This book had the potential to be a five star read for me, but unfortunately a few things brought my rating down. I really liked the angst throughout the flashbacks and present-day sections of the book, and the family dynamics and awkward relationships between Olivia and her sisters really worked for me. I did really like the use of the flashbacks to flesh out Olivia and Fred’s past, but I kept finding myself wondering if the reading experience would have been better with a slightly different structure. Bailey sticks to rigid format where the chapters alternate, with one set in the present and the next set in the past. This means that sometimes you reach the end of a chapter, desperate to keep following the current scene, and then are thrust back or forward into a fairly unrelated scene, before returning to where you were in the following chapter. Sometimes this switching works perfectly, but I just kept feeling that if the structure was a bit more fluid that the story would have flowed a little better.

I did find the romance convincing, and I enjoyed that the characters were all pretty flawed. There is a lot of frustration and communication issues between Olivia and Fred but their passionate dynamic did feel believable. Despite all the stupid choices made by both of them, I did still find myself rooting for them.

The book feels tonally a bit uneven, with the writing sometimes being really compelling but really dragging at other points. I especially found the descriptions of tennis matches began to drag in the second half of the book. The first couple of chapters did feel a little bit heavy on the exposition dumping, but luckily this doesn’t continue too much throughout the book.

Also, as a CW I would be aware that there are a lot of references to the weight of pretty much every female character in the book. This is especially obvious in the first half as this is when most characters are being introduced, and there are some emotionally loaded words used to describe the weight of different women when we are introduced to them. This is not as ubiquitous when different male characters are introduced.

As this was an ARC, there were a few issues which need correction so hopefully these can be fixed before publication:
- “Hey Ya!” by Outkast is accidentally referred to as “Hey, Yeah” on p.58 which was just really jarring haha
- In chapter 31, the embroidered name of the couple is referred to as being both ‘Brian and Susan’ and ‘Brenda and Jack’
- On the first page of the Epilogue, it says “Ann and William” where it ought to say Ann and Wes - this really needs to be fixed for it to make sense

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for letting me read an e-copy in exchange for an honest review.

I overall like this book! The characters are lovable and the character development is great. Would recommend.

Summer After Summer follows the winding love story of Olivia and Fred. Told in alternating past-present chapters, you see Olivia and Fred meet and reconnect every 5 years. Present Day, Olivia is fleeing from her husband Wes after discovering his affair, she must return home to help her sisters and father clear out their family home. before the sale closes at the end of the summer. A wrench is thrown in Olivia's plan when she discovers that the buyer is Fred - her first love and a relationship that comes in and out of her life like a comet every 5 years. We follow Olivia as she returns home and deals with all of emotional baggage being around her family, old friends, and of course, Fred.

This was a very cute and entertaining romance. There were definitely heavier moments, when Olivia and Fred suffer with losses of loved ones and complicated family relationships. I really enjoyed Olivia and Fred's young love and seeing how they change and mature in between each interval. There were definitely times when you just want to shake them and make them communicate better, but I feel like that's the sign of a good book and well written drama! I read this very quickly and one I got about 30-40 percent in, I didn't want to put it down!

A few things that weren't my favorite: We know at the beginning that Olivia and her best friend, Ash, had a falling out at some point, but when actually get around to figuring out what caused it, it felt rushed and like a disproportional reaction to have the response of cutting off her childhood best friends for 5 whole years. Also, it was slightly hard for me to wrap my head around the love interest being named FRED. This is a personal qualm but I just don't think it seemed to fit him very well and made him seem like an old man. Additionally, while I appreciated Olivia's mom's notes and the portrayal of grief in the story, I think the last letter Olivia finds detailing about Sam came out of left field and really didn't end up being important to the story or relationships with her father, sisters, Wes, or Fred.

Lastly, I felt like the ending scene with the house closing/contract/party was rushed and could use a bit more developing. SPOILERS AHEAD: I felt like if Fred knew something was sketchy with the lawyers, he would've been less ambiguous about it throughout the summer since it involves his money too? And Olivia turns into a super sleuth for a few minutes in that scene that don't seem reflective of her character in the rest of the book.

