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kelly_e's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Title: Every Summer After
Author: Carley Fortune
Genre: Romance
Rating: 4.75
Pub Date: May 10, 2022
T H R E E • W O R D S
Nostalgic • Messy • Tender
📖 S Y N O P S I S
They say you can never go home again, and for Persephone Fraser, ever since she made the biggest mistake of her life a decade ago, that has felt too true. Instead of spending summers in cottage country, on the glittering lakeshore of her childhood, she stays in a stylish apartment in Toronto, keeping everyone a safe distance from her heart.
Until Percy receives the call that sends her racing back to Barry’s Bay and into the orbit of Sam Florek—the man she never thought she’d have to live without.
For six summers during their youth, through hazy afternoons on the water and warm nights working in his family’s restaurant, Percy and Sam had been inseparable. And when Percy returns to the lake, their connection is as undeniable as it had always been. But until she can confront the decisions she made, they’ll never know whether their love is bigger than the biggest mistakes of their past.
💭 T H O U G H T S
Carley Fortune's debut novel Every Summer After was all over Bookstagram, and one of the summer's hottest recommendations. It was hard to avoid the hype and spoilers, yet I knew I wanted to save it for my disconnected time away at the cottage, which just felt like the perfect place to read it.
Told over six summers in the past and one weekend in the present, this coming-of-age, friends to lovers, second chance romance is tender and passionate. The alternating timelines allows for a slow burn, messy and realistic relationship. The characters are deeply flawed. They make mistakes. They weren't brought to life. Given Sam and Percy are teenagers when they first meet, it does read young - the angst and longing are certainly real.
It was the setting that truly made this a winner for me. I absolutely loved the idyllic cottage country setting. And as I mentioned above, I saved reading this until I was able to read it on a dock in Ontario's cottage country. Sometimes there is just a time and a place for certain books and this was it for me with this one. I might have even treated myself to some Kawartha ice cream to enhance the experience. Doing all of this really made the vibe of the story come to life. I loved all of the little sprinkles of Canadian cottage country.
Somewhat surprisingly, this second-chance romance worked on so many levels for me. What I really loved was the theme of finding the person that gets you unlike anyone else, the one that makes you feel seen and safe. It was the perfect example of the choices that change the entire trajectory of our lives. Every Summer After introduces a fresh, new voice into the Canadian romance realm, and I will be eagerly awaiting the release of her next novel Meet Me At the Lake next year.
📚 R E C O M M E N D • T O
• readers looking for a summer read
• second chance romance trope lovers
• K.A. Tucker fans
🔖 F A V O U R I T E • Q U O T E S
"Betrayals don't cancel each other out. They just hurt more."
"And not for the first time it feels like someone stole the whole script to my life story and wrote it all wrong."
"I can only keep trying to breathe."
Author: Carley Fortune
Genre: Romance
Rating: 4.75
Pub Date: May 10, 2022
T H R E E • W O R D S
Nostalgic • Messy • Tender
📖 S Y N O P S I S
They say you can never go home again, and for Persephone Fraser, ever since she made the biggest mistake of her life a decade ago, that has felt too true. Instead of spending summers in cottage country, on the glittering lakeshore of her childhood, she stays in a stylish apartment in Toronto, keeping everyone a safe distance from her heart.
Until Percy receives the call that sends her racing back to Barry’s Bay and into the orbit of Sam Florek—the man she never thought she’d have to live without.
For six summers during their youth, through hazy afternoons on the water and warm nights working in his family’s restaurant, Percy and Sam had been inseparable. And when Percy returns to the lake, their connection is as undeniable as it had always been. But until she can confront the decisions she made, they’ll never know whether their love is bigger than the biggest mistakes of their past.
💭 T H O U G H T S
Carley Fortune's debut novel Every Summer After was all over Bookstagram, and one of the summer's hottest recommendations. It was hard to avoid the hype and spoilers, yet I knew I wanted to save it for my disconnected time away at the cottage, which just felt like the perfect place to read it.
Told over six summers in the past and one weekend in the present, this coming-of-age, friends to lovers, second chance romance is tender and passionate. The alternating timelines allows for a slow burn, messy and realistic relationship. The characters are deeply flawed. They make mistakes. They weren't brought to life. Given Sam and Percy are teenagers when they first meet, it does read young - the angst and longing are certainly real.
It was the setting that truly made this a winner for me. I absolutely loved the idyllic cottage country setting. And as I mentioned above, I saved reading this until I was able to read it on a dock in Ontario's cottage country. Sometimes there is just a time and a place for certain books and this was it for me with this one. I might have even treated myself to some Kawartha ice cream to enhance the experience. Doing all of this really made the vibe of the story come to life. I loved all of the little sprinkles of Canadian cottage country.
