Reviews with content warning for Sexism - It Happened One Summer

Reviews tagging 'Sexism'

It Happened One Summer by Tessa Bailey

17 reviews

leslielychee's review

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lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.0

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0701mango's review

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emotional funny hopeful fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

This was nice! It was quite trope-y in a great way. I liked the development of the relationship.

Specifically on that point, I really liked the beginning part after they got over their differences how they were in a period of not dating but they kind of knew they were into each other and the whole town knew too. I liked being secure in the knowledge that they would eventually get together and there would be a happy ending.

I appreciated the topics covered in the book as well, like the perils of certain fishing trades. If you like the show Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha on Netflix, you will like this. If you like this, you will probably like Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha. It's a lot of the same kind of stuff.

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kfmcf's review

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful inspiring 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

4.5

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decklededgess's review

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funny lighthearted relaxing fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

trigger warning: sexual content, alcohol, overnight jail, y and misogynistic dialogue and description, tropical storm and related disaster, death of parent mention, death of spouse mention

Love to hate read a tessa bailey book bc there’s just so much content to shit on. There are times where I actually enjoy the book but then she writes something so fucking disgustingly heteronormative and gendered that I instantly lose all will to live.

Anyways it kept me fed this week so I could direct my frustration away from work and towards something stupid so there’s a purpose to these existing.

Happy hate reading everyone!!

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nahlasbooknook's review

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funny hopeful lighthearted reflective relaxing fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

It Happened One Summer is essentially fan fiction for Alexis from Schitt’s Creek. Need I say more? The book was great! That is all, everyone can go home and read it now.

Kidding of course. Although I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and annotating it (in depth) for my friend, there were of course, things I absolutely liked, and things I sort of didn’t. I will start with the negative this time, because I want to end my review of this book on a positive note.

My biggest issue was the ending, or rather, the climax/falling action of the narrative. In all honesty, my opinion about this all boils down to personal preference, and if you like this sort of post-confession cliché angst and romance, then the book will be for you. The first ⅔ of It Happened One Summer is a slow burn leading up to Piper and Brendan’s relationship. The last third takes place after their relationship is solidified. In this final third of the novel, the source of the conflict is a lack of communication between Piper and Brendan, which leads to instability in their relationship and a situation that could have easily been resolved if the two of them acted like the adults they are and sat down to talk through their issues. I am generally not a fan of romance novels that focus extensively on the relationship after it has been solidified, because what is there to tell, really? In order to keep it interesting, the author has to create a new conflict, and it’s often a petty argument that doesn’t need to happen, which is exactly what Bailey did. Furthermore, once this conflict was resolved, we got a Mr. Darcy-esque monologue from Brendan that kind of gave me the ick, like, we know you love her dude, but it’s the 21st century, just say the words and go. If you really will die for her or kill everyone who looks at her wrong, you might just need the distance, and some sunlight…

The only other issue I had with this book is the cheese. I mean, oh my God, sometimes it was so much I could feel my lactose intolerance kicking in. Brendan needs to chill and realize that Piper is a woman that will be perceived by other men. If he’s going to actively try and stop every man from looking at her, I just might go kill him. Also, that crap about him being her ‘recharging station,’—worse than Edward from Twilight calling Bella a spidermonkey. They both really referred to his hugs as a recharging station with complete seriousness, and they’re like...30. You know that scene in You where Love says “I wolf you” instead of “I love you”? That’s what this felt like.

Okaaaaay, now that I’ve made it sound like I couldn’t stand anything about this book, let me tell you what I did like, because that did actually outweigh the negative. I loved the way every single character in this book was written. They were so consistent, that even when they made stupid decisions that filled me with rage, I couldn’t be mad at the author, because those decisions matched exactly with who the characters were. It was easy to understand the insecurities that both Piper and Brendan battled as they fell for each other, and I could see them work through it, making two steps forward and one back, each time. The character development was really, really good. Every character in this book grew from the first page to the last, and it was in ways that were relatable and real. I especially loved that Piper’s growth did not depend on her relationship with Brendan, but rather her own perception of herself. I appreciated the fact that these characters were flawed enough to regress, because growth is never linear, and we all regress when challenged, at times. Overall, the characters were genuine and real, and I loved watching them grow.

In addition, the humor in this novel never felt forced, and I found myself smiling and laughing more than I usually do with books. There was a great balance of sarcasm, banter, and really bad jokes that made reading it not only fun, but also funny. I could see the characters so clearly as I read, it was almost like I was watching it instead. I will definitely be pre-ordering the sequel, Hook, Line, and Sinker, and counting the days until I get to read about Hannah and Fox’s love story! Those two carried this book without even trying, and I just KNOW Bailey will do them justice.

Overall Rating: 3.75/5

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emilykthelin's review

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lighthearted relaxing medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

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now_booking's review

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted relaxing medium-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

4.25

This was a solid 4-star, movie-worthy rom-com and I highly enjoyed it and recommended it. The spicy bits are fiery hot, but also emotional and fun. The emotional bits were absolutely swoony and the sort to fill your soul with “awwws.” The central themes of being true to yourself, accepting yourself as you are but also being open to change and to adapting and to growth were lovely and heartfelt. The premise of a party girl socialite, Piper, being sent away to a rural community as an unprepared heiress to a rural bar, and there meeting the gruff townie fisherman with quick judgement and little patience, was very much on the Hallmark movies spectrum of plausibility, but I absolutely loved it and with the other great qualities of this book in spice, emotion and heart, I HIGHLY recommend this romance and am eagerly awaiting Hannah and Fox’s book!

I received an advanced copy of this novel from Avon Books through NetGalley.

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