The writing style was great. The protagonist might just as well be me, with not going out much, studying, and cozying up with a good book in free time. I felt that Lindsey's writing conveys what exactly goes on in a teenage girl's (someone like me) mind, especially when it comes to their crushes. Every tendency that Rachel has, I have too. Stalking the Crush on social media, being awkward around them, etc. In the first half of the book, I felt really connected to Rachel, and it is partly what made me appreciate this book. But on the other hand, I was pretty disappointed with the next half. It feels that the ending chapters are a bit of a mess with the author trying to finish the book with as little things as possible. The second half is a total rush, if it had been just a bit carefully laid out, this book could have had a solid 4 stars from me.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing this read in exchange for an honest review.

Great Rom-Com. Predictable. I had an enjoyable afternoon reading it. I know others will, too.

This book sounds like the summer reading 16 year old Heidi would have immediately gobbled up in a heartbeat.....okay, let's be honest, 20something year old Heidi did just that!
This book has all the makings of a typical summer YA romance, and I loved it. It has miscommunications, rekindled friendships, emotional mistakes, and, my favorite part, a sassy grandma with the quick quips and sound advice.
Don’t get me wrong, I love me some YA summer romance, but I also acknowledge that I am not the target audience.
Rachel is the good girl – straight A student, focused on education instead of the “high school experience” – and now, the summer after graduation, she finds a book titled A Season of Yes and decides to give herself a Summer of Yes. Yep, just like our favorite Queen of TV Producing, Shonda Rhimes.
Surprise, surprise (heavy dose of sarcasm required) this Summer of Yes lands our dear Rachel in the middle of choosing between her years-long crush and the guy who she grew up with in her family’s restaurant. I’ll let you pick who you root for – Clayton or Miles!
Miles, dear sweet Miles, is the kind of guy I would have secretly swooned over all my life, with the exception of his lack of drive. Rachel honestly doesn't deserve him with how she acts - #MilesDeservesBetter
Without a doubt, Rachel’s grandma, Nonna, was probably my favorite character in this entire book. She's the sassy sounding board that our gal Rachel needs, and let's face it, everyone wants an Italian grandma who can cook and pass judgement. She’s not afraid to shoot from the hip, but does it with love.
Honestly? Rachel was my biggest complaint. For someone who was supposed to be so smart, girl pulled some real dumb moves. It's a classic YA summer story, but it was almost too classic of moves she pulled. The female side characters also made me sad. They had the chance to really rebuild on female friendships and not judging a person by their social media presence, and it felt like that was all brushed aside to focus on the boys.
This was promised for fans of Morgan Matson, and while I don't think it's quite on Ms. Matson's level of squee worthy works, it was a very cute, sweet story and was what I needed at this moment of tough times (read: we are in the MIDDLE OF A PANDEMIC SO MY BRAIN NEEDS A BREAK)
I give it 4 out of 5 stars - Rachel needed a little more sense smacked into her

I really wanted to love this one. It was enjoyable for the most part but the love triangle felt forced at times and kept me from really falling for any of the characters.

I unfortunately DNF'D this book very early on. I found it way too one-dimensional, with both the main character and plot lacking any substance. I had high hopes, so this was a bit of a let-down. However, I may try to pick this book up again in the future because I did like the synopsis!

This was cute! I didn’t like the direction this was going at then end but everything ended up being resolved nicely and made me like it better.

Remember when summer was not a stressful time? When the word mask did not evoke hot button topics? Say Yes Summer by Lindsey Roth Culli brings you back to those times. Say Yes is a delightful book to bring you back to the before times, when the biggest hurdle you faced was what are you going to do with the rest of your life?

Say Yes Summer tells the story of Rachel Brooks, who has accomplished everything academically, but hasn’t felt like she has really lived her life. She is at the top of her class and is ready to take her next step to college, but she realizes that she completely forgot to enjoy high school along the way.  But then Rachel finds a self-help book from the 80’s, and decides to change her summer. I mean, where can you go wrong with that?? Deciding that she is going to do things differently Rachel is going to say yes to everything and she means everything. No matter the consequences Rachel has to say yes; even if it means hanging out with a sworn enemy, an old crush, or taking chances with a guy that she never saw in that way before. 

Say Yes Summer is a perfect lighthearted fun book that you need right now. If you are a fan of Morgan Matson, Jenny Han, and Siobhan Vivian this is you next read. Perfect for curling in up a hammock in the backyard or out at the beach, this book is a perfect summer read. The main characters are strong on their own, but the ancillary characters are the chef’s kiss to this book. I mean, I want Rachel’s Nonna in my life. Warning though…you are going to want some gelato after you finish reading this book.  I give this book 4.5 out of 5. Will definitely read again and will recommend to anyone needing a softer read during these crazy times.

Oh, how cute could this book be? I wasn't expecting much, so I was pleasantly surprised!

Rachel has spent all her life focusing on her goals and never doing anything fun for herself. Then she finds a book on her shelf that basically says how about saying yes to every opportunity that comes your way. Rachel decides to try this for the summer. Many choices and wrong decisions, but also memories and friendships are made.

