Ok, I know this book, to most people, is a fun summery read but hot damn it hit me in all the feels! Yeah, the romance was cute, Avalon Bay sounds fun, and the girl gang is top notch, but the deeper aspect of Cassie and Victoria’s relationship was what did it for me. Their relationship was almost exactly mine and my mother’s. Down to the Gilmore Girls references and betrayal feeling after divorce. I have 23 highlights and 21 of those are things I highlighted because I knew EXACTLY how Cassie felt or what she was describing. Narcissistic mothers are no joke and I love how Cassie walked away in the end with no turning back because “that’s what you do” or “she’s her mother”.

Good job, Elle Kennedy, at perfectly writing what so many of us go through but can’t easily articulate because of the manipulation and masks the narcissists in our lives put on.

Thank you to @netgalley and St Martin’s Press for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This was my favorite of the Avalon Bay series! I loved the characters. Loved the banter and magnetic draw they had to each other. I thought both Cassie and Tate were very likeable and the close proximity tension of being neighbors all summer was such a good slow burn. 🌶️

Really liked it!!

Elle Kennedy’s new adult, friends-to-lovers romance The Summer Girl, Avalon Bay #3, explores small-town secrets and a summer fling that unexpectedly develops into first love for college student Cassie Soul and sailing instructor Tate Bartlett. Kennedy’s vibrant description and snarky, humorous, and sharp dialogue and banter, and relatable, complex, likable, and well-developed characters drew me in from the first scene, investing me in the story and characters’ lives. The novel’s best part is Cassie and Tate’s interactions with each other and the other characters, especially their parents, that contribute to their development and help the story naturally progress. Kennedy wonderfully shows you Tate and Cassie’s personalities (as well as secondary characters) and the type of people they are instead of just telling you, which is essential since Tate is built up to be such a nice guy despite being a player who’s dated most of the girls in town but is not into love or monogamy. It also helps you understand Cassise’s feelings about where she fits into her family.

Cassie returns to Avalon Bay to visit her grandmother for her first summer since her parents’ divorce. After five decades of ownership, her grandmother plans to sell their family’s boardwalk hotel. Cassie’s turning twenty-one and hoping to experience a summer fling. She thinks she’s found the perfect candidate when she meets Tate Bartlett on her first night in town. A surprisingly sweet player, Tate isn’t a stranger to flings. He may be Avalon Bay’s fun-loving golden boy, but he’s not a heartbreaker. Because he knows right away that Cassie isn’t a girl you can have a casual fling with and walk away from without someone getting hurt, he puts her in the friend zone. But the more time he spends with Cassie, the harder it is for him to deny and fight his attraction to her. He realizes almost immediately that friend-zoning Cassie is a monumental mistake. Soon, all Tate can think about is how much he wants more than anything to have a fling with Cassie this summer.

Despite agreeing to be friends, they become intimate because of their intense attraction, stretching the boundaries of friendship. After surrendering to their feelings for each other, Cassie and Tate agree to keep their fling a secret, not realizing that far more dangerous secrets than theirs are at stake. Avalon Bay is like many small towns with secrets—once revealed, they can destroy everything in their wake. Will Tate and Cassie’s relationship survive Avalon Bay’s secrets?

Kennedy develops Cassie and Tate’s relationship through humorous, sexy, and sweet banter and interactions and sweet, steamy, intimate, and sexy love scenes that also contribute to their development and evolution and the story’s progression. Cassie’s down-to-earth, sweet, funny, relentlessly optimistic, and girlfriend material—the most extraordinary person Tate’s ever met. Kind, thoughtful, compassionate, and a good friend, Tate’s a good guy who genuinely respects women. I love how being friends first, then lovers, helps Cassie and Tate grow and encourage each other to face their fears, follow their dreams, and be honest with their parents about what they want from their lives and how their parents treat them.

