What a lovely way to spend a summer afternoon. The descriptions in this book took me right to the ocean and quaint seaside villages with a little Hollywood drama thrown in as well. It was just the perfect way to spend a day at the beach when I couldn’t get there in body. Perfection.

A wonderful and delightful read that combined cooking and hope! A perfect summer read allowing the reader to be fully immersed in the life of the heroine! Chasing and obtaining what we believe to be the"perfect" answer only to realize something and someone may be lost in the process! An enchanting and quite fun read---thank yo for the opportunity to have read this title prior to publication---it was so thorough enjoyed!

A wishy-washy main character ruined this for me.

I enjoyed the start of the book when Rosie discovers her long-term boyfriend is cheating on her and she ditches him. I thought the book would be more about Rosie going on and building a new life. Instead, she spends most of the book obsessing over the louse of an ex, Ben, before he does something inexcusable (worse than the cheating, which should have been her first clue). Finally, Rosie goes for the new guy in her life and we're supposed to believe she's reached her happy ending. It didn't work for me.

Many thanks to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for my ARC. All opinions are my own.

After being together for years, Rosie and Ben are about score a hit in Hollywood. Once they do get noticed, they have different ideas about where they want to move. Rosie wants to stay with small productions, while Ben wants to have it all and become the big Hollywood director of blockbusters. It seems like they can work things out. However, Rosie returns from a scouting trip for her next film, and, finding Ben has been unfaithful, the pair decide to take a breather from each other, though Ben is convinced their relationship is over. Rosie is now unsure of what to do with herself, without Ben by her side. She lucks out when her best friend suggests she spend the summer in her parents’ summer cottage in Montecito, which Rosie, at loose ends over the break up with Ben, agrees to accept. Once there, Rosie opens a successful taco shop and finds herself in a new relationship with a surfer/classic car caretaker, Josh. Though surrounded by caring new friends, Rosie still dreams that Ben will reunite with her, while she becomes the stay-at-home lover who satisfies his every need while helping him provide the wonderful, talked-about social gatherings needed to climb the ladder to success.

The story is a good one, but the focus on the relationships carried a bit too much angst for me. I initially liked Rosie, but, when I found her mooning over Ben, I began to change my opinion. Still the character of Rosie, Ben and Josh were done well enough. The ending was rather predictable from the beginning. However, it was an interesting read to find out what happened next and how the main characters dealt with it all. I received this from NetGalley to read and review.

I love a good starting-over story. In California Summer, Rosie doesn’t have much of a choice. Her Hollywood life fell apart and she ended up in Montecito – uncertain of her future. But, a mother figure/ butler friend/ bff/ neighborhood guy later, and Rosie’s on her way back up. Question is, does she want to go back to the fast lane, or does she want to settle in to Montecito life with the ones she loves?

I loved every fish taco, every Estelle dinner party, and every rose garden chat. Anita Hughes rocked the luxuriousness, as usual, and threw in some pop stars and surfers for good measure. The plot twist was perfect – completely believable and not overdone – and endeared me to Rosie’s boyfriend even more.

The only shortcomings of this novel were that Rosie had two very annoying habits: 1- wearing the same red, full length cocktail dress randomly and to every gathering under the sun, whether it was appropriate or not, and 2- Rosie ran and hid like a toddler from any uncomfortable situation. I just wanted her to get a new dress and grow a set!

Apart from those two things, I liked all the characters, even spoiled Angelica and Hollywood agent Ryan. Hughes did a great job rounding out character development and writing someone for every reader to identify with. My favorite parts were meeting Esmerelda through Rosie’s eyes, and watching Rosie finally grow up.
https://randombookmuses.com/2018/07/15/review-california-summer-by-anita-hughes/

This is a quick easy vacation-read book. It wasn’t bad, I just didn’t think it was anything special.

California Summer

Anita Hughes

St. Martin’s Press, Jun 2018

304 pages, Kindle, paperback

Contemporary romance, Women’s lit, Second chance romance

Provided

✭✭✭✭⭑

The cover is totally eye-catching as well as suitable to the story. A girl on the beach is just what I would expect to see. Though I’m disappointed it’s not a bit more imaginative. There are so many things that could be the focus of this cover such as a rose garden, fish tacos, a classic car, a beach at sunset, or a beach with surfers. This book is a visual feast.

