Loved this book! Josie Silver never disappoints and has quickly become an autobuy author for me. Definitely worth a read if you’ve liked her past work.

I really enjoyed this story. I like a romance that also addresses other adult topics like guilt and grief, stories that make you feel deeply for the characters and their struggles while also letting you cheer them on in their successes. This book does that. You just want them to succeed and figure out a way to get exactly what they want and what they deserve (that happy ending).

This is the first Josie Silver book I've read and I will be reading more of her stories.




Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for the eARC in exchange for my honest review

I freaking loved this book. Kate is former actress with a daughter in college. When her marriage comes to a sad end, she moves into the apartment above her sister's shop and writes to her former agent to try to get a job to support herself. Unbeknownst to her, her agent has passed away and his son, Charlie, has taken his role. Charlie offers Kate a role as a ghost author - a new concept where she'll be playing the part of an author because the author doesn't want to put the book under their own name. When the book takes off, Kate finds herself in need of help in the form of her agent, and sparks fly between them. Can they both find the happiness that they deserve? Or will their work roles prevent them from finding true love?

I've said before that Josie Silver doesn't really write romances, but this one comes pretty close to the traditional romance formula. As close as Silver has ever come, anyway. Kate is willing to take any acting job to pay the bills, and Charlie needs someone to pose as the author of a romance novel, since the real author wants to stay anonymous. Hijinks ensue, but we all live happily ever after.

The "slow burn" of the title is more like "non-existent burn." Charlie and Kate are just suddenly attracted to each other after starting off not even particularly liking each other. I would have liked to see some more build-up to this, and some more reasons why it made sense. As it is, it comes off as though they're both thinking "well, you're here in front of me, and you're kinda cute, so . . ." Not a great basis for a romance. We know they're both coming off painful divorces, but we don't get a lot of back story on either of them -- Kate has the cliched cheating husband, but we never even find out exactly what went wrong between Charlie and his wife. Everyone's motivations are a little vague.

The actual author of the romance novel makes an appearance, and there's a silly scene where he's wearing a t-rex costume to avoid being recognized. But I felt like this part of the story didn't have the payoff that it deserved. To me it would have been more effective if the author had been Charlie's dad or Fiona. Having a relative stranger pop up as the author was pretty anticlimactic.

I liked that the whole "when will the deception be discovered" thing wasn't drawn out and silly. It happens quickly thanks to one person's bad behavior, and then we're dealing with the consequences, rather than watching while everyone tries to keep the secret under wraps. I did think the potential consequences were a bit exaggerated. Kate was doing what she was paid to, and this was hardly the kind of thing that would ruin her life. So I could have done without all the excess drama around that, as if it were the end of the world.

I liked the sister. Not sure why a pregnancy needed to be thrown in there.

Overall not bad, but not my favorite of Josie Silver's books. It lacks the heartstrings-pulling of some of her other books, it has some loose ends that need to be tidied up, some characters who could use some fleshing out, and some storylines that tucker out into nothing. But still charming, and romance-ish enough to satisfy rom-communists. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an eARC of this book!

Recently divorced Kate is looking to restart her career as an actress. The problem is that the only gig she can find is pretending to be the author of a moving romance novel. The actual author has no interest in press or having their name associated with the work so it’s up to Kate to promote the novel as if it were her own. It’s more complicated that she could have imagined, but Kate’s sister and her handsome talent agent are here to help.

The plot was fun and while I would have loved more scenes/development between Kate and Charlie, I thought they were a cute match. A sweet read if you’re looking to relax and unplug.



Thank you to Random House Ballantine and NetGalley for the opportunity to read a copy.

3.5 stars! I enjoyed this book and love Josie’s writing style! I really enjoyed the plot about ghost authors. I loved the bookish references and content; how reading a romance book(specifically the book in the story) affects readers. That felt relatable!

A lot of the details made things seem slow. There were a lot of chapters and it was a lot of information. And I think that made me feel that the romance aspect was underwhelming. (The slow burn was tooo slow)

Overall, nice read!

I thought this was going to be a regular old romance but this is definitely more of a woman's fiction novel. Lots of describing pretty outfits and mainly about the process of publishing a novel that isn't under your actual name, essentially a ghost author. Was pretty slow and this id for sure more of a slow burn romance as well. Not one of my favorites by far but for sure people who love Danielle Steele.

I love a good Josie Silver book, so I was excited when this came up on NetGalley. The book centers around Kate, a divorcee who is trying to start over and gets the opportunity of a lifetime…a chance to be the public face of a novel whose author does not want recognition for it. In the middle of it is her new agent Charlie, the son of her former agent from long ago.

