Not Our Summer slapped me with “You really thought this is going to be an average read, huh?”

We follow K.J. and Becka as they go through different trips because of what their grandfather wrote in his will. BITTERSWEET. It’s the first word that came into my mind after finishing this book. Letters written by a loved one of a main character being read throughout a book always get me. Especially if it’s written by a loved one who’s passed away.

It’s not only the family aspect that’s amazing but the trips themselves!!!! They made me crave and long for travelling and going to beautiful places with family or friends. The thrill of trying out new things even if you’re feeling scared! PLEASE MAKE COVID GO AWAY so our lives could be better and then we could enjoy things like travelling again.

I loved how this book focused on family and never lost its focus. Sure, there were hints of romance but the book just let it happen and then moved back to focusing on the family. The lowkeyness (is that even a word..?) of the romance is actually what made me like it!

Not Our Summer made me feel good and hopeful. It lets you wonder by yourself what could happen in the future. I really like it when a book makes you use your creativity and imagination.

Now here is a story full of love, family, rivalry, history, and infidelity. This book definitely fulfills those feel-good vibes. A good book to pick up when you're out on your patio on a hot summer day, with a glass of lemonade, and just soaking in the afternoon sunshine. I LOVED K.J.'s personality from start to end hahahaaa. She literally does not give a care for what others think of her, and she just does whatever comes to mind. That is a personality that I honestly admire. I love how the author made Becca the total opposite of K.J: a girl who tries to control every step in her life, and has her entire route planned out. The way the two clash because they are so different, yet grow to create a strong friendship and a form of protectiveness for each other was just beautiful. ALSO, I was routing for CARTER AND K.J. right from THE START. Literally, the minute Carter entered the book, I was like OMG LOVE INTEREST RIGHT HERE NEW BOOK CRUSH AHHHHH (I literally act like that with every male lead but who cares). Definitely a wonderful story :)

I don't have very strong feelings for this book one way or another. I liked it, but it didn't have any special spark to it. There were some funny moments in the feud between Becka and K.J., but my favorite moments were in their trip to the Florida Keys. There was a twist I didn't see coming, but it still didn't make me super invested in the story. Reading a book with a character with agoraphobia was very cool though.

I think this is a good book if you want a low stakes read with familial forced proximity and characters having new adventures.

This was a super quick read, but that doesn't necessarily mean it was easy. This YA had a ton of family drama and made me very grateful for my mostly drama free family.  It was fun to go along with these bucket list trips and I enjoy seeing what happened.  ⭐⭐⭐💫 I recommend for fans of You Have A Match.

I received an ARC of Not Our Summer by Casie Bazay thanks to the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Not Our Summer tells the story of two cousins and their mothers who hate each other due to an event in the past unknown to the cousin's. Forced together on a journey, the two uncover the secrets of the past and learn why they have been put together.

The story is interesting. There was enough secrecy that I wanted to keep reading to find out what had happened to make the mother's hate each other and why it had continued into the their daughters. I also love the way the secrets were discovered. It was a unique take that reminded me of 13 Little Blue Envelopes, which I loved.

I really enjoyed that the story focused on the family and did not really involve interactions with others. There was no focus on friendships or dating, it was simply a 'family bonding' experience. It was really refreshing to read. It also is must lighter than some of the other books I have been reading, which was a really enjoyable experience.

Overall, I really enjoyed the story and the characters. I wish it was a bit longer, with more 'stops', but that is the best kind of complaint I can have.

It's bad enough that estranged cousins KJ and Becka have to see each other at their grandpa's funeral, but when he leaves them a bucket list of places to visit together over the summer to earn their inheritance, it seems like things are going to get much worse. However, with each trip the cousins begin to trust and get to know one another. That is until they discover the truth behind their family's feud and Grandpa's bucket list. Will KJ and Becka find a way to accept each other and mend their divided family?

