Swell by Grace Williams

A story set in California in 1977 . This a coming of age book and a young man coming to grips with his own identity.

A very descriptive book of the time you can almost imagine being on that beach with a surf board .

This is MM romance which I selected accidentally but easy quick summer/ beach read.

A reasonably well written book but two things annoyed me. Firstly the terminology is all wrong for a book supposedly set in the seventies and secondly the story ended very abruptly it seemed very unfinished. I don’t know if the author purposely did this but it felt really Odd.

My feelings for this are kind of lukewarm. This was a pretty enjoyable romance, with a nice beachy seventies atmosphere and a coming of age vibe. It was pretty well-written and the characters were sweet, but there was something missing to make me more invested. The relationship is sweet, and pretty low angst, but I needed something more. I have no idea what. Coupled with the fact that this is a pretty slow burn, I found myself losing interest. I actually kind of liked the ending and the epilogue, I though it was a nice twist, but nothing very original.

*I have received an ARC from Netgalley and I am voluntarily leaving an honest and unbiased review*

California 1970s
During the summer before he leaves for college, 18 year old surfer Gabriel falls in love for the first time with the new boy in the neighborhood, Will Artino. This is great for a lazy read with strong feelings of nostalgia and summer vibes.
Beach bonfires, roller skating, burger shops, surfing, skateboarding, cruising in the Jeep, hot summer nights on the roof, stargazing, naps on rainy days, the 70s music references, all consuming crushes. Felt like I was right there with them hanging out with the group of friends at the beach and having dinner around the table with Gabriel’s family. I could practically feel the brown shag carpeting in his house. Definitely recommend just for the mood alone and the sweet romance.
Standout characters: Natalie, for being the sister ever.
Thank you to NetGalley for accepting my request!

I really liked this book. The storyline, the time in which it took place, and the growth throughout strongly resonated with me. I loved the two main characters and the overall arc of the book.
I didn’t love the ending, which I considered slightly abrupt and unfinished.

I absolutely loved this MM romance.

Such a great book with a solid storyline and great characters.

I eagerly look forward to reading more from this author.

A definite recommend!

Wow. This was such a beautiful book.

I went through such a roller coaster of emotions with this one, with happy moments, heartfelt moments, passionate moments, sad moments, exciting moments, but the one emotion that kept rising is my love for this book. It was absolutely perfect, I loved absolutely everything about it. Gabriel and Will are going to be two of my go to characters whenever someone mentions a love story because this book portrayed the ultimate love story for me.

I've read and seen Call Me By Your Name and I loved everything about it, but if you liked that book, you'll love this one. I like Swell more actually!

The story was so beautifully written. It's a story of love and patience and true passion, finding the one, and my heart is so full from reading it. I wanted a reread the instant it was done! It's one of those books that keeps you thinking long after it finishes that you genuinely want to read over and over again and I'm so glad to have discovered it.

Thank you to NetGalley and Grace Williams for the earc in return for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

This story left a lot to be desired. While I enjoyed the beach vibes of the romance, it was frustrating that the affair didn’t start until the last half of the book. It also felt pointless because Will and Gabe had a happy-go-lucky relationship for much of the book. Their struggles were being in the closet and distance, which didn’t occur until the very end. This resulted in a fairly boring depiction of their relationship. Add in just a little bit of miscommunication or jealousy and it would have felt like they worked much harder at their relationship/ Alongside being a below average romance, I found the eARC itself frustrating with the amount of typos and text style inconsistencies when I had it set to a black background.

I kept zoning out while trying to read this. It moves so slowly. You'll probably enjoy it more if you know about surfing ; otherwise it's just another cis white gay dude romance.

I was immediately drawn in by the cover of Swell, and felt the sense of a by-gone era. I loved the historical setting in the book and appreciated the character development that Grace Williams brought to this reading experience. Swell was an enjoyable read -- perfect for a long winter or short trip to the beach.

I picked this book because I thought it was a romance book. I’m a bit disappointed at the ending. Actually I’m very disappointed at the ending. It felt unfinished. The story was going so well and then that happened. So I am left with an okay story with a yucky ending. That’s pretty much how I felt.
I received this ARC from the publisher and Netgalley for in exchange for my honest review.