This was a cute and fun summer book that has depth. While on the surface it's an odd pair of women "saying yes" to random activities, the bigger picture of the story really pulled at my heart and made me think about my life.

While I did like the premise of the book, I felt that the first half of the book was spent explaining the books description in greater detail. Additionally I felt I needed to suspend my belief about real life with regard to the characters, Kelley in particular. Her behavior was a little uncharacteristic of what I would consider to be real life. I rated it 3.5 stars because of this.

Overall the book was a good read and I would recommend it if you like reading books that remind you of a Hallmark movie!

I listened to the audiobook of this and liked the narration. It helped to bring the book to life in my mind.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the audiobook to review.

The story follows two women who have always put their careers first, but after a couple health scares pair up together for a summer of yes.

This is a light-hearted easy read, but not memorable. I enjoyed Georgina and Kelsey's unlikely friendship, but the story was very surface level and far fetched so I didn't get hooked in to their connection. There's a romance story line, but even that felt like an insta-love connection and everyone's problems were just swept under the rug.

I do like the underlying message to say yes and try things that scare you, so I'd recommend if you want a light summer read about friendship and taking chances. I recommend the audiobook format as the narration was good.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the complimentary copy.

Wow! This book was so profound and thought provoking and not at all what I was expecting! I loved it! Loved the authors note at the end and this is definitely something that is going to stick with me for a long time. It has definitely inspired me to say yes more and live my life to the fullest! I would definitely recommend this one!

Kelsey wakes up in a hospital after being hit by a car and inspired by her dying hospital roommate Georgina decides to try and live her life with less regret by saying “yes” more and truly living her life. She teams up with Georgina to take a road trip that will truly change both of their lives for the better.

“Sometimes you’re so busy writing other people’s stories that you lose the plot of your own.”

I thought The Summer of Yes was a heartfelt journey from the perspective of two women on different paths that collided by chance. Georgina and Kelsey may lead entirely different lives, but they are precisely what the other needs to push them out of their comfort zone.

This book was filled with unlikely friendships, dual POV, second chances, and light romance. The audiobook narrators embodied their characters perfectly.

3.75/5 ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

Thank you to Net Galley, Thomas Nelson Fiction, and HarperCollins Christian Publishing for the audio ARC to review.

#TheSummerofYes #NetGalley

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4/5)

𝑴𝒚 𝑻𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒔:
This was such a fun summer beach read!! As someone who herself has taken part in a 'Summer of Yes' - summer of 2014 - I know how great it can be to just step outside of you comfort zone and just say yes to everything! (with some exceptions of course lol)

I really enjoyed reading this book! The characters were all so fun to read, and the banter between Kelsey and Georgina was perfect! It really made me appreciate how their relationship grew and changed over the course of the book. I think the part that I loved the most, was how both women taught each other valuable life lessons, and they each grew personally throughout the story.

Overall, this was such a great and perfect summertime read. 'The Summer of Yes' is the perfect 2024 summer read.

𝑹𝒆𝒂𝒅 𝑻𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒊𝒇 𝒀𝒐𝒖 𝑳𝒊𝒌𝒆:
- Books with Character growth
- Romance stories which make you smile
- Road trips

𝑾𝒊𝒏𝒆 𝑷𝒂𝒊𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈: 2020 Rosé - Ravine Vineyards🍷

Thank you Harper Collins Publishing, Thomas Nelson Fiction and NetGalley for both digital and audio ARCs of this book, in return for an honest review.

“You’ll never be happy if you listen to what everyone else says about you… it’s what you say about you that matters.”

“We’re all dying Georgie. And however many days I have left, I want to spend then with you”

* This hospital scene is hilarious
* Georgina is so good 😂
* Okay I love this whole idea
* I love Hayden!
* Not the mosquito bites 😂

Wow. This book was not what I expected but it was everything I needed it to be. I loved it!

There’s so much pain and heartache and healing in this book. So much emotion and feeling.

Kelsey is so funny. I thought she was a really good character. I loved her ideas and her spunk and especially her growth. And her with Hayden? Yes please!

Georgina was just hilarious. I loved her. And I loved her growth as well! You’re never too old to learn, to grow, to forgive, to make amends, and to have fun.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ALC. I definitely enjoyed the narrators. All opinions are my own!

