I loved Nora Goes Off Script, and was looking for more of that here, but didn't find it. This book is a second chance romance that bounces between the present day and the characters at 16 years old. I already don't really resonate with second chance romances, but especially found this similar to other books like Carly Fortune's Every Summer After. I dnf'ed at about 33%, but would definitely read a book by Monaghan again -- this one just wasn't for me.

Thanks to G.P. Putnam's Sons, PRHAudio, and netgalley for early copies of this book.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for gifting me a digital ARC of the new book by Annabel Monaghan - 4.5 stars rounded up!

Sam has spent every summer at her family house on Long Island Beach. It was there that she met Wyatt, who lived next door. They grew up together and moved from friends to first loves. But then Wyatt left and broke Sam's heart. Now she's back at the beach with fiancé Jack in tow, looking at wedding venues. Jack is a doctor and perfect in all those ways that a fiancé should be - but is he perfect for her? Then Sam learns that Wyatt is back on the island from California.

This story is told in the past and present timelines, as we tag along as Sam and Wyatt's relationship grows and then explodes. This book will transport you to summer, the beach and will have you remembering your first love. It's full of great secondary characters as well, plus I love how her parents' personalities and house expanded while at the beach. I fell into this book and didn't want to look up - perfect to pack along on your summer vacation!

𝐓𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬💭:
Another highly anticipated read for me since Nora Goes Off Script was my favorite romance book last year. So my expectations for this one was definitely high. Plus points for the stunning summery cover😍

Thank you so much Putnam Books for my copy and PRH Audio for my audiobook. It’s amazing on audio and made for a very easy listen under 7hrs. It comes out 6/6/23!

𝐁𝐥𝐮𝐫𝐛📝:
Sam is engaged to Jack, her perfect doctor fiancé. She visits her family’s beach house in long Island to tour a wedding venue. Upon arriving, she comes face to face with Wyatt, her first love whom she hasn’t seen in 14 years and memories come flooding right back.

𝐑𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.💫/5. This book definitely gave me Every Summer After vibes. Told in two timelines, it gave me a bit of a mystery as to how the relationship ended in the first place. It made the build up absolutely incredible and i really enjoyed how the author weaves the past and the present to bring their love story to life. The chemistry between Sam and Wyatt was so palpable and I truly felt the pain that came with it. Second chance romance is usually a trope I don’t always love, but with enough time apart and growth between them, it made for a sweet reunion. If you loved Every Summer After, you would enjoy this one! It’s a sweet summer romance you wouldn’t wanna miss!

𝙍𝙚𝙖𝙙 𝙞𝙛 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚: 𝘌𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘚𝘶𝘮𝘮𝘦𝘳 𝘈𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘳, 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘚𝘶𝘮𝘮𝘦𝘳 𝘐 𝘛𝘶𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘗𝘳𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘺, 𝘴𝘶𝘮𝘮𝘦𝘳 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦, 𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘴𝘵 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦, 𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘤𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘧, 𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘴𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘥 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘳𝘰𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦

I loved this book and am so excited to find a winning author! These characters really grabbed part of my heart and I enjoyed this one immensely. It would be perfect for a day at the beach or a vacation read. I’ve never been to Long Island, but the author’s descriptive writing made it so easy to imagine.

Sam is living her best life -- engaged, working a great job, and returning to a family summer house on Long Island to plan her wedding. When you dig a little deeper though, are things all that great with her fiancé Jack? And is that job really a good fit allowing for no creativity? Sam is feeling boxed in and discovers that she’s not really happy.

Do we ever really get over our first love? Sam is about to find out when she discovers that Wyatt is also on Long Island. It’s been fourteen years since they’ve seen each other, but he still makes her heart bit a little faster and she longs for all those summers spent together growing up.

Throughout the book, we get flashbacks of Sam and Wyatt’s love story filled with beach magic and why they are now estranged. I fell in love with this couple and the relationship that they built. And I mostly understood why things fell apart. The big question is whether Sam will marry Jack or if there’s a chance that she could repair things with Wyatt.

