A fun coming of age story but from two different perspectives. Agnes and Bea were innocent & naïve 20 year olds, feeing they had to break free from their home life to live a little; whilst Florence (Agnes's mum) wanted more than her housewife and mother role in life. I found Florence's character much more engaging and emotional - she like so many women in the 70's felt trapped in her own life - and brave enough to break free and take a chance. Her adventures in France and Italy were great fun, and I loved the thought of her buying the espadrilles and shaking off the shackles.
An easy to read in one sitting, fun story.

Set in the summer of 1971 Agnes and Bea set out to change their provincial lives in Oxfordshire by escaping their families to live in London.
The early 70's is set up with a few references but it really felt more like the 60's in places.
Great portrayal of coming of age, awkwardness, realisations and dreams. Layers of characters, relationships and friendship.
Quite a different read. Enjoyable but awkward. Well written and accessible.

I love this book and couldn't put it down. A beautiful story of mother and daughter discovering themselves and taking control of their lives to live the life they want.

I read the story of Agnes and Florence as they both seek happiness in taking themselves off to find themselves.
The story revolves round the mother and daughter over a summer. Both are unhappy with the lives they are leading so after a few conversations, they both decide it's time to make a few changes.
A coming of age story mixed with a mid life crisis was a read that will appeal to different age groups.

#midlifecrisis
#comingofage
#makinglifechanges

The Never Ending Summer is a character driven story, set in the early 1970’s. Our main characters, Agnes Ledbury and Beartrice Morgan, both 20, are about to sit their final exams at Secretarial College, and are expected to find a job at a respectable company, until they marry. Their view on the world, and their view on their expected place within the world, all changes when they discover the groundbreaking The Female Eunuch by Germaine Greer.
Very uncharacteristically, they decide to embark on a month long trip to London, to lose their virginity, and get involved in the second wave of feminism. The flying of the nest by Agnes, has a big impact on her Mother, Florence, who also embarks on her own journey of self awakening and self discovery, much to the family’s surprise.
As with so many plans, hopes and expectations, Agnes, Bea and Florence’s journeys take them to unexpected places. Both in the physical sense, and in terms of their experiences, and how all of this shapes their aspirations. Each of the three is changed by the situations they are exposed to, and the people they find a long the way.
All the characters are really well written. Vivid, flawed, and believable people, experiencing real life, in all its joyous, but also unpleasant, realities for the first time.
I felt real empathy for the three, and strangely for William too, when he has his own realisation of his own emotional deficiencies, and how others perceived his lack of warmth and emotional intelligence.
In the acknowledgments at the end of the book, Emma Kennedy, the author, mentions that these same characters are featured in one of her earlier books, All The Things We Left Unsaid. Despite reading the earlier book, I hadn’t realised the link, and now look forward to re-reading it, to re-fresh my memory on where the characters stories go next.
I love the message running through the story. It’s never too late to be true to yourself, to be you who you want to be, to reach your full potential, no matter of your age.
I really enjoyed the book, 4* from me.

This book is set in the 1970’s and centres around Agnes and her mother, Florence. It’s a coming of age story that shows change can happen in any decade. It’s a story about throwing off the old and embracing the new. It’s a story about how the grass isn’t always greener on the other side. Ultimately though, it’s a story about finding yourself.

This book only gets 3 stars from me because I thought the first third of the book dragged. In fact I was dismayed to realise I was only a third in, because I was ready for it to end. This just shows that sometimes you should preserve with these things, because it turned out to be a really sweet and inspiring story.

“It’s not about liking ourselves. It’s about believing we can be the people we are meant to be.”

I think every woman will see some of themselves in both Agnes and Florence. I definitely felt that I could sympathise with both of them on different levels. The novel covers there adventures over a five week period in the summer of 1971. The book is split into chapters, then days of the week, and then weeks of the year. If also flicks between both women’s stories – it does flow well though – thankfully!

I’m not sure those who experienced the 1970’s first hand would enjoy this book, as some of the observations Kennedy makes are very stereotypical. Being a child of the 1990’s though, it didn’t bother me too much. Give this one a go. You will either love it hate it, but I’m erring on the side of love.

An absolute treat. Delightful from start to finish. Touching, poignant, funny, well researched (or remembered, in my case). Wonderful. The story takes place over a short time, so if you think about it too long you might think it a little unlikely. I chose not to think about it, just enjoyed it.

I have so much love for this book! I have felt warm even though it’s deep winter, such is the beauty of the writing. The characters are so well developed and so likeable, I miss them now I’ve finished reading! Let me tell you about them.....our main protagonists are Agnes and Bea, two 20 year old best friends. They have just finished secretarial college and are looking forward to a summer of sexual adventures, once they have got rid of their pesky virginities. It’s 1971 and they have just read The Female Eunuch which has had a big impact on them.
Agnes’s Mum, a staid 70s housewife is happy with her lot, until Agnes leaves for the summer and she also reads The Female Eunuch. I found Florence hard to like at first, but a few chapters in and I was rooting for her!
The most heartwarming and endearing book I’ve read for quite some time. Enjoy.