The story is very good. It’s typical of Ms. Hughes, too. She does tend to start with a long-term relationship that has suddenly broken apart. Ben and Rosie have been together 10 years and they even look alike. Been is now becoming a hot Hollywood property as a director. Suddenly he doesn’t see Rosie as the woman to take him to the top. She discovers by the position of the sheets that he’s had another woman in their bed. He lies trying to deny it and then admits it saying that it’s nothing, but that maybe they need to take a break and reevaluate what they each want. Rosie packs and leaves, going to the house of her best friend Angelica’s parents, Oscar and Estelle Pullman. Living in the lap of luxury, beyond anything she’s ever experienced in her life, she’s helped to heal and decide what she wants for herself in life and to fall in love again.

Rosie is introduced to Estelle’s rose garden and all its wonders, she gets up close with some of the most expensive classic cars ever made in Oscar’s collection, she eats and drinks with some very famous people, and meets one of her greatest idols of all time. She rediscovers her love of cooking and feeds everyone her wonderful fish tacos with guacamole. She comes to understand what her challenges and interests really are and where she wants her life to go. And who she wants to do it with.

Ms. Hughes paces this very well. She alternates the happy with the angry and the sad. The love with the breakups. Alzheimer’s with new life. Through the whole story is the pace of life, sometimes it’s all coming down on your head and other days it’s all coming up daisies. Some days you get a little of both. Anita Hughes is an expert at writing stories at the pace of life and love. She’s the best summer reading or re-reading I know!

Highly Recommended.

This is a good summer read. The characters are likable and the story line is interesting. I liked that the story moved along very quickly as I read this in one day. The story is of a director/producer couple in LA, Ben and Rosie, and how their relationship fails. We go along with them, but mostly Rosie, as they learn to be live without the other and continue making a new life. I did think there was too much relationship angst and all the loose ends and characters tied up too neatly at the end.

Rosie & Ben had been college sweethearts who were also film students. So it was no surprise that they moved to Hollywood after graduation. Ten years later they were still together but Ben had become more successful. A successful film at Sundance had catapulted Ben to a job directing a major movie. Rosie was working as an Assistant Producer on a film due to Ben’s efforts.

Then Rosie found out that Ben had slept with an influential actress who could help him finance future projects. They fought and Ben decided it was best if they “took a break”. Rosie moved out and was invited to a cottage on the large estate of her friend, Angelica’s parents in Montecito. While she was at the estate, Rosie met Josh and also discovered a way to support herself with a small fish taco shop.

Josh was a complicated young man who had been deeply hurt and was not willing to fall in love again. So after he and Rosie fell in love, things did not go as smoothly as either had hoped.

This is an ideal beach read with attractive characters, wealthy benefactors and great descriptions of a beautiful part of California many of the readers have not yet visited.

California Summer is a decent summer read. Light without being fluffy and gratuitous, somewhat predictable without being too cliche. One of the things I like most about Anita Hughes’ books are their settings and locations. I’ve been lucky enough to visit some of them and her representations are pretty much spot on, so I can only imagine that this one is no different. I wish I could say that I love the characters as much as I love the locales. I really didn’t care for Rosie and I thought both of the men in her life were jerks, but for different reasons. My favorite character was the British boy band member turned butler; he was probably the most realistic to me.

Worth the read though, if only to be transported to Montecito for a few hours.

Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for the eCopy.

This book earns 5 stars as one of the best books of the summer ! I received a ARC for my review. My opinions are my own.
I loved this story because it resonates with all of us women that were abandon by our husbands as young vital women. Rosie is no different when her husband announces he is leaving her for someone he met on a golf course and wants to move out. This is the story of so many of us. The complication is they have a hit movie and are just coming into their own in Hollywood after 10 years of hard work. .
After they discuss the separation she accepts a offer from a friend to stay in a guest house in Monticito for the summer. She hopes to rebuild her life, and figure out a way to go back with her husband. A typical response for many women but she soon finds herself in new experiences, the beautiful landscape and great friends. She learns to live life to the fullest and finds out who she really is. A strong women that does not need a cheating husband in her life. Soon she is adopted by the townspeople who are warm and welcoming.
I loved the location as I used to live in Monticito. It is described perfectly here with each detail of the many gorgeous details of Santa Barbara. Reading the descriptions is like being back in Monticito with the quaint shops, fine restaurants and nice people.
I love a story where a woman comes into who she truly is without a man. This was a story of learning to live again after the pain of betrayal and finding out what strength you truly have to start over. I loved it.

Rosie and Ben have been together for 10 years. They met in college, bonded over their love of films, and now have a production company that sold a film, pushing them to a level of fame they haven’t experienced before. When Rosie discovers that Ben has cheated on her, he also admits that they are growing apart. He wants to be more famous and have more money, whereas Rosie is content to stay at the level they are already at.

Rosie picks up and heads to Montecito for a break. There, she rediscovers her love for cooking and is able to open a restaurant of her own. She also meets Josh, a surfer with dreams of owning his own Classic Car Shop. They jump into a whirlwind romance, leaving Rosie to decide what exactly she wants: this smaller life in Montecito or the big hills of Hollywood.

