Books › The Summer I Turned Pretty Trilogy
The Summer I Turned Pretty Trilogy
928 pages
A sun-drenched, nostalgic dive into the messy, bittersweet ache of growing up and falling in love at the beach.
What it feels like
Reading this trilogy feels like bottling up the exact sensation of a late July afternoon—sun-warmed, slightly sticky with salt air, and heavy with the anticipation of growing up. It moves at a brisk, addictive pace, pulling you through the messy, intoxicating highs and devastating lows of first love and shifting family dynamics. The prose is conversational and deeply earnest, anchoring you in the protagonist's intense, yearning perspective as she navigates the blurry line between childhood friendship and adult romance. It is a deeply nostalgic experience, steeped in the bittersweet realization that nothing stays the same forever. Perfect for anyone who craves a beach read that balances breezy summer escapism with genuine emotional growing pains and the delicious agony of a love triangle.
- Mood
- sun-drenched
- bittersweet
- breezy
- yearning
- Tone
- earnest
- nostalgic
- romantic
- angsty
- Pace
- brisk
- Themes
- first love · coming of age · shifting family dynamics · loss of innocence · love triangles
- The writing
- Accessible, conversational, and deeply rooted in the sensory details of summer and adolescent emotion.
- The arc
- Moves from the innocent anticipation of childhood summers into the messy, heartbreaking, and ultimately clarifying realities of growing up.
- Who it's for
- Readers who love messy, heartfelt coming-of-age romances and the nostalgic feeling of endless summer days.
Content notes
- grief
- parental illness and death
- underage drinking
About the book
Belly has always lived for the summertime, because summer means all her favorite things: swimming, the beach, and the Fischer boys, Conrad and Jeremiah. For as long as she can remember, she's shared her summers with the brothers at Cousins Beach. And for as long as she can remember, she's been in love with Conrad. Then one summer it seems like he might have feelings for her too -- but so does Jeremiah. As the summer seasons pass, Belly has to choose between two brothers who love her... and she'll have to break one of their hearts.
Description from Open Library.
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