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britwalsh16's review against another edition
emotional
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This book gave me all the feels!! I just love everything I’ve read from Elle Kennedy so far, & this book is no different. Fitz is an idiot, but when he decides to finally be smart, he dives in with both feet & he finally fights for what he wants!! I love it!! And Summer is stubborn & goes after what she wants, but she’s also smart & knows what she deserves, & if the two clash, she stays true to herself! And the two of them really are meant to be, they bring the best out of each other! I love characters like that. I wish I had someone like that to bring the best out of me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Sexism, Sexual content, Sexual assault, Bullying, Classism, and Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Blood, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, and Violence
Minor: Rape and Fire/Fire injury
frankiereadstoomuch's review
emotional
funny
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Mental illness, and Toxic friendship
catastrophiclyss's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
lighthearted
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Panic attacks/disorders, Alcohol, Blood, Cursing, Drug use, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Classism, and Sexual harassment
abidavisf's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Summer is joy and light. Her ability to see the good in everything (except perhaps herself) and her will to make friends with everyone is inspiring. The journey she takes during The Chase is beautiful and I can’t wait to read more about her in the rest of this series.
I wish we’d had a bit more Colin in this book. Though he’s a closed off character, I’d hoped that we’d get more from his perspective so we could dive in a bit deeper. Hopefully we see more as the series continues!
The learning disorder visibility is wonderful and so important. Really well done and a huge thank you to Elle Kennedy.
I wish we’d had a bit more Colin in this book. Though he’s a closed off character, I’d hoped that we’d get more from his perspective so we could dive in a bit deeper. Hopefully we see more as the series continues!
The learning disorder visibility is wonderful and so important. Really well done and a huge thank you to Elle Kennedy.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Ableism, Classism, Gaslighting, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, and Misogyny
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Sexual assault, Grief, Bullying, Violence, Fire/Fire injury, and Panic attacks/disorders
booksbytheglass's review against another edition
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
sadly, this is my least favorite of the off-campus / briar university series 😭 and I was so ready to love quirky extrovert summer!! however, the tropes were not my cup of tea…
after meeting summer in the off-campus series, I was beyond ready to peak into her life (and it didn’t disappoint!) 🥹 we stan extroverted princesses who are both beauty and brains!!!
fitz, on the other hand, annoyed me to no end 🥴 he refused to actually speak his feelings, yet seemed to hold everyone else accountable for them. especially when he demanded that summer not date anyone else but didn’t even tell her that he liked her (even as a friend!) - and yes, we discover the roots behind this but it also showed that fitz didn’t WANT to change and help himself for the better 🫠🫠
summer could do so much better!!! and not with hunter either - that was an unnecessary drama too…
I just wasn’t a fan overall as it seemed to use all of the stereotypical tropes when it comes to a “party princess” and a “tattooed video gamer” (when fitz and summer were so much more!) - and when they seemed to do a 180 towards the end of the book and become completely different people??
overall, this was a very surface level romance for me!
rating: 3 stars
wine pairing: california sparkling wine
after meeting summer in the off-campus series, I was beyond ready to peak into her life (and it didn’t disappoint!) 🥹 we stan extroverted princesses who are both beauty and brains!!!
fitz, on the other hand, annoyed me to no end 🥴 he refused to actually speak his feelings, yet seemed to hold everyone else accountable for them. especially when he demanded that summer not date anyone else but didn’t even tell her that he liked her (even as a friend!) - and yes, we discover the roots behind this but it also showed that fitz didn’t WANT to change and help himself for the better 🫠🫠
summer could do so much better!!! and not with hunter either - that was an unnecessary drama too…
I just wasn’t a fan overall as it seemed to use all of the stereotypical tropes when it comes to a “party princess” and a “tattooed video gamer” (when fitz and summer were so much more!) - and when they seemed to do a 180 towards the end of the book and become completely different people??
overall, this was a very surface level romance for me!
rating: 3 stars
wine pairing: california sparkling wine
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault and Panic attacks/disorders
olivia_v's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
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
Content Warnings
Minor: Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, and Panic attacks/disorders
myhandmadehell's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Youth is wasted on the young.
I really really liked the representation of ADHD (in a woman, no less!) as well as the overarching messages of not judging a book by its cover. Jocks can also be nerds, hot fashion-loving girls can also be smart, etc etc. All very good stuff.