On one hand this was a fun and quick family story, but on the other I found both KJ and Becka to be unlikable in the beginning. That said, as the story progressed I liked seeing their character development and how they both learned from each other. Casie Bazay managed to pack a lot into the story, however some parts felt a little rushed and I wanted to see more of their travels. I thought the ending was satisfactory and liked that the story ended on a hopeful note. A very solid debut novel!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC, which I received in exchange for an honest review.

Becka and K.J. didn't really know each other due to the "family feud", but their grandfather had a plan that would hopefully reunite them. Unbeknownst to the family, Grandpa Eli left them an inheritance, however, there was a catch. Becka and K.J. had to take the bucket list trips he planned, but was unable to complete due to his agoraphobia. The question - would Eli's plan work or would it drive them further apart?

I had a great time taking this journey with Becka and K.J. I can't say it wasn't without its bumps, but the forward progress far exceeded the setbacks. It was a pleasure watching the cousins peel back all the years of their mothers animosity to truly see each other. You all know I am alway here for the heartwarming stuff, and Not Our Summer gave me that and more.

The trips were probably one of my favorite parts of this book. I swear COVID has made me appreciate any sort of travel more than I ever have, and Grandpa Eli planned a rather incredible list of destinations and activities for K.J. and Becka. The first trip was to the Grand Canyon, and I was excited to relive my recent visit with them. We then traveled to Yellowstone, rode the rapids in North Carolina, went to Key West for snuba diving, and took some risks at a local rodeo. Each trip was a thrill, and it was wonderful to see these two learn a bit more about each other with each outing.

Then, there were Eli's letters to the girls. Look, I am a total sap, so Eli reaching out with wisdom from beyond the grave made my heart pitter-pat. I was sort of sad, that the girls didn't get to have these conversations with him when he was alive, but I loved that he took the time to write these letters to leave them with some guidance to navigate their complicated family. I have seen this plot device before, but I thought it was utilized really well in this story.

Families can be complicated, and K.J. and Becka's was REALLY complicated. I loved how their grandfather plotted their reunion from beyond the grave, and I had a great time traveling with them. Each trip not only helped them understand each other, they helped them understand themselves. The very end may have left me with a few tears too.

Thank you to the publishers for providing me with an eArc of this book in exchange for my honest review.

One of the main things that I loved about this book was that it was so addicting to read. I had only started it and suddenly I'm over 3/4 of the way through and sad to see it coming to an end.

Both characters were well written and I liked reading about the different adventures they went on and how their relationship expanded. There were some interesting twists that I didn't expect but overall enjoyed.

I was never much of a fan of books about family feuds but this was a great read! The adventure/road trip aspect also helps with how quick the book read. This is the perfect book for summer and I definitely recommend that other's read it!!

This was such a fun, entertaining and fast read, that held a lot of sentiment and displayed just how important a family bond truly can be. I really enjoyed getting to join Becka and K.J. on their road trip to completing the bucket list their late-grandfather had created for them, in order to regain a bond their mother's would most likely be unable to revive, after past mistakes and regrets. I especially loved how with every adventure the girls took together, their relationship started to blossom, and change was a lot more obvious between the two and how they were feeling about one another. It was clear that their was a lot of damage between the cousins and their family as a whole, so although the girls had progressed one step forward, I believed that there was also going to be two steps back. I guessed the plot twist quite early on, not because it was predictable, but because I was kind of rooting for that to be the direction, in which the book was leading to - that type of plot twist always has the power to shift dynamics even more and I'll put my hands up, I love that type of family drama in books. I would highly recommend this book to all readers, as it is the perfect light-hearted read for the Spring/Summer days slowly arriving, filled with family, betrayal, adventure, forgiveness and healing.

