Last year I binged most of Kasie West's book so when I saw this one pop up on NetGalley I had to request it and I was not disappointed. There's something about the sugary sweet romances that are the perfect palate cleansers when you're reading something a little intense and this was no exception.

I really enjoyed the blossoming romance between Avery and Brooks and while the book isn't breaking any boundaries or reinventing the wheel it's really nice to settle in with a relatively safe romance. The best thing about Kasie West's books is that they are so easy to read and easy to fall into like a mid-late 90's teen romance.

It's just another book to add to my growing Kasie West collection and I'm going to be picking up a physical copy when it's out in paperback.

Thank you for the electronic review copy, PRH Global.

Sunkissed. Hmm. It's given that West is good with the cutesy, fluffy and the whole romance agenda. But it was just a so-so, for me. Don't get me wrong because there were really cute scenes between Avery and Brooks. I can't deny that. But I would have loved to see more solidifying interactions between them. I would feel more invested and affected, if only.

What's the strong point of this novel? For me, its got to be Avery breaking out her shell. Breaking out the mold that her parents wanted and known her for. Her self-discovery, that she could be anything whatever she wants to be as long as she put her mind to it.

What I hoped for and more? Even though I listed it as this book's strong point, I actually hoped to read more of it. Of Avery's inner dialogue, her struggles and her realizations. Because I believe it got watered down when another element of the story popped in. It was already there and suddenly it wasn't.

If you want some quick and light novel to read, then Sunkissed could certainly be one of your 2021 companions for your summer trip. Maybe it be by the seaside, a camp in the woods or even within the four walls of your bedroom (because COVID-19 prevents you from travelling to places).

Thank you to Netgalley and Delacorte Press for a eARC. I really enjoyed reading Sunkissed by Kasie West. The main character Avery loves music. She has an amazing voice but she has stage fright. Her and the rest of her family are spending 2 months at a remote camp. There she meets Brooks. He works at the camp and they have rules that they can't fraternize with the guests. Avery & Brooks bond over their love of music . They start writing music together. When the lead singer of his band can't play a gig at an festival will Avery step forward to sing? you could feel the chemistry between Avery and Brooks come off the page. I'm giving this a 3 out of 5 stars. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Every summer, Avery, her sister Lauren and her parents take a long vacation together. This year is supposed to be epic, it’s the summer before Avery’s senior year. Her parents say everything could change after this summer but Avery isn’t expecting that. She’s planning to go to college close to home and keep living at home through school. She feels like she’s got a nice, safe plan that she’s comfortable with and she’s very happy with comfortable.

Her family heads to a kind of upscale campsite. I’m not sure how to describe it. It’s not roughing it in tents but there’s no WiFi and that’s a form of roughing it. It’s especially hard for her sister Lauren who is the social media queen in the family.

But tight before leaving town, Avery had had a huge falling out with her best friend and is kind of okay with no one being able to reach her.

When she hears her dad commenting on how reliable and predictable she is, Avery decides to try some different things this summer. She wants to step out of her comfort zone and get make sure she knows what she really wants.

She makes friends with the young employees who work at the property, namely a musician named Brooks. She starts spending more time with him, covertly, the employees aren’t really supposed to hang out with the guests.
But the more time Avery and Brooks spend getting to know each other, they start learning more about themselves too.

I thought this was a really sweet story. I liked the characters, the setting and storyline. I liked watching Avery trying to find herself.

I got to read an early ebook edition from NetGalley. Thanks!

Dirty Dancing…only take out the dancing and make it a rock band in this young adult romance.
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Avery is headed to the lake for a family vacation for two months and it’s the perfect time for her to get away because she just caught her best friend kissing her ex-boyfriend. And because of this she is actually looking forward to being in a place with no cell service. Her social media obsessed sister Lauren, however, is not. When Lauren decides to film a documentary on the house band at the camp, Avery goes along for the ride—mostly because of the cute guitarist, Brooks. But when their lead singer has to leave his job early for the summer, Avery is the only choice to replace him. If only she could get over that pesky stage fright!
🎤
Sunkissed is an adorable YA book that’s perfect for summer. It really did remind me of a PG version of Dirty Dancing since Avery and Brooks couldn’t hang out together outside of work & had to hide their budding relationship, as well as sneak away to practice. Since Dirty Dancing is one of my favorite movies I ate this novel up with a spoon! Everyone dive into this book while summer is still in full swing!

