Just For The Summer

Product Information

An English teacher bumps into her childhood sweetheart, who is still as handsome and charming as ever. When Kate Harris accepts the job of redecorating her brother Aidan’s house in the picturesque town of Willowbury, she knows it’s just a stop gap before she has to decide what to do with the rest of her life. It felt very unrealistic, which is so uncommon for Abby because I can always relate to her stories and characters but it wasn't possible with these ones. If she doesn't want to stay in one place, why does it matter that her exes find their soulmates after they break up?

This story follows Justin and Emma and their journey to a somewhat "fake" dating situation after meeting online and realizing they have a similar issue. On a more personal note, I think it’s books like these that remind me why I love the romance genre so much.Thank you to NetGalley, Abby Jimenez and Forever Publishing for the ARC in exchange for my honest review. Teacher Penelope Campbell loves visiting her Grandma Dot every summer - despite her constant attempts to find Penelope a man! The dual POV gives us a glimpse of two completely different stories, and lives, and slowly merges them into one complex yet beautiful story. During his stay with his father during the summer, he meets a poor girl who is his childhood friend and is a scholar of whom her family is depending on; however, she is holding in a secret with regards to the true state of her scholarship. I think I was weepy for the whole second half of the book for both pure love struck moments in the romance and moments my heart broke for both Emma and Justin for the cards they’ve been dealt.

But seriously, Emma almost made me DNF because her toxic positivity was making my blood pressure skyrocket.

Seems like the curse was actually working in her favor because she never had to worry about "the one that got away". While this wasn't my favorite Jiminez book, I found it to be a compulsive page-turner and immediately connected to the characters. This is my first Abby Jiminez that I completed (dnfed Yours Truly—no I won't be taking questions at this time) and I did find it funny. the romance made me all giddy and I legit felt like I was falling in love alongside Emma and Justin, while the second half of the book literally ripped my heart out of my chest and I cried so hard I was shaking. But when Emma's toxic mother shows up and Justin has to assume guardianship of his three siblings, they're suddenly navigating a lot more than they expected–including catching real feelings for each other.

Another massive highlight of this book was seeing the former Part of Your World/Yours Truly crew, it’s this interconnected stand alone series that’s made me fall head over heels with Abby’s writing and seeing these characters makes my heart 🥹 burst! By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Justin and Emma were such relatable characters and it was exciting and easy to watch their relationship unfold. Emma hadn't planned that her next assignment as a traveling nurse would be in Minnesota, but she and her best friend agree that dating Justin is too good of an opportunity to pass up, especially when they get to rent an adorable cottage on a private island on Lake Minnetonka.This is a fairly typical romance, which combines a couple of tropes, which I'm not going to discuss because I'm not into spoilers. However, I still think it was necessary that she took time to herself, went to therapy, found her healthy boundaries and recovered from the absolute life-shattering information she found out. I think Abby may have outdone herself with this one - while I have loved everything she has written, her last three books have each blown me away and each one has gotten better than the last.