3.5*

Summer Heat was an angsty, but easy, read. It's building to a true frenemies-to-lovers story, but for now we're really just getting to know Marlon and Ray, and their history. Although we do get a bit of a pay-off at the end, we're left hanging just as things are about to get good! Or bad, really bad.
Marlon has such a deep-seated hatred for Ray, it's making me sad for him. But she isn't the spoiled little rich girl he once thought, her life is not all sunshine and rainbows as he's assumed.
Things really aren't what they seem with these two, and I'm very interested in learning more about both of them. I want to know more about them as teens, what happened in the time between them graduating high school, what led them to where they are now. I can't wait to get more answers!

I loved this book from start to finish. It's the perfect story of falling in love with someone that has a completely different background. Love comes at the strangest times. It has no prejudice. It doesn't matter if you are rich, poor or from mars you can't control who you fall in love with. The writing was perfect and I loved the pace of the book. I can't wait to read the next installment to see what path these characters take in their lives.

Be prepared for a cliffhanger, as this is the first in a series. This is enemies to lovers and second chance wrapped up into one story. Both Marlo and Ray were interested in the other in high school. The only problem: she was popular and had everything he didn't. Just when he thought things were changing, she proved to him that he was right about her all the long. What he didn't and still doesn't know is that her life wasn't what everyone believed.
When she shows up at the camp that he is the lead of, roles are reversed. His friends and coworkers all talk him into getting revenge by making her fall for him and dumping her. He decides he is going to, but as he starts hanging out with her more, he realizes that those old feelings haven't really died.
Ms. Van Dyken knows how to weave a story together so you don't know who you are rooting for to have the final laught. All I know for sure is that I understood both points of view when they were in high school and I can even understand Marlo's frustration years later. I can't wait to see how Marlo and Ray come back from the cliffhanger, or if they can.
I received an ARC in exchange for an honest, voluntary review.

You can cut the sexual tension with a knife in this one. Marlo and Rae are enemies with a complicated past. Summer camp seems to be a place to find yourself, and that seems to be the point for these two. How do you let go and then come together to trust when your heart has been broken by those you love?

Book one in the Cruel Summer series. An enemies to lovers story. A quick read. Had me hooked from the beginning.

Ray is a popular rich girl who loved Marlon from a far. She now works at a club where a certain someone is also at.

Marlon a foster kid who mowed lawns at Ray’s house. He was the skinny nerd in high school but now he’s all hunk. Also a camp director and he’s out for revenge.

Meeting again four years later. These two have history and not the good kind. Either way their chemistry is off the the charts. Can these two forgive and forget the past? Or will Marlon get his revenge after all?

This was a fast read. With lost of angst. Couldn’t put it down. I now need to read the next book ASAP!

Received an ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.*

A fun summer read! While the trope is the typical rich, spoiled girl has the hots for the boy from the wrong side of the tracks, I loved the premise of the story and the characters. Marlo and Ray have good back story and great chemistry. And like most RVD books there is a good balance of humor, sexiness and a tiny bit of angst to keep you turning the pages.
Even though I knew this was the first instalment of three, I was not expecting the whopper of a cliffhanger at the end. I need the rest of this story!!!
D 4/5

I don’t know about you guys, but I love getting lost in an RVD read. And Summer Heat needs to be added to your TBR asap, it’s part 1 of her Cruel Summer series, they’re all short reads and you’ll devour every single one.

RVD’s Cruel Summer series is finally making its way to Kindle Unlimited, when she first released these to iBooks, I was a bit bummed out about it. And snagged my mom’s ipad for a day to get through this series. Now that they’re on KU, I’m doing a re-read and just loving Ray and Marlon’s story even more this time around.

I know that it’s being categorized as a bullying romance, but it didn’t feel like one to me. Or maybe I just have my definition of a bully romance all wrong. It’s definitely a strong enemies-to-lovers. These two have a lot of history stemming from when they were just kids. She grew up with the silver spoon in her mouth and lived the life many would dream about. And he was their lawn boy … and none of Ray’s friends made it easy for him. But they shared the best night together, only to have things go wayward not long afterwards.

I remember seeing this in a previous review, but their history is essentially “young kids doing stupid things”, the hate and regret carried on for years. And these two are thrown back into each other’s lives again.

No matter what they currently feel towards each other, I’ve never seen so much hate coming off of Marlon like it does whenever he runs into Ray. Seeing her again, he just wants to make her life a living hell. And we all know that love and hate are strong feelings, which just fuels the indefinite passion between them.

Yes, Ray may have grown up getting everything she wanted, but when it comes to someone to truly love and cherish her. It was something she never had, not even from her parents. And Marlon is in for a rude awakening when he realizes revenge isn’t so sweet after all, especially when it comes to obliterating someone’s heart.

I can’t recommend this read enough and it’s definitely one of my favorite series from RVD! So, are you ready for a little enemies-to-romance and a whole lot of angst?! And of course, the crazy fire blazing between these two? Totally worth the read!

I love a young romance book with lots of angst, especially when there is lots of heat and each character fighting against themselves just as much as they are the other person. This book definitely didn't disappoint - and it is definitely HOT!

