This was a sweet romance, and I love that Annabel Monaghan writes main characters with real lives. This one was missing a bit of the spark of her first two novels for me, and I got a little bored in the middle, but I still enjoyed it.

I received this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This is such a good one! Funny and sweet. Don't hesitate to read it.

I was disappointed by this one and I had been looking forward to it so much because I loved Nora Goes Off Script.

Ali is in the middle of a divorce and is dealing with the death of her mother. She's found herself on autopilot. Ethan is her friend's brother she knew in high school, yet she doesn't recognize him on their first date. Everyone has low expectations of Ethan due to his behavior in high school, even though he's doing well.

Due to Ethan being in town only for the summer, they commit to a summer romance, but get serious right away and ignore the end of the summer approaching. I was frustrated with them both for just pretending summer would never end and not discussing it like adults.

I did like seeing Ali find herself and connect better with her children. It just didn't feel realistic and the miscommunication could have been easily avoided.

I absolutely loved this book. Admittedly it took a little to get into, but I think that was my fault for reading like I was sipping room temperature water rather than enjoying a glass of cool lemonade in the summer because when I really dove it & committed to reading this book I was drawn into to Beechwood & Ali’s world. Absolutely wonderful & enjoyable beach read, but not light & fluffy. It has just the right amount of lightness & depth.
Monaghan paints such a beautiful picture of real life, grief, recovery, & second chances. I have heard great things about her writing but this was my first book of hers, but it won’t be the last.

SUMMER ROMANCE 👩‍👧‍👦💗🏡

4.5 STARS ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Annabel Monaghan has recently become one of my favorite authors - Nora Goes Off Script is a FAV of mine and this one did not disappoint! Ali - a newly divorced mom of three, who is also grieving the loss of her mom, finds out what it’s like to put her self first. Ali & Ethan’s love was a picturesque summer romance - and her character from the start to the end of the book sat so well with me. She showed her kids how strong and independent she could be and finally stood up for herself. Although I am not in these situations currently, Ali was still such a relatable character and I had many laugh out loud moments. 🤣

📆 Summer Romance comes out June 4th, you’ll defenitly want to bring this one to the beach this summer.

🫶🏻Thank you @netgalley for this ARC - there’s nothing better than reading a book in two sittings.

READ IF YOU ENJOY: Nora Goes Off Script📚 by Annabel Monaghan or Beach Read by Emily Henry📚

📚2024 Book 14/52

#summerromance #annabelmonaghan #bookstagram #books #booksbooksbooks

I so thoroughly enjoyed this book! I loved how Ali “finds herself “ again after losing her mother and filing for divorce. Both such huge losses in life that can effect you in such harmful ways- Ali rises above, rebuilds, rediscovers herself and chooses a vibrant life again. Sweet sweet book 💕

I thoroughly enjoy Annabel Monaghan’s books. They are the perfect escape. She creates a beautiful world of characters flaws and all. They are filled with heart and she pulls at my heart strings every time and I wouldn’t have it any other way! .I enjoyed this book immensely and will recommend it to everyone.

I am a big fan of Annabel's romance books! She has relatable struggles and I adore that.

I really appreciated the topics on divorce, shared custody, dating, and finding a new life (as a mom). I loved Scooter/ Ethen but Ali bugged me in her inability to meet him halfway and he seemed to give more throughout the story? Their attraction was cute and very fun to read with an understandable reason to only have a summer fling.

This was an easy and fun summer read!
3.5 stars rounded up

I loved this book so much!! Generally I don’t like to read about failed marriages but this book gives a happy ever after. Ethan (nickname Scooter which is also my nickname from my dad!) is such a great MMC. So kind and sweet and willing to let Ali choose the way things go. I definitely resonated with Ali, having lost my mother and understanding her grief.

Can’t wait to read more of Annabel’s books!

Thanks NetGalley for the ARC

4 stars
-summer romance
-best friends younger brother
-he falls first
-small 3rd act break up
-single mom
-death of a loved one
-found family

Book was so cute! Very fast paced. I find it hard to believe that Ali didn't know her best friends brother name was Ethan but I'll let it slide.

Ethan (Scooter) is in love with Ali as a kid and Ali never paid him any attention. But he's back in town for a summer romance.

In Summer Romance, we meet Ali Morris, who has had a rough time since her mom died two years ago. Then a year ago, her husband Pete left. She's a professional organizer who is struggling to balance her own 3 kids and a dog and her not-quite-ex-husband all while she's still grieving her mother.

In short, she's a mess.

As her friend Frannie likes to remind her, she hasn't put on 'hard pants' -- pants with a zipper -- in quite some time. But she's determined to move forward. She puts on a pair of hard pants (well, overall, but it's a start), and takes off her wedding ring. That very afternoon, she meets someone when her dog pees on his leg.

