At the age of seventeen, Rachel Evans and her friend Caroline decide to spend the summer months before her final year at school vacationing in the Greek islands. A chance meeting with Alistair an older man under the employ of an affluent businessman, marks the beginning of a torrid affair, with Rachel over the moon with the attention she is receiving from Alistair. Rachel and the other girls she befriends on the island, spend their days working in the bar Alistair manages, attending parties at the mansion of his employer and Rachel begins to dream of a future with Alistair. But the summer ends in tragedy and scandal, with Alistair abandoning her and leaving Rachel shattered.

Rachel, now in her thirties and never having gotten over Alistair, visits the island with her husband Tom where she meets one of the girls from that summer who stayed on, it triggers a sequence of events that has Rachel revisiting the past, trying to determine the truth behind what really happened that summer and dealing with the shocking revelations that come to the surface.

The Girls of Summer by Katie Bishop is an intense read that ventures into dark territory. The pace is on the slower side in the first half of the novel as the narrative moves between past and present detailing both Kate’s state of mind in the present day and the events from that fateful summer. The author is unflinching as she touches upon sensitive topics such as predatory behavior, grooming, and sexual exploitation of vulnerable young women. The author does a wonderful job of setting the scene with vivid descriptions of the island and the upbeat vibe of the young vacationers. Seventeen-year-old Rachel, naïve and easily manipulated and the smooth-talking Alistair with his shady dealings are well-fleshed-out characters though the present-day timeline with mature Rachel and her cluelessness is not convincing and much of what transpires in her life in the present day is difficult to justify. A seventeen-year-old dazzled by an older man and romantic dreams is believable and the long–lasting effects of trauma and betrayal are believable. But adult Rachel’s reactions, her unwillingness more than inability, to see what truly happened all those years ago for what it truly was and her subsequent actions were difficult to digest beyond a point. As the narrative progresses, I found myself unable to sympathize with Rachel and there really isn’t much mystery or suspense that holds the plot together. Overall, I really can’t call this a thriller. The premise of this novel isn’t quite original, and for those who follow the headlines for crimes of this nature, nothing will really surprise you as the story moves toward the ultimate reveal. I will say that the author has promise and I would be eager to read more from her in the future.

Many thanks to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the ARC. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.arc-widget netgalley-arc106 s Catherine (alternativelytitledbooks)-very behind again!483 922

**Many thanks to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, and Katie Bishop for an ARC of this book! Now available as of 6.6!!**

Although the title of this book might get you humming Don Henley's The Boys of Summer and itching for a poolside cocktail...the contents of this slow burn and heavily atmospheric #MeToo inspired tale reminded me more of the bland and grey monotony of winter than the bright excitement of summer.

What if your perfect summer vacation never had to end?

Rachel heads to Greece with her friend Caroline at age 17...and is swept away by the romantic scenery and idyllic feel of the beautiful island they inhabit. On top of that, the teens get invited to some glamorous and exciting parties and the requisite drinks and drugs are par for the course. One night while at the bar, a striking older man walks up next to Rachel and the two lock eyes and exchange a few words...and within minutes, Rachel feels in her bones that she has found true love.

But Alistair is 20 years her senior...and works for a wealthy and powerful boss, Henry Taylor. Rachel vows to stay on the island and finds a way...but things in her relationship continue to become more intense and dramatic and she also has to keep things between her and Alistair secret. As Rachel continues to engage in risky behavior, several other girls are also swept up in their own late nights and keeping their own secrets...and one fateful and tragic night ends up binding them forever.

Many years later, Rachel is married to kind and sensible Tom and on a trip back to the same island...and the combination of their strained marriage and her feelings for the man she can't let go have Rachel reeling. But when a group of her old gal pals runs into her and deliver some news about Alistair, everything she thought she knew about the 'soulmate' that got away is about to change. Is now the time to pursue love and cut her husband loose? Or will Rachel have the courage and the strength to trust her old friends and acknowledge that her teenage infatuation was simply puppy love...with a man who WASN'T the Romeo she has longed to love for so long?

This is one of those books that is almost instantly misleading: the cover implies a zippy, sun-soaked thriller set in a beautiful locale...and only one of those three things is true. At first, I had a lot of hope for this read: Bishop's writing is certainly atmospheric, and the contrast between Rachel's silent misery with Tom in her current situation based against the glamorized look back at her whirlwind romance of sorts with Alistair was rife with potential for drama, and DEEP drama.