I got really invested in Say Yes Summer when I realised there was going to be a choose between two boys dilemma coming up for Rachel. As it is with these types of books/situations, I had a feeling I knew who she would choose. It was fun watching Rachel make decisions along the way with who she would choose. I loved watching Rachel grow and become more confident in herself. Some of it came completely out of nowhere, but it was still nice to read.

I think some of the characters were a little cliché and predictable . . . I hated Clay from the moment he was introduced and Rachel's obsession with him. I got a mini She's All That vibe in the sense that Clay only noticed her during certain moments and then only spoke to her after graduation because she was valedictorian. Nowhere did it seem like he was interested in her any other time in their high school lives.

We've got a fast paced fluffy summer romance read filled with chances and memories. A little reminder that it's okay to say yes, even if it means you find yourself in situations that you're not used to.

I read this at the beginning of June and just realized I never reviewed it. The problem: I couldn’t remember anything about the book.
After I skimmed through the book, the plot quickly came back to me. A girl decides she’s tired of missing out and decides she’ll say yes to every opportunity that summer. That didn’t play a big of a part as I thought it would – I imagined way more shenanigans. I didn’t even mind the love triangle, which is very rarely the case.
It sounds terrible that I couldn’t remember a book I read barely two months ago, but I think that’s ok. It was fun to read, and sometimes that’s all you need out of a book. Say Yes Summer is a perfect summer read - you enjoy it while you’re reading, and you can reread it next year.

*recieved an advanced copy from net galley in exchange for an honest review*

This book had me hooked since the first sentence. Rachel Walls in a girl whose family owns an Italian restaurant, is the schools valedictorian and feels like she's missed out on so many things because throughout high school she prioritized grades over get togethers. Once the summer before freshman year at college hits she is about to embark on a journey of self discovery, finding who she is and what really matters to her and a summer of Yes. This book had a great cast of characters and really cute moments in it. It had me on the edge of my seat wanting to know what was about to happen next.

*I received a free copy of this ebook from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.*

I'll start by being totally cheesy: I'm glad I said yes to this book. It was cute and fun to read.

Really, though, it was much better than I anticipated, even if none of it particularly surprised me (even the details of the drama). There was about 10% of the book I didn't enjoy, and it was the same 10% during which I didn't particularly like Rachel. (I also suspect that, were she a real person, this is the same 10% she wishes she could go back and revise.)

Although not every character was fully fleshed out, I think that the important ones were. I genuinely liked Rachel (minus that 10%, remember), and I adored Miles. Clayton surprised me--I kept expecting him to be different than what he was, and that's good. I appreciated that the book wasn't full of stereotypical mean girls and jocks meant to make the protagonist look better. Rachel's grandmother, however, was one of my favorites with all her spunk.

Back to the cheesiness, I'll be keeping an eye out for any more of this author's books so that I can say yes to them, too.

Note: Some swearing, including 1 f word. Teen drinking. Some innuendo.

Very cute summer-y book! Didn't like how indecisive Rachel was, and wish there was a bit more at the end! Otherwise it was very fun, and both relationships with adorable!

2.75 stars for this sweet young adult book. Rachel just graduated as class valedictorian and decided to have a summer of yes after working hard for four years during her last summer in her small town in Michigan. I liked Rachel as a character and it reminded me a lot of my summer before college. I didn’t love that the book was fairly predictable or that the ending felt pretty rushed.

This was sooo good! A real summer read. I loved characters, and the premise is amazing. I will read anything written by this author. Instant favourite!

Cute Summertime read!

Rachel has been the perfect, disciplined, wallflower student her entire life; even earning herself Valedictorian title. From the bench of high school she's observed everyone else live life, all while envying the popular girl, and crushing on the popular boy. The summer after she graduates high school, Rachel reads a self-help book on "saying yes to opportunities", leading her to re-examine her own life. She decides this is the time for her to say "Yes!" to new experiences. These experience bring her on a journey of self discovery, friendship, love and conflict.

Overall, this is a quick easy adorable read. If you enjoy Hallmark movies, you will enjoy the love triangle portrayed between Rachel, Clayton and Miles.

I loved seeing Rachel be on her journey of self discovery. Her experience with breaking out of her box, and experiencing feelings for the first time are a right of passage of adulthood that most of us have forgotten by now. I loved the innocence, yet accuracy of the story. Culli hit young adult feelings on the head with this one.

Thank you to NetGalley and Delacorte Press for the eARC.
This review has also been posted to GoodReads at https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3431683654
and on Amazon.

I could not find adequate words to form on how much I really loved this book. My goodness I loved it so much!!!

The characters were amazing, and really kept the story alive and flowing. There was never a time I was bored with this book, or found myself hoping it would be over.

There were lots of events that made it interesting, and also made it fast paced. I loved it!

