what a fun summer rom com. I love when books are set in New York City make the city feel like its own character and that is exactly what this one did.

if a billionaire romance is not a little bit ridiculous then I dont want it! this had me giggling, blushing and sometimes even shouting at the characters. this book. gave me all the same feelings as mt favourite early New York City 2000s romcoms. I want to bottle this feeling and relive it every day.

The perfect read for someone looking for a fun summer romance.

Elle is a screenwriter that is spending the summer in New York City. She has several locations that she needs to visit so she can include them in her screenplay.

Unfortunately for Elle, she comes across Parker, a tech billionaire. It’s instant hate, for her anyway. They end up fake dating and touring around New York City. Of course, feelings will start to arise as they get to know one another and the city.

This is definitely for those that grew up watching rom-coms, for those that love billionaire romance, and for anyone that’s a sucker for a fake dating trope.

I loved the setting of NYC and how the city comes alive in the book. I'm not sure how believable Elle was as a character but I did love the growing relationship between her and Parker. However, for me, the friends were the stand put characters in this book. I loved how they supported Elle through everything, even when most of them had not known her that long, it really did show how healthy women's friendships can be, which was a nice change of pace as they are often written as toxic or as if they are always in competition with each other.

Love, love, loved it!

I felt like I was in the city too.

I almost want to go on the pizza tour!

Thank you for the ARC!

This book lived up to every expectation I had. I devoured it! Loved that it was set in new your city and how both of the characters wanted to explore different places.

It had one of my favourite tropes - fake dating. The mmc is a billionaire CEO of his own tech company which is in the middle of a sale. FMC is a screenwriter who is struggling to meet her deadline, they help each other with their goals.

This book is perfect for a summer read! The rom com will transport you to a summer romance in NY! Would definitely recommend this book!

3.5 ⭐️

This book was cute and perfect for a nice palette cleanser. I enjoyed the story and had a good time reading but it was just missing a bit of something hence why it’s not rated higher. This book is definitely one you could get through it one sitting as it flows so well and the story is engaging.

I loved Alex’s other books and i loved this one too! I enjoyed both the characters and I’ve swooned and laughed over their biker in every page, plus both of they’re character arcs felt believable! So : it was the right book at the right time and I found it funny and romantic!

Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the e-arc!
Never been a fan of Aster’s YA trilogy but this one surprised me. It was fun, lovely, spicy - a nice book to read at the beach while sipping some iced coffee. I liked the plot and the chemistry was there between the main characters which is something that Aster is good at - building up that tension.

This was a really enjoyable read; I loved Parker and Elle's banter-filled relationship and was on board with their character development. which felt realistic considering their past traumas. The last few chapters did feel as if they had regressed a bit, but it was all tied up well at the end. All in all, a brilliant adult debut from Alex Aster and I'll definitely keep an eye out for what she writes next.

An easy and enjoyable read.

Elle moves to New York, a city she has a love hate relationship with, to oversee renovations to her sister’s apartment. She has a screenplay to write and is currently suffering a prolonged case of writer’s block.

Within minutes of arriving, she realises that her next door neighbour for the summer is none other than Parker Warren, a man she met in a club two years ago and hasn’t seen since.

Will her plan to avoid him all summer work out?

Very likeable characters, a fairly simple and straightforward plot with none of the really annoying parts that drag on without moving forward.

This was such an easy book to pick up and read without needing to concentrate too much, which I personally need every now and again. A light and airy rom-com that I enjoyed.

Thank you for the ARC and I wish the book every success.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for allowing me to read this arc.

4.5 stars!

This is Alex’s first adult contemporary and I was blown away. I absolutely loved the characters, the setting (NYC was a character in itself), the tension, the buildup, the heartbreak, the laughter, the romance; this book had it all. I found so much of this book relatable, with some lines that will stick with me. It brought my emotions to the forefront, which to me makes it an amazing read and a book that I will think about.

This book was the perfect romance. It follows Parker and Elle— whose meeting two years prior had Elle hating everything to do with Parker. That is, until they become neighbours and make a pact to spend the summer together in New York.

I read this book in one sitting. It was so easy to fall in love with the characters and become invested in their lives. I was rooting for both of them from the beginning, and I read most of the book with a smile on my face. It was romantic, emotional and hopeful, I cannot recommend it enough.

Scenes were picturesque.
The writing feels very real and a lot of the details/things said were very relatable.
Could’ve done without some of the references, “Skims shapewear” & “Twilight” for example

I loved Parker. How he went out of his way for Elle.
FFS He bought a whole coffee shop chain just so she could have her favorite blueberry scones again
He listened to how she felt and grew to be what she wanted and needed.
Elle needed to get out of her head 100% and let the pride bs go, then she could’ve enjoyed him as much as we did, and fully appreciated what she had with him
Chapter 30 just rips your heart out for Parker honestly.
The last chapter really saved the ending for me.
We LOVE character growth

I really enjoyed Lightlark so I was expecting big things from this book. I absolutely loved it!!! Alex Aster smashed the first person narration and I fell in love with the characters. I loved all the cute little dates which just seemed so realistic and wholesome. I predict that this book will do really well!