But when I realized that 17 year old Rachel and present day Rachel had basically the same level of maturity and common sense...I came to realize that personal growth wasn't going to be the cornerstone of this story...and for that matter, really wasn't present AT ALL.

Rachel's dewy eyed ignorance makes sense when she's seventeen (to an extent)...but as a grown woman, it's a bit far fetched that she would be SO oblivious to EVERYTHING that transpired that fateful summer. Not to mention her treatment of her poor husband Tom, who basically gets strung along for no apparent reason (still not even sure why she married him in the first place!). There isn't really a lot to about Rachel, and because she doesn't learn a thing even when the truth is being shouted in her face, it's hard to feel sorry for her.

There's also the fact that this prose is on the weighty side: not necessarily bad, but don't expect to blast through this one in a couple of hours. It works in the sense of atmosphere for the first 50% of the book or so, but once the plot jumped the shark, the writing quality also dipped and didn't recover. You also have to wait until about 70% or so for the 'thriller' part of the plot to transpire, so if you don't have the patience, I would quit while you're ahead.

And for the record, Rachel honestly might have done better if, in the end, she'd listened to the lyrics from Henley's song HERSELF:

"I thought I knew what love was, what did I know?
Those days are gone forever
I should just let them go"

...I couldn't have said it better myself.

3.5 starsnetgalley smp-influencer widget-received98 s Ceecee2,263 1,883

3.5 rounded up

The summer that Rachel spends on a Greek island at the age of seventeen casts a shadow over her life as the love she feels for Alistair utterly consumes her. Sixteen years later and now married to Tom, the couple holiday on the same Greek island. A chance meeting with one of the other girls from 16 years ago forces a reappraisal of Rachel ‘s life both in the past and the present day resulting in the unleashing of deeply buried and dark secrets. The story is told Then recounting the teenagers experiences in Greece and Now as the scales fall from her eyes with the timelines fusing well in the multi layered plot.

This is a well written novel which is full of intrigue, suspense and tension and as you read on you feel a sense of dread at the callous disregard of lives. The growing menace is palpable with manipulation, control and ultimately betrayal which is heartbreaking and moving in places. The character of Rachel is very well portrayed, she’s not as confident or as worldly wise as some of the other girls she meets on the island which of course makes her “perfect“ in the eyes of some. This means it’s a disturbing read at times although the author is careful and sensitive in her treatment of the characters and the situation but it is inevitably uncomfortable on occasions. You see very clearly how the past impacts and informs the present leading to bad decisions and affecting current relationships.

My only negative is that in places it is a bit slow especially at the start although overall it is a compelling novel.

With thanks to NetGalley and especially to Random House U.K., Transworld, Bantam Press for the much appreciated arc in return for an honest review.75 s Jasmine266 426

DNF @ 50%

I had a tepid interest in this story until about the 50% mark. The writing was pretty good, but I wasn’t a fan of Rachel, the main character. In the past chapters, she’s a bit selfish and naïve, which is fine considering her age. But in the present timeline, she is plainly unable. I could have done without all the lying and cheating.

And there is a depressing feeling throughout most of the story. The descriptions of summer and summer nostalgia maintained my interest for a while. But when a non-consensual sex scene occurred in detail, I decided I had read enough.

Thanks to the publisher for providing a widget via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.Show full review52 s Roman Clodia2,593 3,430

I'm going with the full five stars for this one because I found it unputdownable reading, at least in part because it traces an emotional trajectory that I and so many female friends have travelled as a result of the #MeToo movement of recent years. We've all had sexualised experiences since we were children that, with hindsight, we normalised as 'just the way things are' rather than recognising them as being man-made - quite literally - power structures which can and should be dismantled.

Bishop has written a slow and nuanced book that enables us to see via the eyes of Rachel, a mid-thirties woman whose life sort of stopped after the summer she was seventeen when back-packing to a Greek island she met a man who she has created as 'the love of her life', a narrative in which she has deliberately blinded herself to the story of which she was really a part.

I can see how this has been compared to My Dark Vanessa because it explores complicity in a wholly sympathetic manner, offering compassion and understanding without judging.

And my biggest takeaway is a reminder of how vulnerable teenage girl-women are even when - especially when? - they consider themselves street smart, grown up and invincible. We've all been there, whether through Rachel's naivety or Helena's seeming vibrant confidence - and those of us who never found ourselves in the same situation as these women can only be grateful.