Kennedy skillfully writes a multifaceted story that, at first glance, is simply a fun, lighthearted, steamy friends-to-lovers, summer fling that becomes something infinitely more profound and more vital to Tate and Cassie but is unexpectedly threatened by small-town secrets. Sweet, funny, sexy, emotional, steamy, angsty, and romantic, The Summer Girl explores themes of first love, falling in love, taking risks, small-town and family secrets, self-esteem, toxic parents, second chances, self-confidence, belonging, and following your dreams. I highly recommend the book to fans of steamy new adult romances focused on friends-to-lovers, summer flings, and timed relationship tropes.

Advanced review copy provided by St. Martin’s Griffin via Netgalley for review.

The Summer Girl by Elle Kennedy is book 3 of the Avalon Bay series. First and foremost, I will read anything this author puts out as I LOVE everything she writes. She could write a new phonebook and I'd read every word. This book is the perfect summer read that’s fun and filled with awesome, easy to love characters! Just an enjoyable young romance with a little drama, a little humor, and a little smut. SIGN ME UP!!

**I received Summer Girl as an arc through Net Galley**
I've read the Avalon Bay series book 1 & 2 and was excited for book 3, Summer Girl by Elle Kennedy. I think Summer Girl has been my favorite of the series so far! I was instantly hooked and gravitated towards the main characters, Tate and Cassie. I loved Tate's sweet player vibe and Cassie's urgent need for a summer fling! There were a few OMG moments that I did not see coming but that were sooo good (slow clap for Elle). The dual POV was well written and I enjoyed both Cassie's and Tate's chapters. If you have read any books within the Avalon Bay series, I highly recommend you continuing to Summer Girl! The only thing I would want to see more of are spicy scenes- I thought there were moments where Elle could have added a scene instead of a more fade to black scene ( but that's because I love smut and spicy scenes in general & always want more lol). This book does have some good hot and heavy scenes, I just wanted 1 or 2 more!! Other than that, I thought Summer Girl was very well written and had a good plot behind the book!

Overall rating: 8.5/10
Spice Rating: 3.5 / 5

Another book knocked out of the park by Elle Kennedy! I simply can't get enough of Elle Kennedy's romance novels. Avalon Bay has held my heart since the first book in this series came out and I was so excited to get my hands on this book. Tate & Cassie stole my heart and this was the perfect friends to lovers/summer fling to lovers beach read for me! Elle Kennedy gets me every time with the out of towner meets local and falls in love storyline. Talk about all the hallmark vibes.

Thank you Netgalley & St. Martin's Press for the advanced reading copy in exchange for an honest review!

This book is out now & available for purchase!

If it’s Elle Kennedy, I’m gonna read it. And I’m gonna love it and swoon over it.

📖 The Details:
The Summer Girl by Elle Kennedy

⏱️Quick Summary:
The 3rd book in the series (who does series better than EK?!) follows Cassie as she visits her grandmother for the summer in Avalon Bay, where she meets Tate (the cute and sweet we’ve met before).

💁🏻‍♀️My Take:
This was exactly the read I needed this summer - sweet and fun, but also honest and at times emotional. It has a pretty intense plot line about parents and even a few twists! Cassie and Tate are both easy to love and root for. I always love EK’s writing and flow of her stories (I know some don’t love the 3rd act breakup, but actually I’m a fan because I love the drama 😅).

👍 Recommend!!

Elle Kennedy never disappoints! These weren’t characters I was expecting to be next, but I love the Avalon bay crew!

Cassie is spending the summer in Avalon Bay with her grandmother for the unveiling of the reopening of the hotel that had been in her family for years. She decides early on in the summer that she wants to have a fling. When she meets Tate it seems that he would be the perfect candidate for her plans. However, he turns her down because he doesn’t want her to catch feelings because being in a relationship is not on his agenda. He does agree to be her wingman and they begin a journey of friendship….or what they think will be a just a friendship.

