The perfect summer read exists and it’s Same Time Next Summer! I loved this second chance romance that was equal parts nostalgia and facing the past in the present. Sam was an easy to love character for me as was Wyatt for totally different reasons. The connection was so intense and I loved their way back to each other.

As soon as Sam leaves the city, her shoes come off, her muscles relax, and her hair becomes a wind-blown mess. She embraces the sand and surf and lets her internal clock decide her day. Sam is back at the beach, at her family’s summer home, the place she has spent every summer since she was a young girl. She’s learned to surf and to embrace herself among the waves of the Atlantic Ocean, yet she’s also learned to love.

When things end with her childhood best friend turned boyfriend, Sam is turned inside out and stops going to the beach. She craves a structured, predictable life and finds that with her fiancé Jack. As the hunt for a wedding venue continues, Sam finds herself returning to the beach and running into her first love Wyatt. As the summer continues, unresolved feelings begin to resurface, leaving Sam questioning if her fiancé truly knows the real her and if her feelings for Wyatt ever went away.

The setting and side characters in this novel embodied the quintessential summer read. The light heartedness of Sam’s family in the present timeline was like a calming breeze. I would highly recommend this novel to someone that is looking for a more women’s fictional centered novel, rather than a romance. The romance element is clearly present, but Sam spends about ninety percent of the book engaged to Jack. The end could have been stronger with an epilogue to really wrap everything up.

This book is told in a dual timeline and the past is written in third person, which really took me out of the story. The past section could have wrapped up sooner than it did and left more room for the current timeline where we could have gotten a better understanding of character growth and seen Sam and Wyatt’s relationship progress.

Thank you to G.P. Putnam’s Sons and Netgalley for providing this eARC in exchange for my honest review.

I absolutely loved Nora Goes Off Script by Annabel Monaghan, so I was super excited to receive Same Time Next Summer as an ARC. Same Time Next Summer made me feel the same happiness that Nora Goes Off Script; Annabel really knows how to make you feel like you are really in the book and attach to the characters so effortlessly.

I think growing up, everyone suffers from a high school lost love. It was really easy to dig back into my own personal memories and relate to Sam on so many different levels. The bond between Wynn and Sam is unmatched and you feel the love and pain they had together.

This book is the perfect summer read, as it is easy, adorable and is one that tugs at your heart strings the entire time. I like to think it was the perfect combination of Every Summer After and Sweet Home Alabama.

▪️REVIEW▪️

Same Time Next Summer ~ Annabel Monaghan

▪️QUICK TAKE:
* Genre: romance
* Pages: 319
* Pub Date: June 6, 2023 (TODAY!)
* Gist: “Sweet Home Alabama” vibes at the beach

•Sam is ready to get married. Jack is close to perfect and despite some issues at work, she knows that her wedding in Long Island is going to be a dream. But when she heads home to check out the charming beach venue, she is flooded with memories of her first love Wyatt.

And then he shows up and his mere presence reminds Sam of who she used to be when she was with him. Suddenly the perfect guy and pristine wedding doesn’t feel so right and Sam is left having to make a choice between what she thinks she wants and what will truly fulfill her.•

So it’s official - Annabel Monaghan is an auto-buy author for me. Nora Goes Off Script is perhaps one of the best books I’ve read this year, so when I got approved for this one I was thrilled. Monaghan writes romance and relationships in a way that is just so utterly relatable. She captured that first love feeling, with heart flutters and warmth but that isn’t where she stopped.

This one isn’t just about a summer romance. Readers will find familiarity with both Sam and Wyatt as they learn about family truths and do the hard work required to learn about themselves and what fulfills them. This is where Monaghan shines - this is not a one-stop-shop read! I loved the multi-dimensional plot…I loved it all! A must for your summer stack!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Beach read full of summer nostalgia. Sam, who is engaged to be married to Jack, returns to her family’s beach house to check it out as a possible wedding venue. When she goes to the beach she runs into Wyatt, an old flame from a number of years ago. Sam & Wyatt haven’t spoken in years, so seeing Wyatt stirs up many emotions for Sam.

I LOVED this book! Highly recommend this sweet story of a character remembering who she really is, and what she really wants out of her life.

Thanks to NetGalley & the publishers for the ARC. #booksbyashleynicole

Oh my goodness, I do love second chance romances and this one is no exception. After reading Nora Goes Off Script, I was super excited to get this beauty too. You have a dual timeline, so you get an excellent back story while reading the present day story too. This is an amazing story of self discovery within the female and male main characters.

Happy Pub Day! Thank you to Putnam and NetGalley for the eARC! Where has Annabel Monaghan been all my reading life? I adored Nora Goes Off Script and I loved Same Time Next Summer just as much. The dual timelines really help set the mood and I loved the MC and the depiction of young love. This is a perfect Summer beach read for any romance fan. I simply can’t wait to read whatever Annabel Monaghan puts out next! 4 stars!

Another fun summer read from Annabel Monaghan! I loved the beach setting and the arc of the main character.