For fans of One Day, One Day in December, and One True Loves - I definitely recommend picking this up. This is the author's first novel and I'm excited to see what else she writes in the future!

I received an ARC of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for the opportunity to review this book!

The synopsis of Summer After Summer got me, I needed a break from the news and everything that is going on in the world CHIC LIT hello! This is a modern romance retelling of Jane Austen’s novel called Persuasion, sadly I do not recall the book well enough to compare, it is not a necessary requirement to enjoy Lauren Baily’s book.
The dual timelines help the story move forward enough to retain my interest, even when I wish there was a fast forward button. Yes, TV has ruined me, I need to slow down and enjoy the story. The setting is beautiful and the characters are likeable with enough depth.
This will be a fun beach read.

Thank you #netgalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This story tells the romance of Olivia and Fred, who meet as teenagers on a beach in the Hamptons and from that point, are set on a course of true (but ill fated) love on and off throughout their lives. It all culminates to a summer in the Hamptons years later, where Fred and Olivia’s stories cross again for a seemingly final will they or won’t they?

This book captured a great many details from Persuasion and in my opinion, I thought accomplished its goal in being a cute modern day twist on the classic story. The dual timelines kept the story moving and propelled it forward enough to retain my interest; there were points where it felt a bit slow and where I wished we could just move forward (this pace definitely worked better for Austen and customs of the 19th century). But, this was a great summer read! There were some points where the writing felt a little at odds with the contemporary flair/writing/references in the story but, it was easy enough to look past. The characters also clearly got in their own way and had me shaking my head a bit but, I get where the author was going with it and where she was drawing from!

Overall, I’d recommend this book for romance fans and for fans of Jane Austen retellings. It made me want to pick up Persuasion again so, that should say something!

I enjoyed the premise but, in execution, it felt rather clunky. I did appreciate the twist ending, the LGBT representation within Olivia's family, and the beautifully descriptive beach setting.

A quick summer read maybe? I enjoyed the book, but I did keep putting it down to read other things. That said, it is a good romantic read about lost love. I loved reading things set in the Hamptons and this did not disappoint.

I’m a big fan of Austen adaptations/retellings. I haven’t been able to find a movie adaptation of Persuasion I’ve liked so I was curious to see if this book would work for me. And it did. This book is split between present time and 5 year chunks of summers where Olivia and Fred interact with each other. It made me sad each time when they just couldn’t get it right and be together. Of course, things work out in the end and I enjoyed the journey it took to get there.

Thanks as always to NetGalley for the ARC.

This was a fun read, but took me weeks to finish. It just wasn’t something I found myself super excited to pick back up. It is well written, but ultimately forgettable

Summer After Summer pulled me in and kept me invested in a quick binge read.

It’s a modern romance retelling of Jane Austen’s novel called Persuasion, which is not one that I’ve read. However, having read some of Austen’s other work I can relate to the angst this one stirred up in me!

We see classic communication issues between the two main characters, but a lot of steam when they come together. That keeps you invested to make it through all the other frustration! Lol. Duo timelines show the past and present relations as the family prepares to sell their massive beach house.

Even though I haven’t read Persuasion, it felt like I’ve read a similar story before. It reminded me of Every Summer After and also had some CoHo vibes.

Overall, this was a solid debut! Many thanks to NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review. Summer After Summer is set to drop on 5/7/24. Just in time for summer and a nice beach read.☀️

This was a quick, captivating read! 3.5 stars rounding it up to 4! I always love reading an author's debut novel and based on this book, I would continue to read her other books in the future.

This is the perfect beach read. From the setting, the activities, the premise and the descriptions, pick this one up when you hit the beach or are stuck inside during winter and wish you were at the beach!

this was a sweet retelling of Jane Austen's Persuasion. Persuasion is my absolute favourite book so its I'm a bit picky. But this was truly fun and enjoyable!

