Book Series Review: The Summer Series by Jenny Han

Belly and Jere and Conrad, childhood friends who always spend summers at a beach house together, find themselves in a more and more complicated love triangle as they grow up in high school and beyond.

3.5/5 Stars

It has been hard to escape the hype this show has garnered, and after a friend HAD to watch the episode while at my house so as to avoid spoilers, I finally caved and watched it with her. And, oh BOY, did the cringy, messy drama hook me. As a result, I sought out the books- like any good reader would! I know there are still a few episodes to go, so I will hold off on too many show spoilers, but as far as the books go, I have OPINIONS.

The Summer Series by Jenny Han consists of three YA novels: The Summer I Turned Pretty, It's Not Sumer without You, and We'll Always Have Summer. Belly, short for Isabelle, grew up as the youngest of a close-knit friend group, always feeling left out of her older brother's, Steven's, adventures with family friends Conrad, the oldest, and Jeremiah, closer to Steven's age. She was always left behind to hang out with their moms, Susannah and Laurel, who were friends so close they were practically family. She has always had a crush on the emo-esque, self-isolating Conrad, while Conrad's little brother, the people pleaser, charismatic Jeremiah, has always had a crush on her. The series follows Belly through the years of her high school experiences while dating Conrad and her college experiences while dating Jeremiah, with an engagement and wedding by the end of the series. But who does Belly choose to spend her forever with? And is it for the right reasons or because of shared history, grief recovery, and the flighty nature of young love?

Ya'll-the TV show had me firmly on one side of this love triangle, but the books have painted a very, very different picture for me. In typical coming-of-age fashion, Belly goes through an entire arc of seemingly finding out who she is as a person, but unfortunately, her formative years are so tied up in crushes with these boys that, in all honesty, she needs another whole book series to untangle the codependency she has developed with them. This series does a great job of exploring the death of a loved one and the ways different people process their grief. The glimpses of the moments Belly and the others experience as children come across as very genuine and heartfelt. However, there is an overwhelming feeling of wanting to yell CHOOSE YOURSELF GIRL into the book pages that I couldn't get past. Also, the books have you on team Laurel more than anything else, and they have you even more anti-Adam than the TV show, which is a feat!

If you are into this book series for the drama, stay! If you are trying to learn from any of the characters, run! I'd give this a solid 3.5/5, with the first book being my favorite of the series.