Oh how I've missed Avalon Bay <3

Elle Kennedy does it again. Another sweet and spicy little romance in a quaint little beach town with the perfect amount of romantic build up and lots of humour scattered throughout.

Cassie was super sweet, and her self esteem issues were easily forgivable once the reader was able to meet her monster of a mother. It was hard not rooting for her as a FMC. She was funny, sweet, caring, and even though she had a hard time standing up for herself it was nice watching her back bone grow in as the story progressed.

Tate on the other hand was a well known playboy but my goodness he is one of the sweetest MMC's I've ever read. His 'perfect' parents raised a great kid and it was so nice seeing him help break Cassie out of her shell and slowly break down his own walls. At one point he shed LITERAL tears while listening to Cassie share her emotional traumas. TEARS. What an angel.

Lydia Tanner is the GOAT and I would do despicable things to have her as my own grandmother, but Victoria on the other hand was a horrendous beast. I understand her purpose to the story but she was horrid to read about. Even when she went on her nice streak I just had the feeling that something bad would happen and I was not wrong. Monster.

This is one of the odd cases where the FMC and the MMC don't necessarily do anything wrong to cause their demise, and as sad as it made me I completely understood given the circumstance.

But not to worry dear readers, this has a HEA after all !

I will forever be obsessed with Kennedys ability to make me fall for characters. I don't think I've read a single book of hers where there wasn't been a smile plastered to my face. I want to live in Avalon bay even though I don't know the first thing about sailboats and I hate hot weather.

4.5 ⭐️

Thank you NetGalley and St Martins Press for the early copy!
Can't wait to add this one to my shelf :)

4.25⭐
Genre ~ New Adult Romance
Series ~ Avalon Bay, #3
Others in the series ~ Good Girl Complex, Bad Girl Reputation ~ fine as a standalone, but previous book characters make appearances
Publication date ~ July 18, 2023
Page Count ~ 392
Audio length ~ 12 hours 9 minutes
Narrators ~ Caitlin Elizabeth, Teddy Hamilton
POV ~ dual 1st
Featuring ~ characters in their 20's, play boy, virgin, neighbors to lovers, friends to lovers, summer fling, minimal steamage, side character infidelity, toxic parent

Cassie & Tate
Cassie is on break and spending the summer with her grandma, Lydia. I love reading about grandmother/granddaughter relationships. They had a great bond and it makes me miss my grandma.
She's a virgin and looking for a summer fling to gain some experience. Who better than the gorgeous guy that is house sitting right next door.

Tate is known as a playboy and doesn't do relationships, so it seems like a no brainer to accept Cassie's proposition for a summer fling. But he has reservations when he gets to know her because she just doesn't seem like the fling type to him.

These two were really cute when they were together. They had great banter and chemistry, and were both so sweet. I really liked seeing Tate's emotional side and Cassie's big news at the end was perfect.

The 20 year old side characters were more mature than one of the adults. She was so mean to Cassie, and really everyone around her. Did I like the 3rd act breakup? Nah, I never do, but I can kind of see why it had to happen, but did I need the side plot that caused it? Not really.

Overall, this was good fun and my favorite of the series.

I was fortunate enough to have a kindle and an audio copy.
Narration notes ~ Caitlin's voice sounded perfect for her 20 year old character. I've listened to Teddy narrate many times and it doesn't appear that he's worked on his lady voice, oof.

So this was my first read by Elle Kennedy and now I cannot wait to read more of her books! It was a fun, summer beach read, and I loved it! Cassie goes back to Avalon Bay for the first summer in years. Her grandmother is selling the boardwalk hotel and moving to Boston to be closer to the family, so this is Cassie’s last chance to spend the summer in the Bay and have a summer fling. On her first night she meets her first fling candidate - Tate Bartlett. Tate is an adorable nice guy and all the girls love him- as soon as he meets Cassie he tries his best to friend-zone her. I really loved the main characters. Cassie has been through a lot in her life as a result of her parent's divorce and her mother's nasty tendencies. She has built up walls to protect herself from the neglect and insensitive comments, but, Tate helps her find her strength to finally stand up for herself. I also loved the relationship between Cassie and her grandmother, Cassie's relationship with her twin sisters was too cute!

