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neverfruitt's review
3.0
Thanks to Netgalley for giving me this e-ARC.
Meet Me At The Summit is about 19 year old Marly who is grieving the death of her parents who died nine months earlier. When visiting family is Washington they and her best friend team up to try and get to take a cross country road trip in VW bus. The story follows her as she goes on the trip and has to face her grief entirely on her own for the first time.
The story had some great parts and what it was best at was making me want to go hiking. The book was at its best during the hiking trips as you could feel the love behind it. This is definitely a book to take camping with you.
Overall the story did fall flat for me. I felt like it never truly had Marly in control of her own life and that she just lacked her own agency the whole book. I do really wish there had been another talk about she felt about everyone close in her life went behind her back to decide whats best for her.
My rating is 3/5 in the end because I did enjoy the book despite the story not really catching me.
Meet Me At The Summit is about 19 year old Marly who is grieving the death of her parents who died nine months earlier. When visiting family is Washington they and her best friend team up to try and get to take a cross country road trip in VW bus. The story follows her as she goes on the trip and has to face her grief entirely on her own for the first time.
The story had some great parts and what it was best at was making me want to go hiking. The book was at its best during the hiking trips as you could feel the love behind it. This is definitely a book to take camping with you.
Overall the story did fall flat for me. I felt like it never truly had Marly in control of her own life and that she just lacked her own agency the whole book. I do really wish there had been another talk about she felt about everyone close in her life went behind her back to decide whats best for her.
My rating is 3/5 in the end because I did enjoy the book despite the story not really catching me.
megsreading5x5's review
4.0
This book is a beautiful story of grief and moving forwards. After Marley loses both her parents in an accident, she drops out of college and enters a cycle of grief. But then she’s pulled into a gathering of her family, and she realises she doesn’t have to be alone in her struggles.
Marley’s journey was gripping. The imagery was beautiful and well thought out. I could clearly see the activities she went on, and it really made me want to go outside and just enjoy nature. I was captivated by the portrayal of her mental state and attitudes which clearly shifted as the book progressed. I think Mandi Lynn really captured the idea that grief doesn’t shirk, we just learn to grow with it.
My favourite part of this book was the unconditional love between Marley and Lori. Though all the the relationships throughout the book felt realistic and followed a good pace.
The overall story did feel a little slow and some paragraphs were quite difficult to get through. This is mostly an editing issue given the writing itself was nice.
Marley’s journey was gripping. The imagery was beautiful and well thought out. I could clearly see the activities she went on, and it really made me want to go outside and just enjoy nature. I was captivated by the portrayal of her mental state and attitudes which clearly shifted as the book progressed. I think Mandi Lynn really captured the idea that grief doesn’t shirk, we just learn to grow with it.
My favourite part of this book was the unconditional love between Marley and Lori. Though all the the relationships throughout the book felt realistic and followed a good pace.
The overall story did feel a little slow and some paragraphs were quite difficult to get through. This is mostly an editing issue given the writing itself was nice.
miyuki02's review
I have marked this book as DNF because it was not for me. I read about halfway through, but find that I am unable to get into the plot. I would definitely recommend this to somebody else which is the reason why I gave it three stars, but I found it difficult to get into and was unable to give it the attention I think it deserves.
leoniesliberi's review against another edition
4.0
If I had a summer reads recommendation list, this book would be on it. It really feels like we‘re going on this huge trip with the main character.
Meet me at the summit follows Marly Price whose parents died in a car accident and she has not been herself ever since then. Her family worries for her and convinces her to go on a hiking/camping tour all over the country in order to learn how to live again after this tragic event. She visits many different beautiful spots and she might even meet a cute man on the way.
Meet me at the summit follows Marly Price whose parents died in a car accident and she has not been herself ever since then. Her family worries for her and convinces her to go on a hiking/camping tour all over the country in order to learn how to live again after this tragic event. She visits many different beautiful spots and she might even meet a cute man on the way.
acottageofwords's review
2.0
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me access to a copy of this book in return for an honest review. This did not affect my thoughts on this book in any way.
sooo this was the very first ARC I read, and it was.. disappointing, at it's best. I fell like it had so much of potential because road trips!! Who doesn't like them? Add the grief of losing parents, finding yourself, an inherited vintage VW bus, and some romance and you'll get the perfect contemporary to read on the beach! but this one just fell short,, in many ways.
• I have to get this out of the way because it was the most annoying thing- the enormous amount of typos in this!! This book need a hell lot of editing to make it acceptable. I get that this is an ARC and these are frequent but seriously??
• The good part of the book was that the concept of it all sounded beautiful
sooo this was the very first ARC I read, and it was.. disappointing, at it's best. I fell like it had so much of potential because road trips!! Who doesn't like them? Add the grief of losing parents, finding yourself, an inherited vintage VW bus, and some romance and you'll get the perfect contemporary to read on the beach! but this one just fell short,, in many ways.
• I have to get this out of the way because it was the most annoying thing- the enormous amount of typos in this!! This book need a hell lot of editing to make it acceptable. I get that this is an ARC and these are frequent but seriously??
• The good part of the book was that the concept of it all sounded beautiful
raynreads's review
3.0
Reading the book you can tell that the author has done their research. Growing up in the PNW I loved reading Marly's perspective as she hiked was amazing. I also really enjoyed that Mandi Lynn described van life in such detail that if someone was not familiar with camper vans they would have a firm understanding in how a camper van works. Overall the descriptions never felt over the top but more like the writing style.
A pro/con is the writing level it felt juvenile in some parts and I am unsure what age level this book is targeting. One thing that makes this a pro is that the book is inclusive to all readers and inviting to any reading level.
