Well, I have a new favorite author. Nora Goes Off Script was one of my favorite recent reads, so I approached this one with a bit of apprehension. But Monaghan came through with another favorite. The heartfelt story of Sam and her ill-fated engagement to Jack was funny and sweet and had me longing for languid summer afternoons. I loved her relationship with Wyatt and how their story unfolded. And I just adored Sam's supportive yet funny family. My one hang-up was the plotline that Sam never Googled Wyatt. Come on! But once her family had the same reaction, I got over it. I will return to this one in the summer to read it again somewhere on a beach.

Thanks to Netgalley and Putnam for the advanced copy! I really enjoyed this book. 4.75/5. I absolutely loved Same Time Next Summer. It was an easy read that followed the story of an engaged woman who is faced with her first love. It kind of reminded me of Every Summer After. Would absolutely recommend reading this.

This is tough. I wanted to like this book because of the nostalgia I have surrounding this trope (small town, beach read, childhood friends to lovers). When I was younger a good majority of my favorite books were YA/coming of age summer romances that I'd read for hours late at night while on summer vacation with my family. I was excited to read this book because of that, hoping for a more mature version of the books I loved as a kid.

With that being said, this book started off extremely slow. Lots of description and scenes set in the past. Some dialogue that didn't seem to have a purpose. Probably building up to a plot that I never got to because I DNF at 40%. I tried to get through it but I'm really not a fan of the slow burn which I know many others enjoy. This could be the exact type of book I thought it would be, but I caught myself losing interest as the book went on until I decided that skipping over large chunks of book hardly counts as reading it so I DNF'd.

This was my first book by this author, so I am not super familiar with her style of writing. I'm not sure if this book is just better suited to those who like an unhurried pace of reading or just a long build up to eventual conflicts. At 40%, I got this gist of where this book was headed but I'm not sure when the actual conflict presents itself or comes to a head. Presumably sometime soon after, but I unfortunately couldn't stick around for it. Thank you kindly to the publisher, Annabel Monaghan and NetGalley for providing me with the ARC!

I’m new to the romance genre, but I’ve found the one trope I find tolerable is second-chance romance. Monaghan’s debut, NORA GOES OFF SCRIPT, was one of the first romances I binged last summer. I eagerly opened the pages of SAME TIME NEXT SUMMER. hoping for the same magic.

The story follows Sam as she returns to the lake house she spent her teenage years at and Wyatt, her first love. The story is told in past and present-day timelines but the transitions felt a bit choppy to me. I loved the lakeside setting but felt the characters were lacking in depth and I didn’t find myself as invested in their relationship as I did with other books with similar storylines.

While it left me wanting a bit more dimension from the characters, it was a quick and breezy read that will surely find its way into many beach bags this summer.

RATING: 3.5/5 (rounded up to 4 stars)
PUBLICATION: June 6, 2023

Thank you NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for an electronic ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Annabel Monaghan is back with the book that will rock Summer 2023, SAME TIME NEXT SUMMER. I was so excited to get an early copy of this after reading NORA GOES OFF SCRIPT last summer, and enjoying it immensely. This book immediately transported me into the story with its luscious setting and wonderful characters. I loved Sam as a main lead, and Wyatt was also such a joy within the story. This was such an incredible story and I cannot wait to see what Monaghan writes next!

*Publish Date 6/6/23 - Thank you to G. P. Putnam/s Sons, Annabel Monaghan, and NetGalley for the advanced ecopy of this book*

This book just made me smile! I loved Nora Goes Off Script, and I thoroughly enjoyed Annabel Monaghan's newest novel as well. Same Time Next Summer takes us back to a time when summers were simple and love was uncomplicated for teenagers Wyatt and Samantha who grew up spending summers together in neighboring beach houses. And then, the summers were NOT simple, and love was now VERY complicated. What will happen when the two cross paths over a decade later?

This is a story about first love, family loyalty, betrayal, and learning how to put yourself back together after life has turned upside down. Highly recommend!

I can already tell this will be the summer book of 2023. Will for sure be seeing this one all over the place- especially at airports

Same Time Next Summer is a story of a lost love and a current love, a what might have been and a what it. Sam is happily engaged to Jack when they go to spend a weekend at her parents beach house and her childhood love, Wyatt, is next door that very same weekend. The book goes in and out of past and present timelines, as told by both Sam and Wyatt. The reader comes to see that while Jack may be a safe choice, Wyatt is the one that really allows Sam to be her true self. As with any good romance, we see it leading up to a choice that only Sam can make.
Thanks to NetGalley, Penguin Group Putnam, and the author for access to this ARC.

Loved Nora Goes Off Script and was thrilled to receive this early arc! This was a miss for me - story felt too simple and expected and almost trite and rote. Heavy-handed. Bummed me out. It all was too much. And I love excess! Ah well. Grateful to GP Putnam for the advanced copy!

