Such a great read! Highly recommend this one.

Many thanks to the author, the publisher, and Netgalley for my ARC. All opinions are my own.

Story line was cute and an easy summer read but I wasn’t a huge fan of how the characters were portrayed and the lack of communication during the WHOLE book. It was as if we were being dragged through just to extend the plot. I just wish it had a more believable plot with a bit more of an actual story to it.

"Summer Ever After" by Jane Crittenden is marketed as a contemporary romance novel set in the vibrant city of Barcelona. The story follows Alice, who, after a decade, returns to the city where she once found love and heartbreak. Working alongside her former flame, Andy, she navigates old feelings and new possibilities in the culinary world of Spain.

Whilst the culinary journey through Barcelona can be appreciated, there are issues with character development and the overall narrative structure. It appears that the book's editing process might not have addressed these concerns adequately. The back and forth between past and present day could have been more fluent, instead it made for a choppy read as they implied story lines didn't align.

Thank you Net Galley for allowing me to receive this book for an honest review.

I had such high hopes about this book but I unfortunately found this book slow and upsetting.

Its about a girl names Alice who takes care of her mom but her mom has an accident and leaves her with limitd mobility.
Alice is riddled with guilt and this leaves a strain on their relationship.
I could not get past the guilt but it gives you hope on forgiveness and second chances.

I received a ARC from netgalley on this second chance romance. This is my first book from Jane Crittenden. There is a 10 year span when Alice has a work opportunity to better her career and when she shows up to work in Barcelona she is confronted with a flood of memories and Andy. Andy is now married and is her new boss....

4 ☆

Themes/Tropes: HEA, Dual POV, Time Jump, Second Chances

Alice is working at a language school and taking care of her mother after an accident has left her mother with limited mobility. Alice believes she is to blame and carries that guilt with her as she thinks about the events of 10 years ago. 10 years ago she was in Barcelona with Andy with so much promise of the future. A misunderstanding left them with unresolved feelings and a sense of what could have been.

I enjoyed this book but I thought the pacing was a little slow. It is a cute story about two people getting a second chance at their forever together. The characters felt real and it read like a slice of life of these two characters as they figured out their future. This is a good contemporary fiction novel that leaves you believing in second chances and that there is always time to build the future you want.

Summer Ever After promised a captivating Barcelona backdrop and a compelling exploration of passion and love. While the characters were undoubtedly intriguing, with complex backstories that added depth, the romance fell flat. Their connection lacked chemistry, feeling more like a slow-burn that never ignited. The flirting was subtle to the point of invisibility, making the emotional journey frustratingly slow.
The ending, while surprising, felt rushed and unsatisfying. It was as if the author was eager to wrap up the story without fully developing the potential of the plot twist.
Overall, while the setting and character development showed promise, the lackluster romance and abrupt ending prevented this book from reaching its full potential.

feel good summer beach read vibes!!!! i loved the characters and overall plot. would love to read more work from this author in the future! great work Jane!!

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book. It was the perfect summer book!

Alice took a vacation with her sister to Barcelona before her cookery apprenticeship and she met Andy and fell head over heels for him. But she had to come back to London because of a family tragedy and she suddenly stopped contacting Andy because of a miscommunication. After 10 years,she lives with her mom taking care of her because she is sick and works at a school. She does everything in her life thinking about her mom and her welfare. Now she got a job offer at Barcelona from Andy and his wife's school. Would she go there? Would it ignite her long lost love? Would she leave her mom for a few months?

This book is what I needed at that moment. Perfect romance, angst drama, family burden altogether it was a great story. I loved the story building and character developing. Alice takes care of her mom because she thinks she caused the accident and her mom is too childish to do anything by herself. I hated her mom first because she doesn't let her children live her life and live off of her, behaving like a spoiled kid. When Alice left, day by day she developed and here helped her younger daughter. I loved Alice and Andy's romance, how they feel for each other. This book was perfect.

Summer Ever After by Jane Crittenden was a really enjoyable story.
A touching read with engaging characters.
I thought the writing was very well done.

Thank You NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

Thank you Netgalley and Lake Union Publishing for this arc. Unfortunately this book wasn't for me. I hard a hard time reading it and couldn't connect with the characters.

Quick gist: A long time ago, more like a few summers back, Alice was visiting Barcelona with her sister Charlie, and she fell in love with a guy named Andy Hall. However, Andy breaks her heart and a few years later, she is chosen for an apprenticeship program at a cooking school back in Barcelona. While Alice is back in Barcelona, she runs into Andy, the guy that broke her heart. Little did she know that Andy's wife owns the cooking school. Could Alice get a second chance at love, or will she end up getting her heart broken yet again?

My review: This book kind of took me a while to finish reading it, but I absolutely loved it towards the end. If you ever got a broken heart before and you want a story to relate to, I highly recommend reading this book. I'm so incredibly grateful that I got the opportunity to read this as an arc before it came out.

Overall I really loved reading this book!
It is a cute and cozy summer tale that is perfect for this time of year.
The main plot is the main character going back to Barcelona, where she lived for a while a decade ago. Throughout the book you learn more about the characters' past and their current situation. The fact that the book was set in Spain, makes you travel along as the characters discover new places, dishes and habits of the locals.

I did think the characters had some flatness to them. While I don't mind a certain predictability to a book like this, it made the story a little too repetitive. You know from the beginning which characters will get a character arc and how realistic that will be. Especially when it comes to minorities, such as less-abled people and queer people, this can also be a reason for people to not read the book at all.


I was also a little bothered by the fact that the story of the past and the story of the present didn't develop or appear similarly often/quick.

Overall, I would give a 3.5/5 rating if I could, would be a 4-star if the characters had a little more depth to them.

This story is written in dual points of view from Alice and Andy. The two met ten years prior when travelling and end up working together down the line.

Whilst I enjoyed reading this book it became very predictable and o could tell what was going to happy. I think this book just shows how people need to say what they feel and think at the time!

I would however still recommend this book would be a cute holiday read.

The Good:
The descriptions of Barcelona felt so alive! It made me interested in traveling there. I also loved learning more about Catalan culture. I could tell the author was very passionate about it. I found the dynamic between the FMC and her mother interesting.

The Not-So-Good:
The characters were boring. I didn’t care about them or their relationship. I cared more about his ambitious ex. This felt like a long story your friend tells you about people you don’t know, and you keep waiting for them to get to the point but there isn’t one. Everything was wrapped up very quickly and neatly, and I found myself missing out on the excitement I usually feel at getting answers.

1⭐️
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this eARC.

Sadly this was a DNF for me.
Alice’s mum and sister are awful, and I’m sure they’ll magically grow into better people through the course of this book, but I’m not invested enough in the story to see this happen. Also, why is the bi person the promiscuous one who openly cheats on their partner?

Oof. I just did not enjoy this one. The set up was cringy and it felt oh so stilted. I did not finish this one.

I really loved this book. Alice and Andy were really likeable. This takes place both in London and Barcelona. It also is told from both Alice and Andy's view point which I liked. I goes from present to memories of when they first met.
I loved the descriptions of Barcelona and the food.
It takes Alice from her mundane life in London back to Barcelona by an unexpected invitation.
Also we see how Alice and Andy's lives and the lives around them a changed by this.
I found it an easy read and it is enjoyable and relatable. It also shows how a situation might not be how first we see it.

Thank you Netgallery.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for letting me read this book!
Alice and Andy are both being held back in similar yet different ways. Trapped by secrets from their past they deny themselves what they really want, each other. Told in both in the past and the present and from both his and her’s viewpoints. I felt that this story was a little unrealistic at times but cozy to read!