Living a summer in Greece with her friends is more than Rachel could ask for. She feels free, hypnotized by the country and in love. When meeting an older man that seems to hold her above everyone else, Rachel becomes entranced.

This book wasn’t for me. It had too many triggers of rape and grooming and infidelity.
If you loved Ashley Winstead’s book, The Last Housewife then I think you’ll love this one!

Rachel has always remembered her first love, Alistair. Having met him on a Greek island while on a summer holiday with her best friend, he took over her world. So much so that she decided to stay in Greece with him, working at a local bar and living with many other girls. But things aren’t what they seem on that island, and Rachel returns to England to pick up the pieces of her life. Fifteen years later, she is married and has returned to that Greek island with her husband to relive her past. But as Rachel reconnects with her former housemates and Alistair, she starts remembering things she suppressed. She also slowly realizes that her time in Greece wasn’t as carefree as she tells people. Can Rachel shake off her past? Will she do the right thing when asked? Or will she continue defending the man who consumed her during that Greek summer?

I was drawn to the cover when I got invited to review The Girls of Summer. The white-bleached building with a view of the ocean was stunning. Then I read the blurb and knew I needed to read this book. I had followed the #MeToo movement with interest and also kinship. Because I, too, experienced sexual harassment at a job and, when reported, was told to keep my mouth shut (FYI: I told that HR person to shove it where the sun didn’t shine and immediately quit. My mother didn’t raise someone who dealt with that crap.) I figured that this book would be something like that. What I read, instead, was something that made me angry for those girls and what was done to them.

The Girls of Summer is a medium to fast-paced book. The pacing of the book suited the storyline. There was some lag towards the end of the book. I didn’t mind it because it was the end of the book.

The Girls of Summer takes place on an unnamed island in Greece during the “Then” part of the book. The “Now” part of the book takes place in London. Both places (Greece and London) have been my personal places to visit bucket list. I have wanted to visit since forever.

The main storyline of The Girls of Summer is split into two parts, “Now” and “Then,” and both parts follow Rachel. The “Now” parts of the book follow Rachel and the downward spiral in her life. The “Then” parts of the book follow Rachel and what happened in Greece. Both parts of the book were well-written and could keep my attention. I will admit that I wasn’t initially a fan of the split storyline. But as I read the book and got to know the characters, it worked, and I liked it.

Rachel wasn’t the book’s most likable or reliable narrator. She was mean to her husband. Who leads their husband on when he wants to have a baby and thinks it’s a fertility issue (fun fact, it wasn’t)? And as soon as she got Alistair’s number, she was back in bed with him. Her husband didn’t deserve that. And when she got together with Helena, Priya, and Agnes to discuss what happened fifteen years ago? She was a colossal jerk. I have never wanted to smack an adult more than I wanted to hit Rachel in the “Now” section. Rachel, in the “Then” section, I liked her better. She was naive and thought the best of everyone. Rachel was also head over heels in love with Alistair (gag) and would do anything for him.

I wasn’t sure if I should count Alistair as a main character. But, seeing how his actions and lies influenced the Rachel of the future, I decided to include him. I hated him. He knew what was happening in Harry’s house. He helped procure the girls for him. He disgusted me, and I was stunned when he and Rachel hooked back up. I will say that he got what he deserved at the end of the book.

The secondary characters and storylines add extra depth to the main characters and storylines.

The drama angle of the book was well written. The author wrote it so well and kept it classy. It never descended into catfights. Instead, the author wrapped it in Rachel’s angst and let it fly.

The mystery angle of the book consumed me. While I knew what would happen (I guessed reasonably early in the book), it still surprised me. I was also kept on pins and needles, wondering when Rachel would get her head out of her butt and remember that things weren’t perfect in Greece.

The end of The Girls of Summer seemed rushed. The author was able to wrap everything up in a way that satisfied me as a reader. I still wasn’t a fan of Rachel, but I liked seeing where she was after the dust settled.

