This book was heart-breaking but so beautifully written. It is one of those books that I think everyone should read. I loved the representation within the characters, with our main protagonist Eva Mercy suffering from chronic migraines, an invisible illness.
I also found the discussion within the book around romance writers (Eva being an erotica author) very prevalent and added to the 'real life' feel of the story.

This seemingly irreverent comic romance between NYC socialite / erotica writer Eva and her past love and fellow author Shaun, belies the serious trauma of that has haunted and formed both their lives. Meeting again, questions are answered about how and why they split fifteen years prior, after falling in love over seven days in June. An enjoyable bittersweet tragi-romance.

This is the 1st book ive read from this author. It most certainly wont be the last. One minute I’m laughing the next I’m crying. This book had a great storyline and really interesting characters.

Eva Mercy is a best selling author of a sex-filled vampire romance. Her private life is fiercely private and she shares her life with her 12 year old uber-wise daughter. An old friend/ love appears in her life again - he's also a fiercely private best selling author - and the connection between them is as intense as ever.
I raced through it, though the 12 year old was a bit irritating at times., she knew too much about everything and her insights were sometimes too knowing
4/5 for me

Eva Mercy is a Black erotica author living with a hidden disability, raising her daughter on her own, and currently under a LOT of stress. Meeting reclusive, award-winning writer Shane Hall at a literary event immediately adds more confusion and angst to her life, as nobody knows that fifteen years ago, they had a short but super intense relationship, which clearly left some scars and unresolved issues…
I loved “Seven Days in June” by Tia Williams! It is a heady, sexy and emotional book, with great multidimensional characters, and some great dialogue. In fact, it had all I needed from a good romance – smut, fun, romance and added depth of past traumas and issues explored in the book with care. It touched on issues of racial and social inequality, but it was also a book about love, joy and being yourself.
Eva is a great heroine, and I am glad that more romance writers chose to write about disabled characters. Eva has powerful migraines which often leave her bed bound and heavily medicated, but she hides her condition from people, save for a chosen few. Her path to self-acceptance and her growth throughout the book were so well portrayed! I particularly loved Eva’s relationship with her daughter Audre (Audre Zora Toni Mercy-Moore to be precise), a precocious and woke tween who is super smart and full of sass, although I regret that the certain things weren’t discussed (ugh, spoilers prevent me from getting into too much detail!). CeCe was another amazing character, and I loved her ruthless, steamrolling confidence. Shawn was to me maybe a less dynamic character, although his own journey to heal from past traumas was very well portrayed. I loved that in the book he still had a lot to process and learn, and his progress was slow and gradual.
Altogether, if you are looking for a great summer romance with enjoyable characters and gripping storytelling, “Seven Days In June” is definitely for you.

Seven days in June 💙❤️

Ad - thanks to @quercusbooks for the @netgalley review e-book.

Strong mother daughter relationship? Check. Steamy romance? Check. Female protagonist who is excelling in her career? Check. Disability representation and discussions of race and its interaction with the industry subject matter? Check check check! This book has so much going for it and I couldn’t put it down.

I loved all of the characters and every extra layer and the chemistry they each bought to the story. I love that there was romance but it wasn’t all plain sailing and unrealistic. I loved reading about a MC with chronic pain and how this affects every aspect of life, this was also even harder hitting when I read that @tiawilliamswrites also suffers from migraines and is in pain daily.

The conversations around literature and people not respecting the romance genre and romance authors was also really interesting. I love romance novels and it’s definitely true that if you do you’re made to feel that you have to explain that away as a “guilty pleasure”. I just love to read and think there should be no judgment for people’s preferred genres.

I’d definitely recommend this for anyone who likes their romance novels with an extra little something! 4 ⭐️

I can’t remember when I last screenshotted so many killer lines and beautiful paragraphs from a novel to quote to people! From the prologue alone, I knew this book was going to be right up my boulevard, but I wasn’t prepared for just how moving, how utterly hilarious and completely heartbreaking it was going to be. An extraordinary novel, with a compelling love story at its heart, it took my breath away. Absolutely on my #BOTY2021 list.

This wasn't for me - I found the characters irritating and the level of detail in the prose dull - this didn't happen but it is the type of book that lets you know what they ate for breakfast, where they bought their trousers and what type of shampoo they used. It was all too similar to a Disney SoCal teen drama, and I could not finish it.