SPOILERS:
Some parts were super cheesy and I really hate that Avery forgave her cheating BFF. Like NO ma’am. 4 ⭐️

SUNKISSED is absolutely delightful! It is the exact kind of YA I love: sweet, plot-driven, realistic characters, and an interesting premise. This one, by Kasie West, is a spin (pun intended) on DIRTY DANCING, one of my all-time favorite movies! This story takes the iconic tale and turns it on its head as we have a contemporary family going to a summer retreat in the mountains and Avery, our main character, becomes smitten with a member of the staff who also plays in the resorts house band. So, instead of dancing, we have Avery finding herself through singing and song-writing (and falling for the very adorable (although no Patrick Swayze), Brooks. Brooks does have a Harry Styles-vibe going on though, and who doesn't love that?

West is a fantastic writer and sucks you in immediately. The story goes down so smoothly and it just made me feel so happy! All of the little nods to the movie were super cute and perfectly done. This book obviously isn't for everyone as it does focus on high schoolers and veers into overly cutesy at times, but if that's what you're in the mood for, this really is a perfect, easy breezy summer read.

This ARC was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you so much to the publisher for gifting me with an ARC of this book. This is a lovely easy YA summer read with a lovely female protagonist who learns to find her voice. I know a lot of people have already said this, but it gave me Dirty Dancing vibes (a more innocent retelling). I wish more books like this had been around when I was a young adult!

Title: Sunkissed
Author: Kasie West
Type: Standalone
Genres: Young Adult, Romance, Family, Music

Sunkissed is a very cute and heart warming young love and coming of age story. Be prepared to swoon for the characters and their cuteness. Sunkissed narrates the story of Avery, a young girl who has always used music as an escape. Avery's summer has been horrible, she found her best friend and her boyfriend had a thing going on, and her parents decide to have this year's summer trip in a wifi-less, filled with nature camp. A little annoyed about the outcome of her current life, she does not expect to meet Brooks. Brooks is a staff member and certainly off limits, however he also loves music and they start a relationship as they become involved in a band competition.

The story is very PG-13, and the love story very YA in the way that both characters are trying to find each other individually and also within the relationship. I feel the story was refreshing and although many themes are not incredibly deep, they were incredibly built within the story.

One of the most enjoyable factors was watching Avery and her sister's relationship develop and grow. I loved seeing them resolve their issues and become best friends rather than enemies. I also really liked reading about Avery and her development from being a scared and passive teenager to a more sure of herself human being. Giving herself to Brooks and allowing him to love her opened her up in regards to knowing the type of love she deserves.

Overall, there were times where the story was a bit slow and the climax was a little cliche. The story feels a lot like a cuter Camp Rock, as the themes of brooding musicians and lying to get into a concert competition were a bit similar. However, I do think the story is worth reading and the ride is so sweet that it's incredible to read.

* I received this eArc from Netgalley and TBR Beyond Tours in exchange for an honest review *

--- 3 stars ---

Sunkissed was a fun, mostly light YA novel. I enjoyed the relationship between Avery and her sister the most, although Brooks was also a great character that I enjoyed getting to know. I found the idea of a family summer camp interesting, it is definitely something I have never heard of, so having Avery figure out who she is and her dynamic both within her family and as an individual was a wonderful story line. Some of the less prominent characters were not my favorite, particularly Avery's "best friend" from back home. She is barely in the book and easily the worst character. I also had a love/hate relationship with Kai, Brooks's best friend and band mate, he seemed incredibly whiney any time he didn't get his way, but seemed like a nice guy on the surface. This was a quick read, if you love YA and first loves this is definitely a great book for you.

Kasie West has such a unique ability to make you feel like nothing matters in life but summer and love.
Which is great, especially when her books have such strong character development and the journey for characters to find themselves aren't <i>just</i> because of the romance. If you took away her love interests, the characters would still grow and change, finding the path they are meant to take and thrive.