Powerful and compelling.39 s2 comments CYIReadBooks (Claire)706 113

Rachel and her best friend Caroline are off for a summer vacation in Greece. Both girls are in their junior and senior years of high school. Not even eighteen, but they decided to go on a trip of lifetime exploring the Greek archipelago, To save money, they stayed in hostels, sharing rooms with other girls their age. The island they were on was one big party scene with bars that didn’t bother to check ID. It was a dream come true — untethered by watchful parents, getting drunk, and partying till all hours of the morning.

It was all fun and games and even better when Rachel met Alistair, a charismatic businessman. Alistair was twenty years older than Rachel, but Rachel didn’t care. Un boys her age, Alistair had a distinctive finesse about him. He made Rachel feel special… In fact, Alistair made all the girls feel special… A gift that Alistair used to his advantage. And one that would change the course of Rachel’s life forever.

The Girls of Summer is a slow atmospheric read. The novel isn’t for everyone. Especially if you’re a reader that loves thrills, excitement and mystery.

The story unfolds over dual timelines with Rachel as the MC. This method of storytelling really works well for this particular novel. However, I found that I had to read between the lines to get the gist of the story. The plot isn’t clear cut, and it isn’t until past the 48% point that I slowly began to understand what was happening. Even so, the novel was pretty bland. And with a lackluster finale, it garnered just two okay stars from me.

I received a digital ARC from St. Martin’s Press through NetGalley. The review herein is completely my own and contains my honest thoughts and opinions.netgalley smpinfluencer33 s2 comments Maren’s Reads699 1,120

3.5?? Years following their summer love affair in Greece, Rachel, who’s now married to Tom, is still consumed with thoughts of Alister and the intensity of their relationship. Determined to revisit the past, Rachel reconnects with the women who spent that fateful summer with her. Soon, long buried secrets are resurfacing and Rachel must choose between the life she left behind and the life she has since made for herself.

For a debut, the author did an exquisite job flushing out each of the central characters, and allowing us to understand their motivations and the sometimes poor decisions they made. Although somewhat of a suspense novel, in many ways It is a character study and an examination of what happens when we view a relationship one way, only to realize we were looking through the wrong lens.

Told in past and present format, I found myself more drawn into the past and wanting to learn about what had happened that impacted their lives to the extent that it did. I so applaud the author’s motivations and what she was trying to do with The Girls of Summer. However, something fell flat for me within the execution.

My biggest issue, and I’m finding this more lately, is that the pacing and structure felt off to me. It had a slower start, then gained a bit of a steam, slowed down again and then grabbed me again at the conclusion. This kept me at arms length throughout, as I was never fully pulled in to the story.

All in all, this is still an intriguing and suspenseful read with an important message at its core.

Read if you :
•literary mysteries
•character driven stories
•dual timelines
•emotional reads
•slow burn

TW: Yes. Please DM me.

Thank you {partners} St. Martin’s Press and Macmillan Audio for my gifted copies.alc28 s Karen1,845 429

With a title this, it seems pure and innocent and almost a typical summer beach read.

And even though it takes place on a beautiful, secluded Greek Island, there is a darker side to this story that casts a sharp spotlight on the complicated nature of power, consent and memory.

Premise: Rachel has been crushing on Alistair since she was a young girl. She was 17 when she met him. He was in his 30’s.

She was spending the summer before her A-levels island hopping with her best friend and he was working for a powerful billionaire on an idyllic Greek island.

She was trusting and impressionable, and he made her feel special. And she was immediately in love.

And even now, 15 years later, when she is married to someone else, she still thinks of her first love.

When an unexpected encounter reconnects her with someone from her past, she is forced to face her memories.

Alternating between then and now, it takes a while for us to see the true nature of who Alistair really is. And reveal to readers all that truly happened during that summer.

As the past chapters reveal what happened that summer through Rachel’s viewpoint, the chapters set in the present show the lasting fallout of a tragedy that sent everyone running from the island including Rachel herself.

Regardless, she is still stuck in this past.

As readers we are taken through what happens.

The fact that in years gone by, before the #MeToo movement, the male-dominated behavior explored in this book was so often excused, explained away or simply accepted as part of life.

What occurs inside these pages feels something women had to endure and ignore. Not too un what we have read about during the #MeToo movement.

It also feels , using Rachel as the narrator, she is in a sense, telling the collective stories of women the world over.

