Thank you net galley for the arc copy of one summer.

Overall I enjoyed, at parts I did find myself getting lost and felt it dragged a little.

It was very sweet

This is a five-star read that the locals would enjoy. This was my first story by the author and I hope not the last, there were parts that dragged a little and it did go on a little at times, but overall I really enjoyed the story. There were a couple of moments that lost me, like the dressed up rat called Maurice that doesn’t really play much of a part, unless I missed something, as he did pop up in parts that could have been shorter. There were some lovely characters in the story, and some that you naturally wanted to hate, much like a certain mudlarker. Lindy did annoy me at times, she needed a shake at times, but then on the flip side she was adorable, and you really liked her. Calab and his story surprised me, it wasn’t what I expected, but did work into the island story, his Nana Betty was great in my eyes, she made the story better. If you like your story short and to the point then avoid this, however if you like your story meandering and sweet then this will be for you.

More like 2.5 stars.

One Summer is an interesting variation on the theme of small-town (small-island?) romance, the quarter-life crisis and the search for one's place in the world. It will especially appeal to animal and nature lovers. And while I had a good time, not everything about this book appealed to me. The beginning is too stretched out. It provides us with too much useless information that has no bearing on the plot and character development. Digging in the mud of the Thames is of little interest to the narrator, so all the more so when presented in this way, it will not interest the reader.

After a tired start on the Thames, the action moves to the island, and it was only here that the plot really interested me. Our dizzy heroine obviously does everything she can wrong, but she pushes the plot forward. From this point on it starts to get quite entertaining and enjoyable. Admittedly, we are halfway through the book, and the promised romance on the horizon is lacking, but this is made up for by the multitude of strange islanders. The next part of the book alternates between the heroine's absurdly funny interactions with the islanders and Loor's descriptions of beauty. The characters are really well written, the dialogues entertain or make you think. But where is the romance? At 3/4 of the book I had to go back to the description to see who was the main love interest here, because it was hard to tell.

I had a really good time, but this book should have been stripped of 30% of the text at the beginning in favor of a more elaborate ending. At this point I don't know what it was entirely about, several plotlines were started that seemed equal and overshadowed the romance. Is it a book about finding oneself? Or maybe about discovering a quiet life away from the city? Or maybe still a gentle ecological manifesto? I personally enjoyed most the plot of the small local community and the interactions of the islanders. The stories of their lives were interestingly woven into Lindy's story. The atmosphere is like that of a small-town romance, but without too much sugar, showing the sometimes bitter life of tourist destinations.

The ending rushed and underdeveloped. I failed to believe in the romance presented here. This element clearly needs polishing. This book is closer to a novel of manners with a minor romance subplot than anything else. Still it was an enjoyable time spent, the story has a great holiday atmosphere and raises some important issues.

A very fun short read to read in one sitting. Its a fun romance, I love the writing, especially the awkward POV of the main character Lindy. I recommend this book for anyone who likes fun short romance stories.

I received this book from the publisher and from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The opinions included here are my own.

This was a very cute small-town romance!! The characters were funny and I loved the premise of the book. I wish the romance was explored a bit more but overall it was a cute cozy read, perfect for an in-between read!!

One Summer - 2.5⭐️

*Thank you to NetGalley and Head of Zeus for letting me read an advanced copy of this book!*

The start of the book really pulled me in with the writing style, and the plotline of the book felt very similar to a lot of books that I’ve read in the past and loved. I was really looking forward to finally get into the story, but I did feel that it was quite slow, and I had to double check that the book was actually a romance as I felt it did lack any romantic elements. I also wasn’t sure as to why it kept going back to her ex, and it seemed particularly focused on him for a lot of the book which did confuse me slightly.
But overall, I did find myself drawn in by the writing style and the short chapters are always something I look for in a book. The characters did feel endearing, and I enjoyed seeing where it was going to go, but only wished there was more of an interaction between the two main characters.

One summer is the perfect fluffy summer romance. The pace is extremely quick and I flew through it in one sitting. The characters were hilarious and the dialogue witty which had me laughing out loud throughout. The female main character, Lindy is extremely likable and you can’t help loving her instantly. The interactions between the islanders reminded me of my own small village/ town and felt extremely nostalgic. However, I did feel that the ending was rushed and the romance went from 0-100 which left me feeling unsatisfied, I would've loved to see the romance continue with the slow burn and to get to see more of Lindy and Caleb's relationship.