What a fabulous read this turned out to be! Liv, Finn and Tom are all gorgeous characters, all with vulnerabilities as well as talents and it is fascinating to see how their stories develop. Moving backwards and forwards in time, you slowly build up a picture of their backgrounds, especially with Liv and Finn and understand how their friendships have come about, Cornwall is a stunning backdrop and you really feel as though you are walking in their footsteps and gazing out to sea. In fact, the landscape is an important part of their story.

Family and friends are all key to the characters actions. Liv is drawn through tragedy back to her childhood home, feeling a huge responsibility for her brother. Finn is running away from his childhood in many ways, but his love for his grandparents and brothers draws him back. Tom is looking for a new start. This is the ideal book to get involved in as Summer approaches. It will draw you in with humour but also some heartbreaking moments and you won't quite know how life is going to work out for them. What you will see is the resilience of some very human characters!

In short: five stars!

This was a delightlful love story, mainly based in Cornwall. There were really appealing characters and a lifelike storyline. The conclusion rounded everything off very well.

Seven Summer by Paige Toon a netgalley review.
Liv and Finn meeting working in a bar on the Cornish coastline, one night Liv’s life changes forever, which connects them forever, but their love story also doesn’t go to plan. Finns life moves to LA and Liv stays in Cornwall. A great book from the queen of summer reads and I don’t say that lightly but Paige Toon always hits it out the park and this book gets better and better as you read on. I could have easily stayed up all night to finish it but equally I didn’t want to get to the end. This book everything romance, great characters, tragedy, heartbreak, it’s raw in the emotions it tackles, it will make you laugh, gasp and cry, you know how you want it to end but will it! I loved every page , for me the clincher was the end and the way Paige Toon tied up all the what if’s and the what happened next. I’ve never read a book that ties up all those what if’s and I loved this, I felt closer to the characters and also annoyed at Liv in particular (won’t give it away as to why) but that was a passing feeling because again the story continues right up to the last page . Liv is a great character, she so much stronger than she believes, she’s loyal to a fault especially to her brother, she ambitious, she’s vulnerable, she’s honest and she loves with all of her being, she kind and she get scared but she succeeds and because of all these things she loveable and feels real. Liv is the stand out character but Finn and Tom also play a huge part in the story and the path in life that Liv takes. It goes without saying that the setting, the Cornish coast is beautiful and like with everything in this book, Paige Toon is great at making the story and the setting jump of the pages, it played out like film in my mind, I became totally immersed in the beautiful story and currently sit with a book hangover! This is an ideal read for anytime of year, but with summer around the corner (fingers crossed we get some sunshine) of you are looking for that holiday read, I can’t recommend this enough. I will be recommending to friends and family. An epic love story that you won’t forget a sure sign of an amazing book that you will want to binge read but will never want to end and I will prob go out and buy a copy. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Paige Toon has done it again. Another emotional rollercoaster.

I absolutely loved this book. It broke your heart and then picked up the pieces over and over again. Just when I thought I knew what was going to happen, further twists ensued. Definitely a tear-jerker for me and I stayed up until the early hours of the next morning just to finish it. As a massive fan on Paige Toon and someone who regularly re-reads her work, I think this is one of her best and one that I will remember.

I would definitely recommend everyone to go and pick up a copy if you love romance books and to have your heart broken and rebuilt several times.

The only question is what colour sprayed edge will you be buying?

A lovely story set in Cornwall. Romantic and sweet I enjoyed this one immensely. Always a great read from this author who never seems to disappoint. My thanks to netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.

The book jumps from past to present summers and I'm not going to lie it did take me a while to get used to the backwards and forwards, the perserverence is worth it however and after a few chapters I found my groove and the rest of the book flows with ease.

Liv returns home to Cornwall after finishing Uni planning to save money and move to London, she takes a job in the bar where she first sees Finn again, an acquaintance from school who now lives in America. They grow close and make a pact that they will meet every summer and if both are still single .......

It's a lovely story of love, loss and happiness that will have you reaching for the tissues.

Thank you to Netgalley and Penguin for the ARC.

Absolutely brilliant! Loved the story, the characters and the setting. I inhaled it far too fast - literally could not put it down!

I have literally just finished reading this and my mind is blown!! I think it's going to give me "book hangover" for quite a while!! Such a wonderful story spread out over many summers - with what started as a summer/holiday romance and then built and built.