You can read my synopsis and already know exactly what will happen. The book is predictable, with a feel good happy ending. The characters were all pretty flat, even Rosie, who goes from shattered to wanting to marry someone else almost immediately.

The most redeeming thing about the novel is the moments when humor slides in. The characters occasionally make some funny one-liners, which helped me want to keep reading.

If you’re looking for an easy, predictably happy read, this is a good choice. I liked it for what it is, but I didn’t love it.

Rosie and Ben have been together for a decade, a young couple intent on hitting Hollywood and wowing the glitterati with their film making skills - he's a director and she's a producer.

When Ben hits the big time, Rosie discovers that her lover, friend and colleague has been unfaithful to her, and the bottom falls out of her world. She decides to leave the glitz and glamour of the Hollywood Hills, and goes to stay with her friends parent's in their sprawling mansion in Montecito.

In the little town, Rosie soon blends in and makes new friends with Rachel who owns the chocolate shop, Morris the butler, and Josh the surfer.

Taking to the kitchen to cook her anxieties away, Rosie discovers it’s a place she feels happy and relaxed in, and when everyone raves over her fish tacos, the idea of opening her own shop grows from a seed of an idea to an actual thing!

This is a novel about friendship, love and most importantly hope – which is something we all need!

My favourite character was Morris - who wouldn’t want a gay butler as your best friend? He provided so much love and friendship to Rosie that he made my heart burst!

If I had one little niggle, it would be that Josh’s constant walking out on situations got under my skin, and on occasions I wanted Rosie to just wash her hands of him – instead of running to him constantly seeking reassurance.

All in all I really enjoyed this book – the descriptions of the beach, and the Taco Shop had me right there in Montecito, and I don’t even like fish!!

I was provided with a free ARC copy of this book in return for an honest and open review.

California Summer is an okay summer read. It's light, predictable, and doesn't demand anything of the reader.

Rosie and Ben have been together for ten years. The couple met in college, were best friends as well as lovers, knew each other so well they could finish each other's sentences, and worked towards the same dream - making it big in Hollywood. Now that Rosie has produced and Ben has directed an independent film that made it big at the Sundance Festival, the couple is on its way toward to the big time. Ben wants to grab his chance to do blockbuster movies while Rosie would like to continue with small, independent films. Surely they can work that out.

But when Rosie comes home from a trip scouting locations for their next film, she discovers that Ben has been unfaithful. And not just unfaithful, he thinks they need a break, to figure out what each of them really wants. Rosie knows one thing, Ben doesn't appear to want her anymore, and she is devastated. She thought they had a forever love, and doesn't understand how Ben can turn his back on their relationship.

Her best friend comes to her rescue, suggesting that Rosie spends the summer up the coast at Montecito in her parents summer cottage. Tearfully, not knowing what else to do, Rosie agrees. The summer cottage, in reality is a small house on the grounds of a huge estate. The couple who own the estate, Estelle and Oscar, and very welcoming and nice people who want Rosie to feel at home while she heals her broken heart and decides what she wants to do next. Their butler, Morris, is a great character, who befriends her and helps her find her way.

Ultimately, Rosie decides her dream is to open a fish taco shop (Eh?) and quickly opens it to great success. She also finds herself in a new relationship with Josh, a surfer who takes care of Oscar's classic cars, has rebuilt a classic car himself and wants to own a classic car shop someday.

Light, fluffy, perfect, except for the characters. Rosie is a big doormat, giving her all for Ben's dream, even though it wasn't hers. When he dumps her, she imagines all would be perfect again if only she wouldn't work, and be the stay-at-home lover (no marriage), who meets his every need and provides wonderful social gatherings so that he can continue to climb his ladder of success. Then you have Josh, who continually jumps to wrong conclusions and literally runs away when anything unexpected is said or happens. And Rosie fumbles and cries and wonders what to do to get him back. Come on - these people are supposed to be adults!?!? AUGHHHHH!!!!!! REALLY??? I just wanted to smack both of them upside their heads!

Montecito does sound lovely though.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's/Griffin for allowing me the opportunity to read this light summer read.

3.5 stars

The more you get to know Rosie, the more you wonder how she ever fell for a guy like Ben. You do, on the other hand, completely understand how she falls for Montecito and its denizens. 

At first, you worry that it's too easy for Rosie. Anita Hughes shows you the initial pain and heartbreak that Rosie endures, but within a matter of minutes, she has a place to go, a refuge where she can heal. Even the new path Rosie finds herself pursuing seems to come easily. A possible new romance, however, does not. Rosie has to work for this, although too often her idea of "working" means fleeing. 