I recommend The Girls of Summer to anyone over 21. There is language, sexual situations, and violence. Also, see my trigger warnings list.

Many thanks to St. Martin’s Press, NetGalley, and Katie Bishop for allowing me to read and review The Girls of Summer. All opinions expressed in this review are mine.

This is a DNF for me at around 50%. The main character doesn't seem to grow as a person from age 17 to the present. She is more than unlikable. But what made me stop was the explicit scene of non consensual sex. Rape is a definite no for me.

I think that the cover is very misleading. I thought this would be a lighter read but found it depressing and really a slow read.

Thanks for the opportunity to read and review this title

Rachel is in Greece vacationing with her husband, but she cannot help but think about the summer she spent in Greece with her friends years ago. This long ago summer Rachel started a secret relationship with an older man, and she still has questions about how that summer fell apart. 

Through dual timelines, we slowly find out what happened that summer and what the repercussions were. Rachel is such a complicated character. She is dealing with past trauma that she has buried deep within her. This book really hits on a sensitive subject but I feel like it was done well. This book felt more like a coming of age, literary fiction genre than thriller/mystery. 

I alternated between the print and the audio. The audio is definitely the way to go on this one. The narrator did a great job of bringing this story to life.

While this book wasn’t quite the right fit for me I’ve seen a lot of people loving it so I’m just going to keep this simple and quickly share what I did and didn’t like.

Pros:
Greek Island setting
Complex secondary characters

Cons:
Repetitive conversations
Flat main character
Felt like I’ve read this exact story already.

Maybe a 2.5 rounded up but as I said, I’m sure other people will love this one!

Thank you St. Martin’s Press for the arc via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

The Naivete of Summer Love

Seventeen-year-old Rachel and her friend Caroline were on the trip of a lifetime. They were nearly ready to return home when they visited a Greek Isle. The scenery was spectacular, but so were the lavish parties where drugs and alcohol were abundant. Then for Rachel, there was Alistair, a charismatic older man who she feel deeply in love with and has been unable to forget.

Now fifteen years later she is married to Tom, a mild man quite different from Alistair. Their marriage is rocky and this trip to the same Greek island is an attempt to see if it can be saved. On the island she reconnects with a girl she knew that fateful summer. The island brings memories and a desire to reconnect with Alistair, but not all the memories are good and Rachel’s life begins to unravel.

This debut novel addresses interesting issues of young love, manipulation, and memory. I did not like Rachel’s character. I thought she was a woman trapped in the romantic fantasies of a young girl. However, that was what made the plot of the story. She was still trapped and still making the same bad decisions she’s made as a teen.

The descriptions of the island are wonderful. In fact, I thought they were the best part of the book. The plot is suitably atmospheric with a building awareness that things are not exactly as Rachel remembers. The pace is good. If you enjoy psychological novels, you may enjoy this one.

I received this book from St. Martin’s Press for this review.

Rachel is trying to renew her past. She fell in love with Alistar when she was still a teenager, and even though she is married to someone else, she cannot forget him. So, she goes looking for him through the girls she was with on the Greek island. Can you ever go back and get what you wish you kept? Rachel is in for more surprises than she remembered. Is Alistar worth all her trouble? Is he the man she remembers? I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book.

Wow what a fun summer beach read! Grab this book and pack a beach bag and you won’t want to leave the beach until you are done! It’s a great summer must read!

3.5 stars rounded up

"He feels like safety and suffocation all at once"

I was drawn into this book right from the beginning. I actually finished in three sittings which is surprising for me since it's so difficult to find time. Rachel is in love with a man Alistair for fifteen years now, meeting him at only 17 years old. Alistair is Rachel's first love and we all know how that feels at a young age... nothing compares and in the moment nothing else matters. The only thing is Alistair is nearly 40... making him 20 years older than her. Rachel doesn't see any problem, why should she with an older man showing her attention. Naive... so so very naive. The book jumps between "then" and "now" to give glimpses of what happened in the past and why she is not with Alistair in the present time.