I enjoyed Kate as a character and was rooting for her the whole time. I just felt that the romance lacked the sparks that I’m used to reading in Silver’s books.

Thanks as always to NetGalley for the ARC.

Josie, Josie, Josie... she can do no wrong! This story took me in and left me wanting more. I adored the characters, and the setup of the plot was refreshing and fun. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

LOVE a slow burn romance and this had the right amount of yearning for me to make it through the whole thing even though I think I am not in the mood for romance anymore. I enjoyed this book, I liked the simple story line, I like that the characters were older and actually acted their age when in a lot of rom coms the characters who are grown adults act like they 16 and it is just so off putting.

Overall I liked it and I would recommend it to anyone who is in the mood for a good old rom com with a summery vibe.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!

Josie Silver never disappoints! I liked this book a lot, especially the two main characters. The plot had lots of holes. I actually would have liked to see more of them together, which is the only reason I'm rating it 4 instead of 5. Also the title makes no sense.

I have enjoyed Silver’s other books and Slow Burn Summer is no exception. It is a heartwarming, funny, slow burn romance with lovable characters and an interesting plot. Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing for the ARC!

While I did really enjoy some book, I was very frustrated at times and for most of the last 40% entirely. We’re to believe Kate is 39 years old, has prior acting experience enough that she had an agent, and acts this novice? Why is she not immediately creating a new persona for this author alter ego instead of telling people about her ex husband and her sister’s shop? In the age of social media, any sleuth would look these details up and find that she wasn’t who she said she was. The fact she puts the whole ruse in an email is so utterly ridiculous I almost stopped reading entirely. From an editorial standpoint, it would’ve been just as easy for Kate to tell her daughter when she brought the new bf home and he overheard and spilled to a reporter who then fact checked all the very obvious clues she sprinkled in her interviews along the way.

I can’t believe how over dramatic this all becomes over time and it was hard to play into the fantasy.

A final note: the title feels completely unrelated to the book and simply exists to try and sell the book as a beach read. It feels lazy and doesn’t do the story justice.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Forgive me if this review makes no sense- I'm operating on almost no sleep. Darn book kept me up most of the night!

Books in this category have a formula- this did not past the predictable HEA. But even if there had been no HEA or even romantic male lead, there would have been a really good book (but he's a good addition so happy he's there!). It's so unpredictable and went to crazy unexpected places- I mean a man in a t-rex costume driving on a motorway is so unexpected. I kept trying to guess what was going to happen but the book goes to such better places. And the writing is fun and some truly laugh outloud comments. And it sticks with you- I kept putting it down last night to go to sleep and would lie there thinking about it and deciding "one more chapter won't hurt." But the chapters are really short, so why not one more? I finally went to sleep with 30 minutes left and sat at a restaurant finishing it during dinner. trying not to be seen crying.

Also- this book is glorious is the logistics of publishing! I love logistics! 10 stars!

My only gripe is the title. Has little to do with the book. She threw "slow burn" into the last couple chapters a bunch of time as if her editor had the same note and they decided to slip it in. I worry the title will discourage people---- ignore it and focus on the description. If you love books, you'll really love this one.

I love Josie Silver’s tear-jerking, heartfelt romance style, and this time, she decided to write a romcom—though maybe we should call it a comrom because, in my opinion, the funny and silly parts of the book, paired with the brilliant and refreshing sarcastic tone in the creation of Kate Elliott, probably overshadowed the slow-burn romance between Kate and Charlie, which still needs some development. I have to admit,

I didn’t enjoy the romance parts of the book as much. I’d describe them more as attraction between two people who are holding on to each other after enduring terrible divorces. But I’m telling you, Kate’s characterization in this book deserves 10 stars! She’s one of a kind—literally wearing her feelings, unfiltered, honest, genuine, funny, and so easy to resonate with. She creates an urge to give her millions of hugs! I absolutely loved her! And as a supporting character, Liv steals the scenes as the best sister anyone could wish for!

The book’s unique concept immediately grabs your attention. Kate Elliott, at 39, is a former promising teen actress who married young at 19 and moved to Germany for her husband, raising their daughter Alice. Years later, she catches her husband in the worst cliché: cheating with his secretary. Her daughter is off to college, and Kate is left without a penny, thanks to the tight ironclad prenup she signed. After a few glasses of wine, she pens a letter to her former agent, Jojo, asking for any acting job she can get. This leads her to Charlie Francisco, Jojo’s son, who inherited his father’s business and offers her an intriguing job: to pose as a romance author for a new book whose author wants to remain anonymous.