Wow what a fabulous read. I LOVED this book. It was such an intense love story,
This was one of those books that makes you feel ALL the feelings. I was dragged through the emotional wringer and spat back out!!
The story is told from multiple POVs throughout, so we can see the relationships from all sides.
There are triggers within the narrative, from mental health, drug abuse, self harm, invisible disabilities and addiction to name a few. However I felt these were handled sensitively and really gave depth and reason to the characters.
This is a tale of love, loss, heartache and obsession. Told over the years and describing the past in chapters it really gives a sense of the despair and loneliness the characters faced.
It left me with goosebumps and the biggest smile on my face. I recommend this to romance lovers.

'Seven Days in June' by Tia Williams is a heartwarming and scathingly witty second chance romance. Eva and Shane had a seven day whirlwind romance as teenagers, fuelled by alcohol and drugs and their shared tragic backstories. 15 years later, Shane is now clean and a lauded author, intent on crossing paths with Eva again (who is also an author of erotic supernatural vampire fiction). Their chemistry oozes off the page with steam which left me hoping this couple could make it work as adults.

There were many things to like about this book. My absolute favourite character was Eva's 12 year old daughter Audre. She is wise beyond her years and spends the book playing therapist for all the grown-ups. She is hilarious, witty and is a great duo with her mother Eva. I also enjoyed the present fling being woven with flashbacks of Eva and Shane's encounter as teenagers. They are nuanced and three dimensional characters with genuine fears and trauma which is blocking their path to love. Eva has an invisible disability, debilitating migraines, and it is good to see her dealing with this and owning it in public with her friends and colleagues.

Overall, this book is funny, steamy and with a deeper backstory, all balanced into an entertaining read. I would recommend this one for any romance fans, 4 stars,.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher who provided an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Eva Mercy is the bestselling author of a lengthy, hugely popular series of vampire romance novels and Shane Hall is known for his literary books exploring Black life and issues through the eyes of a courageous young woman. When the New York book scene brings them back together, they are forced to confront what happened between them during a week in June, two decades before. Could a long-dead spark be reignited or did it ever actually really go out? This is possibly the most intense romance I’ve ever read. The chemistry between Eva and Shane is insane, so I know that fans of sexy love affairs will eat this up! Both of them are very damaged individuals and it seems that neither of them really know or understand love until they’re together. Eva suffers from regular severe migraines, an illness that I’ve never seen represented in a book before. As a migraine sufferer myself, I really appreciated this nod to how debilitating they can. Ultimately, it is a story of motherhood, learning from the past and finding your true passion. The perfect red-hot summer romance!

[Thanks Netgalley for the ebook. This review is my honest opinion but just another opinion, you should read this book and judge it by yourself] REVIEW IN ENGLISH SHORTLY

Un libro sorprendente. No sé qué esperaba pero no era esto y, a pesar de que a veces me he sentido algo perdida leyéndolo y de que algunas partes las he encontrado algo flojas, me ha atrapado y me ha resultado difícil dejar de leer. Me encanta la pareja protagonista, la escritora logra transmitirte tanto la atormentada y pasional relación que vivieron previamente y la pasión y el amor que desarrollan de adultos. Ambos me han parecido personajes reales, con sus claroscuros, sus debilidades y sus ganas de aferrarse a la vida. Y muy apasionados, por cierto. He adorado sus momentos juntos, donde la pasión que sienten el uno por el otro es sincera y arrolladora. Shane en especial me ha parecido adorable.
Hay cosas que me resultan muy lejanas, como el mundo literario o la dureza de la vida de los protagonistas, pero creo que, sin hacer leña del árbol caído, Tia Williams logra que puedas entenderlos y sentir algo de lo que ellos sintieron.
Una lectura sorprendente, con más profundidad de lo que esperaba y que deja con buen sabor de boca.

One of those hyped books that pretty much lives upto all the hype! This one made it to Reese Witherspoon’s book club pick for June and unlike the Sanatorium, it definitely makes the cut. (continued) https://fashionandfrappes.com/my-june-reads-everything-i-read-in-june-2021/

Seven Days in June follows Eva and Shane - two award-winning authors who spent a June week together in high school and haven't seen each other since. What happens when they reconnect 15 years later?

This fresh romance is raw, sexy and humorous. It's also not just about love, with elements of pain, heartbreak and community. Here are just some things I loved:
- Eva and Shane's chemistry is palpable from the moment they reconnect. A couple of steamy scenes intensify this 🔥.
- Audre is the coolest tween, and I loved her relationship with both her mum and Shane. The other supporting characters were just as cool.
- I loved the writing and the smart, witty dialogue.
- While this book had its fun moments, there were also a lot of deeper and darker issues woven into the storyline. I've included TWs below.
- I loved the relatable ending - it perfectly suited the book.

