This book is actually so good! Yes it took me a month to read but I was in a slump and this got me out of it this past 2 weeks! Obsessed with both the main characters in the book! I love them both so much! I recommend if you love a good slow burn! I’m absolutely obsessed with the plot nothing like I’ve ever read before! Like I’m absolutely obsessed will probably reread and can’t wait for everyone else to get their hands on this book! It’s an absolute masterpiece

Kate is officially an empty nester so she decides to do something for herself again and pick up acting. Her old agent had passed so her letter reached Charlie his son who recommended her for a unique gig, acting as the author of a new romance novel. The original author is known for writing detective books so this love story inspired by his late wife doesn’t work with his image. The book is an immediate success but as their lies start to unravel Kate finds herself in quite the pickle. How do you move on from something like this?

The title is spot on because this book is very slow burn. In fact the romance comes second to everything else going on with the Kate navigating her new life and everything that comes with publishing a book. On top of dealing with her daughter and ex husband. I’m not mad about it, Kate is the moment and one of those characters you can’t help but root for.

I have to highlight Liv (Kates sister), she’s comedic gold! There are a few emotional scenes so it was nice to mix it up with some fun banter. Honorable mention to the T-Rex scene, another giggle worthy moment. Love the cover and bonus content at the end.

This book is incredibly well written, love the structure, characters and the ending is just spectacular. Every loose end is tied up and of course theres a HEA. I highly recommend it.

Read this if you like
🩷Agent x actress
✨Hilarious banter
🔥Slow burn
📖Contemporary romance

i’ve previously and constantly been one of josie silver’s biggest fans! this book brings you more of the same trademark wit and delight, a romance that’ll keep you warm and happy through life hurdles and misfortunes alike. i liked the characters, kate and charlie, so very much. i adored how the author mixes in the bitter with the sweet, the value and obsession fiction and pretense present for us even when you have to admit it’s not real and step away.
this was a really unique, wonderful book! i cannot recommend josie silver enough, for readers of romance & hard-hitting and delightful love stories.

What an absolutely fabulous story.
I just couldn't put it down.
It was emotional, hilarious, chaotic and serious. What more could you want!
Thanks so much for the review copy.

This story was quite the emotional rollercoaster! Love after divorce is also a favorite trope of mine. I felt the ex husband was kind of a bland character though and not very developed for being a plot point in the story. The plot points weren’t very strong to begin with, but I did overall enjoy this emotional yet cute book!

Slow Burn Summer by Josie Silver is an absolute delight—heartfelt, beautifully written, and filled with the kind of slow-building romance that lingers long after you turn the last page. Silver has a way of crafting characters that feel incredibly real, with emotions that simmer and grow in the most captivating way.

The setting is stunning, immersing you in a dreamy summer atmosphere that makes you want to escape into its pages. The chemistry between the protagonists is undeniable, with a love story that unfolds naturally and authentically. It’s a book about second chances, self-discovery, and the kind of love that’s truly worth waiting for.

If you love poignant, character-driven romances with depth and emotion, Slow Burn Summer is a must-read. Josie Silver has once again delivered a story that tugs at the heartstrings and leaves you with a satisfied sigh. Highly recommend!

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to review this book in advance. Slow Burn Summer was so slow that it was hard to get into the story. It felt like Kate was more interested and had more chemistry in her letters with author "H" person than with Charlie the agent. It did not feel like there was a progression of chemistry between Kate and Charlie. It's frustrating because Kate seems to have so much fun with her "ghost author" persona that you really want the sparks for her. I hope that others resonate with the story more.

I give this book 5 Sunday Times Bestsellers 📚

I started reading this book convinced it was a romance between Kate and Charlie, but this book is so much more.

It is a love story between readers and the books they love. While an author is the person who gifts the story to the reader, the story itself is so much bigger than everything else. It takes on a life of its own, through the importance it holds for each person who reads it.

Kate a struggling divorcee, with a particularly loathsome ex-husband, happens upon a once in a lifetime “ghost author” acting gig. What follows is the unfolding of mayhem and adventure. We, as the reader, go down the rabbit hole with Kate as she finds her way in the world, right at a time when she is question who she is and what she even wants from her life.

What the author does so perfectly, is she makes you fall in love with every aspect of Kate journey of self re-discovery. This is achieved through a collection of perfect supporting characters; Charlie the sexy agent, Liv the protective big sis, wild card and amazing seamstress, Nish her adorable husband and Fiona the indomitable literary agent (just to name a few).
The author also throws in suspense, who is the original author?! Comedy, I dare you not to smile at the idea of a grown man squishing himself into a car while dressed as a giant T-Rex.
And of course at the heart of it, Kate. Kate is so realistic and heartwarming as the girl who loves stories and her family, who is wanting a new and rewarding life for herself.

Also down with Richard! He was the true deserver of Triffle-Gate!

A beautiful book about Kate, a former actress, reaching out to her agent from years gone by and being offered the u ique opportunity to act as author of a new romance read. Nobody, least of all Kate, could envisage the chaos her latest role will create.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

4 🌟
I really enjoy this novel! Even though the characters in it are at a later stage of their life than me (around 40 and divorced), a lot of it still felt relatable. I loved that the running theme throughout it was also all about books because that was entirely relatable.

Kate is the epitome of a relatable character and my heart went out to her at different points throughout the book amidst the injustice she suffered. Charlie was a really likeable character who always seemed to turn up at the right time and was so supportive, no wonder there ended up being a slow burn aspect to it.

I would wholeheartedly recommend this book for a fun, yet reflective novel.

A great story which was brilliant to read and kept you hooked in as you followed Kate through her journey post the divorce...

