This book was WILD from start to finish! I was on the edge of my seat the whole time. So many twists and turns! What I was sure I knew, I ended up being completely wrong about. I loved it. West is the current fictional love of my life.

Wow, wow, wow, what an amazing, unputdownable thrill ride! This book gripped me from beginning to end! I thought it was well written, intense, and shocking! Will definitely be looking for more by this author! A quick, intense ride, I won’t soon forget! Highly, highly recommend!
Will make sure ti buzz it up on the different platforms! Use low amazon reviewer number as well!

Title: The Summer I Drowned (A Wattpad Novel)
Author: Taylor Hale
Publisher: Wattpad Books
ISBN: 9781989365182 Titel anhand dieser ISBN in Citavi-Projekt übernehmen
Edition: E-Book
Publication date: 07/07/2020

Content:
Olivia Cathart returns home to Caldwell Beach determined to face her fears and take some risks—not just by swimming, but by opening her heart. Five years before she almost drowned there, what is the reason she is afraid of water. Hoping to rekindle her friendships of her childhood friends, she’s excited about a carefree summer with her best friends Keely and Miles. But what Olivia does not know is that life has changed there and nothing is really like it seems.
Suddenly a series of startling crimes threaten Olivia’s fragile state and then she is plunged into a terrifying game of cat and mouse. Her only solace from the whole chaos is West, Miles’s disowned and handsome brother, but even he cannot answer the question on everyone’s minds—is Olivia in danger or is it simply all in her head?

Opinion:
In my opinion the book was from the beginning till the end thrilling. The writing style is just perfect, I read the whole book in only two days. Till the very end I was struggling to identify the real monster in the book, because almost everyone could have been it. They all had their secrets and a motive in some kind of way. Also, how the author handled the episodes and the mental fragility of Olivia was quite stunning. I really loved that because I felt so real.

Conclusion:
All in all, this is a really, really good book. I would even say it is actually perfect. People who are into thrilling adventures will love it, so I definitely recomment it!

you can see how much this book has grown if you’ve read the first version on wattpad. i’m a full supporter of that app, and if you search well, you can find real gems, and this is one of them!

Thank you to Netgalley for giving me a copy in exchange for a honest review

More like 4.5 than 4 stars

I went in thinking it was going to be a light thriller but I was slightly wrong. The first half so so feels like a coming of age story while the last half is such a physiological thriller leaving you not knowing what’s going to happen. I have never really read a thriller before so this was a first and I really liked it. I would say it’s perfect for someone who likes contemporary novels and is wanting to get into thrillers.

Olivia having mental health issues and PTSD brings an extra layer to the book because of her fears and her trying to face them while everything around her is going on. The romance in the book is kinda cute and the friendships are what I would think is accurate for friends who haven’t been around each other much in 5 years.

This book makes me kinda wanting to read more thrillers as I had so much fun reading it.

The Summer I Drowned by Taylor Hale is a young adult book that I really enjoy. Olivia returned to Caldwell Beach five years after she almost drown. After years of therapy, Olivia wants to face her fears. Olivia doesn't know what real and what is not. Someone in town is mutilating animals, and they might be after her. This book kept me reading from the minute I started it. I will be reading more books by this author. I really liked this book, and highly recommend it, if you enjoy young adult thrillers. I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

First of all, thank you so much to Wattpad Books for providing me an ARC in exchange for my honest review. I have read an earlier version of this book before, back when it was titled “Sea Glass”. I have to say the new title fits the story and it’s vibe better than the old one, and so the reader can know a little bit more of what to expect from the book.

The descriptions are really good, and inmersive. But when it came to dialogue, I think it could been better developed, with more length and depth to them. The pacing is good, something is always happening to get the story moving, but taking its time to develop Olivia’s character specially. The author does a great job at introducing us to Caldwell Beach and even when I don’t know if the place exists, it surely felt real. The author’s descriptions of the place are very realistic, and the setting really contributes to the story and the mysterious vibe of it.

Olivia’s point of view was very realistic and you could easily relate to her thoughts, fears and desires. I think the author handled her PTSD very well, knowing exactly what she was writing about and treating the subject with respect and tact, as it plays a big role in the story.

About the characters, I’d wished their backgrounds could’ve been more developed, specially those that didn’t play a main role, because at times they seemed a little bit shallow. Those I liked the most were Olivia, West, Keely and Faye –because even if she plays “the bad girl”, we get to understand her. I really liked the friendship between Olivia and Keely, because it seemed pretty genuine and you can easily relate to it, as it’s flawed and it has ups and downs.