The relationships seemed really authentic in this one as did the growth after a romantic relationship ends. I also loved Sam’s family members in this one. They each added to the story. Writing this review makes me want to read this one all over again! It’s on my favorites of 2023 for sure!

Sam is bringing her fiancé Jack to Long Island to see how her family passes their summers and check out a wedding venue that neither of them actually intends to use. Jack has already picked out a Very Sensible (and easy) wedding plan at his parent’s club in Connecticut, and Sam? Well, she’s fine with it. Still, it’s time she had Jack out to her parents summer place and it’ll make them happy if the two at least pretend to consider their option.
There’s a surprise in store for her there though. The boy next door, Wyatt, is staying at his parent’s place for the summer. They basically grew up together - for the summers at least - and were each others first loves until the last summer ends in upheaval.

The story is told between present day and flashbacks to all those previous summers. It feels like there’s more of the past than the present, which makes the book read a little YA. That said, I liked the story and was happy with the way things ended up in the end. This is one of those books that you can almost see the movie version playing of it in your mind while you’re reading.

Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin for the ARC

Utterly delightful - poignant, heart-warming, funny, romantic. This is my first Monaghan book and certainly won't be my last. Takes beach read to an elevated level with the quality of her writing!

Sweet Romance, a great summer read, a cute setting, and a double timeline using the past to support the characters life now. Showcases how safe/mundane is okay but that there is always room for growth.

Definitely for fans of Every Summer After and Love and Other Words- especially those looking for a fade to black/closed door alternative! I loved this book so much and wish more authors would write without steam. I loved the then and now, though it did through me off the change in 1st person writing to 3rd person. I loved the setting, the depth to the characters and their situation- it actually kept me guessing more than most romance and I love when that happens! My only thing is I know publishers are trying to pull in diversity and inclusiveness in every possible way and I just wish that hadn’t been a part of this story- like it just was unnecessary and I don’t enjoy reading about those lifestyles even in side characters. Thankfully it stayed pretty minor but I just wish it wasn’t apart of this story at all. I do think some might have a problem with some of the love triangle aspect but it didn’t bother me and I really enjoyed the exploration of first love bonds.

I absolutely loved Nora Goes Off Script - I thought the storyline was really fresh and original and I STILL hope it will be a movie one day. I was thrilled to see this new one! I think anyone that's a fan of the genre will enjoy this sweet + romantic story. It's a great summer beach read - I loved Sam's family and their life on Long Island. The story itself felt a little too familiar and overdone, so it wasn't my favorite of hers. Thank you, NetGalley for the ARC!

Thank you Penguin Group Putnam and Net Galley for giving me the chance to read this. This is the second book I’ve read from this author, and she did not disappoint.

Sam and Wyatt were friends as teenagers, but then Wyatt sees Sam as something more. Sam also sees Wyatt as something more. It’s a cute and warming love. However something happened, and that changed everything between them.

Present day Sam is engaged to a new man, and is basically living a life that’s safe. A perfect safe life and a perfect safe fiancé. Sam is planning her wedding with her fiancé and her family throughout the text. The reader will also get flashbacks that tell Sam and Wyatt’s story when they were teens.

The book is a very feel good and a comfort read. It’s a perfect book to read by the beach or the pool. The scenery described in this makes me hate that I cannot swim in the ocean every morning.

On the other hand, I loved reading about these characters. There’s character growth and development. If you’re into women’s fiction with some summer romance, you’ll love this. There’s nothing I would change about it.

The book of summer!!! Thank you NetGalley for the ARC. Sam & her fiancé are the definition of uptight. When Sam brings him to the laid back beach town she spent all of her summers growing up to look at wedding venues... and who do they run into you, Wyatt, her 1st love, I loved how this book went back between the past and now.