Anita Hughes establishes from the start that Rosie's typical response to conflict is to run away. She runs away from Ben's rejection, she runs away from the stress of meeting party guests, she runs away when she gets upset with her best friend, and she leaves skid marks when she races away from a man whose own penchant for running baffles and frustrates her. 

It's a "physician, heal thyself" kind of moment. 

Yet for all of her running and occasional whining, Anita Hughes makes it nearly impossible not to like Rosie. Despite how unmoored her life becomes, she has a central sort of optimism that steers her. She also has an enviable support system that puts up with her flight-over-fight tendencies. Hughes also makes you want to go to Montecito, post haste. She draws it as a quirky community where the locals support one another - just the sort of place where we'd all like to be. 

Occasionally the story feels a little repetitive. Rosie's running, her love interest's running, and some of Rosie's conversations and worries start to seem too familiar. The sort of plot twist big reveal is interesting and helps explain one character's motivations, and it makes for one of those "OH!" moments as you read it.

I enjoyed this book. I enjoyed Rosie and her pals, and I enjoyed hating Ben. I hope to head to Montecito someday to check it out for myself.

This was the perfect California beach trip read. I love Ms Hughes writing style. She has a fan for life

(3.5) Anita Hughes always has the perfect settings in her books that make you want to pack your bags and head out to that location. The setting here is Montecito, California where Rosie decides to spend the summer after discovering her live-in boyfriend Ben has cheated on her. Staying in a guest cottage at her best friend Angelica's parents' estate, Rosie doesn't know in what direction life will take her. She meets some very interesting but wonderful people while in Montecito and they end up becoming close and dear friends that help her in different aspects of her heartbreaking situation. I especially loved Morris, the butler at the estate that watched out for Rosie and always seemed to say and do the right things.

Overall, this was a charming and sweet read that is perfect for an afternoon reading on the beach or by the pool. A story of overcoming heartbreak, the importance of friends and family, and following through with what you really have a passion for. And, of course, there's some romance that makes it a little bit more special.

I received an advance reader's copy from the publisher via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

Rosie and Ben have lived together for 10 years near the ocean in California. Friends since they met in college, they have both wanted to work in films. They formed their own film company with Ben as the director and Rosie with the title of associate producer which really means gofer. Her job is to scope out places where they are thinking of filming.

When Rosie comes home after being gone for a couple of days looking at sites, she discovers that Ben has had sex with another woman in their bed. He admits that it was with a big shot female producer to hopefully close a deal. Ben tells Rosie that they are growing apart and that he wants more from life than she does. So, Rosie packs a few things and leaves. When she tells a friend what happened, she suggests that Rosie spend the summer in her mother’s guest cottage on their huge estate. The woman and her husband are extremely wealthy, also having made their money in films.

Rosie is surrounded by kindness from people but she still thinks that she and Ben will get back together. As time goes on, she realizes she needs to do something for herself, so she opens a fish taco shop.

I loved the author’s books “Christmas in Paris”, "Christmas in London”, and "Lake Como”, so I was really excited to read this book. Oh dear. What a disappointment. It read like a Danielle Steel novel where everyone is rich, beautiful, perfect, etc. Don’t get me wrong. I have read many of Ms. Steel's books and enjoyed them. They’re like nibbling on a sweet. I did not like Rosie. I found her to be a total twit with no self-esteem. To stay with a guy for 10 years where you are his bedmate and housekeeper is just stupid. I think I rolled my eyes so many times, I got dizzy. OK. Having written all this, let me add that I will most definitely read more novels by this author because I know she has the talent to write a good one.. Perhaps for me, this was just a one-off.

Copy provided by NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

I received an Advanced Reader Copy from NetGalley for my unbiased opinion of the book. I breezed through this book. The book is about Rosie who has been living with Ben for the last 10 years. He trades up to a newer better version of her after all she did to get him to where he is. Rosie runs away in hopes to get herself together and figure out what the future holds for her. When her friend offers her a plush place to park for the summer. She runs into Josh by running over his surfboard. They hesitantly move forward as friends. Rosie and Josh kept running away from people and each other the whole book. There is a great story here it just thinks it needs 200 more pages along with more depth. But if you are looking for a pure fluff piece with not a lot of substance, this is your book.

California Summer was the kind of book that I have come a consumed to from Anita Hughes. She writes a fluffy women’s fiction that will take you on scenic journey. Anita knows how to describe a landscape. I swear I had a full view of the butterfly garden in my head while reading.
If you are looking for a quick, fluffy women’s fiction this summer then go one click California Summer!