Im truly so thankful and grateful for this arc! I really enjoyed this, it was fast paced with its short chapters, lighthearted and gave me serious summer vibes! I loved that this is basically Lindy's thoughts like we're in her head I really found her such a fun, likeable character. Loved the enemies to lovers aspect that's always a fave of mine 🙌🏻 the Cornwall coast too - perfection 🫶🏻 I enjoyed watching the growth of Lindy throughout and how she spends the story finding herself and her happy! I'm glad she found her happy with Caleb🥰 Read this is in one sitting, thoroughly enjoyed and would defo recommend reading this cute quick read!

This was actually a rather enjoyable read!

Set on an obscure Cornish island, with a whole host of oddball characters, "One Summer" tells Lindy's story as she navigates her way through her new life house and pet sitting. A charismatic surfer, a grumpy and belligerent stranger, and a the rest of the island's inhabitants leads to a quirky and compelling plot.

Being the super=romantic that I am, I found it just a little too slow burn, with the majority of action happening in the last 20% of the book. My only change would be to extend the latter section of the book and balance the action out more. However, a really lovely read and it would definitely make a rather fantastic TV special!

‘Look at you, happy as Larry,’ she says. ‘The island is already working its magic on you.’

Oh the wonderful island of Loor, how I loved you and the residents!

Taylor Cole is another new to me author, which is always a delight! One Summer takes us on a journey of real discovery for adorable Lindy. After a breakup from her long term boyfriend , a job that wasn’t going anywhere, Lindy applies to be a house sitter on the island of Loor (off Cornwall) for a range of animals - and oh what a range of animals 🐍. There she meets the Loor locals, including Caleb, the next door neighbour. Sparks don’t really set off that well, so it’s quite the slow burn of just hanging out with each other. Caleb has a past too, so he is quite a tough nut and quirky character.

I thoroughly enjoyed this story. It definitely felt like more women’s fiction than romance. It was charming, witty and quite an adventure. The island residents were an absolute hoot, particularly Betty, who is Caleb’s grandmother. This book was pure escapism with some cute animals too, oh Ted 🐶

thank you netgalley, publisher and taylor for this read!

this was brilliantly done, really made me crave that summer sun on the beach. love a sunny romance:)

Okay so very sad but this wasn't really my cup of tea..

I read up until 42% and it just wasn't doing anything for me sadly. It felt a bit bland, not much happening at all.. The story flowed a bit weird and the chapters were sometimes cut mid conversation, which I didn't like.

I didn't like the main character and her thinking just wasn't to my liking. Very pessimistic and very weird? Her mind was all over the place and I didn't like the fact that she was stalking her ex? Just felt a bit weird to me.. There were some fun characters introduced though but sadly this wasn't enough for me to push through.

I still do want to thank you, the publisher, and netgalley for this ARC. And just because I didn't enjoy it, doesn't mean that others wouldn't so I'd still recommend if people don't mind a slow burn!

I need to learn my lesson and not give authors another chance because like 90% of the time I’m disappointed.
The writing style was cringe, the dialogue was not it and it felt like the author knew nothing about social media.
I need to stop being fooled by pretty covers.

I read this book in record time, mainly because I was stuck in an airplane for 5 hours so obviously, reading happened.

This book is extremely fast paced because of its conversational tone and short chapters , its like you are trapped inside the FMCs mind and have to bare witness to her every waking thought, which sounds annoying but is actually extremely funny and wildly relatable.

This book is by no means serious, in-fact I found it really silly at times and light hearted, it was easy to read and didn’t take much brain power, which is sometimes exactly what I need. Its very character focused, one character specifically and the plot is very much sub to the character, which is not a criticism, it worked for this book.

I felt the last few chapters were a bit rushed, it was clear the two MCs were going to fall in love eventually, but I felt the transition was a bit abrupt.

That being said, I enjoyed the ease of this book, it made me laugh and made my plane journey fly by.

A quick, unserious summer read ☀️

This book is a perfect summer read for beside the pool or in your garden where you don't have to fully concentrate on the book.

Lindy lives and works in London. She has a job in publishing but isn’t all that great at it. In fact her boss Scotty has been acting quite rude towards her because she is (in his own words) the problem in this situation. Luckily for Lindy, her great colleague Henry supports her no matter the circumstances.
There's also Max. Who happens to be Lindy’s boyfriend. He’s a mudlarker and digs around in the banks of the Thames. He shows his finds on his YouTube channel. But he also has a job in finance. Unfortunately, Max has been quite the liar. He has been “dating” another woman behind Lindy’s back. The oh so famous Gothic Girl Greta (fellow mudlarker).