Same Time Next Summer was such a lovely read - it was sweet and romantic and really well written! Annabel Monaghan has very quickly become one of my favorite authors! This was really a great second chance romance with a heavy emphasis on Sam and Wyatt falling in love in the first place. It was a true pleasure to go back in time to witness young love. Monaghan's coastal imagery was perfect - I really felt connected to their life and love at the beach and in the tree house. And the cast of secondary characters (particularly Sam's family) really added a lot to the story - I adored them!

Despite some heavier themes, I actually found this to be a relatively low-angst second chance romance and a perfect beach read!

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

I’m not the biggest romance reader but I really enjoyed this one! The ultimate nostalgic summer romance read. Childhood loves reunited 14 years later and Sam has to decide if the safe life she’s crafted for herself with her perfect-on-paper doctor fiancé is the life she actually wants. Same Time Next Summer will remind you of all those lost summers of your youth and what dreams you may have left behind.

Note: no graphic romance scenes

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for the advanced reading copy in exchange for my honest review.

I enjoyed this book for the most part but not near as much as Annabel Monaghan’s first book Nora Goes Off Script. I think it was something about how quickly the main character drops her fiancé before we got all of the back story of her relationship with her high school sweetheart. It just felt rushed to me. But, at the same time, I couldn’t put the book down and wanted more of this romance. I think most readers will have a wonderful time reading this book! Thank you for the ARC.

Childhood friends to lovers and second-chance romance are some of my favorite tropes, and I am constantly looking for new recommendations. "Same Time Next Summer" by Annabel Monaghan did not disappoint. I really enjoyed the plot, the characters were likable, and the setting was fun. I appreciated how the love triangle was handled and how the main couple was brought back together. However, the story felt a bit flat to me, and I wish there were more scenes showing how Sam and Wyatt fell in love. The burn was not as slow as I hoped it would have been. Still, it was a fun read.

Same Time Next Summer is an adorable, not too sappy, second-chance romance that instantly got me hooked. After a devastating breakup with her childhood sweetheart, Sam played her cards close to her chest. Always trying to play it safe, she was losing a piece of herself trying to be someone she wasn't. When reunited with her Wyatt, everything starts to fall into place again.

Such a cute story, would definitely recommend!

Fast easy read. Enjoyed the setting & characters but didn't feel overly original. Would have preferred less time spent on romantic feelings between 12 year olds.

3.5 ⭐️. Thanks to Netgalley and Penguin Group/Putnam Books for the ARC. I enjoyed this story - am a sucker for childhood friends-to-lovers and second chance love tropes. I think I wasn’t blown away because I just finished Every Summer After by Carley Fortune (which I loved) and there were a lot of similarities. However, I felt that story was superior in its’ character development and pacing. I just wasn’t as drawn into STNS and the ending seemed abrupt, but it was sweet. I would read another book from Annabel Monaghan.

I'm not sure why I wasn't a big fan of this book, but the present day romance with the main characters just felt a little weird. The fact that Wyatt came back because he knew Sam was engaged was kind of weird. Why didn't he just contact her before?

Thanks to Netgalley and Putnam for the advanced copy. I read Nora Goes Off Script earlier this year and it instantly became one of my favorites of the year. I was so excited to read Same Time Next Summer. Even though it’s cold in New England right now it had me immediately dreaming of next summer. This was a quick, delightful read. Like other reviewers I wasn’t quite ready for it to end and hope that we get more from these characters.

Sorry, but not sorry that I read this book early, as it is a perfect summer read. If you are looking for a happy read that you can finish in a day or two this is the book for you.

Sam along with Jack, her fiancée, are fulfilling her yearly obligation to visit her family’s summer home on Long Island with the added purpose of appeasing her parents to view a potential wedding venue. Never did she expect Wyatt, the boy next door, who had broken her heart, to be there for the first time in 14 years. Throughout the book Sam and Wyatt reconnect and Sam tries to find closure to the breakup of their relationship. What was supposed to be a 2-day visit becomes a week in which Sam starts to question where she is in her life and reconnects with who she once was.

When starting this book, it was with both excitement and a little trepidation that I would not like it as much as Annabel Monahan’s previous book Nora Goes Off Script or that it was similar to Every Summer After, but that trepidation was unfounded. This book was wholly its own and is enjoyable from beginning to end. While the story has familiar troupes, Monahan was able to deliver a fresh story that was well written, heartwarming and not overly complicated.

I did really enjoy this book, but not as much as "Nora Goes Off Script"! I do love how the author writes romances isn a way that feels authentic and realistic. The main character is torn between an old love and her current fiancè, and it all comes to a head at a beautiful beach house. The setting descriptions in this book did make me want to go rent a beach house and dip my toes in the sand. However, the only drawback was that the story was relatively predictable.

It felt like a beachier version of "Sweet Home Alabama" :)