Marlo and Ray knew each other in high school, where Marlo came from the poorer side of the tracks and actually mowed the lawn for Ray and her big house. Adding insult to injury, Ray was awarded the scholarship that Marlo wanted to get out of town. He was the scrawny kid at school who was picked on by Ray's friends and boyfriends.

Fast forward to Ray arriving at the summer camp that will help her get ahead in her acting career. Who is running the camp? You guessed - Marlo and there is no way this boy is fitting into any locker these days! Marlo hasn't forgotten anything that happened to him in high school and how Ray fit into those events. Ray is doing everything she can to prove herself and feels like Marlo has become her biggest nemesis.

As things progress, things move from hatred to heat with the final page leaving you asking for more. This is part of a trio so it does end on a cliffhanger. The good thing is that the second part of the book is out in a short period of time.

As always, Rachel's characters are well developed, with lots of secondary characters to flesh out the story. Bring on the next installment!

So I went into this book without really paying attention to what it was about, I just know I love everything written by RVD. I started this book and was instantly sucked in, as in I started reading and stayed awake until it was over. A book about revenge over wrongs committed as teens and hot summer nights. I can't wait until the next two books come out. I need to finish this series.

I love RVD!
While I enjoyed Summer Heat, it was not my favorite. Maybe because of the ages of the characters....I usually try to read stories with characters a bit older, but this one was still very enjoyable!
If you are a Rachel Van Dyken fan, definitely grab this one and the rest of the books that will be coming out later in this series!

Marlo and Ray were friends during a summer in high school. One night Marlo believes his life is about to change, that is until the next day at school Ray and her friends continue to act like he doesn't exist. He grows to hate her, especially when he finds out that she stole a scholarship he needed to change his life. This further cements Marlo's thoughts that Ray is a spoiled princess and gets whatever she want. Flash forward four years; Marlo and Ray's path cross at a prestigious drama summer camp. Marlo is the boss and Ray has barely made it in as a staff member.. Marlo sees this as his opportunity for revenge. But can the night from the past change Marlo's mind on revenge?

This was a quick read. In the beginning, it was alittle slow setting up back stories, but it does intertwine into the main plot line. As this is a trilogy, this book does hang on what I would consider a cliffhanger.

The perfect hate/lust summer read full of angst, revenge and passion...this is the first book in the trilogy and it definitely left me needing more!

Loved it so much!! A hot summer read about a second chance at romance if the desire for revenge is not too strong. This book takes sexy and angst to a new level in Rachel's writing for me. I could not put this book down. I am a sucker for a second chance romance but this one gives added heat and desire as the gulf between the characters is so great to overcome. I cannot wait for book 2 as this book does end on a cliff-hanger, and also i love the cover. Superb summer read while lounging in sun and relaxing it will certainly raise your temperature :)

Revenge is a dish that is best served cold. That is the reality that Ray is facing in her current situation. Repercussions from her teenage years are coming back to haunt Ray’s situation today. Years ago – Marlon was the handyman for Ray’s family. After one night together, the two found their lives spiraling out of control. The direction that both planned for the future didn’t quite work out as either planned.

Seeking employment at a local summer camp, Ray finds herself answering to a boss that definitely holds a grudge against her. Nothing could have prepared Ray for discovering Marlon would be the one that held her life in his hands for the summer. Determined to seek revenge for all the heartache that Ray cause, Marlon begins to find that it’s harder to hate the one that held his heart all those years ago.

What happened all those years ago to make Marlon have such intense distain for Ray? As the two are pushed into the day to day operations of this drama camp, their past begins to unravel in the most unexpected ways. Will the two find a way to overcome the hurt and heartache?

Tainted love is always an interested twist on a love story. Ray and Marlon will take you on a journey of teenage crushes and society expectations in Summer Heat. Rachel Van Dyken will lead readers on this journey with a little heartbreak and a cliffhanger that will definitely leave you wanting to uncover more about the characters. Summer Heat adds just the right touch to your summer reading list.

Summer Heat is one of those reads that just draws you in. I loved this one. You know you are in for a treat with this being a Rachel Van Dyken book if you have even just read one of her books in the past. Summer Heat you will feel the heat, the passion, the drama as everything place out between Marlon and Ray. Both have assumed something about each other's life just by the appearance as they grew up together. You feel the instant attraction yet that bitterness from the moment Marlon and Ray come face to face at the summer camp. You are given just enough to keep you sucked into the book and yet dying to see what happens next. This is a series that you won't want to miss out on. One that will heat up your summer nights one way or another. I can't wait to see where Rachel Van Dyken takes Marlon and Ray in the rest of the Cruel Summer series.

I am obsessed! I’ve already devoured the 3 books series and it was incredible!

Totally transported me back to my camp days, and the loose dirty dancing inspiration was epic! all my favorite things thrown into one! Plus I see you getting steammmmmmy over here RVD and I am here for it!

It’s not hard to review just Summer heat without spoiling but, the blurb does it justice. SP —> spoiled princess Ray meets the hired help Marlo from a young age and there has been a constant love/hate battle!