Through these pages, there is a rose-tinted naivety of youth – the easy trust they had and how easily it was being exploited.

In this story, as readers we are witness to some men doing some things to some women. And as readers invested in the story, we want justice.

Will it be served after all these years?

This is a compelling, powerful and suspenseful, but imperfectly told, read. Not in the way of a mystery to be solved, but in the way of seeing a girl grow up and face her memories and her truth. And then tell her story in court. 3.5 starsbook-discussion-perfect creates-questions educating-moments ...more25 s Diana826 670

3.5 Stars ?

At 17 years old, Rachel takes a summer holiday to a Greek island, where she has an affair with Alistair, a man 20 years her senior. Seventeen is an impressionable age, and Rachel is easily seduced by the charm and attention of an older man. Unfortunately, the toxicity of that relationship stayed with her long after leaving the island. Fifteen years later and married to someone else, she still longs to relive those days with Alistair, unable to accept the truth of what really happened.

THE GIRLS OF SUMMER is part slow burn suspense and part character study of what can happen when girls are groomed and exploited. The story is told from Rachel's POV in the present and past. I was very much invested in 17-year old Rachel's timeline. The writing was gorgeous with an ominous undercurrent of what was to come. On the other hand, adult Rachel frustrated me. Despite what she went through, her decisions and behavior made her rather unable.

Though the book cover evokes feelings of carefree summery days, the actual story underneath is dark, uncomfortable, and thought provoking. So quickly and easily can girls be manipulated by older men, especially powerful ones, with detrimental consequences. Even though a bit slow in parts, this book is a well written contribution to the #MeToo discussion.

Goodreads giveaway win. Thank you to the publisher for providing me an ARC of this book. Opinions are my own.contemporary-fiction mystery suspense-thriller25 s Mallory1,435 185

This was a very interesting book dealing with a tough subject and at times it was tough to read. The writing was good, but I don’t know if it was the style or what but I had hard time really getting into the story and I didn’t really care about any of the characters. The story is told in two perspectives past and present. Rachel has never truly recovered from the summer when she was 17 taking a vacation on a small island. But she doesn’t even truly understand what happened that summer and she is still struggling to manage the trauma she can’t even acknowledge. This book definitely made me think and I think it did accurately capture how easy it is for a young and vulnerable girl to slide in commercial exploitation of children. 26 s Erin Clemence1,200 361

Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a free, electronic ARC of this novel received in exchange for an honest review.

Expected publication date: June 6, 2023

After taking a trip to Greece when Rachel was seventeen, she ended up staying on much longer than she originally planned when she met Alastair, the mysterious older man who made her feel special and loved. Twenty years later, Rachel still reminisces about her overseas fling, even though Alastair is long gone and the sand has long since been washed clean from her toes. But when she reconnects with old friends from that vacation, they force her to face her relationship with Alastair for what it was, and it upturns Rachel’s entire life as she knows it.

Katie Bishop’s debut novel, “The Girls of Summer” packs one heck of a punch. The novel starts going in one direction, with a gaggle of young teenaged girls traveling Europe before going away to school, full of hot summer nights and partying. But then, when you least expect it, it becomes something far darker and sinister. The relationship between Alastair and Rachel has creepy “My Dark Vanessa” vibes, and it won’t sit easy with readers, but if you can stomach it, you won’t soon forget this thought-provoking debut.

Rachel is the outcast of the bunch, the awkward seventeen year old who is trying to find herself by working overseas with her best friend. When the two girls get jobs at a bar on a Greek island, they are instantly smitten with the lifestyle and it doesn’t take long before Rachel falls for rich, entitled Alastair. Right away, readers will both understand the pull of Alastair, and will understand his despicable intentions while, at the same time, be rooting for Rachel, and screaming at her all at once. The characters are well developed, and the breathtaking scenery only slightly takes away from the destructive underbelly of the plot.

Each chapter is headed with “then” and “now”, putting the reader in the correct time frame. The entire story is narrated by Rachel, and told almost in reverse order, so the true details of her relationship only come to light when adult Rachel realizes them. Bishop telling the story in this way created a kinship with Rachel while building suspense through the slow burn of the plot.

