can focus on the mystery at hand rather than the teenage type drama, and you are looking for an over the top housewife story than you’ll enjoy this one.


My Summer Darlings comes out May 17, 2022! Huge thank you to Berkley for my advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion. If you liked this review please let me know either by commenting below or by visiting my instagram @speakingof_books.

I enjoyed this thriller. This author has an interesting way of portraying women as glaciers. Ie you only see 10% of what is really lurking underneath. She didn’t disappoint with this book. She brought forward 3 old friends with. Fragmented love, jealousy and greed between them. What I didn’t understand was the purpose of why the guy did what he did. How did he have time for it and most importantly How did he not get caught in such a small tight community. ? This book was like watching a car crash in the sense that you just can’t look away. entertaining and salacious.

Last summer I read The Hunting Wives by May Cobb and was very drawn into the world she created. When I saw the synopsis for My Summer Darlings, I knew I would enjoy it as well. But, I enjoyed it a lot more. This was fast paced, totally different than The Hunting Wives and had a great twist that I did not see coming. This was a fun read that makes me excited for future books from May Cobb.

Let me start this review by saying I really enjoyed this book, along with Cobb's previous book The Hunting Wives. That said, I have to ask if Cobb has had some really destructive friendships, because her portrayal of the bonds between women is quite negative. Is the bigger villain here the murderer or the woman who deliberately goes after her best friend's boyfriends? There are three main female characters in this book, and I wanted to kill two of them myself. For fans of reality series about housewives, of which I know there are a lot. The rest of us may be content to admire Cobb's descriptions and turns-of-phrase.

1.5 ⭐ rounding down.

If the goal was to have me hating every character at the conclusion, MISSION ACCOMPLISHED. I think the only people I didn't hate were the husbands/sons. And they were barely in the book.

The main female characters all clearly have a terminal case of TSTL. 404- no self preservation instincts found. When they aren't busy making poor life choices they are getting drunk, complaining about things, and being catty and deplorable to one another. One of the least believable things about this book is that Kittie/Cynthia/Jen remained friends for as long as they had. And that any man would want to marry them (Kittie in particular).

Outside of the huge character flaws, the pacing on this was so off to me. The multiple view points and flashbacks didn't really add anything. This story could have effectively been told with one voice (and I'd argue that it would have added to the suspense since the reader wouldn't know about the actions of the other 2 FLs).

This book was not for me. 🤷🏼‍♀️

ARC provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review

4.5 !

Let me start by saying this. I have not read May Cobb's 'The Hunting Wives' but after reading this book I went to go add 'The Hunting Wives' to my list and I came across a ton of mixed reviews. The negative reviews that I read for that book addressed A LOT of the same topics and themes that occur in this new book as well. So even without reading 'The Hunting Wives', I'm already going to say this ... If you didn't enjoy 'The Hunting Wives' I don't think you will enjoy 'My Summer Darlings' and vice versa.

There is TONS of drama in this book. Definitely don't go into this book if you're looking for tips on how to be a good friend cause dayuummmm these betches are nasty! Rich suburban housewives that get tangled up within the new millionaire that moved into the neighborhood. Who is he? Where did he come from?

Told from alternating POV's of the three women was an excellent choice of layout for this thriller. There's no doubt about it that I found this story incredibly entertaining and dark at times. Since I really enjoyed this one, I'll definitely be giving 'The Hunting Wives' a shot in the future!

Three best friends and one new sexy, single man. Oh my! If you have considerable doubts about this threesome gleefully strolling their way to a happy ending… you’d be right!🤣. The ultimate consequences? Well, simply put they could be deadly!☠️

I love a good neighborhood book! But come on, these women were full-tilt out of control! Not exactly sure how they manage to define themselves as friends. The last people I would ever rely on to have MY back!

Once again my liver has taken a serious beating and I’ve sworn off alcohol (not really😉) This is what always happens after reading one of May Cobb’s books! Wow! Can these women drink!🤦🏻‍♀️

This was a fun, though a bit OTT romp. The ending went in a direction I wasn’t expecting, and actually didn’t sit very well with me. For that I subtracted a star. (Just my opinion folks).

I wasn’t as fond of this latest release from May Cobb as much as her previous, The Hunting Wives. But if you’re looking for a fun mystery that will have you shaking your head and taking a harder look at your own drinking habits…then this will be a great fit! Happy reading’🥂🍾

A buddy read with Susanne that left us on different sides of the neighborhood fence.

Posted to: https://books-are-a-girls-best-friend...

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing.

I wanted to like this book more than I did. The first 75% is just three suburban women complaining about their maudlin lives while obsessing over the handsome new man in town. The last 25% was incredibly fast-paced and full of soapy drama, but I’m not sure it was enough to save the story. I think if I liked the characters a bit more I would have enjoyed it.

Thank you to Berkley and Netgalley for the review copy. All opinions are my own.

What a sordid soap opera of a novel this was! I think there is an audience for this book who will find it entertaining, but it just wasn’t for me. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I wanted to love this one so much. Normally, I’m a huge sucker for rich people and women on their worst behavior. Something about this was just a huge miss for me.

I couldn’t connect with any of the characters and ultimately was bored. I thought the journal entries were very juvenile for women of their age.

I also just couldn’t get behind the hype of this “mysterious” Will.

I’ve seen wonderful reviews for this book so maybe this is a me/timing issue.

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC.

Giving this one 3 stars; I don't think it lived up to The Hunting Wives, but it was a suspenseful, page-turning read all the same.
My main issue is that there's quite a bit that isn't explained or just doesn't really make sense at the end of the book.

********** Here Be Spoilers ******************




Will Harding really doesn't make sense to me. The idea of Cynthia being a good cover for him preying on Cynthia makes no sense. What exactly was going to happen when he jilted her and took off to Europe with a teenager instead?
Was he ever actually interested in Jen?
How was he such a roving perv but rejected her advances?
Why are the other men in this book so clueless?
What actually happened with Brandi?
What was the weird open ending with Kittie's psycho-but-also-victimized offspring?
Is he actually an investment banker?
How exactly did he think he was going to get away with killing half the women in one subdivision?


While Cobb does a fantastic job writing a thriller line to line, and this book kept that same energy from the last novel, I can't help but feel that this story had some decisions made in pursuit of a shocking twist that weren't fully fleshed out.
I will add though, I appreciate her use of the phrase "liable to," which I use constantly a Mississippian but rarely see in print.

I'll be coming back to refine this review before publishing it