While going for my morning walk with hubby (in a social-distancing appropriate way), I was thinking about my review of The Summer Deal. I was contemplating about how this story made me feel, and how some families are born, and some are made. While reading a lot of Jill Shalvis’ stories, I find myself appreciative of what I have when compared to the lives of the characters. I am so glad that I didn’t have to make my own version of a family because I’m pretty stoked with the one I have.
Famous last words…I mean thoughts…
Geez, my family can drive me insane with all their caring, thoughtful attentiveness and stuff. I swear my mother thinks I’m an idiot sometimes. She likes to forward me articles with helpful tips on finance, health, education, food, fashion, living with boys and a million other random subjects. It's like she's forgotten that she's already taught me how to be a good, law-abiding citizen with a brain in my head.
I should probably take all of that back but it sort of has a bit to do with The Summer Deal. See, a lot of this story is about dealing with your family whether it be the one you’re born into or the one you have made for yourself. By the end, it was very clear to me that it doesn’t matter if it’s born or made, they’ll always drive you insane but they do it because they care.
I really liked Brynn, Eli and Kinsey and found them to be extremely annoying. I think it is realistic to like characters but also find them frustrating too because nobody is perfect. In this case, Brynn is returning home from a failed relationship and she’s suffering from “I’m such an idiot” syndrome. Eli, well the poor bugger has, “my life goal is to take care of everyone else…” syndrome. And, finally, Kinsey has, “I’ll scratch your eyes out if you dare look at me with pity” syndrome. In other words, these three are MESSED UP!!
Now, you might be asking how we have three main characters but we’re not talking ménage. Well, Brynn and Eli are our love interests and Kinsey is connected to them both. I can honestly say, that Jill Shalvis does a fantastic job of convincing me that there are no romantic feelings between Eli and Kinsey, even though they have been connected since they were kids. Her way of convincing me is Deck. Wow!! I LOVED Deck! I may even be a little sad that this wasn’t Deck’s story. Not saying I didn’t enjoy Brynn and Eli's love story… but DECK. 😍
Story-wise, The Summer Deal was a wee bit emotional. This is the kind of story where all of your emotions take a rollercoaster ride. As with each instalment of the Wildstone series, this is not just a romance. The love and relationships are familial, friendly and romantic.
Brynn and Kinsey started out rocky because of old hurts, betrayals and secrets. Kinsey knew for years she had a sister and Brynn was completely blindsided when she found out.
Kinsey and Eli’s relationship, while mostly like a brother/sister, there was a lot more of Eli giving and Kinsey taking. This may come across as selfish on Kinsey’s part, but in some ways, she was giving Eli what he needed most. Someone to focus his shelter and protect nature on. Eli does have his little brother Max for that too, but Max is an adult and doesn’t need Eli as much anymore.
The relationship between Eli and Brynn was rocky to start with because they both had to learn to trust. This one probably needed the most work because Eli was keeping a bunch of secrets when they first got together. They weren’t his secrets to tell but it wasn’t a great way to start a relationship.
If I had one problem with the story, I’d have to say that Kinsey drove me crazy and Eli enabled her. There is NO WAY Eli should have let Kinsey keep her secrets from Brynn as long as she did. He was jeopardising his budding relationship by keeping his mouth shut. I’m not sure I would have been as forgiving as Brynn when all the truths had been shared. I get it, Kinsey was sick. I just found it frustrating that the secrets went on through the whole story.
Sorry, this was a wee bit of a rambling review. I really enjoyed reading The Summer Deal and I would have been quite happy if it went on and on and on. I loved the dynamics of the relationships and the closeness between them all. I loved Brynn’s Mums, Raina and Olive, Max, Eli’s brother, and Deck, Kinsey’s boyfriend, but not really boyfriend. I wanted more and I was sad when it came to the end.
If you’re a fan of Jill Shalvis, you will not be disappointed in The Summer Deal. While it was an emotional journey that at times brought a tear to my eye, I did finish with a big goofy smile on my face. I can’t wait for more in this series.
Stacey is Sassy, received an advanced copy of this story. The copy provided is not the final copy and may be subject to edits and changes.
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Jill Shalvis does it again, I Loved this book!
Reviewed in the United States on June 17, 2020
Jill Shalvis does it again! Creating likable characters (that we would love to smack upside the head once in awhile lol) and an interesting storyline. Half sisters, one unscrupulous dad, a serious illness, two romances, and more secrets than you can count! Mix it all up with a double dose of Jill Shalvis' humor 😂 ( Sky raisins and jalapeno sky raisins! A classroom of kindergarteners with no filter! Omg, it just got better from there ) and you've got a winning combination here! This is book 5 in the Wildstone series but reads very well as a standalone. I loved it!
Reviewed in the United States on June 17, 2020
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