“The Girls of Summer” is not the light, beachy read the cover and title implies. But it is also one that won’t be easily forgotten. Bishop’s debut has marked her as “one to watch”, and I’m eager anticipating her sophomore novel.first-reads kindle19 s Jen873 87

This was a decent read for me, though I thought the story dragged a bit and didn’t really provide any major twists. It centers on Rachel, who in her mid 30s is trying to reclaim what she remembers as a perfect summer in Greece as a teenager. When she reconnects with the girls she hung out with that summer, she is forced to rethink the memories from that summer, especially her love affair with the much older Alistair.

I struggled a little bit with Rachel’s character. It should have been very obvious what was really going on that summer even to someone her age, not to mention when she reflected on it as an adult. I also thought she treated her husband horribly and never really explained why she made some of the decisions she made. I didn’t think that she really grew throughout the novel and got the impression that even when she did the right thing at the end, she didn’t really believe it.

I d the way the story alternated between past and present, though I didn’t think there were many surprising reveals. Either way it kept me reading as the author weaved together the story from the 2 timelines.

Overall, it was a well written novel but just an ok read for me- not enough surprises and I was impatient with Rachel’s naïveté and overall character. Thanks to Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.18 s Creya Casale | cc.shelflove431 359

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for providing access to this audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

You might see three stars and think to yourself, “Oh, this book must not be that good.” In this case, I would disagree and still recommend you read it! I completed this read via audiobook. The narrator was exceptional in making me sympathize with our main character, even when she was being a naive fool. I felt SO BAD for this girl. I think I was expecting a bit more of an emotional punch from the book’s ending, however. I think there will be a lot of readers who love this book, and some readers who thought it was just okay. It was fun to read a book set in Greece for a change! If you’re looking for more heart-shattering moments, please check out Muted by Tami Charles.aotm-book-club20 s Dennis867 1,747

3.5 stars

I’ve been excited about this book since I saw the gorgeous cover—and it sounds the perfect beach read! This book is Katie Bishop’s debut novel, but it’s getting a lot of buzz so I bumped it up on my TBR list. I won’t go into too much of the synopsis (and I’ll explain more why later), but this story focuses on one main protagonist, Rachel, and her extended stay in Greece as a young woman. We have two dual timelines, both equally as important but involves the chaos that was inflicted on Rachel and the group of women she associated with during her stay in Greece. Now in her 30s, the past catches up to her and Rachel now needs to own exactly what happened because you can’t hide from the truth forever.

This book is pretty straightforward and quick, with great dialogue and societal topics to discuss, but I knew early on what was going to happen and it left little for the imagination. THE GIRLS OF SUMMER is a dark, powerful read; but I felt that the straightforward plot didn’t allow me to fully immerse myself into the story. Fans of BEFORE WE WERE INNOCENT and MY DARK VANESSA will enjoy this fast and furious read.2023-pub 2023-read dark ...more16 s Sherri Thacker1,414 307

This is a debut novel by Katie Bishop and it grabbed me from the very first page. Rachel went backpacking with friends to Greece where she found her first love with Alistair. She was only 17 at the time and Alistair was much older. Fast forward 16 years, she is now married to Tom and they go on a vacation to the same spot in Greece yet Katie never told Tom much about that time in her life. I had a hard time with Katie going back and getting involved with Alistair while being married to Tom, after no contact after 16 years. Really? Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this early release in exchange for my honest review. To be published June 2023. Looking forward to many more books by this author.

TRIGGERS - RAPE, SEX TRAFFICING, SUICIDEThis entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.Show full reviewgreat-books-but-not-quite-5-star-bo netgalley-books16 s Jo_Scho_Reads755 53

At just seventeen, Rachel is still pretty much a teenager when she goes backpacking to a Greek island. There she meets the charismatic and mature Alistair. She quickly becomes entranced and infatuated by this man, developing feelings which will shape her entire life.

Sixteen years later, now married to Tom, she still has feelings for Alistair. And when she has the opportunity to get in touch she makes a decision that again, will change her destiny.

Told over two timescales of then and now, The Girls of Summer will take you back to your youth (if you’re old me) in such a way that you’ll remember the naivety, the awkwardness, the lack of confidence. Oh I wouldn’t want to go back to those days after reading this! Katie Bishop has totally nailed it in conveying all of these emotions within Rachel’s character. It was so easy to empathise with her rash decisions as she was so young and gullible.

The writing is beautiful, the words and descriptions pour off the page sumptuously and stunningly. The descriptions of the island are unbelievably evocative. I read this right at the end of summer, on the cusp of autumn and could almost feel the warm sand between my toes, as I recalled sunnier days.