When Tom was introduced and the way the story was unfolding I wasn't sure which way I wanted it to go as I didn't want Finn or Tom to get hurt but it was all resolved perfectly for me!!

I loved this book and certainly raced through the last few chapters grabbing a few minutes reading time whenever I could just to say what was going to happen to them all.

Brilliant holiday read and if you're in Cornwall - all the more better!

I received an advance reader copy of this book to read in exchange for an honest review as part of the book tour hosted by Random Things Tours.

Seven Summers was such a heartfelt, heartwarming, heartbreaking, and thought-provoking read that took me on an emotional rollercoater journey from start to finish.
This was so tenderly written and draws you in from page one. Liv felt like an old friend, and I felt I was right there with her on her journey throughout this story.
Liv and Tom meet six summers ago when Liv returns home from studying abroad, and she is instantly drawn to him from the second she lays eyes on him and hears him sing in his band. The pair get closer over the course of the summer break, and just before the end of the summer, tragedy strikes and leaves Livs life blown apart.
I sobbed at this part of the story and had to pull myself together to continue. Tom returns to the US to pursue his dream of being a musician/song writer and they make a pact that each summer he returns to visit his family they will get together but only if they're both single. As such, the book goes back and forth between the present and the previous six summers, and I was rooting for them from the moment they met. They just fit together so beautifully. Liv couldn't go with him to the US because of being needed at home and wouldn't stand in the way of Fins dreams. When Liv meets Tom and she finds love and happiness that's both steady and pure again, I was so happy for her and felt such mixed feeling when Finn returned. I'm being cautious what I say as I don't want to spoil this book for anyone. The love between Liv and Fin and Liv and Tom is beautiful, raw, and tender, and this book broke my heart and pieced it back together again. This would make an amazing film, and in all honesty, I think it will be made into one. It's just so beautiful and unique. Definitely have tissues at the ready!

I have always been a huge Paige Toon fan, since I read her first novel (Lucy in the Sky). I have since read all of her books several times and loved them all. I was eagerly awaiting the release of Seven Summers and was so excited when I was offered an Advance Reader Copy via Netgalley.

Seven Summers follows the story of the main character Liv, and her two romantic interests- Finn and Tom. It was set in a gorgeous Cornish seaside town over a period of six years.

This story was a gripping tearjerker from the offset (keep the tissues handy!), documenting Liv's life from when she first left uni, until the present day, going back and forth along the timeline, between the different chapters. Finn is her long time, long-distance love interest, but then Tom joins the story and everything that Liv thought she wanted is thrown into question. The love story kept me guessing with the 'will-they, won't they' theme the whole way through. The plot twist near the end of the book left me utterly distraught and I felt like I'd been sucker punched in the stomach- it was completely unexpected! The plot is full of drama, friendship, family, love, humour, sadness, happiness and optimism. I fell in love with all of the characters (as I always do with Paige Toon novels), and found myself binge reading it from the first chapter until the very end. It really is a beautiful, heartfelt story and so perfectly written, despite the complexities of Liv's life and responsibilities. My only regret is that now that I've finished this latest Paige Toon book, I now need to wait another year until Paige's next book- 'What if I never get over you' is released! I'd highly recommend this story.

Thank you to Netgalley, Paige Toon, Random House, Cornerstone and Penguin for the ARC, in exchange for my honest review.

I read Seven Summers in one day. I couldn’t put it down. I was drawn in to all the characters especially the heartbreakingly beautiful love story of Liv and Finn. I’m a fan of Paige Toon and this is a must read.

📢 New Review!
✒️ @paigetoonauthor
📚 Seven Summers

💭 Well, it's been a hot minute since I did a review, eh?
Firstly, thank you to Paige and Penguin for sending me a NetGalley copy of her 2024 novel.

I don't actually know the last time I sobbed.... and I mean proper ugly cry sobbed at reading a book.
Maybe its due to my own emotional state and current grief process of how much I could relate the the story, but the last third of this novel took me three times as long to read as the rest of the book as I needed to keep stopping and composing myself to continue!
Im not normally a fan of books that flip timelines, however Paige writes with such elegance that the story between Liv's current summer and those of the past seven, flowed with ease making the plot easy to follow.
We start off meeting Liv and her first encounter with Finn, not knowing that her world was about to suddenly change.
Unfortunately for Liv, Finn's life is in LA whilst hers is in Cornwall. However, he keeps returning each summer to be her pillar of strength.... until their lives are too busy and complicated for either to commit to the other. Enter the gorgeous Tom into Liv's present summer, and she can start to see a different future for herself.
I loved seeing Liv fall in love with Tom and him give everything Finn couldn't.
Seven Summer was full of emotion, warmth, hope, and love - a love triangle between three very likeable characters set in idyllic locations.
There is no doubt Paige Toon can't write a stunner of a novel, and despite the tears, I thoroughly enjoyed the book - although it should come with a free box of tissues!