Complete opposites K. J. and Becka have only seen each other a couple of times in their lives before, never mind the fact that they’re cousins. And due to the feud between their mothers, they’d rather they didn’t have to spend any time together at all. But when their grandfather dies and leaves them a large amount of money with the stipulation that the two estranged cousins must go on five specific trips around the country together first, K. J. and Becka are forced into closer quarters than they’ve ever been before. Yet with every trip they complete—facing daunting tasks like riding mules into the Grand Canyon and white-water rafting on the Chattooga River—they find themselves beginning to grow closer together. That is until the real truth behind their family feud is revealed, changing everything. Will they be able to overcome the past and face the future together? Or will the family divide become deeper than ever before?

Casie Bazay’s debut is perfect for the adventurer in all of us. Bazay’s depiction of the many settings is spot-on and brimming with exquisite details. As I read, I found myself wanting to join the cousins on their trips, albeit without the awkward silences. All of the characters, not only the two protagonists, are well-developed with natural strengths and weaknesses. The dual narration supports the story flawlessly, and I especially enjoyed the seamless addition of the epistolary form as the two girls are presented with several of their grandfather’s letters. My main takeaway? It felt real, like this is a story that two cousins-at-odds might actually experience. Fans of road trip stories and narratives with complex family relationships will love this adventurous and genuine tale.

(Pine Reads Review would like to thank NetGalley and the publisher for providing us with an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Any quotes are taken from an advanced copy and may be subject to change upon final publication.)

honestly i didn’t have many expectations going into this book but i got pretty attached to the characters and didn’t see the major plot twist coming at all which is really good because i feel like it made this book a little less predictable. super cute story though

DNF. I really liked the premise but the writing did not work for me at all. It wouldn't be fair to the book if I finished reading and gave it a low rating.

I was really craving a moving summertime book and I felt that this book really hit all the boxes for me!

It was such a great story about moving past family history in order to create your own. I loved both Becka and KJ’s growth through out the book. They really grew organically and it didn’t feel forced.

I also loved that this book focused on a cousin relationship and didn’t have any romance in it. This is super rare in this type of summer read but I felt it really helped to not detract from the main storyline (a lot of novels toss a romance in there even when unnecessary so this was super appreciated to me)

I'm not really sure why I was under the impression, for the longest time, that this was a sapphic book. I mean, I've read the synopsis plenty of times. *face palm*

Not Our Summer is the story of two cousins who go on a bucket list adventure for their deceased Grandpa. It's a fun and quick read. And it reminded me of all the adventures my cousins and I planned with our Grandma when we were younger. We didn't actually go on 99 percent of them, but that wasn't really the point now that I look back.

Not Our Summer is perfect for Summer at the beach, by the pool, or on a road trip.

This book tells the story of the two estranged cousins who must work together on a road trip in order to fulfill their late grandfather's dying wish of reuniting them and to gain their inheritance. This was such a fun and engaging summer read! I'm always a sucker for contemporary YA told in dual POVs, and Bazay is masterful at capturing the unique voices of both of her female protagonists, KJ and Becka. The pace is quick, and I was fully immersed in the story. I can't wait to read more of Casie Bazay's work!

This book made me want to go on an adventure! See the Grand Canyon, go white water rafting, scuba dive, it all sounded like so much fun. K.J. and Becka get a chance to do these things and more when their grandpa abruptly dies and leaves them a large sum of money with once catch: they have to travel together to places Eli wished he could have gone. The girls don't get along and aren't sure if they'll survive a summer of trips, but they decide to try anyway.

I would love a chance to go on trips like K.J. and Becka and I'm going to have to plan some things for the summer. The girls have very different personalities and clash a lot at the beginning. We get to see both of their points of view and it was interesting that they both thought the other was the bad guy. With all this forced proximity, the cousins eventually talk and get to know each other's fears and goals. I enjoyed seeing K.J. start to have real ambitions for her future and Becka gain a confidant.

Other than a small part where K.J. made some poor decisions that frustrated me, I really liked both girls. The setting was a lot of fun and the pacing is very quick. I think this is a great road trip book and I look forward to the release!