An astonishingly good debut novel. One not to be missed.

Out May 2023. Ad/Pr product proof-arc15 s Frank Phillips564 289

Summer Lovin’ indeed!

Even though this is the chilly season, I decided to take a break from my season-appropriate reads and escape to Greece, via Katie Bishop’s debut, The Girls of Summer. What an intense read this one was!

Rachel met Alistair fifteen years prior to the beginning of this novel and quickly fell head over heels for the much older man (over 20 years). As most first loves usually go, their summer romance ended badly and still effects Rachel in present day as she vacations on the same Greek island as a married woman years later.

What exactly happened all those years earlier that traumatized Rachel so deeply? Because, make no mistake of it, Rachel is DEEPLY traumatized, and her self-destructive actions as an adult over a decade later clearly illustrate this. My goodness, the whirlwind of emotions I went through while reading this novel!

If you haven’t been living under a rock and enjoy keeping up with true-crime or even big stories of the early 2000s, then you’ll probably be familiar with the story of Amanda Knox, the American student living abroad in Italy, who was accused of murdering her British roommate, without grounds, I might add. This true-crime case was what came to mind immediately when I picked this novel up, for some reason. Yes, it’s similar in that the main characters are a group of young female students visiting another country, living it up and making mistakes they will deeply regret in the future, and I did get a vibe initially that this is where this novel would also go, but fortunately that’s where the similarities end. Un foxy Knoxy’s story, this novel took an unexpected turn and explored the long-term effect of sexual trauma, indirect and subtle sex-trafficking, and the #MeToo movement, which I really enjoyed! Did I hate Alistair’s character with a vengeance? Absolutely! Did I get frustrated with Rachel for her naivete? Undoubtedly! But, the characters and actions of said characters really stuck with me after finishing this one, in a way a novel hasn’t done in a while. When a novel does this, I can't help but give it praise and rate it highly.

If you are triggered in any way by the topics mentioned, I’d say skip this one, because it’s hard to read at points, but I really enjoyed Rachel and her friends’ journeys of redemption! Katie Bishop definitely has my attention, and I look forward to reading her next release!!16 s1 comment Rachel (TheShadesofOrange)2,402 3,611

3.0 Stars
This is one of many recent books that have addressed topical situations through the guise of a thriller. This one read more contemporary fiction, which is fine since I expected it.

My challenge with this one is that it took on such a serious topic, but the execution was a bit soft. I would want an author to attack these themes with a punchy narrative and the ending just didn't live up to the potential of the premise. 

This is a fine book, but it missed the mark of being a phenomenal read. These stories are so important to write but they need to be more memorable  

Disclaimer I received a copy of this book from the publisher.2023-books mystery-thriller review-copy12 s Audrey561 537

THE GIRLS OF SUMMER is a dark and alluring novel that absolutely pulled me in from the start. The writing, setting and complex story transported me to Greece and into Rachel’s life as she lived a life-changing summer as a teenage and then found herself revisiting that time though a new perspective fifteen years later.

At 17, Rachel and her best friend Caroline planned a backpacking, island hopping summer across Greece. When they find themselves on a small island, Rachel is immediately taken with the beauty and doesn’t want to leave. Beaches. Parties. Dancing. Endless nights and long days in the sun. New friends and new adventures.

And then Rachel meets Alistair. She’s drawn to him even though he’s twenty years older. It’s easy for Rachel to romanticize her time with Alistair and she shines under his attention. But the summer didn’t end the way Rachel expected or planned.

Told in dual timelines we meet Rachel fifteen years later, still in love with Alistair. Even though she’s been married to someone else for the last ten years. When she and her husband take a vacation back to the Greek islands where Rachel spent that fateful summer a chance encounter resurrects long suppressed secrets and memories.

The story unfolds slowly through beautiful imagery and intoxicating writing. But be assured that the slow unfolding was for me very much a compulsive read. With echos of My Dark Vanessa this book is weighty and uncomfortable, but also something I found I could relate to in parts, in words, in emotions.

Rachel’s story is haunting and heartbreaking and does an incredible job portraying how our memories can play tricks on us, how we see what want to see and is an interesting commentary on the gap between what we choose to remember vs. what really happened.

While Rachel’s story is not my own, I could very much relate to the dynamic with Alistair and what it’s to be involved with someone who is manipulative. I could also understanding her draw to him and how her perception was so specifically crafted by Alistair.