Overall, if you like a romance with depth, dual perspectives and a touch of steam, I highly recommend reading Seven Days in June.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Quercus Books for the ARC in exchange for this honest review.

TWs: chronic pain, alcoholism, self-harm, drug use, death.

Following Shane and Eva, this is a love story- heartbreak, hope, lust, and reunion. Beautifully told, I adored the characters and didn’t want this to end.

Seven Days in June is a love story, but one without pretension, and written with unwavering honesty and raw passion. It's also a testament to the primal love between a mother and daughter.

Fifteen years ago, two damaged misfits found one another, and spent seven days in June falling in love. They felt seen in a way they never had before. Theirs was a story that never had a chance to be completed when they were wrenched away from one another.

Both became writers and their stories were an expression of their feelings, an outlet for their heartbreak and their hope.

Returning to New York, Shane feels compelled to see Eva and apologise for breaking his promise never to leave her. Their reunion is spectacular and consumes them. But as things seem to be falling into place, there is a sense that it is all going too well, and something is going to go wrong.

Will Shane and Eva truly find happiness, or is the damage from their pasts too entrenched for a happy ever after?

I adored all the characters in this book. Feisty and fierce, strong black women. Sensitive and unapologetic Shane, who despite extreme trauma and alcoholism, fights his way back to sobriety. It's impossible not to become invested in their story and I was rooting for them. Truly a brilliantly written story that captured my heart and soul.

I’d seen Seven Days in June by Tia Williams popping up here and there and I was intrigued by the story and drawn in by the beautiful cover and then Traci from The Stacks, a self-confessed non-romance reader, raved about it, and I knew I had to read it asap. I love romance, it’s my favourite and most read genre, so to hear someone that isn’t a romance lover urge people to read this book, I knew it was something special. I was good though and I went in with no expectations other than to read a nice romance story, there’s nothing like being let down by the hype.

The book flits between the present day and fifteen years ago, where we see a younger Eva and Shane. Normally I find it a little difficult to keep up when books jump around in time but this one was easy to follow and it truly served its purpose of helping you understand more of who Eva and Shane were then and how it has shaped them now, even if it is only told from Eva’s POV.

What I really enjoyed about this book is its portrayal of hidden disabilities and illnesses. I feel that, for me at least, if this is included in a book it is the sole focus of the book and is often shown that the person or people can’t have full and meaningful lives, but as someone who struggles with a ‘hidden’ chronic illness I know this not to be the case and it was wonderful to see this shown in Seven Days in June.

Whilst this book firmly fits into the romance category, the other themes within the book of family, history, hidden disabilities, mental health, addiction, motherhood, career and more, mean that love and romance are not the sole focus of the story, ensuring that it isn’t an overwrought and highly predictable 300 pages. Instead, it felt more that you were peaking inside someoneS real life, watching them navigate these things. Essentially, Williams writes these characters so well and has fleshed them out to the point that they truly felt real. Can we also take a moment to appreciate the wonder, hilarity and precociousness that is Audre?

Essentially, it reminded me that love, like people, is flawed. Nothing, no one and no love story is perfect, and it is these imperfections that make us, our stories and histories unique to us. Whilst that may be difficult to understand or accept and the time, we should appreciate and cherish these, relinquishing our need for ‘perfection’ in every part of our life because that just isn’t real.

This book was a joy to read, covering a vast array of topics but in a sensitive manner. I would highly recommend and will definitely be picking up whatever Tia Williams writes next!

Thanks to Net-Galley and Quercus for a free copy of this book.

If you do plan on reading this book, please note some trigger warnings: self-harm, addiction, abuse, mental health, hidden disabilities and illnesses.

I really enjoyed this from Tia Williams and will be reaching for any book with her name on in future. Some people are just meant to be, it doesn’t matter about timings or convenience - if it’s meant to be it will be! A hilarious opening paragraph and beautifully written characters!

A lovely novel celebrating lost relationships and chances. I thought it was great and would definitely recommend!

I loved how the novel moved between the present day and 15 years ago. It's a beautiful love story.

Absolutely loved this book, I could read it again!
Seven days for Eva and Shane to fall in love, fifteen years later, sowing it doesn’t mater how much time has passed, a modern day love story. My favourite character was Eva’s daughter Audre she was very funny!