Review - - Cruel Summer

Cruel Summer

by Maisey Yates

Publisher: Canary Street Press

Release Date: June 24, 2025

Reviewed by PJ

There are no rules this cruel summer…

“I think we should see other people…” That one sentence unravels Samantha Parker’s perfect life. She has a loving husband, three wonderful kids and a comfortable suburban lifestyle. But on the brink of their long-awaited empty-nest chapter, Will asks Samantha for something she never dreamed of: an open marriage.

Desperate to keep her husband happy, Samantha proposes a summerlong separation with no contact. She knows she has to use the opportunity to find herself, but she also has no interest in being with anyone but Will. She’s confident when the season is over, they’ll get back together like this time never happened. 

Then Sam gets an offer of adventure from an unlikely source: Logan Martin, a classic-car restorer who happens to be Will’s best friend, asks Sam to help him drive across the country to make deliveries. Logan and Sam have never had an easy relationship. He’s prickly, aloof and a little too handsome. And as they traverse the winding roads and breathtaking backdrops of North America, her changing connection with Logan challenges everything she believed she wanted in life, love and passion. When her summer with Logan is up, will she go home to the familiar stability of her past…or choose the thrilling uncertainty of her future?

PJ's Thoughts:

Raw. Real. Heartbreaking. Healing. Empowering. Romantic. Unforgettable. Those are but a few of the many words that flowed through my mind while on the emotional journey that is Maisey Yates' Cruel Summer. 

Rarely do coming-of-age stories feature 40-year-old protagonists but that's exactly what happens to Sam in this book. She's settled in a comfortable, predictable marriage. She's happy - or thinks she is - but to be honest, she's never known anything else...until her husband blows it all to bits. Thus begins a summer unlike any she's previously lived. Crisscrossing the U.S. and Canada with Logan opens her eyes to places she's never seen and her heart to feelings and realizations she never considered. Realizations such as maybe her marriage was never perfect and maybe she's spent the past twenty-two years molding herself into what others expected her to be rather than fulfilling her own wants and needs. Realizations such as maybe what she wants for her future is something completely different.

I've been reading Maisey Yates for a long time. Cruel Summer, in my opinion, is one of the best books she's written. The lead characters are so vividly depicted, I forgot they were fictional and became wholly invested in them, their journeys, and their happiness. I appreciated their complexities, their emotional layers that were gradually revealed, and shared past experiences that took on new meaning as perspectives changed. And I cheered enthusiastically for the ending my heart was begging to see.

This is an immersive story of heartbreak, growth, healing, and forgiveness. It's also a heart-tugging journey of learning to value your needs, your worth, and your right to love and be loved for your complete, authentic self. I couldn't put it down. 

Review & Giveaway - - One Golden Summer

One Golden Summer

by Carley Fortune

Publisher: Berkley

Release Date: May 6, 2025

Reviewed by PJ

 

I never anticipated Charlie Florek.

Good things happen at the lake. That’s what Alice’s grandmother says, and it’s true. Alice spent just one summer there at a cottage with Nan when she was seventeen—it’s where she took that photo, the one of three grinning teenagers in a yellow speedboat, the image that changed her life.

Now Alice lives behind a lens. As a photographer, she’s most comfortable on the sidelines, letting other people shine. Lately though, she’s been itching for something more, and when Nan falls and breaks her hip, Alice comes up with a plan for them both: another summer in that magical place, Barry’s Bay. But as soon as they settle in, their peace is disrupted by the roar of a familiar yellow boat, and the man driving it.

Charlie Florek was nineteen when Alice took his photo from afar. Now he’s all grown up—a shameless flirt, who manages to make Nan laugh and Alice long to be seventeen again, when life was simpler, when taking pictures was just for fun. Sun-slanted days and warm nights out on the lake with Charlie are a balm for Alice’s soul, but when she looks up and sees his piercing green gaze directly on her, she begins to worry for her heart.

PJ's Thoughts:

Just like Alice never anticipated Charlie Florek, I never anticipated One Golden Summer. You know those special books that transport you to a specific time and place, speak to all your emotions, evoke memories of times gone by, and hold you spellbound from start to finish? One Golden Summer, for me, is that book. I read it in one day and once I finished all I wanted to do was go back to page one and read it again, only slowly this time, savoring every perfectly placed word designed to elicit laughter, tears, and swoony sighs. 