An idyllic summer read. I loved the flashback chapters, watching Sam & Wyatt fall in love and then fall apart. My only complaint is that I wish it had been longer. The ending felt rushed, with Sam's entire life falling apart and Wyatt just...showing up and it was a done deal. We never got to see them be in a relationship as adults.

I will start my review of "Same Time Next Summer" by saying that 95% of what I read is mystery and thrillers. At my advanced age, I guess I'm not very romantic and prefer murder and mayhem. However, this is the second time that Annabel Monaghan has managed to charm me with her romantic storylines. She is the author of "Nora Goes Off Script" (very clever title if you know the plot!), which I enjoyed reading last year.

Sam has returned with her fiancée to her parents Long Island holiday home, where she spent summers growing up and they now live there. Her fiancé is a buttoned-up doctor, but even he succumbs to the charm of her parent's hometown. and they decide to plan their wedding there.

But then in walks Wyatt, Samantha's high school boyfriend who she thought would be her forever person, before an extremely awkward and unexpected incident drives them apart. Sam's heart was broken by Wyatt, and she is annoyed at how unsettled his presence makes her. We discover the backstory of how Sam and Wyatt fell in love fifteen years before, in chapters interspersed between the present=day storyline.

Monaghan writes characters easy to love. Even the "bad" guys have likeable characteristics. She also writes great dialogue that flows freely, is sometimes funny, and seems realistic. It did take me a little while to get involved in the story, as A) not a romance book lover, as stated, and B) the backstory of teenage love was a little more typical romance. But soon the characters themselves won me over and I was all in on their journey.

Lovers of romance novels, which would I assume be most people who pick up this book, will find a superior quality story here with great writing.

Thank you to NetGalley, author Annabelle Monaghan, and the publisher to allowing me to read an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

𝑺𝒂𝒎𝒆 𝑻𝒊𝒎𝒆 𝑵𝒆𝒙𝒕 𝑺𝒖𝒎𝒎𝒆𝒓
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗶𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲: second chance romance, highschool sweethearts, then and now timeline, beach and surfing!, male lead who can write songs for you 😉, Long Island setting

𝗣𝘂𝗯 𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗲: June 6 (this coming Tuesday!)

“𝙎𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙚𝙨 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙬𝙖𝙡𝙠 𝙖𝙬𝙖𝙮 𝙛𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙙𝙤𝙣’𝙩 𝙬𝙖𝙣𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙢𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙧𝙤𝙤𝙢 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙛𝙪𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙚.”

I remember reading my first book by this author last year, Nora Goes Off Script and it just became an instant favorite. I just love mature love stories and I’ve always recommended that book to everyone I know. Obviously I got super excited when I was given a copy of her release this year and read it right away! Thank you @putnambooks!

So Sam has 3 simple beach rules:
1. Do take long walks on the sand
2. Do put an umbrella in every cocktail
3. Do NOT run into your first love

Easy, right? But when your first love is a family friend who lives next door, the third rule is a little bit hard to follow 😅 So anyway, Sam and her family always spend part of their summer in Long Island. This year, she brought her fiance with her to scout some wedding venues. Obviously, nothing should go wrong with this trip. Until she spots Wyatt - also known as the guy who broke her heart many years ago…

As we all know, I am very, very picky with second chance romance stories. Like the breakup and the getting back together should make sense to me. And if there’s a breakup reason, that my logical brain would accept is reasonable, THIS IS IT.

I love following the leads’ journey from the time they were kids to being adults. The contrast of her now perfect life to her more carefree life back when she was young. I love all the relationship complexities in this book - from the family, siblings, to the leads’ relationship.

I love the beach setting and all the nostalgic vibes that this book gives. Honestly I love everything about this, except for the love triangle part but I get it, human nature and all.

Highly recommend this if you love second chance romances! Honestly one of the best ones I’ve read for this trope

💭 Talking to exes, yes or no
☕️ I prefer not to. If the relationship ended well, being friends from a distance is enough for me.