I felt that Mandi Lynn did a good job at describing our main characters anxiety and it was great to have that rep in the book. However, I wish there was more of a break through with Marly's emotions.
One thing that bothered me was the insistent mentioning that the main character dropped out of college. This is a book that seem like a coming of age story but I think many people who love coming of age stories are in that same life phase. If I was reading this after dropping out of college I would feel really gross knowing that every person in the book is disappointed in the main character for dropping out. People do not have to attend college to have a fulfilled and happy life.
A pro/con is the writing level it felt juvenile in some parts and I am unsure what age level this book is targeting. One thing that makes this a pro is that the book is inclusive to all readers and inviting to any reading level.
I felt that Mandi Lynn did a good job at describing our main characters anxiety and it was great to have that rep in the book. However, I wish there was more of a break through with Marly's emotions.
One thing that bothered me was the insistent mentioning that the main character dropped out of college. This is a book that seem like a coming of age story but I think many people who love coming of age stories are in that same life phase. If I was reading this after dropping out of college I would feel really gross knowing that every person in the book is disappointed in the main character for dropping out. People do not have to attend college to have a fulfilled and happy life.
whatposhreads's review
2.0
I was sent an ARC in exchange for my honest opinion for this book.
Outright i would say that the story and plot is quite good. It speaks about grief and how and what we do to deal with it in our own ways. I was intrigued by the mention of RV maybe because i am currently obsessed with off-grid living but not much mention of it.
Also, the flow of the story is quite paced and this is beginner-friendly and easy to read. I would emphasize the plot of the story is quite well but at the same time i felt it could have been slightly better.
Outright i would say that the story and plot is quite good. It speaks about grief and how and what we do to deal with it in our own ways. I was intrigued by the mention of RV maybe because i am currently obsessed with off-grid living but not much mention of it.
Also, the flow of the story is quite paced and this is beginner-friendly and easy to read. I would emphasize the plot of the story is quite well but at the same time i felt it could have been slightly better.
mjscooke's review against another edition
4.0
I received a digital ARC on NetGalley in return for an honest review.
Just 9 months after the death of her parents, Meet Me at the Summit by Mandi Lynn follows the reluctant journey of 19-year-old Marly from Washington to New Hampshire in her mother’s renovated vintage VW bus. Marley is forced to come to terms with the grief she has been suppressing in a tale that highlights that what we think we want, what we think we are capable of and what we need are not always the same things. As the story progresses, we are opened up to the lead character much in the same way she is opened up to herself and those around her. The novel reads like a love letter to the outdoors and the creativity it inspires not only for Marly but us reading her story. It is a wonderful multi-layered story about grief and adventure that I would highly recommend to teen and young adult readers as well as anyone who enjoys the outdoors and might need a reminder of how healing it can be.
Just 9 months after the death of her parents, Meet Me at the Summit by Mandi Lynn follows the reluctant journey of 19-year-old Marly from Washington to New Hampshire in her mother’s renovated vintage VW bus. Marley is forced to come to terms with the grief she has been suppressing in a tale that highlights that what we think we want, what we think we are capable of and what we need are not always the same things. As the story progresses, we are opened up to the lead character much in the same way she is opened up to herself and those around her. The novel reads like a love letter to the outdoors and the creativity it inspires not only for Marly but us reading her story. It is a wonderful multi-layered story about grief and adventure that I would highly recommend to teen and young adult readers as well as anyone who enjoys the outdoors and might need a reminder of how healing it can be.
kaylaareads's review
3.0
this book was a beautiful display of finding yourself and coming to terms with grief, all while set up behind gorgeous locations. I’ve never read a road trip style book, but all the content and descriptive language when describing the different locations was easy to understand and imagine. The story was a bit slow to begin with, but after I got into it, I couldn’t put it down! Overall rating was a 3.5/5! Thanks to NetGalley for giving me access to an early edition to review!
rkreads's review
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Thank you to Netgally and the publisher for providing me with an arc of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
This book is a beautifully written exploration of loss, grief, pain that demands to be felt, but also the way in which we can move on from those thing in a healthy way and in a way that respects the feelings we have rather than just "move on" from them. I found the MC really relatable especially in how she initially tried to move on from the death of her parents. The author did such a great job in crafting a character who felt real and genuine throughout her story arc. Though I did enjoy the romance and I liked the love interest for the most part,, there were areas of that story line that felt a bit forced/odd to me and one area that I was really not a fan of (not going to spoil it but I think its probably obvious to someone who read the book what I am referring to.) I actually would be interested in seeing how this type of story would play out without a romantic story line. Side note: everyone needs a BFF like the one featured in this book.
Lastly, I really want to stress that you do not need to be interested in or into "van life", roundtripping, or hiking to enjoy this book. While those things do feature prominently, that is not the point of the book and there is a lot to enjoy even if you know nothing about those things and have no interest in them.
This book is a beautifully written exploration of loss, grief, pain that demands to be felt, but also the way in which we can move on from those thing in a healthy way and in a way that respects the feelings we have rather than just "move on" from them. I found the MC really relatable especially in how she initially tried to move on from the death of her parents. The author did such a great job in crafting a character who felt real and genuine throughout her story arc. Though I did enjoy the romance and I liked the love interest for the most part,, there were areas of that story line that felt a bit forced/odd to me and one area that I was really not a fan of (not going to spoil it but I think its probably obvious to someone who read the book what I am referring to.) I actually would be interested in seeing how this type of story would play out without a romantic story line. Side note: everyone needs a BFF like the one featured in this book.
Lastly, I really want to stress that you do not need to be interested in or into "van life", roundtripping, or hiking to enjoy this book. While those things do feature prominently, that is not the point of the book and there is a lot to enjoy even if you know nothing about those things and have no interest in them.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death of parent
Minor: Panic attacks/disorders