But this book was lowkey painful to read. The slow burn aspect of it felt interminable - and not in a good way. The two leads hardly spend any time together in the first half of the book, partly because there are like five hundred other characters who all need page-time for some reason, and partly because they’re both being very stupid. And not in a fun way, but in a “oh no I can’t say what I feel” way that just kind of grates after a while. Their eventual decision to get together feels anticlimactic (despite there being one whole climax between the two of them in their first sexy scene together) and after that it kind of seems like both of their “flaws” just sort of…vanish. The book then carries on with the task of wrapping up about 1/4 of the plot points it opened - I assume there are more novels after this where we’ll see some of that move forward.
Anyway this felt like kind of a mess: the pacing was weird, the book felt too full of multiple other characters who took time away from the main romantic plot, and honestly some of the bad things that happened to female lead Summer felt really distressing and unfair (not to mention, trigger warning, an attempted sexual assault against another character towards the end of the book).
Also are there really so many adults in this world who not only still have deep grudges from high school but also have genuinely never encountered young people who challenge that narrative for them? One of them was literally an adviser at an IVY LEAGUE SCHOOL who later admits “oh I was poor growing up and I have an issue with rich kids getting what they want in universities and that’s why I was such a dick to you in particular) and like…really?? Was she the only student who you ever treated that way? And was she really the first one to ever make you think that maybe you shouldn’t do that?
Anyway, didn’t love this one, but the character voice was very good between the two POVs, and the leads felt like real people. It was just sort of the plot and pacing that was weird.
I really really liked the representation of ADHD (in a woman, no less!) as well as the overarching messages of not judging a book by its cover. Jocks can also be nerds, hot fashion-loving girls can also be smart, etc etc. All very good stuff.
But this book was lowkey painful to read. The slow burn aspect of it felt interminable - and not in a good way. The two leads hardly spend any time together in the first half of the book, partly because there are like five hundred other characters who all need page-time for some reason, and partly because they’re both being very stupid. And not in a fun way, but in a “oh no I can’t say what I feel” way that just kind of grates after a while. Their eventual decision to get together feels anticlimactic (despite there being one whole climax between the two of them in their first sexy scene together) and after that it kind of seems like both of their “flaws” just sort of…vanish. The book then carries on with the task of wrapping up about 1/4 of the plot points it opened - I assume there are more novels after this where we’ll see some of that move forward.
Anyway this felt like kind of a mess: the pacing was weird, the book felt too full of multiple other characters who took time away from the main romantic plot, and honestly some of the bad things that happened to female lead Summer felt really distressing and unfair (not to mention, trigger warning, an attempted sexual assault against another character towards the end of the book).
Also are there really so many adults in this world who not only still have deep grudges from high school but also have genuinely never encountered young people who challenge that narrative for them? One of them was literally an adviser at an IVY LEAGUE SCHOOL who later admits “oh I was poor growing up and I have an issue with rich kids getting what they want in universities and that’s why I was such a dick to you in particular) and like…really?? Was she the only student who you ever treated that way? And was she really the first one to ever make you think that maybe you shouldn’t do that?
Anyway, didn’t love this one, but the character voice was very good between the two POVs, and the leads felt like real people. It was just sort of the plot and pacing that was weird.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Sexual assault, Violence, Panic attacks/disorders, and Emotional abuse
kirareadssometimes's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
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
4.5
Has that class is off campus feeling that is just so comfortable to read. All the characters were so fun! A little too much time spent on stuff that felt irrelevant or just entirely separate from the couple. Like too much writing about her class when I’d rather them doing something together. <I was also bummed how things ended with hunter. I know he has his own book in the series but it felt neglectful.> summer was way less stressful than I thought she would be. Sexy and lighthearted but with a touch of real world issues near the end.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Violence, Sexual harassment, Sexual assault, and Sexual content
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Fire/Fire injury
sebradley29's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Bullying, Injury/Injury detail, Cursing, Gaslighting, Infidelity, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Rape, Sexual harassment, and Violence
ifoundcallie's review against another edition
lighthearted
medium-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
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content and Sexism
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Sexual harassment, Alcohol, Cursing, and Sexual assault
Minor: Panic attacks/disorders, Ableism, Injury/Injury detail, and Fire/Fire injury