This was a sweet summer romance story perfect for a beach read! Sam is engaged to Jack, the doctor, an impressive guy that her mom 100% approves. They are invited to Sam’s parent’s Long Island beach house to visit and check out a wedding venue while there. Sam is reluctant to go, her parents are a little quirky with all of their ‘in progress’ art projects all over the house and she already knows that the wedding venue will be too gauche for Jack’s wealthy parents. Of course when they arrive, she discovers that her childhood friend who in later years became her first love, Wyatt, is in town and he’s staying next door at his mom’s house. Sam wrestles with all the memories haunting this magical place and the events leading to her devastating heartbreak. But in the end, is it better to marry the solid dependable guy? Can a girl ever recover from her first intense love? I really enjoyed this one and read it pretty quickly. It didn’t have as much funny awkwardness and was missing some unidentifiable magic that I loved in Nora Goes Off Script. But all in all, an enjoyable romance to soothe my mind during this busy graduation time of year! Thank you Netgalley, Penguin Group Putnam and the author for this eARC in exchange for my honest review. This book will be available for purchase on June 13, 2023

Second chance romance after a bad teenage breakup and having not seen or communicated with each other in 10+ years.

What I loved...

-the setting and the way it was presented. The author did a fantastic job of creating this place that seemed so tangible, the epitome of summer. Maybe it was the way that the place and characters complimented each other, but I could feel the sun and sand on my skin, smell the sea and picture this house and family.

-the way the reader falls in love with Sam and Wyatt right alongside them. This story of friendship that turns into love then heartbreak. Loved the journey.

I didn't dislike anything so much, just wished some things would have been done differently. It's clear that Sam has never gotten over Wyatt and that's slightly unfathomable considering the amount of time that has gone by. On top of that she continues to plan a wedding right under his nose and that had a slight ick factor. Her fiance, Jack, was kind of a caricature and I actually liked that and maybe that's supposed to make the reader feel slightly better about the fact that there is obviously a ton of unresolved feelings at play here. Sam was a MUCH stronger character than Wyatt and I understand why it was done that way, but I didn't form this emotional bond to Wyatt because so much about him was unknown (by design.) The ending was a bit rushed with that being said, but overall I enjoyed it, especially the vivid imagery and feelings of summer it portrayed.

my bookclub did Nora Goes Off Script last year, so I was so excited to see that Annabel Monaghan had a new book coming out, and I absolutely loved it! It was the perfect summer read— second chances, childhood lovers, and it was set at the beach!

Sam takes her fiancé, Jack, to the beach she spent all of her childhood summers at to look at wedding venues. To her surprise, Wyatt, the boy who broke her heart when they were teenagers, is back visiting as well *gasp*

I adored Sam, and really enjoyed the past and present dual timelines— these are hit or miss for me, and I thought this book did it well. If you’re looking for a new summer read, I highly recommend this one! thank you to NetGalley and Putnam books for the ARC, This Time Next Summer is out now!

READ IF YOU LOVE:
✨ beach reads
✨ the childhood love that got away
✨ second chances
✨ dual timelines
✨ musician MMCs 🤩

Great summer read about the power of first loves! The story begs the questions "how do our defense mold who we are" and "who do we become when we let those defenses go." I really enjoyed the fun, flirty way the author addresses these ideas as well as the idea of embracing ourselves for who we are.

Cute but not what I wanted it to be. I loved Nora Goes Off Script so much and I wanted to feel that same magic again but Sam and Wyatt were such flat characters that I didn’t connect with them. It was difficult to root for their relationship because I didn’t feel I really got to know them. And Jack, the fiancé, was so cliched in his wrongness for her that they all seemed like caricatures. I wish I could have liked this more but the magic wasn’t there.

Thank you to Putnam, PRH Audio and Netgalley for access to this advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

highly suggest this book for my friends who love and are looking for...

- second chance romance
- childhood friends to lovers
- dual timelines
- closed door romance
- beach setting