What a fun summer YA romance. This was great i swooned the whole time. Kasie west writes such incredible books and this was no exception. It’s a nice quick read perfect for a day at the beach

If you're looking for a fun summer YA romance, I would recommend "Sunkissed" by Kasie West.

Avery's family is spending the summer at a remote family camp with no cell service, and that's just fine with her since she is trying to avoid the fallout of catching her best friend kissing her ex-boyfriend. Avery hates drama. At the camp, she meets a boy in a band, and decides to challenge herself to try new things. I found Avery and her fears to be very relatable, and I loved seeing her grow and take on new challenges.

The camp setting is perfect for the season and reminded me of the camp in "Dirty Dancing" or the camp in season 2 of "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel." The boys in the band reminded me of Sarah Dessen's "This Lullaby."

This was so cute!!!

I loved the summer camp vibes and the fact that we followed Brooks and his band throughout. The music element was so perfect and really helped me get into the story.

I loved the journey we took with Avery and her struggles with her best friend and the idea of “going with the flow” so much that you’re never stepping outside of your comfort zone and growing as a person.

I’ll be reading more from Kasie West going forward! The writing style was right up my alley

Sunkissed was my first Kasie West book and it wouldn't be the last. The plot was pretty clear and the characters easily lovable. I love that the entire setting was at a camping site in the mountains where a group of people got to know more about each other by participating in different outdoor activities and that the main female character, Avery, got to live her life in full colors.

To my delight, Avery discovered her love for singing and managed to overcome her biggest fear--stage fright--by helping the mysterious camp guy, Brooks, come up with lyrical words for his songs...and later on, by getting both of them the ticket to the final round of a music contest.

To be honest, the overall writing style was pretty concise and easy to read, making this a refreshing Summer read. Even though the ending was a bit abrupt to me, the pace actually fit the whole story flawlessly. I mean, despite the fact that I would prefer slightly more descriptions in some scenes, this book was fairly enjoyable.

In short, I'd recommend this book to everyone! Whether you're looking for something unique and light-hearted, or you just need to take a breather from the harsh reality, Avery and Brooks' are waiting for you!

***Thanks to Penguin Random House International for kindly providing me with an e-ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.***

Kasie West's books have always flown off of my classroom shelves, She writes cute, teen romances that my 7th graders love. This one wasn't my favorite. It's a retelling of DIrty Dancing, and it makes it pretty predictable. I think I like the authors' more original plots (rather than this retelling). I'd still recommend this for 6-7th grade classroom libraries.

So I only got to read about 20% of the book before my phone crashed and I had to get a new one and the book was gone when I downloaded the app of the new one. I’m giving it 5 stars because I’ve loved all of Kasie’s other books and I really enjoyed what a read of this one!

I loved this book. I can’t believe I’ve not read any of her books before but I will now. Great characters, great story. Two thumbs up!

Kasie West is back again with "Sunkissed," a swoony-worthy romance set at a remote summer camp with an off-limits romantic interest and music. "Sunkissed" is basically an updated "Dirty Dance" for teens.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Opinions are my own.

Avery has always used music as an escape. But after her best friend betrays her, even her perfectly curated playlists can't help her forget what happened. To make matters worse, her parents have dragged her and her social-media-obsessed sister to a remote family camp for two months of "fun." Just when Avery is ready to give up on the summer altogether, she meets Brooks—mysterious, frustratingly charming Brooks—who just happens to be on staff—which means he's off-limits.

This book was super easy to read and really cute. I always turn to Kasie West when I feel the need to have a cutesy, fun story. I've read most of her books and this was definitely in the top best ones so far. I liked the characters. And the camp setting was really fun. The romance was pretty cute too. I liked how Avery grew throughout this book as well. I usually really like her main characters. Highly recommend this one.

YA Realistic Fiction. Avery and her family are headed to a summer resort the year before her senior year. Two months with no cell phones, new friends, and a few surprises. This novel is a modern-age Dirty Dancing. My students should find it relatable; it includes friendship, romance, and growing into one's own. Overall, an accessible though predictable storyline, but it should capture a young adult's attention. .