Somewhat surprisingly, this second-chance romance worked on so many levels for me. What I really loved was the theme of finding the person that gets you unlike anyone else, the one that makes you feel seen and safe. It was the perfect example of the choices that change the entire trajectory of our lives. Every Summer After introduces a fresh, new voice into the Canadian romance realm, and I will be eagerly awaiting the release of her next novel Meet Me At the Lake next year.
📚 R E C O M M E N D • T O
• readers looking for a summer read
• second chance romance trope lovers
• K.A. Tucker fans
🔖 F A V O U R I T E • Q U O T E S
"Betrayals don't cancel each other out. They just hurt more."
"And not for the first time it feels like someone stole the whole script to my life story and wrote it all wrong."
"I can only keep trying to breathe."
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Death, Infidelity, Death of parent, and Grief
Moderate: Terminal illness, Abandonment, Sexual content, and Cancer
Minor: Alcohol, Cursing, Bullying, and Vomit
namenotimportant's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I'm soo conflicted with this. Because I loved the story, the characters, the writing, the setting, up to the point, when Percy cheated with Charlie. Yes, she was heartbroken, but that is no excuse to cheat, especially not with his BROTHER. And also, what was Charlie thinking? Percy's emotion was clouded and everything, but Charlie? Major dick move on both their parts.
The ending felt a little rushed, I feel like a little more time would've been good for the characters.
The ending felt a little rushed, I feel like a little more time would've been good for the characters.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Panic attacks/disorders, Death, Death of parent, Grief, and Infidelity
tayking's review against another edition
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
I love second chance romance and I love banter, but this book was mired down by the self-deprecating narration that permeated both present and past scenes. It's definitely a matter of taste, but I found myself increasingly frustrated with Percy, with not enough character development at the end to make up for it.
As much as I loved Sam's character, I also felt he idealized Percy too much, which was the root of a lot of his mistakes. Again, this was also left largely unresolved at the end.
If you like angsty tales centered around a love that is bigger than life, this may be for you.
As much as I loved Sam's character, I also felt he idealized Percy too much, which was the root of a lot of his mistakes. Again, this was also left largely unresolved at the end.
If you like angsty tales centered around a love that is bigger than life, this may be for you.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity
Moderate: Grief
Minor: Cancer
sfbookgirl's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
What can I say that hasn’t already been said about this novel? It’s heartbreaking, incredibly well-written, and has a plot that keeps you turning pages. And my goodness how is this a debut novel??? Every Summer After is easily one of my favorite books of the year. I read it on my Kindle but I may just need to purchase a copy to just hold and reread. The foundational relationship built between the main character Persephone Fraser and Sam Florek is believable in a manner that allows readers to easily lose themselves in this fictional tale.
Many comparisons have been made between Love and Other Words by Christina Lauren. While I have not read Lauren’s novel, I tremendously enjoyed Every Summer After. And while I usually include a brief synopsis in my reviews, I hope you trust me enough to just go into this one without truly knowing what the book is about. I read this book 5 months ago, yet it is one I still think about to this day. Who am I kidding, I should definitely purchase a copy to cherish forever.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Death of parent, and Infidelity
Moderate: Sexual content, Grief, and Cancer
tuliptohru's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity, Death of parent, and Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Grief and Sexual content
Minor: Vomit
caitlindoesntread's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Grief, Panic attacks/disorders, Infidelity, and Cancer
saraavowlerr's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Percy had a lot of internalized misogyny I feel like and she was just so hard to like
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Cursing, Death, Grief, Cancer, Death of parent, Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, and Sexual content
plsnotanotherdamselindistress's review against another edition
emotional
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
Reading the flashes from the past I totally saw the friends to lovers. But after the 70% of the book talking about how bad it was what happened between them that was the reason for going no-contact and only on the last few pages actually learning about it I can say if I had known it earlier I would have stopped read because there are only a few things I despise in books and cheating with his brother while clearly using the brother to then treat him like a monster after it happened and also slut-shaming your best friend and blaming her for being flirted with by the the guy you want but somehow betrayed plus it having an unlikeable female MC is one of them if the genre is romance. (By unlikeable I mean how she treats people around her)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Cancer, and Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Infidelity
Minor: Misogyny, Grief, and Toxic friendship
kaylaannsreads's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content and Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Death of parent and Grief
Minor: Alcohol and Infidelity
deelightfulreads's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Grief