For the first half the cute factor is moderate, the angst level is high, and the pain level is high, really high for both the characters and the reader. Can you say "Awkward"? That is definitely how I felt taking this trip down memory lane with Sam and Wyatt and their teen selves. Their adult selves aren't much better, but at least the second half is hopeful and upbeat with a lot of character growth.

Sam and Wyatt were childhood sweethearts who at 17 and 18 just couldn't withstand the pressure when life got really real. They had a nasty breakup and Sam was deeply wounded. Fast forward 13 years and they are now back in the houses next to each other on the beach in New Jersey where they spent their childhood.

It's August and her parents and little sister have been there for the summer and Sam is there for the week with her fiancé, Jack. Wyatt has been helping set up the first ever music festival in this small beach community. Although Sam is engaged, we get the feeling that she is just not that into either her fiancé or the wedding which is planned for October. Not only that, but she is also totally uncomfortable around Wyatt, who her family just loves, and the memories of those long-ago days just won't leave her alone.

Sam is a focused career woman with a very serious job at a very serious company, but she really is not happy, and she may have blown that up before leaving for the Jersey Shore. I also must say, she must have spent leaving under a rock for the last 13 years because she is nothing if not oblivious to what was going on around her. I guess when you are so wrapped up in your pain not much else penetrates.

I would have DNFed this book, but I try really hard not to do that to an ARC and I couldn't wait to see what happened when Wyatt blew up Sam's neat predictable world. 1st half: 2-Stars 2nd half: 4-Stars Overall: 3-Stars

My thanks to the Publisher and the Author for providing a complimentary digital Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) of this novel via NetGalley. This is my fair, honest and personal review. All opinions are mine alone and were not biased in any way.

Did you read Nora Goes Off Script and LOVE it? Well, this book by the same author is going to melt your little heart.

I knew going into this book that I had high expectations, and let me tell you, they were MET. This is the story of Sam and Wyatt, next store neighbors every summer for a decade before they kiss. And what a kiss it was. Then life happens, things get ugly, and they no longer speak. Sam changes her college plans, lives in the city, gets engaged and is now planning her wedding in Connecticut.

Guess what? One last summer visit to placate her mom's desire to have a Long Island wedding changes everything. Every. Thing. In the best of ways and I am here for it.

Was any of that a spoiler? Well, only if you've never read a romance novel before. ;)

Read this book. Love this book. You're welcome.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

thank you NetGalley for my copy of Same Time Next Summer !

this book was a summer beach house, friends to lovers, young love, haven’t seen each other in years & now they are in the same place years later .

i love this very niche trope with the summer house but it is the most perfect summer read. i loved the atmosphere & the conflict of this book & the past & future timelines, the plot & the characters were really great.

the only thing i wished was that we got more details & it was longer because of the complexity of past and future . i loved the characters & the side characters & the drama, but i just wish i got more details.

This book was the perfect vacation read, and I can see it being a favorite this summer! The beach vibes were just immaculate. ☀️👙🌴🌊🐚✨

I loved the setting, the premise, and of course, the characters. It's much more than just a then & now love story. Both characters and their stories had depth to them and were realistic. The pacing felt perfect throughout the entire story. At no point did I feel like the story was dragging.

What kept this from being a five-star was the amount of backstory we got, which was a lot. Also, the way Sam thought of Wyatt the entire time while planning her wedding just was off to me. While the ending seemed a bit rushed, I enjoyed it overall!

Readers who loved EVERY SUMMER AFTER and LOVE AND OTHER WORDS should read this one. 👍


Thank you, Netgalley and Putnam books, for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Again, Annabel Monaghan has written an involving, wonderfully crafted story that entertains, inspires, and delights. Through the eyes of Samantha/Sam and Wyatt, the twists and turns of love grown deeper and stronger over years of summers at the beach are fantastically vivid, sensual magic that took me back to my own endless days at the beach where all that mattered was sand, water, and sunshine, Years after their life-changing break-up, the pair meet again when Sam and her fiancé are staying with her family at their beach house while evaluating the possibilities for their wedding in Sam's beloved town. Wyatt and Sam are powerfully drawn to one another and equally distant for old reasons and new, but as they and Sam's family negotiate new relationships in the old, familiar places, I felt as if I were the privileged person allowed a view into their lives. Her story took me deep into my own past, first love, and the small, huge things that make a life. I received a copy of this book and these opinions are my own, unbiased thoughts.

THE PERFECT SUMMER READ!🌞👙🍉🍹

Sam’s life is going exactly as planned, steady job, perfect fiancé, everything feels.. predictable.

Until she finally goes home to her family’s beach house that she avoids every summer. Her high school sweetheart is right next door and suddenly things feel unpredictable.

This was such a fun, easy book to get lost in. I can’t wait to go back and read Monaghan’s previous novels now!

Thanks to #netgalley, the publisher and the author for this e-arc!

Nora Goes off Script was one of my favorite books last summer and I was so excited to see that Annabel Monaghan was publishing another book this year.

A second chance romance set at the beach on Long Island, Same Time Next Summer is a quintessential summer romance. I loved the short chapters, dual points of view and dual time lines.