Thank you to netgalley for allowing me access to this sweet book.

What a cute story of friendship, love, and the power of second chances!

When editor Kelsey Worthington is in a near death accident, she meets makeup mogul Georgina Tate in the hospital. Kelsey sees Georgina’s circumstance and attempts to convince her to go on a “Summer of Yes,” journey with her. She hopes both women can stop saying no to everything and enjoy life together!

I really enjoyed the heartwarming romances, the way the women reflected on their lives during their summer, and the grace and forgiveness shown to Georgina by her family.

This was my first Courtney Walsh book and I can’t wait to read more!

Loved this sweet summer book! Nothing like a near death experience to make you reevaluate your whole life. I really liked the character of Kelsey and how she inspired so many people through her say yes project. It almost makes me want to do the same! The story was a little cheesy at the end and had a bit of unrealistic resolution but as Calypso explains to Bluey in “the Sign”, fiction has happy endings because life gives us sad endings.

Thanks to NetGalley for the audiobook listen! The narrators did a great job and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

"but then it occurs to me that where one lives often determines how one lives."

Five glowing stars for Courtney Walsh's new book, The Summer of Yes. I recommend adding this feel good story to your beach bag this summer.
The Summer of Yes is a story of love, forgiveness and second chances. Told from the point of view of two women who develop an unlikely friendship and embark on a summer road trip, going outside of their comfort zones and saying yes to things they normally are too busy or too afraid to say yes too. I enjoyed listening to the audiobook and the dual narration.

I unfortunately cannot get net galley shelf to play audiobooks even though ive tried all the suggestions. Thank you for the audiobook, I will not request any more in the future.

This book was so amazing! I loved reading this so much and I really want to buy the physical copy. They was it made me want to say yes to life more is so inspiring. I know that we waste a lot of time sticking to our comfort zone and this book was full of adventures and so many amazing quotes! I loved to see the character development and the 2 love stories in there were just so amazing! I will definitely be recommending and rereading this book!

I know that Courtney Walsh will always deliver a heartfelt story with characters that you can’t help but fall in love with and root for.

The Summer of Yes filled all of those expectations for me. It had a seize the day attitude with a lot of life lessons about living the life that sets your passions on fire.

There is romance, but it is strictly closed door.

The narration was perfection as well.

A huge thank you to Netgalley and Harper Collins Christian Publishing for my gifted audiobook!

The Summer of Yes is just as it sounds, a summer spent saying yes to all the things that one would normally say no to. When Kelsey wakes up in a hospital room two days after being hit by a car she realizes this is not how her life was suppose to turn out. Her hospital roomie, Georgina Tate, is outspoken and crass, and her kidney's are failing. Kelsey feels a pull to this elderly business woman and the two of them take a road trip and the summer of yes begins.

☀️ As always, Courtney Walsh knows how to write something that hits your heart and gives you all the feels! Her writing is just so consistent and you always know what to expect.

☀️ I have a very big soft spot for age gap female friendships. Here we have Kelsey who is young and figuring out her life and Georgina, who has lived a life, is full of wisdom, and yet teaches us that we are never too old to change and learn new things. I loved this dynamic!

☀️ Of course, there was the romance 🥰. Hayden is super dreamy and straight to the point and is just what Kelsey needs in her life. And Dylan, welp, what can I say about a man who stays married and faithful to a woman he hasn’t spoken to in over a decade? Totally swoon-worthy!

☀️ But romance really took a backseat in this one. At the heart, this story is about living life to the fullest, learning to forgive, not only each other but yourself as well. It’s about knowing your own worth and how to walk in a room and own it. It’s growing up and staying young simultaneously.

🎧 While I enjoyed the audiobook, I did struggle to find the right speed. I felt no matter what I chose, it was a little robotic. But I also couldn’t go over 2x lol. The voice of Georgina was great and aged perfection.

💭 Favorite quote: “It’s a wild and precious life, Kelsey, if you have something that sets your soul on fire, you have a responsibility to chase that thing.”

Read if you like:
☀️ Second chances
☀️ Closed door romances
☀️ Road trips in a convertible
☀️ Light & happy reads

This book started off slow, but turned out to be a light-hearted journey about friendship, taking chances, and saying YES. I did like the two perspective from two women in very different points in their lives and careers.

