5 things I noticed about Just For The Summer by Abby Jimenez

And would I recommend it?

This is a longer post this week, so you might prefer to read it in the Substack app! Thanks for reading 💜 and let me know in the comments what you think of the book you’re reading.

Last week I wrote about how I struggle to talk about books. I can say general things like- if I enjoyed a book, if I would recommend it, and what broad category it fits into. Sometimes I can give comps and I love when I can, because it can be so helpful to say it’s like ‘Scandal meets The Idea of You’…you know exactly what that reading experience is going to feel like.

I was inspired by Bianca Bosker’s most recent non-fiction book Get The Picture to start talking about books by saying 5 things that I notice about the book and to ‘stay in the work’- don’t be distracted by context, by other opinions, or the cover (so hard to ignore!?!), for example.

So, to test this out, here are 5 things that I noticed about Abby Jimenez’ latest romance novel Just For The Summer :

1. Justin, the complex and feminist male love interest. ‘Feminist’ feels like the wrong word here, too charged, but I can’t think of a better one…Anyway, this is a heterosexual romance story with dual POV- Emma and Justin- and the male character Justin felt refreshing and different to me. He was supportive of Emma without being a people pleaser. This helped to make the romance feel positive, like it was built on genuine respect from his side, rather than a desire to protect and idealise.

2. The dual POV! I haven’t read many (any?? Elle Kennedy’s Off-Campus series is another example, but I haven’t read those yet) dual POV romance novels. I can see how including the male POV could add humour- different interpretations of the same scenes, for example. And could enhance frustration during moments of miscommunication. It could also be used, like in Daisy Jones And The Six, to reveal to the reader how much the protagonist(s) still have to learn about themselves, how unaware they still are. Here, Justin’s POV gives the reader a view of Emma that balances out her behaviour with her mother, her strong emotions linked to her traumatic childhood and her cold seeming avoidance tactics. His POV also enables him to be a more developed character with his own trauma and protective behaviours so that his relationship with Emma is one of mutual support rather than him only acting as a guide figure that helps Emma to mental stability. Emma’s POV gives us further insight how her horrible childhood has created some of the behaviour and beliefs that become the obstacle to their happy ending.

3. The friends. Justin’s friends Brad and Benny support Justin in a way that I found touching- they step in to help with everyday things. Emma’s friend Maddy is honest with her about her mother, despite her knowing that it could push her friend away. She also stays friends with Emma, despite knowing that at some point Emma’s reckoning with her trauma might mean Emma ditches her. She accepts and understands Emma beyond the ‘fun’ parts of friendship.

4. The portrayal of trauma. I feel mixed about this. Mostly positive feelings. I loved seeing trauma included as a topic that the characters discuss- “Unhealed trauma is a crack. And all the little things that would have rolled of someone else, settle. Then when life gets cold, the crack gets bigger, longer, deeper” (Chapter 15, p156). And how it’s explored in the way that Justin and Emma both cope and crumble under the strain of their relationship with their respective mothers. They fail each other and their friends and family and they deal with those failures- that’s nice to see in romance. Sometimes, the way that the dialogue and interiority described trauma felt contrived. It felt like Jimenez talking to us about trauma and sharing what she’d love for us to know. I didn’t mind because I think everything that Jimenez shares about trauma is important for us to be aware of. I fully support her mission! It did break me out of the story though, because the author suddenly appeared between the lines. I think the quote above is a great example of how difficult this balance is- it is totally appropriate for the scene for Emma to say this to Justin. It’s appropriate for Emma to say it, as, dramatic irony, she’s an expert in trauma. But it feels too much. Too perfectly placed. Maybe it would have felt more natural in a dialogue between secondary characters? Not sure.

5. *Spoiler Alert! This next point discusses the ending!*

   Abby Jimenez does an amazing job balancing complex, scarred characters with the sparkle of romance. The ending is a great example of this- Emma chooses to leave Justin and move in with her brother- who she didn’t know existed- until she feels more secure in herself and more able to manage her trauma responses. Not a happy ending. Yet. Realistic but not the grinning-at-your-paperback-book kind of romance ending we all want. I loved this choice- it felt so true to what a real person would do and it made the later win so much more satisfying. Then, Jimenez has Emma return to Justin, a more self-aware, stable person, but unsure whether Justin can ever trust her again. Then, genius that she is, Jimenez brings back the Reddit thread conceit that she starts the novel with to give us that romance *swoon* feeling.

   Final thoughts:

   I easily found 5 things that I noticed about this novel and it felt satisfying to list them out. It helped me to understand why I enjoyed the novel so much and some of the decisions that the author had made. It also highlighted that, although I initially thought I would struggle to find things to say or verbalise my impressions, I actually have a lot to say about this book. I’ll definitely use this method again and it would also make a nice starting point for a deeper discussion about one of the 5 observations.

   This romance novel stood out because of the 5 things above. And because it does feel rare (although we’re lucky that it’s less rare nowadays) to find a romance novel that convincingly balances deep, complex themes with the glee of romance. I fully believed in these characters and their complexities, whilst also squealing with joy over some moments.

   While it does explore difficult themes, it doesn’t have the intensity of Kennedy Ryan’s Before I Let Go and it does have jokey banter, so I would say that if you liked Happy Place by Emily Henry then you’ll enjoy this.

   Would a non-romance reader enjoy it? Yes, I think the characters have enough depth and there is enough plot, although they’d have to accept that some moments are included purely for that *swoon* feeling (i.e.: the date invites 😍).

   Tell me about your latest read!

   Speak soon x Emma