I loved this book! It held my interest all the way through. Definitely made some great points about how people portray their lives on social media and I loved the ending. I thought i had it figured out but it definitely surprised me!

Daphne Berg is a fashionista and Instragram influencer. And although she may not have as many followers as her non-plus sized counterparts, she is lending her voice as an advocate for plus-sized women . She hasn't always meant to be a plus-sized influencer--in fact, she could barely imagine this new life a few years ago. However, an event at a nightclub one night with her friend Drue Cavanaugh changed everything--including their friendship. Daphne gained a voice and a following--and shed an old friend.

Years later she is surprised to find beautiful, successful former childhood friend Drue begging her to join her wedding party. Daphne reluctantly accepts as a chance to reconnect with an old friend, and the amazing Cape Cod wedding will look AMAZING on her Instragram posts, featuring products from new clients in the beautiful Cape Cod beach. She grabs a custom-made maid of honor gown and heads to Cape Cod for the society wedding of the year. And then the unexpected happens, which makes question if she ever really knew Drue at all.

I absolutely loved this book and the heavy themes explored in Big Summer. The wedding and events that follow raise questions about how well Daphne knew her friend and how well any of us really know the people we surround ourselves with. It also explores the world of social media, and the appearances that we so carefully craft online. Big Summer explores body image, and what it takes to go against "societal norms" both in body image, class, and relationships. You'll be thinking about the themes and the characters after you put the book down. This is definitely a book I would pack for the beach!

I received Big Summer by Jennifer Weiner as an ARC from NetGalley. I have read numerous books by Jennifer Weiner and this was one of my favorites. Big Summer is chick lit with some mystery thrown in. Daphne Berg and Drue Cavanaugh were friends in high school until Drue's treatment of Daphne destroys their friendship. Drue was one of the girls who had everything in high school - popular, beautiful, rich and Daphne was a scholarship student at their private school and overweight. Flash forward six years and Daphne has become a plus size influencer on Instagram. Drue is getting married and contacts Daphne to be her maid of honor. Drue has pissed off too many people and has no friends so she runs back to Daphne. The novel tackles the issues of female friendships and social media influencers. An all around fun read.

Daphne is making a name for herself as a plus-size influencer when her ex-best friend reappears. Drue is rich and skinny and seems to have everything except friends to be in her wedding. She wants Daphne to be the maid-of-honor and tries everything to make it an offer that Daphne can't refuse. But can Daphne trust Drue and let go of the past bad treatment? When the wedding takes an unexpected twist Daphne is left questioning everything, including her own judgment? Can she trust anyone or is everyone just pretending for the perfect Instagram?

Jennifer Weiner's novels keep getting better! I read Good in Bed many years ago and have loved all of her subsequent novels, particularly last summer's brilliant Mrs. Everything. Nothing prepared me for Big Summer being her best novel with the most likable heroine yet!

I loved how this book nailed social media, "influencers", body image, and complicated female friendships. The first half was devoted to establishing Daphne and her history with her glittering mean girl frenemy and the second half was purse suspense.

This is the perfect novel to get lost in on a summer day!

I loved this book.

Although I am considerably older than Daphne, I identified with her in so many ways. Jennifer Weiner has once again created characters that are multi-dimensional - neither all good or all bad. The contemporary theme of the online vs offline lives of the characters in this book was an excellent critique of what we present to the world vs what is real. I was not expecting the turn that the book took but I enjoyed it nonetheless. Another great novel from Weiner. Looking forward to the next one!

Thanks to Netgalley and Atria/Simon and Schuster for a chance to read this ARC.

Thank you NetGalley for the arc of “Big Summer”! There is nothing I love more than a Jennifer Weiner book! Weiner has such a way with words, and I don’t think there is another author out there that can so accurately describe the mind of a full-figured woman. This book gave me what I love from her other novels and then threw in a mystery element. I was surprised when the story took this turn, but Weiner didn’t disappoint. It was such a fun read that I will definitely recommend to all my friends.

Thank you to NetGalley for gifting me a digital arc of Jennifer Weiner’s Big Summer. I must say when I first picked up Big Summer, I was expecting a light, easy beach read. While it did have some breezy, Cape Cod summertime references, this novel mostly tackled heavier topics such as body image, friendship and the facade of social media. It is a very timely novel as it dives deep into the complicated friendship of the two main characters, Drue and Daphne. While Drue is pretty, rich and successful, Daphne, a plus size influencer, has felt the opposite her whole life and has always tried to be worthy of Drue’s attention even though Drue hadn’t deserved it. A mysterious death takes place on Drue’s wedding weekend and Daphne is forced to reassess everything she believed to be important while tracking down the murderer. I really enjoyed the authors writing style, as I did with her last novel Mrs. Everything. Her descriptions are spot on and I felt everything from the Cape Cod sun on my face to smelling the clam bake at the wedding rehearsal dinner. Her books are 2/2 for me and I will continue to read whatever she puts out next!

Big Summer is the story of Daphne and Drue, high school friends who are reunited when Drue needs a maid of honor for her high society, Instagram-worthy wedding. Daphne is probably my favorite character created by Weiner yet. While most of us have probably never suffered from such a dysfunctional relationship as that between Daphne and Drue, I am sure that all readers can relate to Daphne's desire for Drue's approval as well as her willingness to get sucked back into her world. The twists and turns of the mystery in this story were almost secondary to getting to know the characters, yet there was certainly enough action to keep me up reading.

I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for my honest and unbiased opinion.

Another strong novel from Jennifer Weiner!

