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A review by austriana
The Summer I Found You by Jolene Perry
2.0
1.5 stars
I really couldn't decide between 1.5 stars and 2 stars, and I ultimately settled upon 1.5 because of the title and cover. Yes, they swayed me against the book, because not only does the book NOT take place at the beach, it also does not take place during the summer. I have no idea why this book is called "The summer I found you" and depicts a girl standing on the beach.
The book is told in alternating chapters by the two main characters, Aidan and Kate, but they have the exact same voice. The only good thing is that their storylines are just different enough so that readers won't be confused. The author has problems with pronoun usage at times (one of my biggest pet peeves), and some of the grammatical errors are distracting. (Seriously, a professional author needs to learn when to use she vs. her. At the very least, make sure your editor knows the difference.)
But those aren't the biggest problems. No, the blatant use of a token minority, the attempt to focus on PTSD and dropping it later...oh, I could list tons of issues.
So Kate's ex-boyfriend is black. And the author wants you to be very, very aware of this. Right on the first page, we're told:
Later, Kate actually thinks:
I felt like the way the author hammered in his race was to make the reader aware that she attempted to diversify the book. However, it's clumsily executed, and because he's the ONLY minority mentioned in the book, it feels as though it was done as an afterthought. I'm all for diversity in books, but this wasn't done the right way.
Next issue on the list: Aidan's PTSD. At the beginning of the novel, he's visiting a therapist and having nightmares. By the end, he's so distracted by Kate and her long, beautiful legs, the PTSD seems to melt away. You see, by visiting his old Army pals and the wife of his friend who died in the same explosion that took his arm, in addition to Kate's presence, Aidan is cured. Because that's how it works, obvs.
Every time I think of what I hated in this book, I come up with a new item. So we'll discuss Kate's verbal diarrhea next. Kate does not have a filter, and I think we're supposed to find it charming and cute. Aidan certainly does. He likes that she doesn't hold back, and she treats him normally despite his missing limb. That'd actually be a good trait to have, but it really doesn't forgive stupid comments like this when you first meet a veteran with a missing limb:
What does that even mean? Dude's cousin just told you he lost his arm in Afghanistan, and then you make a joke that sounds like he lost it in a bar fight? It's not cute or funny. But of course Aidan likes it, because Aidan and Kate are destined for each other.
Finally, Aidan (and Kate's mother) constantly worries about the age difference between the two of them. They're a whole TWO YEARS APART. Are you freaking out about that yet? Because that's massive. We're talking robbing the cradle territory. And Aidan at one point mentions he's fairly inexperienced when it comes to the ladies, but later makes a comment that implies he's been around for a bit. I don't think the author knew which one she wanted it to be.
I feel like I could go on, but thinking about nitpicking everything I disliked about the book leaves me feeling exhausted. So just read many of the other negative comments, because I feel like several of those made good points!
I really couldn't decide between 1.5 stars and 2 stars, and I ultimately settled upon 1.5 because of the title and cover. Yes, they swayed me against the book, because not only does the book NOT take place at the beach, it also does not take place during the summer. I have no idea why this book is called "The summer I found you" and depicts a girl standing on the beach.
The book is told in alternating chapters by the two main characters, Aidan and Kate, but they have the exact same voice. The only good thing is that their storylines are just different enough so that readers won't be confused. The author has problems with pronoun usage at times (one of my biggest pet peeves), and some of the grammatical errors are distracting. (Seriously, a professional author needs to learn when to use she vs. her. At the very least, make sure your editor knows the difference.)
But those aren't the biggest problems. No, the blatant use of a token minority, the attempt to focus on PTSD and dropping it later...oh, I could list tons of issues.
So Kate's ex-boyfriend is black. And the author wants you to be very, very aware of this. Right on the first page, we're told:
"Shelton's black hair is cut short. Perfect for a young African American guy heading off to college for great things. I think he took a picture of Obama into Super Cuts and said, 'One day I want to be that guy. Make me look like him.'"
Later, Kate actually thinks:
"Shelton. Still looking like the token black model for J. Crew."
I felt like the way the author hammered in his race was to make the reader aware that she attempted to diversify the book. However, it's clumsily executed, and because he's the ONLY minority mentioned in the book, it feels as though it was done as an afterthought. I'm all for diversity in books, but this wasn't done the right way.
Next issue on the list: Aidan's PTSD. At the beginning of the novel, he's visiting a therapist and having nightmares. By the end, he's so distracted by Kate and her long, beautiful legs, the PTSD seems to melt away. You see, by visiting his old Army pals and the wife of his friend who died in the same explosion that took his arm, in addition to Kate's presence, Aidan is cured. Because that's how it works, obvs.
Every time I think of what I hated in this book, I come up with a new item. So we'll discuss Kate's verbal diarrhea next. Kate does not have a filter, and I think we're supposed to find it charming and cute. Aidan certainly does. He likes that she doesn't hold back, and she treats him normally despite his missing limb. That'd actually be a good trait to have, but it really doesn't forgive stupid comments like this when you first meet a veteran with a missing limb:
"So what does the other guy look like?"
What does that even mean? Dude's cousin just told you he lost his arm in Afghanistan, and then you make a joke that sounds like he lost it in a bar fight? It's not cute or funny. But of course Aidan likes it, because Aidan and Kate are destined for each other.
Finally, Aidan (and Kate's mother) constantly worries about the age difference between the two of them. They're a whole TWO YEARS APART. Are you freaking out about that yet? Because that's massive. We're talking robbing the cradle territory. And Aidan at one point mentions he's fairly inexperienced when it comes to the ladies, but later makes a comment that implies he's been around for a bit. I don't think the author knew which one she wanted it to be.
I feel like I could go on, but thinking about nitpicking everything I disliked about the book leaves me feeling exhausted. So just read many of the other negative comments, because I feel like several of those made good points!