A review by rachelshubin
Just for the Summer by Abby Jimenez

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative mysterious 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

4.0

I read this book in less than 24 hours and when I wasn’t reading it, I was thinking about it. For what it’s worth, this book is not a summer romance you pick up to read “just for the summer.” It’s much heavier than your typical romance (but not out of the wheelhouse for Abby Jimenez) and has a lot of topics (trigger warning, PTSD, parent death offpage, parent abandonment, etc) that make it more of a women’s fiction story than a romance. 

I loved the beginning with the R/AITA? (Reddit Am I the Asshole). It was really cute and I loved the way that Emma and Justin connected. I loved all the J-name men are the worst comments because who hasn’t been wronged by a J-name man (I will die on this hill, two have done me wrong and tarnished their J-namesakes). 

I liked the travel nursing aspect of the story, and Emma’s friendship with Maddy is super important to the plot. I also really liked all the banter and flirting between Emma and Justin. Some of their quotes are really great. 

The story has two complicated parental stories which is interesting. And in typical Abby writing fashion (this may be a spoiler if you haven’t read her books)
you get kind of a miscommunication breakup, together, big obstacle that causes a break up, before ultimately coming together.
I’m not a huge fan of that type of writing and that’s why I haven’t loved all her books (particularly Yours Truly) but this one definitely redeemed her writing style for me.
I still really wish there was another chapter inbetween the first time they have sex and having a miscommunication dilemma. But it wasn’t as bad as when that happened in Yours Truly.


Before reading JFTS, you definitely should read or reread Part of Your World and Yours Truly. All three are standalones but they all have a level of crossover and in JFTS, it’s a pretty significant crossover for all three books. You won’t miss anything by not reading the others, but the experience definitely will be richer if you do!

Overall, I’m happy I read this book because I did enjoy the story and it had me smiling and nodding along! I’ll definitely continue to check out Abby’s books and go back and read the one I missed. 

Thank you to Forever and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest opinion. 
Expand filter menu Content Warnings