I went into this book thinking it was a YA novel. Big no on that! It is way to spicy to be YA! I loved the banter between not only Cass and Tate, but with so many other characters in the story! One of my favorite romance books this year!

✦What to Expect✦
• Summer Fling
• Toxic Relationships
• V!rgin FMC
• Golden Retriever MMC

✦Thoughts ✦
I have really enjoyed this series so far and loved this newest book. I loved meeting Cassie and watching her evolve throughout the book. I also was swoony for Tate, talk about a man with golden retriever energy! I loved the back & forth banter between then and getting to see our favs from the last two books. I didn’t think this book was super spicy, but that window scene…was hotttttt! This is such a cute summer read!

Elle Kennedy can do no wrong & The Summer Girl proved that once again. I loved the whole Avalon Bay series because you can always expect A+ banter, great character development, and a setting you wish you can be transported to immediately. I would recommend this book to anyone who is looking for a quick summer friends to lovers read!

Many thanks to St Martins Press for giving me this ARC in exchange for my honest review!

The Avalon Bay series gets better with each and every book. The Summer Girl is by far my favorite in the series. I adored Tate and Cassie. The sizzling chemistry between the main characters is swoon-worthy. With unexpected twists and turns, the story keeps readers eagerly engaged. Light, sweet, funny, perfect summer read it had me smiling from the beginning. Lots of funny banter. Tate is adorable. Cass is sweet and I loved how it tied the series together.

I always enjoy Elle Kennedy’s books and this one might be my new favorite! The characters are great and the storyline was really interesting to me.

This book reminds me of another book making it predictable. DNF


******************I received an ARC for my honest opinion from NetGalley.*********************

Elle Kennedy's books are so addictive and I think this was my favorite of her Avalon Bay series! The characters are so sweet even as they decide to be "just friends," and it was so funny when Tate agreed to help Cassie find a summer fling as if they weren't perfect for each other! How the family drama resolves was so dramatic but also so heartfelt! I also loved seeing the other characters from the series (no spoilers) throughout this book! It was so fun to read more of their stories!

I would like to thank St. Martin's press and NetGalley for allowing me to read The Summer Girl by Elle Kennedy!

This book instantly transported me to the beach. I felt as though I could picture the entire town as I was reading! I will admit that prior to this books - I had not read the other two Avalon Bay books. Even still, I feel like it didn't take anything away from the story and made me want to read the rest of the series even more!

4.5⭐, 2.5🌶️

This is my favorite of the Avalon Bay series EASILY! It was a friends to lovers romance, with added depth with Cassie's relationship with her mother and father. I loved the previous couples' popping in throughout this book, and this just was a very entertaining summer romance.

We all know that Cassie's mom is traumatic and villainous in this story, but what isn't addressed as much is how awful Tate's mom is as well. Her guilting Tate into handling matters of her marriage made me so angry. Deal with your husband like a grown woman, don't make you son fix your marriage. UGH! This was honestly the only qualm I had with this book that felt unaddressed with me.

Tropes:
💛 Friends to Lovers/ Fling Romance
💙 Summer/ Beach Romance
💛 Character Series
💙 Dual POV
⚠️CW: On page emotionally abusive parent

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an eARC of The Summer Girl, written by Elle Kennedy. This is my honest review!

The summer girl was a great conclusion to this super fun series. I loved getting to revisit some of my favorite characters and the main character of this book was so spunky and fun. The steam/spice level was great and I flew through the pages. Highly recommend!

Loved the third installment of the series!! Although this is an interconnected standalone - Tate and Cassie were definitely my favorite couple in the series. I don't always love family drama, but think it worked well with this.

We're back in Avalon Bay and I was so excited for it! This quick beachy read is perfect for the summer. We love a forced proximity and the great banter. I loved the characters' development even if I was not a fan of the third act. This a great standalone but it does have character mentions from the previous books just in case you want to pick those up first! I overall enjoyed it.