This was a great summer read. It was the perfect book to read over my long flight this summer. It was written beautifully and had a compelling story; I would recommend this to a friend!

I thought this was very good and I will have to add this to the shop shelves. Thank you for the chance for us to review.

Six More Months of June by Daisy Garrison is a charming and bittersweet coming-of-age romance that beautifully captures the complexities of friendship, love, and self-discovery as high school comes to a close. The novel introduces readers to two unforgettable characters, Mina and Caplan, who have been soulmates since childhood, despite their differences. Set in the small town of Two Docks, Michigan, the story follows these unlikely companions as they navigate the final months of senior year—where everything seems to change, even as they try to hold on to what they’ve always known.

Mina, a quiet, bookish girl and the valedictorian of her class, has spent her life fulfilling the expectations of others, particularly those of her late father’s family. On the other hand, Caplan is the "golden boy" with big potential but little drive, coasting through life with a laid-back attitude and an aversion to labels. Their close-knit bond, rooted in their shared upbringing in single-mother households on the same cul-de-sac, has always existed outside the constraints of high school cliques. But as graduation approaches, everything begins to shift.

The tension in the novel arises when Caplan’s best friend confesses his feelings for Mina, pushing her into a world of social dynamics she’s never experienced. Mina is suddenly thrust into the world of popularity, a world she’d never imagined she’d be part of, and finds herself at a crossroads. Caplan, whose deep feelings for Mina go unspoken, struggles to maintain the easy friendship they’ve always shared, while Mina is pulled between the comfort of what she knows and the allure of a new life that beckons with both excitement and uncertainty.

Garrison excels in capturing the emotional highs and lows of senior year, from the euphoria of love and possibility to the inevitable heartbreak of goodbyes. The chemistry between Mina and Caplan is palpable, and their evolving relationship is both sweet and complicated. As they each face their futures, the novel highlights the delicate balance between holding on to the past and stepping into the unknown.

Six More Months of June is a heartfelt, reflective read for fans of young adult fiction, especially those who enjoy the emotionally rich storytelling of authors like Carley Fortune and Jenny Han. Garrison’s debut is a beautiful exploration of growing up, the bittersweet nature of saying goodbye, and the transformative power of love and friendship. With a tender narrative and relatable characters, it’s a perfect read for anyone who’s ever wondered what happens when everything—and everyone—you know is about to change.

Six More Months of June is great YA - it was emotional and smart. It really held my attention. Mina and Caplan didn't always make the best decisions, but I felt like I got their motivations. I appreciated that Hollis had a bigger role than just being the bitchy girlfriend who is in the way of the main characters getting together.

I struggled with a couple aspects of the book. I'm not sure why books continue to highlight Harry Potter despite how shitty JK Rowling is. In this case, it could have easily been swapped out for a different series.

Still, really enjoyed this and will check out what Garrison writes next.

An excellent coming of age romance! The book follows Mina and Caplan in their last year of high school and is very reminiscent of their friendship and what their future looks like. A very loaded plot, I was never bored. However, I think an excess of plot lines did hinder the overall story a bit. I would have loved this when I was in high school, but unfortunately reading it as an adult, some of the character's decisions turned me off of them.

This one is a DNF for me at about 25% in. I did not like any of the characters or their actions and would not have this book in a high school library.

Maybe one of the best books I've read this year. The dialogue reminded me of a classic 2012 YA novel. The author did an amazing job incorporating flashbacks to give us the sense of a full life of friendship, but it all felt necessary to the current plot. I worry that people will overlook this book because the cover doesn't scream bestseller, but I hope it finds its audience. I would be interested in reading another book by this author.

I was a bit disappointed. I normally love a friends to lovers romance and I had been in the mood for a good YA romance when I read this, but this was not was I was expecting. What I had been expecting was a romance between two best friends who, despite having feelings at times for other people, had always kind of held a torch for each other and would spend the book fighting those feelings. What I got was a book where the main guy only seemed focused on HIS GIRLFRIEND WHO WAS NOT THE MAIN GILR for the first 60% OF THE BOOK only to seemingly realize that he liked his best friend only when she had decided to move on from him and go on a date (a date he weirdly watched from behind a car). All this to say, I really can’t get behind a romance book where the majority of the book is spent with one of the MCs in a relationship (albeit a toxic one) only to seemingly develop feelings out of nowhere. I definitely didn’t hate the book, it just wasn’t a romance.

With shades of Jenny Han and Carley Fortune, Six More Months of June is a sweet coming of age story, with a friends to lovers angle. The perfect summer book, I sat down to read Six More Months of June and didn't get back up until I had finished it. Touching and funny, Daisy Garrison has put me right back into the moments around my high school graduation and I think other readers will be equally transported.