While the conflicts between all the teenagers sometimes lacked depth and felt kind of silly, I understand the author was trying to potray what a teen’s life actually looks like –at I think she did a great job at it. She didn’t need to exaggerate the events to create more drama, or make them have a more adult mindset to improve the story. The heart of this book lays in the innocence, recklessness, mistakes and flaws of its characters.

I really enjoyed reading the romance between West and Olivia –it was everything a first love kind of story should be. They had great chemistry and I loved the moments between them. But what I loved the most is that the author knew how to balance the romance without it being too little neither too much, as it’s not the main point of the story.

Miles needs to have a special mention in this review. What the author did with his character left me speechless. You don’t see that kind of twist in books, and it put things into perspective about everything I thought I knew about these characters. It was a very original, unique wake up call both for Olivia and the readers. This is a book about healing, but it’s also about rethinking everything you think you’re so certain of. It kept me turning pages non stop and left me speechless at the end. Great job, Taylor!

*3.75 ish

Being that it's a lot rarer these days I pick up a young adult book, something really has to pull me in, and that's exactly what this premise did. With a "return to your hometown for the summer" storyline, coupled with a mystery surrounding Olivia once she returns, I was very intrigued to discover what this book had in store.

And I was pleasantly surprised (and shocked) about some of the directions this story took. You could definitely tell Dean was a not-good egg from when he was first introduced, and I liked the way there was a bit of a love triangle built up between Olivia, Miles, and West before Olivia and West's relationship began to blossom (and before Miles went crazy imo). That was a great positive thread throughout an otherwise (what I felt was) darker story. The psychological related plot points were mostly all shocks to me when they popped up and I thought they were handled well by the author, however, while the plot carried the story, some of the dialogue felt a bit... whiny/dramatic(?) if those are the right words.

Overall, I think this could really interest those who have been hooked on Karen McManus' YA mysteries the last couple years like I've been.

(The formatting of this arc, however, was not great in the slightest.)

Thank you so much to Wattpad Books for providing me with a copy of the Summer I Drowned, via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review!



It's been five years since Olivia left her home town, where she almost drowned.  Five years of therapy and the hope that returning to the place it happened might give her some closure. But when she arrives, her childhood friends seem to have changed so much more than she imagined, and she's worried she might have made a mistake. One of her best friends is drinking heavily, another is acting strangely and she feels as though she doesn't really know them anymore.  As she tries to fit back in to her friendship circle, she finds herself drawn toward West, her old friend's brother.  The one who never said goodbye when she left the first time.

Olivia thought facing the water would be her biggest fear, but there might be an even larger threat than she anticipated.

This YA mystery was thrilling and a perfect book to escape to while my mind was having trouble focusing on fantasy books.  There were some brilliant twists and Olivia's struggles with PTSD and anxiety were realistically described.  I found myself so undecided about who to trust the whole way through and I absolutely did not guess the ending!  

If you're looking for an easy to read thriller that will keep you guessing, I'd recommend adding The Summer I Drowned to your TBR!

Absolutely loved this book! Olivia is a good protagonist, and her struggles to overcome her fear, PTSD and move on were brought forth really well. Her friendship with Keely and relationship with West were both heartwarming. The struggles of trying to fit in resonated with me, but I admired Olivia for staying true-ish to herself. Huge fan of the Olivia-West dynamic.(love them) I flew through this book, and would love to read more about Olive and West’s relationship.

Thank you to the author, publisher and Netgalley for the ARC. Look forward to read more of the author’s work.

After I read some bad reviews about The Summer I Drowned I didn't know what to expect, but I have to say I really enjoyed it. I liked Olivia I felt she was a good character and easy to relate to. I also enjoyed the romance between her and West. The mystery had me guessing till the very end and I felt like the ending gave me everything I wanted.

I absolutely loved this book, not just because of the premise and characters but also the portrayal of mental illness.

Overall tells an interesting narrative with a complex main character and interesting surrounding characters. Most of the characters featured in the narrative are well fleshed out and have their own personalities.

An ARC of this novel was sent to me by NetGalley for reviewing purposes. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I was genuinely surprised by this novel! I, for the most part, enjoyed it, but there was definitely some parts where it felt like it dragged.