I was gifted the e-ARC of The Never-Ending Summer by Random House UK in exchange for an honest review, so here it is.

I love a Contemporary Fiction and this one did not disappoint. It took me a while to work out that this novel is set in the 1970's and to begin with found the way Florence acted to be a bit unusual. Once I placed the time though it all made a chunk more sense.

So, we are in 1971 and our two main protagonists are 20 year old Agnes and her mother, Florence. The book is written switching between both storylines, so you can follow their own stories. Near the end of the book we also get a bit of William, Florence's husband perspective which added to the depth of Florence's storyline.

I connected with this story on an emotional level, having experienced all their feelings quite recently. Not caused by the same topics I'll add. I think it's impossible not to connect with either Agnes or Florence. Both experience emotions that we all experience, especially during this pandemic, about their own importance and inadequacy. Agnes struggles with her own self-worth, whereas Florence has found herself stuck in a life that isn't what she wants. Being so relatable this novel would be an easy read for most Contemporary Fiction readers.

"Agnes knew that her greatest demon was the voice inside her own head that told her she was worthless and unloveable."

I thought I could predict Agnes plot line at the beginning so was much more interested in Florence's experience at the beginning based on the synopsis. But as I got further through the book I found Agnes's story didn't quite follow my assumption, I found it a true coming of age story and loved that Agnes was 20, rather than 16-18. I enjoyed that her story wasn't childlike and floaty like you can experience with other young characters finding themselves. The author wrote a very realistic reality for Agnes and her journey of self-discovery and experience of being a women in the 1970's. Portraying the limited options women had seamlessly with the plot. There was a darkness to Agnes story, I also liked the emphasis on friendship here. Again, not the fluffy representation of two best friends but the complex reality as young adults when people start to grow apart and the sad realisation that no one is perfect. Emma has truly done her research on the era she's written about, using real locations and true events to support Agnes's journey.

For Florence's story, I really enjoyed the theme of, it's never too late. Watching her journey from invisible housewife to the women at the end is wonderful. My only snag was after the serious reality of Anges' sections, Florence's felt a bit more superficial. That's not to say Florence's experience is any less real and drives the point that no two journey's are the same. I personally just found there was a stronger contrast in vibe. I did enjoy learning more about Florence as the book went on and the person she became.

I loved both the main characters for different reasons, likely because I could relate to their emotional experiences. I found for a book that's only 384 pages long, it did a good job of building the worlds that Agnes and Florence experience it. I wouldn't have been made it was a little longer either as its tough to dislike either character. The biggest character mystery, is William the patriarch of the Family. Initial introduces to us as extremely passive with little role, his transformation through the book could be the largest of all the transformations and really left me with a "What happens next" feeling!

I enjoyed the beginning and the end of this book, but found the middle dragged a little, particularly the house and occupants in London, and the festival. I loved the two girls and their relationship and Agnes’ mother, sister and brother in law were all characters I could read about again. It did make me laugh, and also made me sad in parts. Would I recommend this book? Yes I would, the parts I didn’t like would more than likely appeal to people younger than me.

Wonderful book following one family through one very tumultuous summer of their lives
Florence and William are the parents they eat same food on same day each week , Florence doesn’t even bother trying to talk to him as he is engrossed in his paper or book. Until Agnes their youngest daughter reads a book with her best friend Bea and they decide to go off and lose their virginity! Agnes tells her mother she must read it ‘the female eunuch’ by germain Greer and her mother does
Their other daughter is happily married to Charlie who cooks and cleans!
Florence decides to change herself firstly her hairstyle then gets a few new clothes and some boots William doesn’t notice in the slightest so one morning having tried to get him to look at travel books to Italy and he point blank refuses she leaves
She has no idea how long for or where she will end up but she has her new clothes on new hair out and she is free
As is her daughter Agnes who has ended up in all sorts of strange places in London but then came Glastonbury and now she has lost Bea what can she do?
A beautiful book full of realisation and people learning not to take others for granted because one day they may be gone

Set in the the summer of 1971, this novel follows best friends Bea and Agnes for four weeks when, inspired by The Female Eunuch, they decide to go to London and have lots of sex and adventures. Bea and Agnes are 20 years old, live in a small town and have just finished a secretarial course so want to have some fun before starting dull jobs for the rest of their lives. At the same time, Agnes' mum Florence is having an existential crisis of her own and decides to holiday by herself in Italy and France, leaving her husband at home unsure of how to so anything or himself after taking his family for granted for years. The novel covers each of the main characters every day across the four week period and at times the jumping between story lines can be a little distracting but I really enjoyed finding out what would happen to Bea, Agnes and Florence as they went on their respective journeys both physically and emotionally.