Lindy has been going through some rough times. Her job is crap, her (ex-)boyfriend isn’t great. Life is just utter garbage to her.
She moves to the island of Loor in a pinch to take a petsitting job. Taking Max his old cat (Nemo) with her (he had to get rid of the cat cause Greta is deathly allergic to the cat). Where she meets a surfer named Joshua (she and Joshua become peers in the long run). And she meets Caleb. Who makes her regret her decision in the first place cause he's a prick.

Her first encounter with her new home is quite certainly interesting. But I'm not gonna spoil it cause it'll ruin the surprise. But there's Ted. Who sounds like the greatest dog in the universe.

Lindy meets Betty on her first morning. Betty is rather chipper and knows everything and everyone. Caleb happens to be Betty's grandson. And also happens to be Lindy's neighbour.

Lindy actually starts falling for Caleb. After she and him got high on some weed cookies Betty had made, she started to see things in him she couldn't imagine. But her heart is also aching for Joshua… which makes everything just a little complicated.

But it's the ending of this book that will make you question all of your believes about this book. Everything you thought that would happen… well, you were wrong! Greatest plot twist in the history of plot twists!

After a breakup Lindy decides that the London life isn't for her anymore and takes up a summer job pet sitting on the Island of Loor. She takes on this opportunity of free time to find back her love for reading and start creating items for a new Jewellery business.
Everything is going great until she meets her new neighbour Caleb, a former Professional surfer who's trying to build back his life after a career ending injury. When they first meet sparks fly, but not the good kind. As they start to spend more time together thanks to Ted the dog and Caleb's Nan Betty they start speaking to each other.

- Enemies to lovers
- Single POV
- Beach Scenery
- Starting over

This book is a perfect summer read for beside the pool or in your garden where you don't have to fully concentrate on the book. This is the first book I've read from this author and I enjoyed it. I typically read something which has a bit more drama and depth to it so I found myself waiting for the book to 'start' and more to happen but it's just not that kind of book. I did feel at times this book felt like it was on auto-pilot as it didn't have much going on.
I loved the humour that Betty brought to the story and how Ted was made into a big character in the book.

I very much enjoyed this book. The characters felt very original, and interesting, and although it was an enemies to lovers romance, it didn’t felt tiresome or combative as some do. This felt like quite a gentle romance, albeit peppered with expletives so avoid if this will offend you, and there will they won’t they, and the romantic rivals, just added to the mix rather than being too much. My only qualm is that the ending felt a tad unfinished, but otherwise a stellar effort, and I book I can honestly recommend

2 ⭐️

Oof what do I begin with? Sadly, I’ve been so close to DNF too many times…

This book follows Lindy and Caleb who meet on Loor Island and initially clash. As neighbours, they gradually move from distrust to friendship to love, while sharing their pasts over one summer.

Firstly, this book has too many references to Covid… (please, authors don’t do that 😖) Secondly, why does the author finish chapters between conversations?— made it hard to follow the story. This novel is also marketed as an enemies-to-lovers but they have a total of 3 meetings in the first half of the book and not really as enemies lol. And the FMC keeps stalking her ex online the whole book when, suddenly at the 90% mark of the book, she realises she’s in love with the MMC and she’s head over heels over him… make it make sense. There’s barely no romance in this book and the ending was too rushed. Such a cute cover for a story this dull, sorry.

Read if you like:
🏝️ small town in an island.
🏝️ slow burn.
🏝️ they’re neighbours.

Thank you to Head of Zeus and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. One Summer by Taylor Cole will be coming out on July 4th.

“If you're not expecting a kiss, it means the chemistry, the body language, is all off. You have to long for that kiss, yearn for it with every fibre of your being, stop to lean against a wall in a dark alleyway and hope the other person will seize the moment and go in for a deep snog with the stars all twinkling above you.”

Funny lighthearted and sweet romcom perfect for the beginning of the summer season. I felt swept away in the chaotic world of a woman left behind by her boyfriend and with a desperate need of a new beginning. Her life is as chaotic as her personality but she is such a sunshine even when she doesn’t know it. I guess the grumpy sunshine trope in this one felt a bit blurred. Especially since it is a neighbour romance starting when you least expect it and with two people with oh, so different personalities. But I had plenty of fun reading about them. Classic romcom without too much of a slow burn, simply a blossoming feeling that seems not real but then it is, and a classic third act break-up. Absolutely nothing to complain about. And I would also like to add that some side characters made me giggle and laugh multiple times so … it’s great !