I also felt a complete understanding of her complex relationship with Caroline and the other girls on the island. What it’s to feel the shadow friend. Female friendships, particularly at that age, can be filled with jealousy and insecurity, and the desire to fit in and to feel part of the group.

The book seduced me from the first pages with its picture perfect description of summer in Greece. It drew me in with the complicated and complex nature of female friendships. With the confusing lure of first love. And with Rachel, who is being forced to revisit the story she’s been telling herself all these years later and perhaps face a truth that’s been there all along.

THE GIRLS OF SUMMER is a must read. Huge thanks to NetGalley and St. Martins for the gifted ARC.2023-releases arcs books-i-own ...more11 s Cortney - The Bookworm Myrtle Beach922 199

Beautifully written book by a debut author.

Loved the setting and I really enjoyed the dual timelines and characters. The story itself was a little "been there, read that" but overall, I really d it.

4.25 starsgiveaways-arcs11 s Bevany376 14

I received an arc of this book. The book follows a girl jumping between the past and present to tell her story of the summer that changed her life and the effects it has on her current life.
Her friend and her travel on a summer break from school to an island where Rachel finally feels she fits in. She meets an older man and is instantly infatuated. He helps her get a job at a bar he runs for his influential boss. She spends the summer partying and working and falling deeper in love. Fast forward to current where she finds her missing her summer flame so much it is ruining her relationship with her husband. When they travel back to the island where so much happened she is reunited with an old friend who puts her back in touch with her old flame. But she finds her memories of that summer may be jaded and he might not be the man she thinks he is.
I do hope that when the published copy of this book goes on sale there is a trigger warning as there are many triggering events and discussions that occur in the book.This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.Show full review11 s Stephen1,877 408

thanks to the publishers and netgalley for a free copy in return for an open and honest review

This book split into 2 parts the then and now charts the journey of the major character and her earlier life as a coming of age girl who is controlled and sexually by an older man and charts her effects into the now and the darker side of controlling abusive people , the author stated that it was partly influenced by the #metoo and other events. found the book dark and moving 9 s Natalie all_books_great_and_small 2,384 105

I received a gifted 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

The Girls of Summer is a fantastic debut novel that keeps you invested from chapter one. Rachel goes on holiday to Greece with her husband to an island she holidayed to and ended up working on in her teenage years. The book goes back between then and now and slowly builds up to a life-changing event she can not escape from. Rachel begins to delve back into that past part of her life, mainly because 1. She wants to re-live it and 2. She needs to compartmentalise what happened and why. This was a quick and thought-provoking read that makes you realise how vulnerable young females can be and gives much food for thought.8 s Dani691 224

A timely cautionary tale that I think young women should pay special attention to. If you have someone that in your life, I would consider gifting them this book. It's not necessarily a new story, it's a tale as old as time, but we are seeing it with new eyes in this era and hopefully our girls will learn from the things we weathered. If we can pass something down to the next generation in this way, that would be great.

Rachel's husband Tom is taking her on a romantic getaway to the Greek island she inhabited for the most formative summer of her life. She was only 17.

It has the opposite effect as he intended. Instead of bringing them closer, she's flooded with memories and regrets. She dreams of recapturing the simplicity of her youth.

We soon find out that summer is not as simple and innocent as she may remember. Not long after arriving, she meets Alistair, an older man who woos her and her friends with his nice parties and work opportunities. She thinks they have something special but he disappears after that summer, leaving their torrid summer affair behind him.

As she reconnects with others from that summer, they put the puzzle pieces together and what is laid bare isn't innocent, but rather very ugly and perverted.

Rachel never got over that summer. At a crossroads in her marriage where she should be moving forward, she still chases that fleeting sense of freedom and power that only comes with youth. We only get it once. This made me feel a little long in the tooth myself.

Love, loss, betrayal, consent, grooming. Even as an adult she doesn't know what happened to her but with new times come new views and what was once buried is coming to the surface.

This was a great story. Rachel is not the most likable main character, with her coldness to her husband and her constant vibe of disarray, but that's not the point. It's not that kind of story. I think the flaws were the point and it is supposed to be somewhat uncomfortable and disturbing. You're supposed to internally scream sometimes. It's a warning and a lesson.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for the chance to listen and review. The audio narration was wonderful as well.8 s Michelle807 131

?The Girls of Summer?


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