3.5 🌟 lovely easy read - very good for the summer months!
As an avid reader, the insights to the book publishing world were very interesting and an accurate representation of how welcoming and supporting the book community is.

I liked the characters but feel like they lacked chemistry - having loved Josie Silver's other books this is the reason for my rating

Wow what a read. I absolutely adored this book and read it in one sitting. It tells the story of Kate whose life is at a crossroads as her daughter is off at university and she is recently divorced and has been left with nothing even though her husband was the cheat. A chance letter to an old life sets off a job offer that will change not only her world but also those of her family and her old agency. This is a perfect beach read not to be missed!

I really liked Kate and Charlie’s story. I wasn’t too sure about him to begin with, but as the story progressed I changed my mind, he is just so thoughtful and kind 🥰 I loved the character development of both Kate and Charlie.

I read this in two sittings which is always a good sign.

Once again another beautiful romance by Josie Silver, I don’t think I could ever get bored of her books.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin General UK for the opportunity to read this advance review copy.

The premise sounded great, and it started off really well. I liked Kate a lot and was fully invested in her journey of finding herself again after her divorce. Watching her rebuild her confidence, step into a new role as a ghostwriter, and navigate the changes in her life was genuinely engaging.

But the romance—it just wasn’t there. I kept waiting for that slow burn, that tension, that moment when I’d feel the pull between Kate and Charlie, but it never really came. Their first real moment—falling asleep together on the sofa—caught me off guard, not because it was unexpected in itself, but because it felt unearned. There hadn’t been enough development between them to make it feel meaningful. I wanted more build-up, more lingering glances, more conversations that hinted at something deeper. Instead, their relationship felt secondary, almost like an afterthought, with so much of the book focused on Kate stepping into her ghostwriting role.

If anything, I found myself more drawn to the dynamic between Kate and ‘H’, the elusive author she was ghostwriting for. Their exchanges—mostly confined to email—had more spark, more intrigue. I could feel an underlying connection there in a way I just didn’t with Charlie, which made it all the more frustrating that the book never really explored it further.

In the end, this didn’t quite work for me. It had so much potential, and I really wanted to love it, but as everything came together, it just felt a bit underwhelming.

Positively gloriously loved this book, very easy to read
Follows story of Kate who gave up career of acting to follow husband to Germany and then bring up daughter Alice. Husband since caught with secretary and Kate living back with sister her daughter at uni she writes to talent agency to see if there any hope of a job ?
Oh yes they have just received book written by an author who wishes to remain anonymous so they need an actor to put a name, face and personality to the book. Kate asks to read it first partly because JoJo the man who owned talent agency has died and his son Charlie now runs it and she needs to see if book is good? But it is amazing
So she agrees to do it , she has to keep it all secret so only tells her sister and her husband she will tell Alice later she’s too obsessed with her Australian boyfriend who wants to take her back there Kate can’t even think about it at the moment
So she is signed up with a team and it begins they change her surname slightly but keep her first name
She is not told the real author identity a good thing then she has no idea
And so she starts to rehearse all the questions she is likely to be asked and answered by social media post and blogs everyone it’s never ending
She sees the book cover its stunning her name and she sees herself as the guardian angel of this book
But will she be able to protect everyone including herself
And what about the gorgeous Charlie she felt something the minute she saw him
Beautiful love story but can Kate protect it ?

4 stars *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ
4 stars is meant to be a high rating but this feels like a very low 4 stars. if that makes sense. at the start i really enjoyed the plot of the book and i was really interested in how the story would progress. however, that momentum fell off a bit imo. kate and charlie’s relationship was actually really cute but i do agree with the reviews that said it felt a bit insta lovey. especially in the climactic scene in the cornwell cottage, i didn’t actually feel all that connected to the characters or their relationship. also the reveal of the ghost author felt so underwhelming 😭 it was all this buildup… then just handed to you?

in faaact (this review is just a bit of me rambling 😭😭😭) the last 10% felt like all the plot points were tied up in a neat yet unsatisfying bow. if that makes sense. everything just felt a little too convenient that i didn’t actually feel satisfied when i reached the end.

conclusion *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ
in this MESS of a review, my point is this: i am NOT the target audience and therefore i didn’t enjoy it as much as others will. want a cute contemporary romance? this is a good pick for you :)

Slow Burn Summer releases on June 19, 2025. thank you to netgalley and penguin general UK for providing me with an e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

First of all Thank you to net galley for allowing me to read this advanced copy in return for an honest review.

I LOVED this book. It was very well written and I loved the premise from blurb and was so excited to be given the opportunity to read it.

I loved the characters and especially that background characters still had such strong personalities. I’ve never read any of Josie Silver’ previous books but I am definitely going to make a start on them now.

The way the book is centred around grief not only for the passing of a loved one but also for a life you once lived was portrayed so well and was very inspirational.

The one small thing that bothered me was I felt like there wasn’t as much chemistry with Charlie and Kate as there could have been. It was a very wholesome love story but didn’t really feel as fleshed out of I’d have liked. I enjoyed it nonetheless


4.5 star rating ✨

The synopsis for this book is everything I love and more! Who doesn’t love a slow burn romance, a little bit of spice and a happy ever after.

Kate is freshly divorced and in need of a job. She reaches out to her old talent agent, which is now being run by his son Charlie. Kate is offered an acting job of posing as an author for a romance book, which the real author doesn’t want to be connected with.

This book is wholesome, heartfelt and funny in parts. I rated this book 4 stars as it took a while for me to connect with the story. It is beautifully written and by the end I was completely and utterly in love with the main characters and their journey.

This is going to be the perfect Summer book.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin for allowing me to read this advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

Another brilliant read from Josie Silver, I always thoroughly enjoy her books & this one was a romantic tale of author Kate