But wet sock and all, Ethan smiles are her and the spark of her summer romance has begun. As they get to know each other, Ali is reminded to be the architect of her own experiences.

There's so much depth and growth in this book. I thoroughly enjoyed Ali & Ethan's journey!

4.5 Stars!

This was a great beach read. I loved how the characters seemed very real and realistic. Their relationship was very cute and not forced. I also loved the divorcee storyline. Super cute.

I really enjoyed this book. I felt like it was an easy, simple read, and it reminded me of summer having the water lap at my feet. This romance didn't seem too goofy, and the characters handled complications and grief in a realistic way that didn't make me want to pull my hair out. The only thing that could make this book better would be me reading it by the ocean (and maybe the ending being wrapped up very quick). I will definitely give another one of the author's books a try! Thank you again NetGalley for the ARC to this book!

This book deserves more than 5 stars. I loved it so much, I hated for it to end. Annabel Monaghan creates such relatable female leads, and Ali Morris in Summer Romance is no different. Grief and parenting tweens are difficult topics, but this book handles them in such a gracious way. It’s just a wonderful book that I’m sad I’ll never be able to read again for the first time.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️!!!!!!! I have read several of Annabel Monaghan‘s novels and LOVED them all!!!
I couldn't put the book down, devouring each chapter in one sitting. Overall, this was such a fun, enjoyable, and light read, and I would highly recommend!
Ali is still reeling from the death of her mother two years ago and her impending divorce when she happens to meet Ethan, a total angel of a human for which she starts a summer fling. But is it really just a summer fling or will it become something more? You must read to find out!
Thank you to NetGalley and
PENGUIN GROUP PUTNAM/ G. P.
Putnam's Sons for sharing this book's digital reviewer copy with me in exchange for my honest thoughts.

How does Annabel Monaghan always leave me so sad that I've come to the last page of her books? Don't end, I want to say, keep the story going! As with Nora Goes Off Script, in Summer Romance, Monaghan has created characters you root for and want so much to get their HEA. Warm and infused with heart, Summer Romance is the 2024 must-add novel to any romance reader's TBR pile (though put it right at the top!).

Five stars. Annabel Monaghan does it again.

Ali is rediscovering herself as she navigates the loss of her mother, divorce, and single parenting; and along comes a second chance at love…

It’s called Summer Romance which feels sparkly and care-free, but summer always comes to an end, and I think the pain and longing of that was captured perfectly. In the same way, grief is beautifully woven throughout the story, “because that’s what life is–joy peppered by loss.”

I smiled, I swooned, and I ugly cried. Everything I could ever hope for.

I ate this one up in just a couple days, and the love interest was everything to me. This is going to be the beach read of the summer!

Thank you Penguin Group Putnam and NetGalley for the e-arc!

This book was so good. It was a little slow at the beginning but after Ali and Ethan’s first date it really picked up. I am def going to recommend this to all my customers and friends this summer. The perfect beach read.

I have to start with the fact that I can’t believe this is the first book of Annabel Monaghan’s I’ve read! I have two more of her books on my TBR list and will be moving them up! I liked the overall vibe of this book. A woman who lost herself to the titles of mom and wife. I feel like that is easy for a lot of us to relate to. To add in the extra layer of grief over losing her mom just sets to scene for what Ali’s life looks like. Enter her childhood friend’s little brother who has had a crush on her since he was a teenager. I didn’t find her not recognizing him as totally believable. The only thing that really bothered me about the book was how quickly she fell in love with Ethan. But that was the whole premise of the book so their story had to wrap up somehow. All in all, it was a great read! The story flowed and the characters were likable.

What a delightful story this is! We are still living our best winter lives and yet this novel transported me to the beginning of summer. Warm sun. Refreshing breeze. Cool water. And carbonated love.

Ali is a bit of a mess - feeling the grief of losing her mother two years prior and then the life she was once a participant in when her husband Pete tells her he wants a divorce. A newly single mother of three kids - Greer, Iris, and Cliffy - she meets a very attractive fella at the start of summer. It was supposed to be a cute summer romance. A getting back in the saddle affair. A reason to wear hard pants. But what happens between Ali and Ethan became more than that.

I loved the sensory experience- the backyards, pools, cookouts, picnic tables set with blue and white checked tablecloths, the lobster rolls, the smell of old books at Phyllis’s house, saltwater air, wet sand, pouring rain. This book *felt* like such an experience of its own.

Summer Romance reminded me of a high school love, summers spent as a carefree child, and how disturbingly easy it is to lose yourself.