Before we get to the story, let's talk setting. Carley Fortune does a superb job of immersing the reader into the unique beauty of Barry's Bay. And well she should, as it's her hometown! Her love of this Ontario lake community shines through loud and clear and made me love it too. I could smell the pine-scented air, hear the loons cry under a star-studded sky, feel the wind in my face as she and Charlie raced across the lake in his yellow boat, and feel the cool water sluice over my body every time Alice dove off the dock or inelegantly fell off her Pegasus-Unicorn floatie (which would so be me).

The story itself is poignant, funny, endearing, frustrating, and romantic, centering on a variety of relationships including friendship, family, and romance. I loved Alice's bucket list and how Charlie jumped right in to help her check off items. I loved the friendship that grew between them, the flirty banter, the respect and understanding, before the deepening of feelings. The relationship between Alice and her grandmother brought so many wonderful memories and feelings to the surface. I liked that each of them grew during their summer at the lake. The family relationships for both Charlie and Alice are complicated but in each circumstance there is love at the center that helps them resolve their differences.

Note: I should point out that Charlie's (now settled) differences with his family are explored in Fortune's debut book, Every Summer After along with one major spoiler that's referenced in One Golden Summer. I haven't read Every Summer After yet (though I have bought and will be reading it soon) so I can't say if reading it first would have enhanced my love of One Golden Summer (I can't imagine loving it more) but I'm guessing it may have deepened my understanding of Charlie's character. 

One Golden Summer is beautifully paced, poignantly nostalgic, deeply emotional, fun, humorous, endearing, and all the other adjectives I can think of to describe a golden summer of friendship, family, and romance at the lake. It's a summer of growth, of challenge, of discovering who you are as a person, of opening yourself to vulnerability, to love, of discovering your personal path forward, and perhaps, finding that one special person to walk that path with you. 

One Golden Summer has my highest recommendation. It is my book of the summer. 

Do you have memories of a specific time or place you would like to see brought to life in a book?

Have you ever spent a summer or a summer vacation on a lake?

Have you read Carley Fortune yet?

Who's up for a ride in a vintage yellow speedboat? 

One randomly chosen person who posts a comment before 11:00 PM, May 25 will receive a print copy of One Golden Summer.

*U.S. only

*Must be 18

Review - - Can't Get Enough

Can't Get Enough

by Kennedy Ryan

Skyland - Book 3

Publisher: Forever

Release Date: May 13, 2025

Reviewed by PJ

Hendrix Barry lives a fabulous life. She has phenomenal friends, a loving family, and a thriving business that places her in the entertainment industry's rarefied air. Your vision board? She’s probably living it.

She’s a woman with goals, dreams, ambitions—always striving upward. And in the midst of everything, she's facing her toughest challenge yet: caring for an aging parent. Who has time for romance? From her experience, there's a low ROI on relationships. Anyway, she hasn't met the man who can keep up with her. Until...him.

Tech mogul Maverick Bell is a dilemma wrapped in an exquisitely tailored suit and knee-melting charm. From their first charged glance at the summer's hottest party, Hendrix feels like she’s met her match. Only he can’t be. Mav may be the first to make her feel this seen and desired, but he’s the last one she can have. Forbidden fruit is the juiciest, and this man is off limits if she plans to stay the course she’s set for herself.

But when Maverick gives chase—pursuing her, spoiling her, understanding her—is it time to let herself have something more?

PJ's Thoughts:

Kennedy Ryan is a force. While a book written by her is always a reading adventure, it is also an emotional, all-consuming, visceral experience. I don't just read about these complex characters, I live their journeys with them. They fill me with hope, anguish, accomplishment, fear, solid supportive friendship, chosen family, and soul-deep, enduring, hard-won love. 

I'm not overly eager to read billionaire heroes at the moment but I'll make an exception for Maverick. Ryan has crafted a self-made business mogul, ruthless when necessary and not hesitant to go after what he wants but with a tender side as well. I loved the relationship he has with his dad, the gentle care he uses with Hendrix's mother, and, hello, Black surfer? Yes, please. I love that he is not out of touch with his roots and is willing to put himself forward to offer a hand up to others as well as fight injustice. I appreciated the respect between him and Hendrix, as well as the red-hot chemistry and deepening affection. I especially enjoyed how open they were with one another. Open and honest communication and trusting enough to be vulnerable with one another can be very sexy. 

