A review by the_cover_contessa
Summertime Punchline: A Novel by Betty Corrello

emotional funny hopeful fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Thank you to Avon who sent me an advanced copy of this book to read and give my honest review. The opinions expressed here are my own.

Delfina Silva-Miller is having some bad luck. She's out a boyfriend, a roommate, an apartment, and a job! She finds herself back in her hometown; a place she never thought she would return. And a place where she experienced heartache, lonliness, and abandonment. She finds herself interacting with her childhood nemesis, Edgardo. As she tries to get her life back together, she slowly realizes perhaps her hometown was not as bad as she thought it was and perhaps the one person she thought she hated might be the soul mate she never thought she'd have.

This was a fabulous debut for Betty Corrello. She did a wonderful job with her character development, her plot line, and her pacing.

I went into this book thinking there would be a bit more romance than there was. And I thought I would be disappointed. But I was, in fact, very pleased with how this story progressed. I was happy the story was not all romance and spice. The plot was focused on Del's growth and her experience as she comes to terms with who she is and where she wants her life to go. Throughout the book she learns to open her heart more and more. She learns forgiveness and love. 

Del is a great character. I love that she's almost thirty and is still struggling with being an adult. This is such a true representation of what we are seeing these days with people returning to home as they try to put their life in order. So many people struggle with being an adult at such an early age and then feeling they failed because they are not able to pull it off. She's vulnerable and definitely wears that on her sleeve, despite not wanting to do so.

Edgardo is so sweet and tender. I love that he's a hometown guy who truly enjoys where he lives. And I love how his experiences didn't make him an angry person but show that he was capable of great growth. And his relationship with his family is so fun. I loved watching the banter between them.

I really enjoyed the flashbacks Corrello incorporated into the story. They gave amazing background on the relationship between Del and Eddie and how they had this intrinsic push and pull toward and away from each other over the course of their teen years. Many of their moments were filled with what they termed hate but really was them fighting their attraction to one another. It totally reminded me of the relationships I had in high school.

There was lots of humor used in this book to form the relationship between the characters. We are told many times how funny Del is and you can feel this with her interactions with Eddie, her grandmother, her father, and a few of the other side characters in the book.

One thing that pulled me out of the story was not having much of a background from the last ten years Del has spent away from her hometown and Eddie. I need more of what she truly experienced during that time. We do get some of this for Eddie, but also not as much as I would have liked to truly shape him and show us why he is the way he is. Since the entire book is told from Del's point of view, we never truly know what's going on in Eddie's head. I feel like having his point of view would have really helped with being able to form a better opinion on his character.

This was a great summer or beach read. Something easy to move your mind into feel good stuff. A second chance romance that is sweet and slow to burn. An exploration of relationships, love, and friendships and how these all help shape a life. An impressive first foray for this author into writing.