This book is a simple, summery young adult read. It is nothing groundbreaking or new, per se, but it was nice and it was interesting. It has all the components for the classical young adult angsty vibe: the characters are still growing and discovering themselves, there are lots of tension and fighting and making up between them and ultimately there's a cute love story.

What really differentiates this book from similar novels is the representation: the MC is black, disabled (she has cerebral palsy), and bi, and in her friend group there are quite a few POC.

This is an absolute gem of a book and a perfect summer read with a good balance of summer joy and romance. It also has awesome disability representation and it’s not the whole meaning and plot of the story.
Andrea has always been in love with her best friend Hailee but doesn’t think Hailee knows or feels the same way about her. On her summer “Best Vacation Ever” list she has added to fall out of love with Hailee so as to not ruin or lose her best friend.

Thank you to Netgalley and Levine Quierdo for the ARC!

- this is a really simple, fun summer read! If you’re looking for a quick read for a summer weekend or vacation, this would be perfect!
- The relationship arc was predictable, but it still felt fun to read it. I think my biggest issue with this book was that it didn’t really stand out to me.
- the conversations about disability were really well done. I haven’t read many books with a main character with cerebral palsy, so it was interesting to see how Andrea navigated being a teenager with a disability.
- I think the being in love with your best friend trope is better when you get a bit of time to see them being friends, but this one through some conflicts into the relationship quicker than I’d usually like.
- it was a great book for audio to keep going through the slower parts.

This book was such an amazing feel good listen. The narrator was wonderful and did an amazing job at projecting all of the characters. Her voices fit pretty perfectly for each one!

It also was so nice to see a healthy family dynamic! Drea and her family are so open with each other and have healthy discussions on life and also what it's like to be black in in their community. think that's so important for the age group this book is targeted at to read or listen to. We need to expose ourselves to other human's live and how their difficulties are not the same as ours. It really helps expand our empathy and this book does an amazing job of weaving that in!

I really really enjoyed this audiobook and I definitely think you will too!

it was cute and I do enjoy bi-representation. there just wasn't anything that stood out to me and seemed like other YA sapphic romance. I enjoyed it though and the narrator!

3.75/5

Thank you NetGalley and RB Media for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own. 

Too many of the friendships in this book were toxic. I get that the characters are young, but they all choose to say the meanest things to each other. So many of the things felt unforgivable to me. It was hard to see them repair the friendships when it didn't seem like any of them were actually friends. I did however love Andrea. I related to the uncertainty she had about coming out and pursuing a relationship with her best friend.

This summer, Andrea and her friends are going to have a blast (and make up for last summer- recovery from surgery for her cerebral palsy). Between concerts, thrifting, and special events, they have a list full of fun times to check off. But Andrea has one list item of her own to check off - fall out of love with Hailee. When she realized her feelings for her best friend were more than platonic, she knew that it could ruin everything. So even if it means dating George, the guy who can’t seem to resist her orbit, she’ll keep this secret promise no matter what.

This book was so sweet - the feelings bubbling between Hailee and Andrea were so tender, and the jealousy of the burgeoning relationship with George was a great conflict that stirred them up even more.

This group of friends is stellar - I love the unspoken understanding of Andrea’s needs and how they are accommodated by her friends. Their relationships are so in tune with each other that the subtle signs of fatigue are noticed and taken into account. I also love that she has a support network of disabled people who understand bad pain days and all that comes with the territory! Andrea has such a robust network, and I loved that her parents make a point of surrounding her with people who look like her. (Seriously though, her parents are great!)

The rekindling of friendship with Olivia was so sweet because it showcased another way that you can’t know what someone is going through by looking at them, or simply being around them.

The ableism that is portrayed is handled extremely well, and Andrea’s support network rallies behind her, no questions asked.

I really liked the narrator, and they did a great job of channeling Andrea’s voice. I was immediately sucked in to this book!

I would highly recommend this sweet, queer summer love story, and loved the disability rep! Whatever Keah Brown writes next, I’m looking forward to binging it!

Thank you NetGalley and RB media for the free ALC in exchange for honest review. I LOVED this story and happy there was a HEA. The representation, the friends to lovers self discovery, friendships, family dynamics felt so authentic and real. These books are super important fir kiddos to see themselves as they grow.

Trigger Warnings: past surgery, past death of a grandparent, ableism

Representation: Bisexual, Cerebral palsy, Black, Chinese-American, HOH

The Secret Summer Promise is a queer, ya contemporary about Andrea Williams. Last summer, she spent all her time in bed, recovering from the latest surgery for her cerebral palsy. She’s waited too long for adventure and thrills to enter her life. Together with her crew of ride-or-die friends, and the best parents anyone could ask for (just don’t tell them that), she’s going to live it up. She has got this, the Best Summer Ever!

There’s just one thing that could ruin it, her best friend, Hailee finding out Andrea’s true feelings. So Andrea WILL fall out of love with Hailee – even if it means dating the cute boy George who keeps showing up everywhere with a smile. Do we want Andrea to succeed? No! Does she? We’re not telling!

What sounded like a cute, easy summer read quickly became a little lacks luster for my personal taste. The story is written well and has some really good representation, but I couldn’t get invested into it. It often feels a bit superficial and immature but I think that’s also because it’s a high school story. I felt like the characteristics of Andrea were very in depth and helped makes the reader want to cheer for her. I also loved the romance. Overall, I think this was great summertime read.