I've been enjoying reading the Avalon Bay series and so was really excited to get an advanced copy of The Summer Girl from netgalley! I won't say this was my favorite book in the series but I did enjoy reading it and I loved seeing familiar characters from the previous books. Cassie is back in Avalon Bay for the summer for the first time in years. Her grandmother is selling her house and hotel which makes this Cassie's last chance to spend the summer in the area and she is hoping to find the perfect candidate for a summer fling before returning to school. She thinks she has found the perfect guy for the job, Tate Bartlett. Tate, while no stranger to no strings attached hookups realizes that Cassie is not the kind of girl to play those kinds of games with so instead agrees to be her wingman and help her find the perfect candidate for a fling. Despite his best efforts to put Cassie in the friend zone, he finds that his attraction to her is becoming difficult to ignore. Aside from the romance, this book also highlights the struggles each character has within their family dynamics and worked to make the story more interesting. Overall this was a fun read and I look forward to reading more from Elle Kennedy in the future.

💭 𝕄𝕪 𝕋𝕙𝕠𝕦𝕘𝕙𝕥𝕤:

⛵ Another first author for me. Though I thought this story was really really cute, I'm not sure it was for me. Reading about people (though fictional) who were 15+ years younger than me, just didn't compute. I know this is a generational thing so no knocks on Elle for that it just had too many vulger references and language for me.

⛱️ I had always wanted to read a book out of a series on it's own so I did that here and I think this book can definitely stand on it's own. Maybe if I had read the rest of the Avalon Bay series, I would have enjoyed it more. A thought for the future.

🩴 I liked the Summer feel of this book. I definitely did have that feeling that I did want to keep picking the book up. Tate and Cassie were fun characters.

Unfortunately Summer Girl is not a book I would recommend. I was excited to read it since I had recently read The Deal by Elle Kennedy, and enjoyed it. However, I found the characters were underdeveloped and I didn't really connect with them. Even the side characters, who had their own books previously in the series, felt incredibly one dimensional and unlikable in this book. Initially the characters were not supposed to date, and I felt the reason for that was so flimsy it didn't make sense. Later, there was a lot of time dedicated to some beach competition that I just did not find engaging or care about. I did like that the main male character seemed largely unproblematic and like a good person. I would give Elle Kennedy another try but I wouldn't necessarily recommend this book.

Cute, silly, and fun. Didn’t LOVE it but I can definitely see the appeal and I know Elle Kennedy has some major fans out there! Summer Girl is consistent with the rest of the Avalon Bay series

I was enjoying the Avalon Bay series before, but WOW this one is officially my favourite, and one of my favourite reads of this year.

Cassie is back in Avalon Bay for the first summer in years. Her grandmother is selling the boardwalk hotel and moving to the city, so this is Cassie’s last chance to spend the summer in the Bay and hopefully find herself a summer fling. On her first night she meets the person fling candidate - Tate Bartlett. Tate may be no stranger to a fling, but he is a really nice guy- and the moment he meets Cassie he knows she is not the type to play games with. Although Tate tries his best to friend-zone her, Cassie is hard to ignore.

This is the type of book you can read in one sitting, and I almost did- till real life gets in the way. I adored the character in this book. Tate and Cassie have so much chemistry and their adorable banter and nicknames, just made it even more better. Although some of the language made me cringe a bit, and the word ‘fling’ was used sooo much, I still couldn’t keep myself from smiling during the whole duration of this book.

This book doesn’t only have romance, I feel the struggles with family dynamics was written really well, and I really enjoyed reading familiar characters from the other Avalon Bay books.

Overall I wish this book could have been twice as long, because I enjoyed it so much.

Thank you NetGalley & St. Martin’s Press for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest opinions.

