Book Review: Just for the Summer by Abby Jimenez
Rating: 4.5 stars of 5
I recently came across Abby’s books and very quickly discovered that she is the owner of a cupcake shop I used to go to when I was in college in the aughts! That connection made me want to read her books and without knowing that there is a recommended reading order, I purchased her most recent release and dove right in. I loved it such that I now want to read her other books too! (For the record, if you do the same thing I did, you’ll get along just fine. The books can be read as standalone novels as far as I can tell.)
Just for the Summer is such a charming book with likable and believable characters. Emma’s character arc is gratifying, and I thought the mental health aspects of the story were very well portrayed. I loved Maddy’s character too.
Justin is such a wholesome cutie. He can be a bit over the top in his level of cuteness at times, but for some reason, it works for him. Honestly, I’d rather read a male character like that than the weirdly misogynistic MMC’s I’ve come across in a few popular books lately. (I don’t want to read about women falling for toxic men, thankyouverymuch. Enough of those exist in real life; I’d rather not come across them in my escapism too. Also, I DNF’d those books, so you won’t be seeing my reviews for them here.)
The few things I didn’t love about the book were minor enough that they didn’t affect my rating much. First, the author uses ‘AITA?’ as a running theme in conversation throughout the book and it felt a bit overused by the end. Second, I thought it was a bit strange when an adult character caring for their younger siblings referred to them as their kids at one point in the story, but maybe that’s just my neurodivergent brain caring about using accurate language. Last, there’s a scene in which a female character borrows used swimwear from someone who is basically a stranger and the ick factor was distracting to me.
Overall, though, I really liked it. This was such a pleasant read. The writing is engaging, the pacing is good, and the story gives cozy, happy, summer vibes.
Fun tidbit: Abby name-drops her bakery in the book at one point, which felt like such an Easter egg to me since I knew her bakery before I knew about her books.
Content advisory: contains profanity and some spice
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