Anyone who loved Every Summer After and/or Love and Other Words should add this to their summer reading list.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC.

A perfect summer read! I always love a dual POV and alternating timelines. I found Sam’s self discovery as an adult so relatable. I recently finished Nora Goes Off Script and loved that one too; I enjoy Monaghan’s writing!

Sam has everything she could ever ask for. The perfect doctor fiancé. A great job in Manhattan. The possibility of a wedding near her family’s beloved Long Island beach house. There are a few problems though. 1. She might lose that great job. 2. Her first love is back at the beach house next door.

This is my favorite kind of second chance romance. I love a good dual timeline with years worth of flashbacks and first love. Maybe it’s because I love YA. Maybe it’s because I love nostalgia. Maybe I just love it. I mean what’s better than a childhood romance between summer neighbors that grew up together?

Sam seemed a little boring at first with her uptight fiancé and perfect wedding plans. But she really comes to life when she returns to the beach and starts to remember all the things that made her her. Her quirky parents and their eclectic beach house. The tree house. Swimming.

And of course there’s Wyatt. Oh how I loved Wyatt. It takes a while for us to find out what broke them apart and but I really enjoyed discovering adult Wyatt and what he had been doing in all the years since they lost touch.

Read this book for
💕 second chance romance
👩‍❤️‍👨 friends to lovers
🏝️ beach town
⏱️ flashbacks

When Sam heads to Long Island with her fiance, Jack, to visit family and tour possible wedding venues, she is surprised to find that her childhood sweetheart, Wyatt, is living right next door in his parent's old house. Suddenly her heartbreak from all those years ago as fresh as the day of their split and she is desperate to know if Wyatt is still the Wyatt she fell in love with. As she falls back into the rhythm of the ocean, the calming energy of the beach, and the draw of Wyatt's music, she begins to realize the life she has made for herself with her prudent, secure fiance and her stable, uninspiring job, was all in an effort to avoid getting her heartbroken. She realizes she must choose between a man who lives within the safe boundaries of predictability or a man who makes her feel fearless.
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Has more of a literary fiction and family drama vibe than a romcom or romance. Initially it felt stiff, which is exactly the vibe Sam's current life supposed to emulate, but I slowly warmed up to it as Sam evolved. It evaluates deeper themes than love like forgiveness, owning up to mistakes, and not being afraid to go for the life you want. Wyatt was dreamy but he served really as a catalyst for Sam's personal growth.
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Overall, I think this is a good beach read if you're looking for something with more emotion, more depth and complexity than your average romance. A lot of the backstory has more of a YA vibe. I wouldn't say it's lighthearted.
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Thank you to Net Galley for the ARC copy in exchange for an honest review!

4.5 stars

If you are looking for you next Romance, Summer Beach read, then look no further. Same Time Next Summer fits the bill.

Sam and her fiancé, Jack, are at her families summer home in Long Island, to check out a potential wedding venue. While there, Sam comes face to face with her first love, Wyatt, and it brings the past right into the present. All of her hurt feelings are brought right to the surface. And it explains why she is now rigid, looking for things that are safe, instead of the free spirit she once was.

Wyatt and Sam are perfect for each other but something happened that drove a wedge between them. As a result, Sam is now trying to fit a certain mold (because it’s safer) with Jack and its blatant to see that she is just going through the motions.

I loved watching the arc of Sam as she comes full circle in her life. We explore how she once was carefree and the love she and Wyatt shared, to the utter devastation of that relationship. To the ideal of who she is supposed to be now. The undercurrent of confusion and heartbreak and the wanting to know why it took Wyatt so long to reach back out, how alone she felt. I felt everything right along with Sam. So will Sam see if there is another possibility of her and Wyatt making it a go? OR will she stay with the safe, sure bet? You’ll want to one-click to find out.

Thank you to Netgalley and Penguin Group for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Summer is finally here and my kids have started camps today! Time to bring on all the beach reads. 🎉​​​​​​​​
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For fans of 𝗘𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝗦𝘂𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗿 𝗔𝗳𝘁𝗲𝗿, this second chance, childhood friends-to-lovers romance had sand, seashells, and a treehouse. It was easy to get swept away to Long Island with these characters. ​​​​​​​​
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With past and present POVs, Wyatt and Sam's relationship is revealed to show that young love is not made to last and instead an "addiction" to overcome. (iykyk, grrr that therapist) Now grown up and moved on with life, Sam revisits her childhood summer hangout as a possible venue option for her upcoming wedding (with her clueless fiancé) and finds more than she expected. ​​​​​​​​
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𝗦𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝗧𝗶𝗺𝗲 𝗡𝗲𝘅𝘁 𝗬𝗲𝗮𝗿 is predictable… as with many second chance romances. I appreciated that the conflict was different than anticipated, and for once, I loved his character growth more than hers. Sam frustrated me so much for always giving in to other's wants and never being able to make a decision for herself. Chocolate cake is completely acceptable! ​​​​​​​​
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Thank you to @putnambooks and @netgalley for this advanced copy! It’s out today!