3.5 stars
I have read every one of the Avalon Bay series and every single one of them were just average. I like small town romances and the way characters weave in and out of all the books, but the books as a whole don't impact my life in any way. They are entertaining enough to hold my attention but not enough to really hold any substantial opinion.

Okay its fun... but very silly. A bunch of very young kids (college age-ish) whose personalities are based off of boobs and how much they like boobs. Immature dialogue... it felt like they were kids trying to talk about sex the way they think grownups should talk about it. The conflict at the end of the book was ridiculous and that whole character was overdone.

There was not quite enough world building for me in this cute beach town, and the characters lacked depth. And yet.... yet... I didn't mind it overall. It was fun. What can I say?!

“The need to belong is deeply ingrained in us. I think it’s because there’s no worse feeling in the world than being on the outside looking in.”

The Summer Girl by Elle Kennedy
Pub Date: July 18th, 2023
Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟(5/5)
Spice: 🌶🌶🌶(3/5)

Review:

Cassandra Turner grew up in Avalon bay until her parents messy divorce. She then moved to Boston with her narcissistic mother. But this summer she decides to spend the summer back in the bay with her grandmother and looking for a fling.

Tate Bartlett moved to Avalon bay from Georgia when he was 10. He has his crew, his summer jobs, and his hook ups all lined up for the summer. That is until Cassie catches him being broken up with at the start of summer party.

Wow. Elle Kennedy is a genius writer. This was my first Avalon bay book but now I MUST go read the other two. Without spoiling too much Cassie and Tate are the perfect fling but feels grow and it just feels so natural.

This book is an easy beach read. Would have finished it in two days if I was on the beach. Makes me want to take a trip to Avalon Bay!


If you like:
- Sailing
- Split Perspectives
- Summer Flings
- Sea (beach) Reads

QOTD: What is your favorite beach destination?

Thank you to Net Galley and
St. Martins Press for proving me with an eARC of this novel.

Cassie is ready for a summer of fun. She’s on the hunt for a fling, but instead she meets Tate: dreamy, gorgeous Tate who she quickly shares a kiss with. But Tate is quick to tell Cassie he can’t be what she needs, until wing-manning for her turns into jealousy and he realizes he was wrong.

Cassie and Tate are cute if not a bit cringe. I wish they were a little older, as the story felt really young at times (aside from the spicy moments). Regardless, the story was a cute summer beach read. I haven’t read the other books in the series but it didn’t cause any confusion and I liked seeing glimpses of those characters in this story.

By far, this is my favourite book out of the Avalon Bay series. I really enjoyed Cassie and Tate's relationship and it had all of the tropes I really look for and enjoy in my romance novels. Friends to lovers, forced proximity (they were neighbours!) and banter. The family drama was unexpected but I enjoyed it nonetheless.

I devoured this book, I didn't realize this is book 3 in Elle Kennedy's Avalon Bay Series but I am excited to dive into the previous two books and get to know the characters of Avalon Bay even better.

This is the perfect beach read, it is fun, flirty and just the right amount of spicy. It delves into a lot of complex family issues e.g. a narcissistic parent, infidelity and divorce which may be triggering for some readers. I really loved the main characters, Cassie and Tate. I found them both to be very genuine and vulnerable. Cassie has been through a lot in her life as a result of her parent's divorce and her mother's narcissistic tendencies. She has worked hard to build up walls to protect herself from the neglect and insensitive comments, however, Tate helps her find her strength to finally stand up for herself and know her worth.

Being the third book in a series there were a lot of relationships which I assume were established in the previous book but The Summer Girl can absolutely be read as a stand-alone. I absolutely loved the relationship between Cassie and her grandmother, Cassie's relationship with her sisters was equally adorable.

This was a very enjoyable read and I can't wait to read more from this author. I loved that she didn't shy away from complex issues but handled them with such care.