“I won't cry. I can't afford to break down. Life is just a series of challenges and I have to rise to this one.”

'Before I met you, I was drowning,' he says.
'You gave me a lifejacket. Let me be yours.'

I didn't love this for a number of reasons.

The first one being that the chapter placement was so weird. It reminded me of children's books or TV episode where something happens so then there is a chapter break or an ad break. I'm used to reading books where a new chapter generally means a change of POV, setting or a time jump and I found the layout of this book quite jarring. It felt like there should have been time jumps where there were none and then other times there were time jumps where it didn't feel like it was needed.

I skim read the majority of the last half of this book because the chapter placement and layout of the book was so weird to me. I didn't love the story line and mostly just skimmed to find out what happened and how.

Others may enjoy this style and story but it just wasn't for me.

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

One Summer by Taylor Cole ☀️🏖️📚

☀️ slow burn
🏖️ small island
☀️ neighbours
🏖️ she escapes the city to house/pet sit on a small island

This is an easy summer read, based on a small island. Lindy escapes London city life after being dumped by her cheating boyfriend. She takes up the opportunity to pet sit on a small island to escape. She meets her grumpy next door neighbour, Caleb, and she starts to realise that she’s beginning to be attracted to him. You learn more about him as the story develops and the reasons why he is that way.

I loved Caleb’s Nan, Betty. She was a great, fun character that added a lot of humour to the story. Ted the dog was adorable and there was a scene that almost made me cry 😢.

There is not much romance and the ending was a little rushed! Overall, I did enjoy this and it’s a nice little summer read.


Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 0/5

#headofzeus #headofzeusbooks #book #booklover #booktok #bookstagram #summer #summerbooks #bookreview #arcreader #netgalley #bookrecommendations

An enjoyable, summery read, though perhaps a bit long and quite slow to start, I almost gave up (sorry!) at the 30% mark but hate to do that to an author so I persisted and I’m really glad I did. The author is talented at scene setting and building believable, flawed characters. There was some confusion briefly over who exactly the love interest was, and I would have loved to see more banter and chemistry between them but their romance was cute. Thanks Netgalley and the publisher for letting me read this,

Sadly this was a DNF for me. I got to read the ARC through NetGalley but unfortunately I did not like it at all.

I do want to explain why because my reasoning might not be what others think.

First off: the main character is depressing/very negative. The first 20-25% (don’t remember exactly) is mostly inner dialogue about her life being boring, sad, how she’s bored in her job but can’t do anything else (just look for a different job then no?), her boyfriend is cheating on her (not a spoiler as the blurb is literally saying who she’ll be dating) and she didn’t see it coming so her life is sad blabla.. okay I get that but whew so negative.. To me this felt like a good start to the story, some back story, reasoning for moving etc.. but it didn’t have to take up a quarter of the book? At this point I wanted to give up already but I thought, let’s read on and give it another chance.

Next: she then moves to an island to go pet sitting. There, she meets the male love interest, however, she also meets a grumpy guy who she interacts with more. I hadn’t read the blurb again when the ARC was approved so I thought the grumpy guy was the main love interest!! Mind you, we’re at 46% right now… The book is supposed to be enemies to lovers/neighbors. It’s not until 46% (?!?!) that we figure out the first guy is her neighbor and thus the main love interest ??? So it’s not until then that they become enemies, because before this point, when they interacted it was friendly???

At this point I gave up because I had already forced myself to get to the 25% point and then again to this point and I just decided that this book was not for me. I don’t know if it’s just bad timing or if this is a certain writing style, so maybe this book IS your thing. Just not for me.

I still want to thank NetGalley and the author and I do hope you have a better reading experience then I did.

Unfortunately I had to DNF this one, I have approached the 50% mark and the story is still being setting up and characters are only just being introduced. Whilst the chapters are extremely short, I don't believe they all need to be there and it forces the story to drag much longer than it needs to. I'm sure the pace picks up as the story goes on however I've no longer got the motivation to pursue and need to focus on other stories I'm excited to read. Beautiful cover though and a lovely premise!

It took me a really long time to get into this. Around 30% I was close to DNF’ing. I am glad I finished it although it didn’t blow me away and the storyline was a bit everything.

I couldn't finish it. Cute summer book but it didn't keep me all that interested. Predictable. I couldn't finish Taylor's summer book last year either. May just not be for me.