#Bookblogger #BookReview #bookstagram #sevensummers #paigetoon #lovestory #lovetriangle #emotional #book #novel #story

This will definitely be a summer hit, the setting is gorgeous and the characters really well written. Liv has endured so much heartbreak in her life so it’s great that she finally gets her happy ending. I would have liked Tom’s character to have been developed a bit more but overall a heartwarming read.

My heart... The most beautiful story of loss, love and happiness as usual this author has me gripped, a page turner every time. This is why I always pre-order and can't wait for.the next one thank you such a beautiful story read in one go. Roll on the next.one

Amazing book. Paige Toon never lets me down and this book was no different I cannot wait to see what she writes next.

My relationship with Paige Toon is hit and miss to be honest, however, after not reading any of her books for a few years, I thought I'll try again and requested "Seven Summers".
And oh my, it was one of the best decisions. This book is a gem. Even if I wasn't so really happy with the end. I wasn't sure the main male character deserved his happy end, to be honest. And maybe I didn't cry with the characters, but I was fully involved in their lives and didn't want to put this book away. And that the end of the book and the subsequent epilogies felt very rushed in comparison to the whole story.

But.
The author has brilliantly captured all kinds of feelings and emotions, really, I'm not sure how she does it, bringing them all so clear and wonderfully written to the pages. You feel like a part of this story, like you're living each moment with the characters, the writing style is SO good. The characters are so real, with their flaws and real problems and you will root for them all immediately.There is a very raw, emotional depth to them and to the whole story and to write it like this, so lyrical yet down to earth and honestly, is a masterpiece.

It's heart - warming and heart - breaking, it's filled with ups and downs, with love, laughter, tragedy and hope, all brilliantly mixed and served just in the right dosis. It's simply beautiful.

Wow, did this take me by surprise. I can honestly say I really really didn't know how this book was going to end. I found it so engaging, it was so beautifully written, I was hooked. I also was then left feeling empty after I finished, which is definitely the sign of a good book. Cannot recommend it enough.

For more reviews, please check out my book Instagram at @blondesbooknook

Liv and Finn are tied together by a terrible tragedy and although Liv's life is with her family and Finn's is travelling with his band they vow to spend every summer together. Then Liv meets Tom and her heart is torn in two and what is the secret with Tom? I was bawling so much at one stage that I had to stop reading to process and calm my heart. When I opened my book to start reading again the tears started but it's not all sad there is also love and hope. I was rooting for Liv and Finn to get together and stay together because I loved them so much as individuals. It's definitely not a sweet romance but a heartbreaking one!

I can't remember the last time I read a book that was so moving and yet so heart warming. I couldn't put it down. I loved Liv's story and how it was told over 7 summers, flooring between the present day and each summer. I would recommend this book. Outstanding.

I am a relative newcomer to books by Paige Toon - Only Love Can Hurt Like This was the first of her books I have read. Having loved it this was a must read for me! And it simply confirmed what a fabulous author Toon is - this is another book that will steal your heart as it sweeps you up and takes you through the whole gamut of emotions.

It is the story of Liv, an aspiring sculptor, who returns from university to her home town in Cornwall and forms a connection with Finn, her peer at school but who now lives in America. Circumstance tears them apart as Finn returns to his home in LA - but they continue to reconnect every summer. Until the seventh summer when he hasn’t returned - and Liv meets Tom, who rents a flat from her, and suddenly her heart is torn and she must reflect on whether she has been putting her life on hold …

What makes this such an enthralling read is to watch Liv’s character growth as she handles all that life throws at her- and she tries to figure out what she really wants from life. But life is never straightforward and her happy ever after is a complicated one.

With a Cornish coastline setting fabulously brought to life whilst you are taken on an emotional rollercoaster, this is one of those immersive reads that has you invested from the off and you won’t want to put down. And you might need the tissues towards the end …