This story starts out during summers in the Hamptons. It is written from the main character, POV, Olivia. It's a love story that feels like star crossed love between Olivia and a boy named Fred she meets when she is 16 and He is 17. The story goes back and forth between the past and the present giving the reader a glimpse of their time together and how their lives have changed every 5 years during summers.
The author does a good job of going back in time and connecting it to the present so that the reader understand the dynamics between the characters. This keeps the story interesting. I Kept rooting for Olivia and Fred to make their relationship work.
I wished it had dual pov because I wanted to know more about Fred's life and what he did when he was not part of Olivia's life.
The story has good flow, however
both of the main characters are exasperating. They dont know how to communicate and the conflict is ridiculous. The miscommunication troupe is unbelievable. If you can move past some of the dialogue and the miscommunication, which at times makes the story feel like is in a loop and not going anywhere, it is still a good story.

Thank you Netgalley and Alcove Press for this ARC.

Great book. An exploration of love timing, life’s what-ifs, and trusting again. Plus a bit of tennis thrown in. A perfect beach read as it explores Summer after Summer..

Summer after Summer is about the relationship between Fred and Olivia. They met one summer as teens and things did not work out. Fate kept bringing them back together every 5 years and each time, once again, things did not work out. Primarily, Fred and Olivia did not communicate with each other and were both too afraid or too stubborn to call each other after the misunderstanding. This novel shows clearly that communication is the key to any relationship. Love is not enough to move a relationship forward. Lauren Bailey included some twists and turns in the novel and also showed how others can interfere in a relationship. I loved this book and could not put it down once I started to read it. I especially liked how she moved from the current year to the previous years of their lives and the lives of her family members. The readers can see how Fred and Olivia changed during those 5 year periods, but still loved each other until the end.

Olivia Taylor, music teacher, former tennis star and recently separated from her husband, has returned to her family home on the beach in the Hamptons. Her father has had some financial difficulties and selling this valuable piece of oceanfront property will allow him to retire comfortably. Olivia is shocked to learn that the buyer of the house is Fred Webb. Fred! The boy she fell in love with the summer she turned sixteen. The college student who wanted to marry her before he graduated. The businessman who followed her tennis career. The man she has always loved. While their attraction is growing, Olivia is dealing with cleaning out the house, preparing for an auction, and dealing with her sisters’ problems. She doesn’t see the danger that lies under the surface until it is almost too late.

Summer after Summer is a slow-moving story that draws you in chapter by chapter. Both Olivia and Fred were frustrating characters. You know they should be together, they want to be together but they just let other things and people get in the way. And each summer they are together is five years apart. This is a charming romance with manipulation, greed and deception thrown in! 4 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley, Alcove Press and Lauren Bailey for this ARC.

thank you netgalley for this advanced reader copy! i devoured this book on a bachelorette trip to the beach because it’s a cozy beach read. set in the hamptons, fred and olivia are entangled in more ways than one, but life continues to get in the way. when olivia is back after twenty years, ready to help her elderly father move, she’s surprised to find fred is the one who bought her childhood home. it was a well written second chance (or fifth chance) story, though the typical “misunderstanding” is utterly frustrating when you know they’re supposed to be together! but in simple, i loved this!

This book should probably have been named Every Five Summers, but for such a happily ever after book, the name is not important. Although there is plenty of unhappiness and wrong matches in the story the reader can't help but keep reading to see if Olivia and Fred (I was not thrilled about his name...) ever get their timing right. Some of the settings are breathtaking (Taylor House, Wimbledon, the winery, etc. and the reader does get the "stuffiness" of the Hamptons, but with a taste of that life. My only complaint with the book is that to succeed at Wimbledon and the tennis pro tour, I think tennis must be a bigger part of Olivia's life than it seemed to be, but that is a tiny quibble. I loved the end of the book--all the ends got tied up.

I was able to read an advanced copy of this book through Netgalley. I was excited to read the book based on the summary of the book. I was only able to get through 8 chapters then I just could not finish. I felt the book was jumping around from character to character and many times I had no idea who was “talking” or who they were referring to.