I really enjoyed this book in the Avalon Bay series, it honestly might be my favorite one out of the three. Both Tate and Cassie were beautifully complicated characters who shared a very sweet relationship. Without mentioning any spoilers, I was not expecting the twist! The ending was so well done and did not venture into the corny side as some romance novels tend to do. Elle Kennedy's writing always draws you in and her dual POV in this one is *chefs kiss*.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for an arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book was a win for me. I absolutely fell in love with Cassie from the first chapter because WOW, I could relate to her. She is a little bit awkward, rambles on forever, and is truly kind at heart. She is someone who has a lot of family drama and trauma to navigate in her life, and she does it with grace. I felt such a connection to Cassie's struggles with her relationship with her father, and I was rooting for them the whole time.

Tate is a charming guy, and I couldn't help but love him too. He is warm, welcoming, and such a sweetheart. The way he loves his dogs? OMG. Love him. His love for his parents is so adorable and I relate to it so much.

Overall, do I think their relationship is perfect or one that would last in the real world? No and I'm not sure. But that doesn't matter. Their relationship was full of sweet and funny banter, heartwarming moments, and genuine moments of pure joy. Their "issues" weren't silly or due to miscommunication (which is my least favourite trope), so I was definitely able to connect to them.

To close this off, I just want to give an honourable mention to NetGalley for giving me access to an ARC for this book. I am extremely grateful and all of the above opinions are my own.

I really enjoyed this summertime fling book! Cassie was so adorably awkward with her endless babble but I loved her spirit; her attitude was infectious! Tate, resident heartthrob and player, was the perfect guy to be put in Cassie's path! He was such a support system for Cassie; especially with some of the toxic people she has in her life and especially after the "episode" near the end of the book! These characters are new adults; figuring out life and where they fit in in the world. I truly enjoyed their spunk, their spirit and their journey!

Great book! I think it might have been my fave out of the series! I liked both our main characters and felt that the story developed at a good pace. At first I wasn't sure how I would feel about the story once Cass mentioned that she was a virgin, but it worked with the story. I loved how she grew into a more confident version of herself! Tate was wonderful... No really... I liked the twins, but Tate was a beautifully written character!
But the parents in this story... OMG... I can't get into all the issues with the parents with out ruing the whole book, so I'll just leave it at... It's amazing Tate and Cass are as "normal" as they are, all things considered.

Oops! Elle Kennedy did it again!

I have really enjoyed the Avalon Bay series, and I hope there are more stories in this town.

Sometimes when we get to this point in a fictional world it gets old, or tired. I feel like this was the gem of the series so far. I loved the twins, but Tate was truly it for me. He’s a player, and Cass is a virginal girl going to an Ivy League School, and they start their friendship, turned FWB, turned love as Tate’s current friends with benefits is coming to a close.

I’m typical Elle Kennedy fashion, there is a heavy under current of family issues (girl, are you okay? Is this your therapy because you struggle with your mom? Because girl, same…) I love that we get to hang out with other characters from the series which is truly a series of interconnected stand alone books.

I think summer girl had the right vibes for another beach read. If you haven’t picked up these novels I highly recommend.

Spice level:🌶️🌶️

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This was a strong summer pool read. The spice level was great but did not take over the story in ways that some books do. I felt it to be a little corny and predictable but thats a romance for ya!

No one truly does spice like Elle Kennedy. She has always written the perfect blend of plot and steam where it never overpowers the rest of the book. I will say that Cassie was not my favorite FMC from this series, but I enjoy returning to Avalon bay every time. Elle is always one of my one click authors and she has yet to truly let me down yet. 4\5 stars

Elle Kennedy doesn’t disappoint with this book! I’ve read the rest of the series and they are such great reads. I love the story line of friends with benefits. The perfect amount of drama to keep you wanting to know more!