This was everything I could ask for in a summer read. I enjoyed the story & characters so much!

This book bottled up Senior year summer and gave it to us tied with a pretty bow!

Six More Months of June by Daisy Garrison is a charming read that I'd give 3.5 stars. It’s a heartfelt coming-of-age story perfect for a light summer read. The narrative centers on June’s journey of self-discovery and personal growth, making it relatable and touching.

The book has a mix of high school drama and emotional moments, making it engaging enough to finish in one sitting. The characters are flawed yet lovable, adding depth to the story. While the pacing can be slow at times, the overall message and character development are compelling.

I really enjoyed this friends-to-lovers rom com, and I think many teenagers will, too. Caplan and Mina have been neighbors and best friends since they were kids and their teacher assigned Mina to tutor Caplan in reading. Even as Caplan's remained at the top of the school's social hierarchy and Mina's hovered much closer to the bottom (and subject to bullying from Caplan's friends), their friendship has persisted.

But when Cap's friend Quinn starts to develop feelings for Mina and asks her out, Caplan is full of jealousy, forcing him to realize that he has more than "just friends" feelings for his best friend. And Mina's thrust into the world of the "popular kids," showing her a different high school experience for the last few weeks of senior year than she ever could have imagined for herself.

As prom draws closer, the tensions between Mina and Caplan (and the supporting characters) build to a boiling part until everyone is forced to deal with the fallout.

Because I recommend books to teachers to make recommendations from the front of the classroom, I won't be able to recommend this to my audience - there is a lot of profanity and teen partying as well as a heavy emphasis on sex. But I think students will really like it, and it definitely deserves a place in the YA section of bookstores and libraries.

3.75
This book was so cute and very much a modern The Perks of Being a Wallflower, but in a good way.
I had a very similar experience and feelings while reading JUNE as reading PERKS. This novel goes through real relationships with characters that feel like real people in the same way a warm hug feels

Thank you to the publisher for a ARC copy and to NetGalley for the earc copy

Six More Months of June was a total nostalgia-fest for me, transporting me back to that strange summer between high school and college where everything is tinged by a looming major life change. Doubly nostalgic for me since I spent that summer in Michigan too, and this novel does a great job of depicting a Michigan summer. I enjoyed getting to know Mina and Caplan as they navigated their relationship over the course of the summer. This was a perfect, summery YA novel. It had the right amount of teenage angst and drama mixed with powerful realism. I highly recommend it, especially if you like Jenny Han and Morgan Matson.

GENERAL INFO

Six More Months of June-a standalone

Publication date: 6-11-24, Read 6-10-24

Format: e-Book` and audiobook

Run time: 8:30

Narrators: Georgia Garrison(the author's sister) and Jesse Aaronson

The narrators' voices fit the characters and I could easily tell the difference between all characters. The reading style brought the story to life and the pacing flowed easily with the story. The narration and the author were in sync, and they fit together perfectly.

The audiobook's flow was pretty good. The narrators paused and announced every time a new chapter came. It was told in 1st person with dual POVs from Caplan and Mina. The book had a table of contents which helped me follow along with the e-book and audio.

Setting: Two Docks, MI

🙏🏾Source: Thanks to NetGalley, Flatiron Books, and Macmillan Audio for this ARC and ALC🩷! I voluntarily give my honest review and all opinions expressed are my own.

Genre: YA, Contemporary Romance

Tropes: small town, high school, in love w/ BFF, friendship, single parent, coming of age, opposites attract, mental health, friends to lovers

⚠️SA-mentioned but in the past, drug use, bullying, parental abandonment, death of a parent, grief, suicide ideation

BOOK DESCRIPTION

Synopsis/Plot Summary: Mina and Caplan have been best friends since third grade. Now their senior year is coming to end and both have to decide what they are going to do next. Caplan barely got into Michigan State and Mina has been accepted to Yale. Things get messy when Caplan kisses her forgetting his girlfriend Hollis. Can they remain BFFs or will everything change when they graduate?

Flashbacks: Mina and Caplan go back to when they met and Mina taught Caplan how to read. Mina discussed her father's death and Caplan his father's abandonment.

AUTHOR OVERVIEW

Daisy Garrison-new to me author

PERSONAL OVERVIEW

Overall Rating: 3.5 ⭐

Do You Recommend This Book: yes

Will You Re-read This Book: no

Would You Read More Books by this Author: yes

COMMENTS/NOTES: The YA genre has been hit or miss for me. This one was half and half. There is plenty of angst, struggles with being accepted, and fear of the future. Caplan wanted things to stay the same with all his friends, especially Mina. She went through bad trauma and is still grieving for her father. Caplan got pretty jealous when his friend Quinn wanted Mina, but it pushed him to make a move. Mina had me confused at times because she was a self proclaimed introvert who doesn't like talking much, but kissed Quinn first and wanted to sleep with him. I'm not mad at her wanting to explore her sexuality, but it didn't seem like she was ready. Hollis was the MVP because she stood up for herself, was able to forgive Caplan, and embrace Mina. She admitted she was jealous of Caplan and Mina's friendship, but her and Mina were able to really bond.