Two twenty year old living an adventure in London. Whilst mum rediscovers herself and look at her marriage.
The story is driven by the characters and the time period of the 60s that it is set in.
I could not relate to any of the female characters.
If you grew up in the 60s this could be a walk down memory lane as you know doubt would recognise friends and family in the story.

This book tells the story of Agnes and Bea, two bored young ladies plodding through secretarial college to a planned future neither of them want. This is all thrown into disarray when Bea reads The Female Eunuch by Germaine Greer. Suddenly the girls want to get away, experience life in full and lose their virginity. Agnes and Bea break ranks and head off for a summer in London, where they meet people and experience things the like of which neither could have imagined before. Set in the early 70s, we are ably transported to that time with fascinating descriptions of people and places. Early Glastonbury Fayre, protests about bunny girls, hedonistic parties, sexual inequality....
The parallel story of Agnes' mother experiencing her own breakaway and sexual revolution is beautifully told.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book - I laughed, I shed a tear, I couldn't put it down. Do read it if you can. It's story telling at the highest level!

Agnes and Bea go to London to live life and lose their virginity. Florence, Agnes' mum, finds her life in a boring marriage is insufferable when both her daughters have flown the nest, she decides to tour Europe. Wonderful reading, taking us back in time to the early days of Glastonbury and swinging London. The new age of women's lib at its best.

This is a really well written book set in the late 70's and highlighting the changing role for women in the home and socially. It picks up on a really interesting theme as this is a period not often written about and the experiences of the three women in the story all going through similar journeys but at different times of their life was an interesting addition. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book, it perfectly captures the feelings of the time and transports the reader to a different world, some much needed escapism at the moment!

Thanks to netgalley for the chance to read this book.

Agnes decides to escape for a few weeks to London with her best friend Bea following her secretarial exams telling her parents she is going to Europe. Meanwhile her mom Florence feels that there is more to life than being a housewife. Florence asks her husband William to take her to Italy for a 2 week holiday, when William refuses she decide to leave him and go alone. Can William cope without her, will he even notice that she has gone? Agnes returns from London and makes some big decisions. Florence returns from Italy a different person. Will Florence and William be able to rekindle their marriage as equals?

A fun summer read, good for reading at the beach, on holiday or at home. I highly recommend this one!

When a Book starts off with two young Women taking about a Book that almost caused Revolutions within the Family Home & that Book was & is `The Female Eunuch ' by Germaine Greer first published in 1970. For any woman reading this review who hasn't read that Book , then I whole heartedly suggest you do. One of the Character's Bea asked her friend Agnes if she has finished it ,Agnes says yes & takes a battered looking tome from the bag slung across her chest . Bea asks her friend is it `filthy' ?her face lights up when Agnes says it's filthier than `Chatterley' ( for any younger generations she means ` Lady Chatterley's Lover by English author D. H. Lawrence, first published privately in 1928 in Italy and in 1929 in France. An unexpurgated edition was not published openly in the United Kingdom until 1960, when it was the subject of a watershed obscenity trial against the publisher Penguin Books.)
The two main characters of this Book have just finished their exams at Secretarial College & have a month to wait before the results , but both have decides that despite their families wishes they do not want to go down the route of working in an Office, meeting a man ,getting married , having a family & running a home like their mothers have done , in fact both girls decide their mothers should read Germaine Greer's book, even though Agnes recons her mother Florence's Brain will Blow Up !
Bea & Agnes plot a plan to have a life adventure ,loose their virginity and become second Wave Feminists.
I don't want to give any spoilers but things have a funny way of dissolving the strongest of friendships ,many lessons are learnt including that some Men will never change their views on a Woman's place in this world , a battle still being fought even in this 21st century ! You will laugh with these Girls, Cry & even Cheer. You will Cher even louder for Agnes's mother Florence ! at this point I will say no more than Florence's reading of the Germaine Greer Book brings an Eye Opening Trip ,but all will be revealed if you get & read this terrific Book , it's as lively as it's cover & it engages you with things in your own life . #FB,# Instagram, # NetGalley,#Goodreads,#Amazon.co.uk,#Waterstones , #<img src="https://www.netgalley.com/badge/c566f42be23a0e25d120e78a3454e2d427c4beee" width="80" height="80" alt="50 Book Reviews" title="50 Book Reviews"/>, #<img src="https://www.netgalley.com/badge/ef856e6ce35e6d2d729539aa1808a5fb4326a415" width="80" height="80" alt="Reviews Published" title="Reviews Published"/>, #<img src="https://www.netgalley.com/badge/aa60c7e77cc330186f26ea1f647542df8af8326a" width="80" height="80" alt="Professional Reader" title="Professional Reader"/>.

I enjoyed this nostalgic look at the 70s. Bea and Agnes - both misfits - escape parental influence to live life in London. Agnes’ mother - Florence - leaves her husband to travel abroad. The whole family is forced to face questions about their identity, value and purpose.

I enjoyed all three main characters and their struggles to find themselves.

A lovely heart warming read. Highly recommended.