I related to Rachel SO freaking much at a young age, I felt she was reacting the same way I would have at age 17 not knowing any better. However, present time Rachel irritated me a bit. her self-sabotaging behaviors, "dear in headlights" personality without any care of how others might react. Only I can understand why she was reacting the way she did... How are you supposed to believe the secrets that are deeply embedded? Rachel wasn't the only center of attention in the book, there was Julia as well who I really liked. I know the book revolved around Rachel, but I wouldn't have minded more of their friendship growing in the present time.

Overall, the writing flowed well and although there were parts that I felt were a bit slow and dry, it was a good read. At first glance with the title, I assume it'll be a sweet summer book but THAT'S NOT WHAT THIS IS!! BE WARNED.. this can be dark to some and I'd recommend checking out any trigger warnings before diving into this book. This is not a light book and I don't recommend for those looking for a cute summer read.

Rachel has been in love with Alistair for fifteen years even though she’s married to someone else. She was just a teenager on vacation when they met but she’s always held onto her love for him, despite their 20-year age difference.

Now that Rachel is older, she has become obsessed with reliving her vacation that happened so many years ago in Greece. When she heads back to the island, deep secrets about her first love affair begin to rise to the surface, including the reality of working for an enigmatic and wealthy man who controlled so much more than she realized.

This was such a heavy book. There was grooming, manipulation, sexual assault, and rape. So much happened. This was told in dual timelines, which I did enjoy. However, I felt the now timeline was a little weak, and the main character didn’t really grow, and I really didn’t like her. She still had her head stuck in the sand from when she was a teenager. The pacing on this one was rather slow, though it worked with the heaviness of the topics covered. Going with a fast pace with dealing with these issues just wouldn’t have worked the same. I was fooled into thinking that this would be an uplifting story, when in fact it is rather depressing. I do think that books like this are important, however it can be a bit much to take in.

If you are looking for a book that encompasses the #metoo movement, then check this one out – just be prepared for what you are getting into.

This book is out June 6th.

Thank you to the publisher St Martin’s Press, @stmartinspress, and Netgalley @netgalley for this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Unfortunately, I couldn't finish this book. It's very repetitive and I just don't understand what is supposed to be happening. I can't get behind the character because I don't find her likeable at all. The writing just doesn't excite me.

Dark Secrets ✔️
Thriller ✔️
Emotional scars ✔️
Fall in love with the wrong person ✔️
Forced Proximity ✔️

This is Katie Bishop’s debut novel, and I would have to say even though it was listed as a thriller, based on the cover I thought it was going to be a bit lighter! NOPE!!

Some of the topics were unsettling, the story gets dark at times, and I was not expecting the most of the content. Overall it was written well and kept me guessing.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's press for an e-book ARC of The Girls of Summer.

The Girls of Summer was hard and triggering to read at times, but I think it was a story that needed to be told. Stories like this can bring an awareness to a very real issue going on in the world. I really enjoyed this author’s writing style and I may have stayed up wayyy past my bedtime in order to finish this book in one night. I look forward to reading more from this author!

The Girls of Summer is a stunning debut!!

This new fiction title is a mix of My Dark Vanessa and The Lion's Den - one part coming of age story about one's trauma and other part fast pace-thriller. The writing was stunning! I definitely could not put it down in the end. I agree with other reviewers that at many times, Rachel (main character) is unlikeable; but at the same time, throughout the book, the main character deals with a lot of mental health and substance abuse issues and probably has issues with self-loathing. I appreciated seeing things from a new perspective.

I look forward to more from Katie Bishop!