The premise of this was really cute. It has good potential, but I didn't love it. Maybe I'm past the YA genre as I grow older, but it was a little too childish for me. I adore the childhood friends to lovers, it's a superior trope. But in this one, it fell short. Unfortunately, I didn't like it and will not be recommending to anyone.

I'm giving Six More Months of June four stars because it was well-written -- I cared about the characters, and I found myself unable to put it down.

HOWEVER, this book is being marketed as a YA, and I feel conflicted about that. I know the Young Adult genre spans a wide range of ages/stages of life, but there's a lot more sex, drinking, and casual drug use than I expected from the synopsis.

Honestly, I found myself rooting for Mina and Cap to stay "just friends," but that wasn't in the cards. Hopefully, they'll both grow up a bit more before their happily-ever-after!

** spoiler alert ** Six more months of June follows two best friends who have similar life tragedies and completely different high school experiences. Mina is a bookworm, nerd, quiet girl who doesn’t have many friends, but the one friend she does have is the best friend you could ever have. Caplan is the golden boy of high school, is popular, quirky, and loved by many. His best friend is Mina☺️ this is a beautiful story about friendship and loving and living and falling in love. But most importantly it’s a story about growth and how important it is to keep turning the page. I really enjoyed this book. And I think it is worth a reread or maybe a million rereads.

TW: parental death/abandonment, implications of SA

Thank you to the publisher for the ARC!

That feeling the last day of school brings: honeyed sunlight and wafts of sunscreen and the way time seems to drip instead of flow, moment by moment, already perfectly formed. The bittersweet and terrifying sensation of letting go of the people and places with which you're most familiar for something entirely unknown. Bottle it all up and you have 𝘚𝘪𝘹 𝘔𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘔𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘩𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘑𝘶𝘯𝘦.

I've read a host of YA romances recently, and somehow, this one felt wonderfully fresh. Whether that was due to the writing style (which I loved), the complexity of the relationships between the characters, or something about the headspace in which I read it, I'm not sure. For me, this book shines most not for its individual elements but for the overall emotion that it evoked. I did find that sex was mentioned somewhat gratuitously throughout, but that was my only real complaint.

I love when books can perfectly encapsulate a feeling or experience, and I think Daisy Garrison succeeded in doing just that. This book made me nostalgic for high school experiences I have not yet had, and appreciative of the memories that I've already made. The perfect way to close out this school year (and I would love to reread this once my senior year rolls around).

I loved this book so much! I could not put it down. SIX MORE MONTHS OF JUNE follows Mina and Caplan, whose years-long friendship has totally transcended their high school's social order. Studious Mina is the class valedictorian, while popular Caplan is a shoo-in for prom king. They've been best friends since third grade, but now, weeks before their senior year ends, everything is about to change. As graduation draws closer, Mina and Cap will learn so much more about their relationships, friendships, aspirations...and maybe even themselves.

This was such a fantastic debut! Daisy Garrison does an amazing job of capturing that moment in time right before high school ends, where you know that so much is about to change in such a short time, but at the same time, you want things to stay the same as they've always been, or maybe you want to be a different person to whoever you were for all of high school. Where you have so much excitement ahead of you, but you still somehow want to hold onto this time. Where you might start seeing some of your classmates in a new light, for better or for worse. While it's been a few years since I was in the same position as the characters, Garrison immediately transported me right back to my senior year and reminded me of all of the different feelings and experiences I had. Mina and Cap were both such complex characters, and both so easy to root for, as individuals and as a couple. I'm usually not a huge fan of the friends-to-lovers trope, but I loved how it was used in this book! I thought Mina and Cap's relationship was so well-developed, the progression from being sort of enemies as kids, to then becoming friends, to eventually realizing that they had feelings for each other. They both grew so much, too—the story tackles some heavy topics, and how these things have impacted their lives, but their journeys are ultimately handled in a satisfying, hopeful way. I also appreciated how all of the characters, including side characters like Hollis (who was a definite fave for me!) and Quinn, didn't fall into the stereotypical high school archetypes—they truly felt like real people, and in general, the characters think, act, and talk like actual teenagers. While SIX MORE MONTHS OF JUNE falls more into the YA/New Adult realm, I think a wide audience of readers will be able to enjoy and relate to this story! I'd definitely recommend it, especially for the perfect summer read. I'm excited to see what Daisy Garrison writes next! Thank you to NetGalley and Flatiron Books for the ARC.