I voluntarily read and reviewed this book. Thank you to NetGalley and Running Press Kids for the advanced copy.

This book was just what I needed right now!

KJ and Becka are forced to experience five tasks in order to receive the inheritance left for them by their grandfather Eli. Their mother's have hated each other for as long as they can remember and because of that KJ and Becka have always seen each other as the enemy. The intention of completing these tasks is Eli's way of bringing them together. His hope is that even if their mother's never get along again that at least the two girls can build a relationship with each other.

The tasks Eli has coordinated consist of a Mule ride and overnight campout in the Grand Canyon, hiking in Yellowstone National Park, river rafting in South Carolina, Snuba Diving (snorkling and scuba) in Key West, and the final task lands them in an event in their local rodeo. All of the places Eli would have loved to have visited and activities he'd have loved to participate in if he hadn't struggled with Agoraphobia for so many years. All of these adventures will make you want to jump on the travel bus anywhere!

I really enjoyed this story. I love a good YA Contemporary that deals with strained relationships and the ways people can come together to understand one another. KJ is much harder on Becka but that is because she sees her as the one who has everything she doesn't. Becka lives in a nice house while KJ lives in a trailer. Becka has scholarships to college and KJ has never even believed she'd be smart enough to go. They are complete opposites but after spending many hours in the car and being put into situations where they're forced to communicate with each other they find out they have a lot more in common than they thought.

I definitely recommend this to anyone who is a fan of stories like The Geography of Lost Things, Picture Us in the Light, or The Infinite Pieces of Us.

This was so cute! Becka and KJ have a great relationship and it develops so interestingly in the book. I liked the characters a lot.

There’s nothing more dramatic than a death and a family feud. NOT OUR SUMMER, an engaging young adult story about a pair of high school cousins who do NOT get along, begins with both. Read during lockdown at my home in the UK, I didn’t realise how much I craved a road trip until the novel took me on one. Casie Bazay writes with clear, ungarnished prose that makes it easy to turn the pages. NOT OUR SUMMER is like hot chocolate in front of the campfire, a comforting treat you wish could go on forever. Here comes the details, so if you want to be entirely surprised by this absorbing book, stop reading this review now!

Cousins KJ and Becky try to have nothing to do with one another. A longtime rivalry between their respective mothers has seeped down to their generation and the cousins truly revile one another.

However, when their grandfather dies they are forced to see each other both at the funeral and at the mysterious meeting when their grandfather’s lawyer explains the terms of the inheritance laid down in the Will. It seems that if they expect to receive an inheritance, they must go on four separate adventures together across America. Their grandfather’s letter, written to them before this death, makes it clear he wants them to get to know one another on these trips and eventually accept and love one another as family.

Well, there is NO way they will do that.

But the money is too tempting….as much as they don’t like one another, they can’t resist the cash.

While the reader can guess the trajectory of enemies to friends, the characterisation between the two girls as they travel America makes the book easy to love. I was particularly drawn to KJ’s situation. As the only child of a mother who earns little and gambles a lot, she’s never hope for much of a future for herself. But if she were to inherit from her grandfather, she has a chance at going to college. For the first time, she begins taking her grades seriously and I was rooting hard for her to succeed!

As for the road trips, each comes with its own set of challenges that the reader enjoys. And Bazay has more in store, too. A family secret, hidden from both KJ and Becky, breaks open wider the feud between families, threatening to make matters even worse.

Woven together by the alternating first person narratives of KJ and Becky, this affectionate little novel may prove difficult for readers to to put down. All I know is that I gulped it down in two sittings and now I want to go scuba-diving in the Florida keys with these girls…

NOT OUR SUMMER is a cutesy enemies-to-family novel about two cousins being forced to complete various daredevil tasks in order to access the inheritance that their mutual grandfather left them., I thoroughly enjoy reading through Becka and K.J.'s POVs.