The Girls of Summer was an atmospheric, heady story - dream-like at times, nightmarish at others. Rachel and Caroline are seventeen and backpacking for the summer through Greece when they travel to a less-visited area and get pulled into a web of drinking, dancing, and older men. When it’s time to head back to London, Rachel decides she is going to stay - because she’s in love with a secretive, charismatic older man, Alistair. What happened that summer stays with her, even 15 years later, as a married woman, and she still loves the man who left her behind. After coming into contact from other girls who were there, Rachel must decide if she wants to live in her memories or confront the truths of that summer long ago.
This was a tough read at times, but an important story - a story that is still relevant today. Older men who are predators going after much younger women and girls, treating them as disposable toys, manipulating their feelings and emotions, and influencing the rest of their lives.
Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and Katie Bishop for the advanced reading copy, receipt of which did not impact my review.

A multi-timeline, suspenseful and captivating read set on a stunning Greek isle! Although it did start a little slow, I was ultimately hooked and couldn’t stop turning pages through the end. I love how the past affected the present and the characters then vs now. I would definitely recommend for fans of atmospheric mysterious reads!

This was just okay, but the “eh you can skip it” okay (2 stars) and not the “you’ll probably enjoy something about it” okay (3 stars)

This had a ton of promise and was lackluster all the way through. The “then” was slow and ambiguous in a way that was not remotely engaging. The present timeline was unbelievable- I did not believe that Rachel would act this way, although perhaps it’s because the characters are underdeveloped.

I’m sorry. Thank you for the ARC, St Martin’s Press. I really tried to like this.

This was a well written book but I was not a fan of the main character, Rachel. I thought this book would be a book about summer nostalgia. However, there was a non-consensual sex scene in detail that I didn’t like reading.
Please read other reviews because I know other people gave it higher ratings. Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for a complimentary copy of this book. The opinions expressed are my own.

The Girls of Summer, by Katie Bishop

Short Take: The “stuff happening” to “wallowing in feelings” ratio is way off.

(*I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.*)

Duckies, I have been up all night with some nasty bug, so I’m going to keep this short, and hopefully, not too terribly cranky, but I make no promises on that front.

When Rachel was 17, she and her BFF Caroline took a girls’ trip to Greece, bumming around the islands, and living out the usual BFF dynamic of Pretty Popular Outgoing Girl (Caroline) and Quiet Bookish Sidekick (Rachel). That is, until the girls meet wealthy, worldly, and devastatingly handsome Alistair, who woos Rachel and sweeps her off of her underage feet.

After Alistair and the intensity of that summer, Rachel goes back to the UK, eventually settling into a quiet, respectable life with a dependable, respectable husband.

Needless to say, she’s bored to death.

As she begins to reconnect with her roommates from that summer, and Alistair, Rachel starts to realize that everything she thought she knew about what happened back then is not exactly true. As Secrets Are Revealed, Rachel has to find some way to reconcile the horrific truth of that summer with her shiny happy memories.

There’s a kernel of a good story there, but the problem is that we get all of it through Rachel’s perspective, and she’s frankly insufferable. When she’s not drowning in self-pity, she’s busily ignoring the feelings of everyone around her to put all of her energy into her single minded obsession with Alistair. It could be almost understandable as a 17 year old, but it’s way less cute when she’s in her 30’s. Even when all of the truth comes out, even when it’s been shoved repeatedly, blatantly in her face that Alistair is [spoiler], even when she’s ostensibly come to accept reality, we still get pages and pages of Rachel’s feelings.

It’s repetitive, it’s boring, and so incredibly selfish all the time, every minute, every word, every page. It’s impossible to sympathize with her at all. All I wanted the whole time I was reading was to grab the nearest crowbar and forcibly remove her head from her rear end.

That said, the story itself is pretty good, and the setting is by far the best part of the book.

The Nerd’s Rating: THREE HAPPY NEURONS (and a good long nap, please.)

What an amazing, emotional book. I was drawn into the story immediately and couldn’t stop reading. This is a must-read for all young ladies. It’s a very informative book. *this was a complimentary copy via NetGalley and this is my honest review*