To be honest, I didn’t really remember Tate too much from the first books so I wasn’t sure how I would feel about this next installment of Avalon Bay. But I’m glad to say I was pleasantly surprised. The formula wasn’t really anything new or groundbreaking but I thought the relationship between Tate and Cassie was very cute and I loved seeing more of Cassie’s grandma Lydia. Another solid summer rom com from Elle Kennedy.

The perfect book to kick off the warmer months and make you long for the beach. It has everything you could want from a summer romance. Small town, friends to lovers, spicy, humor, and chemistry. I absolutely loved this book.

What a great Summer read! I adored Tate's character, and loved the way he loved his family and cared about Cassie. Friends to lovers + built up spice (yes, please!), this book was an easy one to devour and kept me wanting to read more and more.

I read the first two novels in this series (Good Girl Complex & Bad Girl Reputation) before reading this one, but it can absolutely be a standalone and you don't have to read those prior to reading this one.

I enjoyed the development of Cassie's character along the way, and finding her own strength with the support and friendship from Tate throughout. A great read that will have you smiling from ear to ear!

This was a very sweet book, especially compared to the Hartley twins' books! I almost liked it more, the friends to lovers dynamic felt more genuine here.

This is exactly what you'd expect for book 3 in the series, though the drama comes from the family this time around, not the couple. A fun read!

I enjoyed three quarters of this book but the third act conflict totally destroyed it for me. It was completely unnecessary and so out of character. the relationship between the hero and heroine was sweet and I enjoyed their families too (up until the conflict)

I read this as a standalone, having not read any other book in the 'series' and I find it definitely stands up on its own despite the ever expanding cast of characters who come and go throughout this story and whom I'm fairly sure have their own more in-depth stories earlier in the series.

Cassie is visiting her grandmother for the summer and the book opens with her observing a break-up. Try as she might she can't escape undetected and meets the freshly single Tate. Despite her desire to have a summer fling and his want to move on, more than a few obstacles get in their way to them finding one another. Lots of steamy scenes for this young couple paired with sailing adventures, shopping for turtles, family drama and good old summer vacation vibes. This will make a perfect beach read!

I am enjoying this series by Elle Kennedy. I think the first book in the series was my absolute least favorite, but they have gotten progressively better as the series goes on. This is a fun summer read.

I loved the first two books in this series and this follow up was the best thing I have read in a long time. Elle Kennedy is an autobuy author for me every time. This book was incredible.

Every time I come to Avalon Bay, I love it. Elle Kennedy always delivers a world that you can escape to, whether it be with hockey hotties on the outskirts of Boston or beach boys that make you blush.

I was SO excited to know that this was Tate’s story after admiring him from afar in Good Girl Complex and Bad Girl Reputation. He had me swooning at every page turn. I also related a lot to Cassie and reading the heartbreaking way that these two were connected and didn’t even know it was a whirlwind.

This book is perfect if you’re looking for summer romance, Outer Banks vibes, and some Soul searching (see what I did there? ;)) I can’t wait to read her next one!

The Avalon Bay series just keeps getting better and better! This is my favorite yet — Tate and Cassie made me giggle aloud several times over the course of this book. Elle Kennedy has such a way with witty dialogue, and it shone here.

I love a beach read, and this 100% delivered. An A++++ summer romance.

I loved going back to Avalon Bay!

However, Cassie is my least favorite. I was glad to see Tate get a book, but this one was just okay compared to the first two. It felt a bit more juvenile than the others. I felt like there was way too much emphasis on Cassie’s breast size and it was mentioned one too many times. We get it. She’s skinny with DDs.

I did like the character growth they experienced. Overall, I liked it to be able to continue on with the other characters and see how their stories were progressing.

This book was OK. I'm finding it more and more difficult to enjoy these books because they all feel like I'm reading the same book but with some minor plot variations. The characters don't feel all that original and the storyline feels a bit tired and overdone.

I wanted to give Elle Kennedy's writing another shot, but unfortunately, I was left disappointed.

Thank you to the publisher for kindly providing me with an ARC via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.