When it comes to beach reads, I’m the kind of person who wants something that will charm me. I essentially want a fizzy Taylor Swift song in book form: meet-cutes and banter and sparks and swoons – but also some spice and drama for good measure.

And I am extremely pleased to say that The Summer Girl fits the bill exactly.

The story follows Cassie, a rising college senior who is spending the summer with her grandmother and looking for a fling, and Tate, the local golden boy and town playboy who somehow never breaks a single heart. I related hard to Cassie’s social awkwardness and rambling ways, and absolutely adored Tate – he may be a blond, but you’ll love him anyway.

While this book is largely a swoony, sexy, summer neighbors (!!)-to-lovers story, there is a dose of family drama, as Cassie’s mom is a textbook narcissist, and Elle Kennedy highlights the mental and emotional labor that dealing with a narcissist takes on everyone around them – but especially their family.

Though The Summer Girl is the third book in Elle Kennedy’s Avalon Bay series, it definitely can be read as a standalone – and honesty, I think it’s my favorite of the series.

It’s cute, it’s fun, it has banter and sparks and spice. All in all, it’s what I’d call a perfect beach read.

4.75🌟
2.5🌶️

If you enjoyed The Score from her Off-Campus Series, you'll also probably resonate with this one, at least for me Tate and Dean were cut from the same cloth. The banter between our two character's is witty and funny with a small dash of dry humor and the attraction and heat between them is so captivating I could not put this book down. She really is starting to hit us with the "I did NOT see that coming" and I honestly love being totally surprised. I really felt Cassie's relationship with her dad was so on par with my experiences, we really unlocked some emotions within myself, and just once again proving how well thought out and written these characters are. I also really enjoyed that we got little glimpses into Cooper and Mac, and Evan and Gen as little nuggets that really felt like you were totally immersed back with the group. As a whole, I always love Kennedy's writing, she makes it so easy and enjoyable which is why I'm such a huge fan of hers. She get's me every time with how easily relatable situations and reactions are, the characters growth and feelings, and the genuine laughing out loud banter between the two reminding me of my own relationship often times, so it's pretty obvious, The Summer Girl was easily and happily another Elle Kennedy book that I really adored.

THE SUMMER GIRL - ELLE KENNEDY
4⭐
PLOT - Cassie Soul comes to Avalon Bay to spend an entire summer with her grandmother and ring in her 21st birthday with her estranged father and his family. She wants to enjoy her summer by finding a summer fling she meets Tate who is a known player but in meeting Cassie he refuses to be her fling as she is not those sorts and puts her in friend zone but theri mutual attractions makes it impossible to ignore. To add to this is their respective family drama for when secrets unfold their relationship may not survive.
MY THOUGHTS
I hv read both the previous books in the series but this can be read as a standalone and i enjoyed it the most.
I loved the whole small town business owners competition with various beach activities. Tate and Cassies friendship turned attraction and there is quite a bit of steam too. I enjoyed Cassies character development was really good and her final interaction with her mother who kept demeaning her. The last bit of family drama was a bit too much for me but overall it was an enjoyable beach read this summer.
Thank you Netgalley and publishers for this arc in exchange for my honest review.

This is the third book in the Avalon Bay series and, therefore, the third Elle Kennedy book I've read. I have really enjoyed this series - very light, very steamy, simple and predictable story lines, fun characters. I think this one might have been the most predictable, although there was a twist at the end I didn't see coming. I honestly think the book could have done without it? But no question this one kept me reading. If you're looking for a fun beach romance, consider this one!

One of the many things I liked about Tate and Cassie's relationship is they challenge each other to be their true selves rather than being the versions of themselves other people want them to be. I also really enjoyed they each gave the other a nickname they couldn't stand.

Friends to Lovers
Her First Time
Neighbors
Spice/Love Lessons
Summer Fling

Elle’s Avalon Bay series is the perfect summer romcom you’ll want to take along and read on vacay.

Out of the three books in this series, I must say this is my least favorite—but enjoyable nonetheless!!

3.5/5 ⭐️