I wanted to love this book so much, it sounded so promising. Unfortunately, I feel I must be too old for these kinds of high school romance books. Having read Shonda Rhimes "Year of Yes" I figured this would be great, she would be doing all of these things and becoming an awesome person. Unfortunately, she said yes to going to a party, crossing the Canadian border spontaneously with a guy she has been in love with forever.. I wish it had more substance. The main character just reminded me of one of those girls just desperate to fit in. I did still enjoy the story, it just kind of dragged for me and was slightly juvenile.

I loved this fun and short YA summer read. It has been a while since I've read a YA book, but this one reminded me that I definitely should every once in a while. I thought the premise of a summer of saying yes was fun, and I really liked Rachel's voice. It was definitely predictable but still super cute.

Say Yes Summer was cute and fluffy YA Contemporary, a coming of age story of Rachel and her summer of saying yes to everything. It was about pros and cons of saying Yes or No that comes with opportunity cost, experiencing the world for the first time, friendship, family, and love.

Writing was simple, easy, and entertaining. It was super-fast paced, I finished this book within a day, which rarely happens with me. It was first person narrative from Rachel’s perspective that made me understand her feelings and how she was seeing the world and experienced her summer adventure. Setting of Michigan and all beautiful touristy beach, Kalamazoo lake, Lake Michigan, Mt Baldhead and Rachel’s parents’ new venture cream cart and ice-cream gondolas (yum yum) gave the story whole summery vibe.

Plot was simple that started with Rachel suddenly realizing she missed out so much in four years of high school by saying No to everything except studies. Now she felt nobody knew her, she successfully made herself invisible and boring and now she wanted to change that. When she found her grandma’s self-help book ‘The Freedom to Say Yes’, she got idea of saying yes to everything and fully enjoy this summer. In doing so, she experienced many good things but also messed up lot of things.

It was interesting to read how Rachel came out of her shell, overcame her fears, rekindled friendship, found lovers, learned many things specially what it’s like to be free and live out in real world. It was pretty simple plot, I knew how this was going to end but at the same time it was cute and lovely to read Rachel’s summer adventure.

I loved all characters specially Rachel. She was smart, caring and lovely person. We see her thoughts towards her classmates and friends, how she saw them through their social media life and gossips she heard but not by knowing and interacting with them in real but as soon as she started interacting with them, she learned how wrong and judgmental she was, how much she blocked out reality and picturized them how she wanted to see them. It was bit weird to see she was observing Clayton so much that she could tell what was going on in his life but at the same time she literally didn’t know what Miles felt whom she knew in real for her whole life both in school and at job at her parents’ restaurant. She was wrong about lot of things and I liked how she realized that. Her development was best part in the book.

Clayton was popular guy, Westfield’s Soccer star and so very handsome but he was nothing like those famous boys who act like they own the world. He was lovely, kind, and gentle soul. Rachel thought he was perfect guy but in reality he was normal human who had his own issues. I loved him for being true and real all the time, even when Rachel messed things.

Miles was Rachel’s childhood friend and worked at her parent’s restaurant. He too was going through his own issue, trying to get over grief and loss. He was not bad. I knew he liked her. I felt for this guy and his reaction to both loss and feeling for Rachel was genuine but still I wasn’t completely at his side.

Carrie was my favorite secondary character. She was wise and smart and lovely girl. I liked the way she helped Rachel and how they sorted their problems. Bethany and Rouxi, her family and Nona were also great.

Love triangle and dating two boys at same time didn’t work that long. Romance and two-timing was wrapped pretty soon. But there were cute moments that made me smile and I liked how they knew each other better in this short relationships.

I liked message in the book given through Rachel’s development- not judging people based on what they show out to the world, even popular girls and boys have their problem and behind all their fame they are normal human being; it’s never easy for anyone to be out in the world and experiencing the real world and life; even best laid plans can go wrong; it’s okay and to mess things but important to not to hurt anyone’s feeling and make things right later; going out of comfort zone is good but also should stay true to yourself; and most importantly it’s okay to say NO.

Climax was filled with lots of drama with boys and then with family. But then Nonna’s wisdom made Rachel gather all courage and make things right by apologizing for her royal mess. End was lovely with packing, time with friends and surprise gift from family and Rachel finding her love.

Why 4 stars-

It’s not like I don’t like love triangle but what makes me not so inclined for love triangle stories is protagonist always going with a boy I don’t like as much as I like the other boy. And that’s what happened here! And another reason was, I have read/seen something like this before. It sounded a bit cliché and predictable.

Overall, Say Yes Summer was fluffy, feel good, enjoyable, cute and coming of age YA contemporary with lovable characters. I recommend this to fan of this genre.

I did really connect with Rachel in the beginning as I am also a "no" person but after that.. meh. I wish this was focused more on Rachel and her self growth and friendship rather than boys and a love triangle. the things Rachel says yes to are pretty underwhelming (goes to two parties, drives a couple hours to Canada, and goes on a carnival ride) and I could have absolutely done without the love triangle and cheating aspect. as soon as both boys were introduced in the beginning, I pretty much knew exactly how the story was going to play out. not the worst thing I've ever read but just predictable and underwhelming.