The premise of this story instantly had me hooked. It also wrenched my gut putting myself in Sam’s shoes. At 40 years old and having been married for 22 years, Sam’s life was turned upside when her husband said he wanted to see other people… just for the summer. This was a wild ride (read it to get my pun joke) and I did enjoy the journey!

Siri, play Cruel Summer by Taylor Swift.

*thank you Harlequin Trade Publishing & NetGalley for this arc!* ~Publishing June 25, 2025

First, I’d like to thank Harlequin Trade Publishing and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of Cruel Summer. It’s been a pleasure to dive into this beautifully written story that captures the essence of rediscovery, heartbreak, and self-love.

Maisey Yates takes readers on a raw, emotional journey with Samantha Parker, a woman whose picture-perfect life is shattered when her husband, Will, suggests an open marriage. Samantha’s plan to propose a summerlong separation—hoping to rekindle their relationship at the end—takes an unexpected turn when Logan Martin, Will’s aloof but irresistibly charming best friend, offers her a cross-country adventure restoring classic cars. What begins as an uncomfortable partnership blossoms into something that forces Samantha to reevaluate everything she thought she wanted in life.

The road trip is more than just a geographical journey; it’s a pathway to Samantha’s emotional and personal growth. By the time the summer ends, readers are left wondering, along with Samantha, whether she’ll choose the comfort of her old life or the thrill of an uncertain future.

As someone who has started over before—and as the daughter of someone who has done the same—this book hit home in so many ways. Life is messy, hard, and unpredictable. Doing something for yourself, especially after years of putting others first, is no easy feat. Like Samantha, I found myself again four years ago, just as my mom did before me. It was heartwarming to watch Sam’s growth and see her come into her own by the book’s end.

Maisey Yates does an exceptional job with the plot, storyline, and writing. The pacing was perfect, and the emotions felt authentic and raw. This is more than just a romance; it’s a deeply relatable story about finding yourself amidst life’s chaos.

Highly recommend Cruel Summer! It’s a must-read for anyone who’s ever faced a crossroads in life and wondered if they were brave enough to choose themselves.

Love this book. Maisey Yates does a great job of drawing you in from the first page to the last. Samantha is happy in her 22 year marriage to her high school sweetheart. Newly empty nester from all three of her sons off to college. She had high hopes for a summer of adventure with her husband until he drops the bomb that he is not happy in their marriage and wants to experiment for the next four months in an open marriage to find the things he missed early in his life. It’s a rollercoaster of emotions for Samantha for the next four months that leads to adventures, self awareness, heartbreak and heart healing. Good read recommend. I was given an advanced reader copy of this book by NetGalley and I am freely sharing my review.

It took me a bit to get into this book because it was pretty depressing and serious and slow at the start. But once we got to the road trip, I couldn't put it down. Good beach read, even if it's a little heavier than you'd expect for the premise.

The cover gave YA vibes, but I could not have been more wrong. Loved this read and the characters in it. It is sure to be a must read romance novel for 2025 and I cant wait to share this one with my book club as a read for July 2025

I am a self-admitted book worm, and I have been the majority of my life. Here lately, I gravitate towards suspenseful books. At my core, I still remain primarily a fan of romance. Because of this, I was extremely excited to read this book.

Although I had heard of Maisey Yates before, I have never read one of her books. I am sometimes hesitant to read books from a new author, because it sometimes takes me a while to get used to their writing style. Fortunately, this booked hooked me from the very beginning. It is sometimes nice to read books about characters that are my age. As I have been married for 16 years, I definitely felt for the main character being blindsided the way she was.

I don’t always talk to my husband about the books that I read, this is one that I even sent him the synopsis for before I even started reading it (LOL). He definitely ended up being just as engrossed in the story as I was. Not to be a spoiler, but we were BOTH pleased at the ending.

