For The Summer by Camille Harte is a slow-burning best friends to lovers and back again over time story. It makes you feel like you are apart of an endless summer that you never want to leave. Super cute story.

For the Summer by Camille Harte was a very slow, slow burn for me.

Maybe it is because I too was an eleven-year-old in 1983, and it felt like Cat Rossi took a very long time to grow up as the years progressed. She certainly had a lot more patience when it came to Will, and a few chapters (years) in, I mostly felt sorry for her.

I remember those days of young love and limited access to phones etc, but I would have well and truly moved on if I’d never heard from the person for the rest of the year! Especially as she got older. I don’t really know what she even saw in him in the end.

That being said, the story was well-written and I did love the intros of each paragraph, with the little trips down memory lane, and was at least (mostly) satisfied when I turned the last page.

This romance was everything. Slow-burning best friends to lovers and back again over time. I felt like I was in an endless summer that I never wanted to leave. I wish I could come up with more eloquent words to describe how this book really made me feel, but the best I can come up with is just that it made me FEEL. I felt the love, the jealousy, the pain. I felt it all and I loved it all.

Thank you to Camille Harte and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book and give my honest review.

I enjoyed this book, as a pre-teen in the 90s it is always fun to read this era and go back to the memories. Sweet story, easy read when you need something not too heavy. The writing style was a bit different than what I normally read but worked well.

Just wanted to begin by sending out my appreciation to the author and publishing house for sending me an advanced readers copy....I have quite a bit to say about this book.

We follow Cat, the daughter of a marina, from the age of 11 until I believe late 20s - its basically a summer romance. Will, the rich boy in this book, meets Cat every summer and despite not keeping in touch throughout the year - there's always these "sparks" between them and they pick up easily where they left off. . Suffice to say... its a very, very slow burn. Did I enjoy some aspects of it? Yes. Did I find it exhausting? Possibly...definitely.

The writing style is quite different to most books I typically read - its got a present tense thing going on which I found interesting at first but slowly found it made it difficult to understand these characters in-depth and what they're feeling in that moment. The characters I found to be rather blunt at the beginning especially - I recall a conversation between Cat and Will where Will's responses to Cat's every statement was, "cool!" which *sigh* I think speaks for itself....

The plot was interesting, I definitely like how the author took it year by year - I generally love books like that. It made it feel extremely drawn out which really allows you to get a grasp of how long it must have felt for Cat and Will.

I did find the ending quite satisfying - but all things leading up to it was quite exhausting. I found it frustrating that they weren't together already as there really seemed to be no reason for them not to be except unhappy situations and circumstance that the characters put themselves in. YES I DO UNDERSTAND that that may have been intended but overall it wasn't the most enjoyable experience.

This book has a really high average rating and for the first half of the book I agreed with that - but sadly the second half didn't live up to my expectations in the way that I had hoped.

The reader gets to know Cat, the daughter of the marina owner, and Will, the son of a doctor, as kids when they spend their summer holidays becoming close friends. From then on, Will and his patchwork family come back every summer, and the two friends grow ever closer to each other during their childhood and early teenage years. Although they never talk for the rest of the year, they instantly click as soon as they are reunited in June.

Like I said, I really enjoyed the first half of the book. It was fun to get to know Cat and Will as well as their marina friends, and I especially liked the scenery and the writing style. About halfway through the book, when Cat and Will were teenagers, I was hoping they would grow apart in some way and have to work around their many differences. I was also hoping especially Will would get some character development, because thus far he was nothing more than a nice though jealous boy with a busy father.

I did get a lot of conflict throughout the second half of the book and I'm unsure how to feel about it. On the one hand, Will acts like a popular jock, but then Cat forgives him just about anything instead of talking about her feelings or even thinking twice about the way he hurts her. Will acts like the whole world is just there to please him - Cat has to reach out to him, not the other way around, his dad who actually seems to care that Will likes to go to the marina every summer is never there and only buys his love - and it's getting exhausting after a while. It's basically never Cat who "cheats" in any way, and when she does decide to go out with boys, Will gets extremely jealous and angry. I also feel like the story became a bit too drawn out in the end with there not really being any reasons for them not to just be together already anymore.

I also found it confusing that Jay and Cat are so angry at their father constantly. I get it, teenagers don't always act like they love their parents, and they have to rebel against rules and all that, but at some point I would have found it nice if they both had acknowledged that their dad was always just trying to do his best for them and raise them well (no matter if he made mistakes along the way, some gratitude would have been great).

Will didn't really get any kind of character throughout the whole book. He seemed to be partying when at school, and jealous of anyone who looks at Cat during the summer, but the only character trait that I got from him is that he likes to collect pretty shells and rocks sometimes and that he doesn't care for his music enough to go against his father's plans for him.

Cat's feelings were more relatable to me but she was a bit of a pushover and I wish she had outgrown the childish habit of punching someone when she doesn't know what to say at some point. I wish she had grown to be more independent not only of her dad and the marina but also of Will.

So basically what I'm saying is that for the last quarter or so of the book I didn't really care for the characters anymore, whereas before I had really enjoyed the slow burn romance and was invested in what would happen next. The ending just wasn't all that cute to me. I guess that's just personal preference, though, and there are certainly a lot of people out there who won't grow tired of the main characters.