I loved the dual narration, to really infuse the feel of the two different aged women into the story. The narrator for Kelsey sounded a little too robotic for my liking, but I felt the narrator for Georgina was well cast.

Thank you to HarperCollins Christian Publishing | Thomas Nelson Fiction and NetGalley for the audio ARC in exchange for my honest, unbiased review.

A light, refreshing summer read! Picture an accident that changes the course of your life - and not in a horrible way. Add in some long lost family, taking a chance on yourself, and finding just who you really are meant to be and you’ll have yourself a great read. This is my first Courtney Walsh book, but it won’t be my last! Thanks to NetGalley for the read! I loved both narrators!

3.5 stars.

It was a little slow to start and I didn’t feel like I connected immediately with both the female characters. But overall, the message about friendship, pursuing your dreams and not being afraid to go after your own yeses, was really lovely. I took lots of the messages to heart for sure.

⭐️⭐️⭐️ Liked it, fun while I was reading it
This was a super fun summer type read. I liked the characters and their crisis points that made them both re-evaluate and say yes to road trips and taking a chance. 

I expected the yeses to be more and not just a vehicle to some pretty big resoltions. 

All in all, I did enjoy it.

The narrators, Tanya Eby and Cathi Colas, did a fantastic job, I had no trouble understanding who was saying what, where, when, and with what expression/intension. 

Thank you to HarperCollins Christian Publishing, NetGalley, and author Courtney Walsh for providing me with a digital ARC copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review. The Summer of Yes is out July 2, 2024.

The Summer of Yes by Courtney Walsh is the funny and uplifting story of Kelsey Worthington, a struggling writer trapped in an associate editors job she hates, and how she overcomes her fears and phobias by deciding to say 'YES' to life's adventures rather than her usual fearful 'NO'. Kelsey has a life changing experience when she is hit by a car one day and ends up in the hospital with a famous and famously cantankerous old woman named Georgina Tate. Kelsey and Georgina are wary of each other and couldn't be more different, but somehow they become friends who go off on a life adventure determined to say yes to things that scare them rather than their proverbial no. This is difficult for both of them as they both have many regrets, some more serious than others in their lives. But as they travel together they begin to open up to each other about their own live's disappointments, many created because they have both been held back by fear. This is a sweet and inspiring novel that encourages the reader to go forth in life with love, compassion and a lot less fear to make the most of life, because you really only get one go around. I enjoyed the characters, the narration and the message of this book very much. The author gives us all very good advice. 4.5 stars.

Many thanks to Net Galley and HarperCollins Christian Publishing | Thomas Nelson Fiction for a chance to listen/read an ARC version of this novel.

I’m a fan of Courtney Walsh’s writing and was excited by the premise of this book. I loved the idea of having two women from different generations going through similar life crossroads together and becoming friends along the way. The actual story was quite a bit different than I expected it to be, but I still enjoyed it and liked the romance woven throughout as well. I listened to this on audio and thought the narrators did a good job. Occasionally the narrator for “Kelsey” sounded a bit robotic to me (even on 1.5X speed), but I really liked the narrator for Georgina, and they both did an amazing job mimicking the voices of the other character. There were a few times I was convinced they were doing duet narration instead of dual because they were both able to make their voice sound so much like the other.
Overall this is a nice women’s fiction/romance that is uplifting, heartwarming, and fun.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced audio copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

Thank you Thomas Nelson Fiction and Courtney Walsh for an advanced listener copy of this book.

BLURB
Kelsey finds herself sharing a hospital room with Georgina, a successful business woman who has reached all the gals she has set out for herself. After this accident, Kelsey is questioning if her life is actually on the path she truly wants, while Georgina is looking back at her life with regrets of what could have been. Kelsey decides she is going to do a summer of saying yes and ropes Georgina along for the ride.

I really enjoyed the themes of this book. I enjoyed the relationship between Kelsey and Georgina. I love two women supporting each other in their lives. I also enjoyed that both women found love without having to give everything up and helped each other continue to be successful women. Kelsey is fun and quirky while Georgina is serious and guarded. They bring out the best in each other.

This was a fun, light read and had my thinking about things I’ve missed out on and moving forward saying yes more to what life brings.