Typical HS drama unfolds due to their social circles and we catch up with them through college and at dance camp as instructors. Lucky for us, Marlow has grown up, filled out and is yummmmy in all the right places!

I highly recommend this swoons steamy summer heat! Xox

This is book one of three in the Cruel Summer Series. You will need to read this before the other two books. There is a smallish cliffhanger.

These were originally an ibooks exclusive but now they’re being released elsewhere. I’m not an apple girl, so I’m so happy I finally get to read them. Rachel is a must read author for me, so waiting has been hard.

Now Ray and Marlon’s story isn’t finished. This is just the beginning.

I do like both characters. But there is still a lot of below the surface things we don’t completely know yet.

There is a fine line between love and hate. And things aren’t always the way they look.

I can’t wait for the other two books!

Summer Heat gets raving reviews across the internet. So I was really intrigued. Especially because I don’t read a lot of new adult. The main reason why I don’t read the genre that often anymore is because I am pretty disappointed with the storys. Apart from Colleen Hoover there hasn’t been an author who really knew how to captivate my attention for longer than a few pages. I really hoped that Rachel Van Dyken could work her magic on me. Unfortunately, I was pretty disappointed.
Before diving into all the reasons I didn’t like this book, let’s talk about the fact that this is actually not a book. It is 122 pages, which in my honest opinion is a novella. 122 isn’t a lot of time and space to captivate a reader. It means you have to hit a home run as a reader. Summer Heat is the first instalment in a 3 book series, but they are all the same length. So for me I think they are just one full length novel that for some reason was divided into 3 little novella’s.
Now let’s get into the reasons why this book didn’t do it for me. When you read a book in this genre you are set on getting some tropes. You just know that… but here is was cliché after cliché. Rich, spoiled girl looks down on poor boy. They hate each other apart from that one night they let their true emotions show. Fast forward 4 years later and that poor, geeky boy has transformed in some Greek God Adonis. He has transformed so much that the girl who used to see him every day doesn’t even realise she is talking to him. Really? That’s what you want readers to believe? He has been to the gym! Not had a face transplant. People change, yes definitely. But not completely in four years.
Then there is the whole “enemies to lovers” theme in this book. I normally don’t have a problem with this storyline. But here the hate is real. There is a lot of baggage and both the characters treat each other like garbage. Mix that with a lot of very awkward sexual tension and you get a really weird, uncomfortable story to read. And then I am not even mentioning the sex scenes. Because… well they are awkward and not at all sexy.
I won’t be continuing the story. It ends with a huge cliff-hanger, something that is designed to keep people reading, right? Well, not for me this time. I close the book and though never again.

Review will be posted on my blog on monday 5 august.

Summer Heat
By: Rachel Van Dyken

📚💕⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💕📚

Love’m or Hate’m Cliffhanger? Oh my

In this incredible first portion of Summer Heat we are taken on a fast paced, well written, and packed full of more questions than answers oh so hot hot hot friends to enemy books that will wanting so much more. Both characters are flawed and good and at times incredibly immature but not without redeeming qualities.

Authors Blurb: Spoiled Princess is what he used to call me. We were an inferno of hate and passion wound up with a dash of chaos. For four years I watched him mow my lawn.
For four years I watched my friends make fun of him.
For four years I hated myself for wanting him, but even more for the way I treated him. And then I had him. For one night, we put all labels away and I spent the best night of my life in his arms. Then the next day, with my secret night under lock and key, I looked the other way while my friends shamed him.
But now the jokes on me, because the scrawny lawn boy who I secretly loved from afar is now the director of Hollywood's most exclusive summer camp. And I'm on his staff. Now it's his turn to punish me. His turn to make me pay. His turn to take his revenge after years of humiliation. He's no longer a boy you can ridicule. But a college graduate who can have any woman he wants.
I want him to look at me the way he did that one night we had together, but right now the look in his eyes tells me he's going to enjoy having me under him for two straight months.
I don't know where his hatred ends, his passion begins. All I know is he wants revenge. And I'm his lucky target.

This book has everything I love in a book. Then you add that it's beautifully written and believable. Written in dual POV my personal favorite this story flows so incredibly well that written the next thing you know your 80% into the book and loving every second of it. The believable way the characters interact is perfect. Run, Hop, Jump or use your (1 click) finger to do whatever you have to do and get this amazing book. It'll break your heart, you'll want to scream with frustration and it'll let you discover that love just might conquer all. The chemistry is steamy and so angsty.

Thanks Netgally for letting me read and review.📚💕

Summer lovin' had me a blast!!!

Oh why, oh why didn't I know this was book one of three!? Now I'm just dying to know what happens with Ray and Marlon after that, oh my god that didn't just happen ending!!

Ray is the "it" girl while Marlon is the foster son of her parents maid. Sometimes what you see on the surface isn't the whole truth. Sometimes people hide behind a facade.

4 years later and they're both a an exclusive Hollywood summer camp and he's the director. Maybe he'll get the revenge he thinks he wants or maybe he'll get more than he bargained for.

Now we have to wait to find out who gets what's coming to them.

Loved it! Now gimme books 2 and 3.

*Received ARC through NetGalley. Voluntarily reviewed**