Speaking of vulnerable, Ryan digs deep with strong-willed, motivated, successful businesswoman, Hendrix. I love that she knows who she is - personally, professionally, sexually - and goes after what she wants, that she also gives of herself to help others in her community, and that she refuses to bend to societal pressure by compromising what she knows is best for her. But I also was happy to see her become open to growth and compromise in those personal relationships. Being confronted not only with a heartbreaking family situation (handled by Ryan with great writing skill and emotional care) but also an unexpected romantic one which leads to a messy business one causes Hendrix to step into uncharted waters and make difficult decisions. It's a thought-provoking process of an independent woman weighing the wants and needs of both her head and her heart. I was with her, cheering her on every step of the way. 

Can't Get Enough is the third book in Ryan's Skyland trilogy. While I'm a stickler for reading a series in order and the primary characters from books one and two feature prominently in this third one, readers new to Skyland should be able to fully enjoy Hendrix's story should you decide to read it first. Whatever order you choose, all three books have my highest recommendation. 

Content warning: Alzheimer's

Review & Giveaway - - Summer in the City

Summer in the City

by Alex Aster

Publisher: William Morrow

Release Date: March 25, 2025

Reviewed by PJ

Twenty-seven-year-old screenwriter Elle has the chance of a lifetime to write a big-budget movie set in New York City. The only problem? She’s had writer’s block for months, and her screenplay is due at the end of the summer. 

In a desperate attempt at inspiration, Elle ends up back in the city she swore she would never return to, in an apartment she could never afford (floor-to-ceiling windows, skyline views, and a new coffee shop to haunt included). It’s the perfect place to write her screenplay…until she realizes her new neighbor is tech “Billionaire Bachelor” Parker Warren, her stairwell hookup from two years ago. It’s been a lovers-to-enemies situation ever since. 

When seeing him again turns into a full night of hate-fueled writing, Elle realizes her enemy/twisted muse might just be the key to finishing her screenplay... if she can stand being around her polar opposite. She writes anonymously, and he’s on the cover of every business magazine. He frequents fancy red carpeted events, and she doesn’t like leaving her emotional support five block radius. 

One summer. One wall apart. He needs to fake a buzzy relationship during his company’s precarious acquisition. She needs to write a movie around a list of NYC locations. Both need a break from their unrelenting schedules, and a chance to rediscover the skyscraper glimmering, pizza crusted, sunlit charms of the city.  

Summers always end, and so will this agreement. It’s all pretend. Promise. 

Until it isn’t.

PJ's Thoughts:

This book. What an absolute delight. Aster takes her characters on a lovers (Okay, not really lovers. More of an instant connection make-out session with the lovers potential that goes south when he says something incredibly insulting) - to enemies - to forced proximity - to fake relationship - to (actual) lovers journey that dialed me in and kept me engaged every step of the way.  

I couldn't put this book down. No, really. I read it in one day with a smile on my face the entire time. It's incredibly immersive. The chemistry, the sparkling banter, the swoony, slow-burn romance. How could I not root for these two? I was with Elle and Parker every step of the way. These two complex, fully-dimensional characters had me experiencing all the emotions. I don't want to give away spoilers because this journey deserves to be experienced as it unfolds across the pages so I'll just say that I love Elle's layers and the emotional evolution she undergoes, how she finds her voice and the courage to use it. Parker's evolution is equally enjoyable. I love how he nudges - okay, drags - Elle out of her comfort corner, his unexpected confession, and the decisions he makes when he finally begins to understand what really matters. And I love, love, love that the author took her time with them, gifting readers with this gem of a story that is one of my favorites this year.

While Elle and Parker are the lead characters of this book, there's another one that is just as important: New York City. In many ways, Aster has not only written a romance between Parker and Elle but also a love letter to this vividly and vibrantly depicted city that brings them together. It even made me, a person who craves wide open spaces, want to buy an airline ticket, rent an apartment, and experience all the pleasures of summer in the city. Except running. I draw the line at running. 

If you're looking for a fun, steamy, can't-put-it-down story that keeps you flipping pages late into the night while dreaming of New York City pizza, champagne galas, early mornings in Central Park, found friendships, heroes who cook (yay!), cozy coffee shops, and hard-won happy endings, go no further than Alex Aster's Summer in the City. It has my highest, joyful recommendation. 

Have you visited New York City?

If money were no object, where would you choose to spend a summer in the city?

One randomly chosen person who posts a comment before 11:00 PM, April 3 will receive a beautiful hardcover copy of Alex Aster's Summer in the City. 

*U.S. only

*Must be 18