This was such a funny rom com based in New York which contained all my favorite tropes. I found New York City to be incredibly romantic, it's the perfect backdrop to Elle and Parker's story and they way she described places so vividly, it was like you were with them in the city! Parker loves Elle you can tell it immediately and he has you swooning with his romantic actions!

Thank you to NetGalley, Bloomsbury publishing and Author Alex Aster for allowing me access to an advanced readers copy of Summer in the City.

As a fan of Alex Aster's previous work (lightlark series) I immediately knew that I was interested in reading the authors first adult contemporary romance book.

Summer in the City follows FMC Elle, a screenwriter who isn't a fan of being in New York City. However as she is house-sitting for someone who is having construction work on their home in the big apple she has no choice but to just tolerate living there for a summer. Elle tries to keep herself busy while writing her current screenplay.

However, little does Elle know that she's about to get a blast from the past. This is where MMC Parker comes into play. A billionaire CEO living nearby.

Review

As previously mentioned. I really enjoy Aster's fantasy YA writing in her Lightlark series. Summer in the City is a huge step up in terms of professional and creative development. I do enjoy a good temporary romance and as I was already a fan of the author I decided to go into this one blind without doing any research on the story. Little did a realise that this story contains one of my least favourite contemporary romance tropes, the fake dating trope. Although written fairly well it was just something that I personally could not get on board with due to my personal preferences as a reader. It would also seem that I'm not the biggest fan of the billionaire romance story either.

Although I enjoyed reading Summer in the City, and it is a great first step into this genre for the author, there were just some elements that I felt were a little lacking for me, I didn't feel a great connection to the main Character of Elle. However it is clear to see the dedication and passion that went into writing this character. Dare I say Aster may have even written a little of herself into the role?

I did enjoy reading about the character of the MMC and it's clear to see why readers may fall head over heels for him as he is brought to life from the pages. He kind of reminded me of Fifty Shades of Grey MMC Christian Grey (of course without the dominance and morally grey history) in the sense that he feels that everything can be fixed with his wealth. This was apparent for the majority of the story.

Heading into spoiler territory here.........



There is a third act break up, which is quite common in contemporary romance novels, however I think it being placed just two chapters from the end of the story makes the plot seem a little rushed towards the end. So unfortunately this didn't do the story justice.

When reading this novel, I also got the sense that we could probably expect a second book to follow this one, which I am predicting could simply be called "Winter in the City" as it was heavily hinted at and even written word for word in this book. So this could potentially be a book to watch out for in the future if this shall be the case. Who knows what Alex Aster has in store for us in the world of romance.

3.5 stars

This was the author's first adult contemporary romance and honestly it was really good. I really enjoyed the romance, the characters had great chemistry. Elle is a complex character and i think she was well written and Parker was just lovable, even though at first i was skeptical about him.

I was going to rate this much higher if the third act breakup didn't happen at the last two chapters. And on top of that the characters meet again after almost two years and the way the got together again felt a bit rushed. The whole thing was just unnecessary and lowkey kind of ruined it for me. Despite that it still was a fun read and i'm definitely planning on rereading it in the summer.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

3 ☆
Firstly thank you so much for approving me for this ARC.
This is my first time reading Alex Aster and aware this is her first romance book too so was super excited to dive into this :)

There were a few minor issues that didn't capture me though - a few plot points with the billionaire/fake dating tropes didn't feel entirely plausible. Also the MFC Elle's attitude towards money/the MMC did start to feel a bit tiresome after a little while. I felt the MMC was a stronger character that you could certainly fall in love with easily.

I also felt an uneven flow to the story, chapter 30 in particular did give me a bit of whiplash.

Overall, I still enjoyed it as a summer NYC romance, which I’m sure others will enjoy - I’m just not sure if this one was 100% for me.

Lucky enough for this to be my first ever ARC

About 25% in I was unsure I’m not a massive fan on the fake dating trope but I gave it a chance and so lucky I did. Very cute NYC romance

When I saw that Alex Aster had written a romance book, I knew I needed to read it. Especially after just finishing Skyshade, I just needed another fix.

Elle gets her big break when she’s asked to spend the summer writing the screen play for a big budget movie. The only catch, she has to move to New York for the summer to do it. After promising herself she wouldn’t ever come back to New York, she finds herself in an apartment she could never afford, next door to the one person she spent years failing to forget.

I absolutely adored this book, Parker is such an amazing male lead and the way he feels and acts towards Elle is just swoon worthy. The only reason I didn’t give this book five starts was because of the last third twist (no spoilers) I was just sad about the way Elle handled everything.

If you are an Alex Aster fan I would definitely recommend this one! Thank you for this advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.