**I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.**

This story started like other rom-com. Samantha and Will were high school sweethearts. They got pregnant early and decided to get married. But then, after 22 years of marriage, the husband, Will, wants to try something new- an open relationship! What?!!! The nerve of Will. They decide to take the summer apart with no contact to see if it helps them stay together. Samantha decides to go with Will’s friend, Logan, on different trips taking the cars he’s fixed up. Samantha and Logan have known each other a long time. He helps her open her eyes to love, self-reflection and not doing things because you think that is what is expected.

There are numerous formatting errors in the ARC. Specifically around words that begin with letter f. There is space between the f and the rest of the word. I’m sure that will be fixed by publication.

I enjoyed this story, especially since it was based on 40 year olds. I do think it got a little repetitive with Samantha’s processing of her life.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin for letting me read this ARC!
#netgalley
#cruelsummer

This was an amazing book! The story was very unique and it was very well written and emotional. I really liked the main female character and the froth she had in this book!

Cruel Summer by Maisey Yates is chronicles four months of heartache and discovery.

The opening was fantastic. I couldn’t put it down until Chapter 4. The pace got considerably slower as the book went on. Samantha is a 40 year old empty nester, which I love, but she gave off a bit of a “poor me” vibe. I think Sam’s emotional journey of self-discovery will resonate with readers. The author deftly takes on the topics of grief, finding yourself, courage, honesty, and communication.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for the ARC.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/🌶️ Cruel Summer by Maisey Yates is a standalone women's fiction novel about a couple who are high school sweethearts, accidentally get pregnant, marry, and live happily ever after. Or did they? Will decides after 22 years of marriage that he wants an "open marriage." Samantha is shocked because as far as she knew, they had a pretty perfect life; 3 boys they managed to get to college, beautiful house, decent finances... On the outside, it does look perfect. But when Will drops this bomb on her, she decides they need a break for the summer -- no contact for 4 months and they both go do their own thing somewhere outside of their family home, and will reconvine after to see if they both still want the marriage.
I loved how the author allowed us to see into characters' relationships in a series of flashbacks. You get to feel like you really know these characters and are able to see what Sam, at the time, couldn't.
This is a journey of self-discovery. Sam is able to figure out who she is on her own, without the "wife" or "mom" label.. because we are not just a wife, or a mother, we can be those things and also be our own person. And this is what she has a unique opportunity to do.

☀️High school sweethearts
☀️All the summer vibes
☀️All the feels (you will laugh and cry and hope and scream for Sam!)
☀️Found family
☀️Self-discovery
☀️Love in unexpected places
☀️Mature FMC (she's 40!)
☀️Forced proximity
☀️Grief/comfort
☀️Slow burn
☀️Exs best friend

I really loved this book. I wasn’t sure that I would because I primarily read Historical Romance and because the conflict and emotional intensity seemed like it was too big for Yates to overcome. However, Massey Yates is a pro and the plot was so clean and tightly constructed that she was able to thread the needle and resolve the emotional mess these characters were in for a heart wrenching and touching HEA.

The FMC had to grow a ton in this one and the plot device of road trips really worked here. The MMC had already done years of working on himself, but she forced him to be fully honest and take a chance on himself, too. It was a really beautiful relationship story and all the tropes really made those story work. Tropes: small town, frenemies to lovers, road trip, over 40 MCs, widower.

I discovered Maisey Yates during all of the Harlequin chatter on social and am so glad that I did! AI could never write a plot that air tight!

Other charming things about this book: the TS lyrics referenced, the fact that the hero was a hot 43yo widower that restores classic cars, the descriptions of kitschy hotels one finds in road trips across America.

One thing I didn’t like: that two major scenes happened at The Texas Roadhouse. I get that it was supposed to be stereotypically suburban place to go…but for people from small town Oregon, it struck me as odd.