3/5 stars.

Great summer read! Sweet love story. Took me back to falling in love as a teenager. You got to see how Cat and Will first became friends then something more, in between dating other people as time went on.

I also really enjoyed all the news items and references of what was going on in that year in the 90s.

I feel it could have been edited a bit, it got a little repetitive but didn’t take away from my enjoyment. I would definitely recommend.

Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to read this engaging book.

What a sweet coming of age story. It was a quick enjoyable read. It was very nostalgic as this was the time frame that I grew up. I loved how the attitude of the book grew as they aged. Great debut by Camile Harte.

Oh what a breath of fresh air! This slow burn romance was just what my heart needed. Childhood summers, first crushes, broken hearts and second chances. Cat and Will are that beautifully inevitable kind of love and I adored it.

Once I started For The Summer, I didn’t want any other books to get in the way of finishing this debut book; and I finished For The Summer next day.

I liked the format and premise of the book. Girl works/lives at her fathers camping lodge ("rustic resort") and develops a crush on a boy who visits for the summer. Boy likes girl and convinces father/new family to return year after year. The story is provided through the "eyes" of the summer months; the beginning of each chapter quickly brings us up to speed with what happened over the "school year". Each year has some highlights of that year/summer that make those who lived through the era smile with those memories.

This book had quite a few characters, but it was perfect. I really, really enjoyed this book.

Thank you to NetGalley and debut author Camille Harte and the publisher (Camille Harte, Independent Book Publishers Association IBPA) for the opportunity to review the advance read copy of For The Summer.

Yea! This may be my first review of a self published debut book! Camille - you go girl! Congrats! Well done! Can't wait to read your next book; I'm following you now on GoodReads.

For the Summer
by: Camille Hart
Pub. date: September 11, 2021
Review date: November 6, 2021

Many thanks to IBPA & NetGalley for allowing me access to this arc in exchange for my honest opinion.
I loved everything about For The Summer, I consider it an easy, lighthearted read. Taking place in the 80’s & 90’s, it definitely took me back to slower, easier-going times & made me wish to be young again. I’d recommend for sure, and I’m giving 5 stars. Hope many others enjoy this book as much as I did.
#ForTheSummer #NetGalley

LOVE LOVE LOVE! Brought me back to my teenage years. I loved the chapter headers and the popular things for that year. The slow-burn romance left me wanting more. I wish I could reread this over and over again.

This is a wonderful, sweet coming of age love story. From the moment Cat and Will meet there is a deep emotional bond that develops and changes from one summer to the next. The author, Camille Harte, does a fantastic job exploring the raw emotions of teenage angsty love through to more mature adult relationships. I was brought to tears (in a good way!) a couple of times through their journey. This is a great summer or beach read.

I blitzed through this book over the weekend as I just could not get enough. Light and witty I enjoyed every second. Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Nostalgic. Sweet. I love the way the author presents the characters and their relationship against the 70s and 80s background. It is a lovely coming of age story with realistic feelings and situations.

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

Let me start by saying that I actually did not love For the Summer, but that is entirely personal preference. This novel has a pretty strong narrative voice, and I just don't like it. That said, the writing is solid and atmospheric - I'd recommend it for anyone wanting a summer-y, contemporary read.

I really enjoyed this book. It was well paced and the characters were fully formed. I would enjoy reading other work by this author in the future.

I really enjoyed this book. Its set over the 80s and 90s and follows the story of Cat who.works at her Dads marina and Will who becomes a regular holiday guest each summer. They meet as 11 year old and become best friends but don't keep in touch from one summer to the next as it is set before internet and mobile phones. We see them grow and encounter different life experiences as they explore their relationship with each other. It was a bit slow to start but I soon got into the book and read it quickly. Definitely would recommend. Thanks to netgally for a digital copy in exchange for an honest reviw.

I'll never forget the first time I read this story. It's truly special to me and I'm so glad to see it getting officially published.

I love the fact that it's set in the 80's and 90's, before everyone had internet and cell phones. Such a nostalgia trip! I remember what it was like to spend some time away from friends without having any idea what they were up to. Sometimes we would only meet again months later. So many things changed in our lives, and yet we still had an unbreakable bonding that was always there.

That's what happens with Will and Cat. They only meet during the summers, when his family is vacationing in her city. When they're kids, they become best friends, but over the years that feeling evolves into something more. They love each other, but it's complicated. He lives too far away. He has to study. She can't leave, because her dad owns a marina and she's supposed to take care of the business to help him. Even when they try to have other relationships, the feelings they had for each other are still there. But how could they make this work? She can't leave. He can't stay.

I just love, love, love this story so much. It's so sweet to see them growing up, sharing experiences, making mistakes, learning about life, facing their fears... It warms my heart. <3

There’s a thousand words I could use to describe how I felt while reading this book, but none of them seem good enough.

For 2 reading sessions I’ve lived in a perpetual summer. Where all that matters in life is contained in those three warm months.

It’s a slow burn romance, ebbing and flowing like the tide, swoony, frustrating, sun soaked lust and cool like a river.

Reminiscent of Colleen Hoover’s November 9 For the Summer is bound to please romance and summer fans alike.

Thank you to Camille Harte, the IBPA, and NetGalley for an arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.