This is a story of friendships, family, and the complexity of maintaining a social media image. This well-crafted novel follows the reunion of Daphne Berg with her lifelong "frenemy", Drue Cavanaugh, who asks Daphne to be her maid of honor at her glamorous, socialite-filled Cape Cod wedding. Daphne sees it as a way to practice forgiveness and gain followers for her up-and-coming influencer account, but things are not at all what they seem. I recommend this twisted, complex book!

Galley copy courtesy of #netgalley and the publisher for an honest review.

Jennifer Weiner has always been one of my favorite authors & she didn’t disappoint with this book. I love that her characters are very real, & Daphne is no exception. Neither are all of the other characters. I enjoyed the way the story was developed along the way & couldn’t put it down. Highly recommend this book!

This was a really good COVID-19 book. I thought it started out strongly and then it turned into a mystery I didn't see coming. Weiner knows her audience well and I enjoyed it!

I received an arc of this title from NetGalley for an honest review. This book had me staying up way too late and trying to guess who done it all the way to the very end. The characters were interesting, the locations easy to imagine and the story was page-turning. Excellent read!

I was pleasantly surprised by Jennifer Weiner’s newest book Big Summer. The typical chic-lit book took an unexpected twist halfway through causing me to finish the second half in one sitting.

Big Summer dives into the life of Daphne Berg a plus size Influencer. Daphne displays the usual struggles of plus size women and often feels less than because she is not perfectly skinny. Daphne is shocked to hear from her ex-best friend, Drue Cavanaugh, out of the blue. Drue has proven to be a bully that uses people to her benefit but says she is striving to redeem herself. Drue tries to reconcile with Daphne and asks her to be a bridesmaid in her over the top Cape Cod wedding. Daphne reluctantly agrees since it will help increase her Instagram followers. In the midst of this extravagant wedding, tragedy strikes and Daphne is left to figure out who was driven to murder.

Thank you NetGalley and Atria for the arc!

Thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for an advanced release copy of Big Summer in exchange for my honest opinion.
I've loved Jennifer Weiner since reading Good in Bed when I was in college in the Philly suburbs in the really 2000s. Her characters are well developed and the story is always enjoyable. Big Summer hits those marks, and I was impressed that the murder mystery thrown in there also worked out so well! Definitely recommend this book for a fun, beach read, especially if you know the Cape!

Jennifer Weiner has been the voice of real women since her debut novel, Good In Bed. When I say real women, I don’t do it to exclude anyone, but to add to the numbers of people who don’t get picked on for their looks, color, body shape, size, sexual orientation, nationality, age or any of the myriad reasons that get someone labeled as “other.” Jennifer’s books have wonderfully developed inclusive characters who aren’t afraid of showing up in a novel, and I personally find it refreshing.

Daphne Berg is one of those real women. She’s young, not thirty yet, but she is also smart and not a size 2. She’s also a rising star in the social influencer scene. Her adorable parents worked hard to send Daphne to private school where she excelled, but discovered all those elite cool kids, who treated her either as best friend or pariah. Daphne never knows which to expect, especially from her purported “best friend,” Drue Cavanaugh.

Once Weiner has hooked us on these fascinating characters, the book takes a solid turn into romantic murder mystery. Weaving well drawn characters into the idyllic setting of Cape Cod, Berg shows that she knows how to tie the threads up in an unexpected knot.

This is a great book for summer reading, good for contemporary fiction, romance lovers, and people who enjoy a good mystery. Big Summer is another great read from Jennifer Weiner.

This was a Read Now selection from NetGalley and provided by the wonderful publisher, Atria Books.

I received an Advanced Copy of this book, in exchange for my opinions. I loved this book. It had so many twists and turns. Not your typical Jennifer Weiner book, more of a mystery who-done-it that kept my attention til the end.

Jennifer Weiner is one of my favorite authors and I was thrilled to be chosen to read Big Summer before its release date!

The first half of the book is written in Jennifer's traditional style that I know and love and the second it turns into a murder mystery, which was a surprise and a different style from her that I was used to, but it worked!

The book explores lots of serious issues such as body image, bullying, and social media culture.

Daphne and Drue have been friends since 6th grade until a falling out in their 20's. Six years after the fight that ended their friendship, Drue shows back up in Daphne's life and asks for forgiveness and wants her to be in her wedding. Daphne is hesitant as their relationship was toxic. Being the good friend that she is, Daphne puts her issues with Drue behind her and agrees. The wedding weekend takes a sinister turn and the book turns into a murder mystery.

This is a good, quick summer read!

Thank you to Netgalley and Atria Books for sharing this ARC with me in exchange for my honest review. This book will released on May 19, 2020
#BigSummer #NetGalley

Another astoundingly real, beautifully written novel from Weiner. She deftly weaves a story of live, friendship, and the baggage we all carry into a stunning mystery that will keep the reader engaged through the very last moment.

Drue and Daphne used to be high school friends. Drue was always the prettiest, both popular and self confident, as well as extremely wealthy. She seemed to have the ideal life. Daphne is overweight, self conscious and always felt as though she wasn't good enough to be Drue's friend. However, after a horrible fight, Drue and Daphne never speak again.. that is until Drue begs Daphne to be in her wedding six years later.

Daphne is not sure is she's ready to let her toxic friend back in, but is willing to forgive the past. She soon discovers that Drue may not have been the lucky girl she always thought she was. By the middle of the story there is a huge plot twist and Daphne is forced to discover just who Drue really was.

This was a perfect book to read to escape from life's distractions...(like a worldwide pandemic). Definitely adding this author to my to-read list! I received a complimentary ebook through Netgalley.com