Well damn. This book rocked me. Do I think this book will be for everybody, prob not. Check the triggers people and check them again. Nothing triggers me so I loved it. I felt so in tune with Samantha more than I ever have with another book character. Being 43, grown kids, with my husband for 23 years……so many similarities. I finished it with tears in my eyes. Tears for this woman who found herself over the course of a summer. A woman who fell in love with one man while falling out of love with her husband. Read the book if you want the story. The book opens up with her husband asking her for an open marriage because he is unhappy. They decide on 4 months apart with no contact. Unfortunately she finds that she was just as unhappy. Ugh so good.

Thank you NetGalley for the chance to read the ARC of Cruel Summer! I was hesitant throughout the book of how I would rate this, knowing what was most likely going to happen and it sitting weirdly with me.
But the way the story unfolds is a beautiful growth story about finding yourself and being honest with yourself when it comes to hard topics in your life, and your marriage.

I ended up loving this book and all of its storylines!

**there were quite a few editing errors which made it difficult at some point, but overall a great story!

I am so glad that I grabbed the opportunity to read this ARC.

This story is sexy, fun and sweet but still feels grounded in reality. Reading Sam’s growth in being comfortable in her own skin and who she is left me feeling inspired!

I did not expect to find this as impactful as I did. What initially I thought would be a fun romance with a unique premise ended up being so much more! (Don’t get me wrong, it was still such a fun romance!)

Logan…I mean what did Sam expect! He’s dreamy!

I’m so glad Yates’s backlist is so extensive - I need more!

Thank you to Canary Street and NetGalley for the eARC!

This book gave me all the feels. Finally a book from the perspective of a “40 year old woman”. Real life topics. Real life questions. Real life conundrums. This book was a warm blanket. You empathized and sympathized with the main character. You rooted for her and you even felt her pain. Well written, fast paced, and real. I highly recommend this book.

I was awarded a NetGalley ARC from publisher Harlequin Trade Publishing in exchange for my honest review.

Life doesn't always go according to plan. It is exceptionally painful and difficult when you aren't expecting the curve ball coming at you. For a couple that "did the right thing" and got married after a teenage pregnancy, Samantha thought they had overcome the odds and made it to the empty nest stage with a solid marriage. When Samantha's husband Will asks for an open marriage she is understandably confused and devastated. This book is the journey of her reflection and self-discovery.

I love a book with character growth and personal revelation. This is a book that I feel will stay with me for a while. I generally read to escape but this book sparked lots of reflection for my middle-aged self. While I may not fully understand the relationship dynamic between Samantha, Will, and Logan some aspects are personally relatable. How do you navigate those mid-life questions? How do we deal with self-image, body positivity, opinions of others, sexuality, grief? What are the repercussions of being a people pleaser? Do your choices really please other people? Do you make the "safe" life choices or do you say f-it, take chances, and live life to the fullest in the moment you are in? What does it cost your personal happiness to make choices to please others?

I've debated how to rate this book. Many books I read I don't think about after I move on to the next. But I decided Cruel Summer is a 5 star read for me based on how much it made me think and feel. A book that can take a difficult topic/situation/theme and make me feel it deeply, provoke thoughts and feelings earns my respect.

The ARC copy has some typos and errors that I found distracting (as well as formatting issues). I anticipate those will be corrected by publishing date.

This is a really cute summer read I did read it out of the summer, but it was still worth the read. Very interesting

Cruel Summer is a solid read for fans of character-driven stories. If you enjoy slow-burn emotional arcs with relatable pop culture nods, it’s worth picking up. For me, the slower pace and lack of urgency in the plot kept it from being a standout, but it’s still a good choice for a thoughtful, reflective read.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I naturally chose this book because the title and cover sold me, but the story inside is so much more. I think the author did a great job navigating difficult topics, while still giving us a sweet romance.

Thank you so much for the opportunity to read this book! I was so excited to see a title with one of my favorite T Swift songs and the story was equally as cute! I’ve never read a story with an open marriage concept and it quickly hooked me! Samantha’s journey to self discovery and finding love again (with herself and maybe someone else too?!) was so enjoyable.