After reading the powerful book, Kate is on board, even though she has to deal with the cutthroat Fiona, Jojo’s longtime business partner, who puts extra pressure on her with condescending comments. But at least Charlie, with his whiskey-cola-colored eyes, is in her corner. She starts to resist the sizzling attraction between them because she has a compelling job to focus on—attending popular radio shows, appearing on morning shows, and signing books at reading festivals.

Meanwhile, Kate keeps corresponding with the real author, who goes by “H,” wondering if he’s a man, while also dealing with her daughter’s possible romance with an Aussie, taking things a bit too far.

Yes, her life is far from easy, and some unexpected events push her into a crisis. Kate is forced to confront her life priorities and make better choices for her future, for the sake of her loved ones.

Overall, while I didn’t love the romance parts, I adored Kate. She may be one of the best romance characters I’ve read about recently. Her intelligence, quirkiness, and goofiness make her even more lovable. I chose to consider this book more women’s fiction and comedy than romance, which is why I rounded up my 3.5 stars to 4 for my unconditional adoration of Kate! This book is a bit different from Silver’s previous works—less dramatic, more entertaining, and hopeful. I actually loved this change and hope she continues to create more colorful characters while sharing her humorous writing.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group/Ballantine/Dell for sharing this highly entertaining book’s digital review copy with me in exchange for my honest thoughts.

Slow Burn Summer is the story of Kate, who’s fresh off a sudden divorce and in need of money, so she turns to the acting career she put on hold about twenty years ago. She reaches out to her former agent, but ends up working with his son Charlie, who has a strange gig for her: playing the part of the author of a hot new love story soon to hit bookshelves. Since the author wants nothing to do with publicity, they need more than just a ghostwriter–they need someone to actually be the face of the author and do all of the public appearances that go with it.

As Kate awkwardly navigates playing her new role, she contends with a bit of attraction toward her agent, Charlie. They work together to help her keep the identity of the writer secret, but will they be able to keep their feelings for one another under wraps?

I found this a charming slow-burn romance (it does live up to the “slow burn” part of the title). The chemistry between Kate and Charlie is sweet, albeit a bit tame (not necessarily in terms of spice, but in terms of how much emotion I felt while reading about the two of them together). I honestly felt like the non-romance aspects of the book were the most entertaining–it’s quite funny and I liked seeing the way the bookish community was portrayed in this story.

Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin for the ARC of this novel!

From just looking at the cover, I expected this to be some kind of cheesy love story. Not that those are bad, we all need one once in a while but what i didn't except was for the book to be SO much more. There was genuine LOL moments, sweet moments, real life moments and a whole lot of love moments. To say I loved this book, the characters and the overall storyline is an understatement. This is a book I would re-read and recommend to everyone!

I loved "One Day in December," but this one didn't level up for me. I thought it was an enjoyable, cute read, but not hitting me as hard as her other books.

This book was a breath of fresh air! Kate is looking to get back to work and her only experience is in acting. She was a child/teen actress that left her job/career for love. She marries, has a daughter and 20ish years later finds her life unraveling with her husband's affair and subsequent divorce. He has maintained his career, the house and moved in his mistress! Kate moves into an upstairs apartment above her sister's costume dress shop.
Kate sends a letter to her former agent asking for another chance. This letter was hysterically honest and ends up being read by her former agent's son, Charlie. Kate seems like a good fit for an unusual job role being named author for someone else's work that they don't want to publish under their own name. The book's author pens a beautiful novel of love and loss that Kate can relate to. She also finds it difficult to say 'no' to Charlie and his charm.
Kate finds herself wrapped up in a whirlwind of press for this book and appearances, that lead to pretty hilarious and self-deprecating situations that will leave you laughing and cringing. Of course romance blossoms, but that was not what drove the book. There are so many themes throughout this book that are so well done. Grief is a main theme and how people deal with and overcome grief. We also see an awakening and reclaiming of personhood for Kate. Charlie also comes out of the shadow of his father and ex-wife and finds a career that is his own. I also loved the bond between Kate and Liv. This is the sisterhood we all aspire to! Highly recommend picking this up when it comes out!

Thank you, Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine and NetGalley, for providing me with this advance reader’s copy in exchange for an honest review.

Slow Burn Summer is romance that explores grief is it relates to death, divorce and careers. Even beyond the primary character, Kate and Charlie, each character is addressing their grief, obligation, loyalty and self-identity in a way that is beautifully interwoven.