Thank you to Net Galley and the Publisher for this Advanced Readers Copy of Summer Reading by Jenn McKinlay

This is the first romance I’ve read where our male lead is the “bookish nerd,” while our female lead has dyslexia. I love that the author took time to make reading this book inclusive with neurodivergent friendly font and formatting. The romance between Sam and Ben was cute but a little too insta-love for me. What I really enjoyed were their side stories; Sam trying to connect with her younger half-brother Tyler and Ben trying to find his biological father. Seeing the bond between Sam and Tyler grow was so heart-warming. Overall, I think it was a cute read with a fun, sweet romance. I’d recommend this is your favorite trope is insta-love with a fun meet-cute.
Thank you Berkley Publishing and NetGalley for an advanced digital copy to review.

This was a sweet romance between Sam (a chef) and Ben (a librarian) in the perfect summer setting (Martha's Vineyard), featuring food scenes that will make your stomach growl and lots of book talk. What more can you ask for in a beach read?

Sam has dyslexia which I don't see repped enough in novels. I found the explanations of Sam's experiences and the author's note about things like the font choices for this book really interesting. My one complaint is that Sam's struggle started to feel a little repetitive as a major plot point and the focus seemed to be on what she couldn't do as opposed to what she could. But I did appreciate that for once, the guy is the reader in the relationship and that I got to learn more about the disorder, Sam and Ben's love of a shared book is beautifully sexy.

3.5 stars

Thanks to Berkley for the copy to review.

This book really just took me for a ride. I loved the build up, the character development, and the writing. I would definitely read more from this author!

This was not one of my favorite McKinlay reads. I'm typically a big fan of her romance novels, but this one missed the mark for me. I love that Samantha was a neurodivergent character, however, it felt like she was constantly reminding the reader of her dyslexia. It wasn't part of her story - it WAS her WHOLE story... and it got to be repetitive. There were some redeeming parts and she was overall likable, but the tone of the book was too formal and left out some of the emotional nuances and characteristics of the MCs. Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to Berkley Publishing, Jenn McKinlay, and Netgalley for an advance copy of Summer Reading in exchange for an honest review.

Alright folks, heres the PERFECT summer read for you. I truly found myself swooning through this whole story. The author seems to do a fantastic job portraying a dyslexia & neurodivergent character (I only say seems because I dont have personal experience with these topics so it seems wrong for me to say with gumption that this is an accurate representation). I fell in love with Samantha and Ben as they met in Marthas Vineyard. Following their summer romance (as "complete" opposites) as Sam took care of her younger brother was such a good story. We watch the relationship progress as they learn things about themselves and the other person. It was such a GREAT summer love story.

You can pick this one up now and may I suggest you take it with you to the beach?! I cannot wait to read more from this author in the future.

What a great kick off to summer read! I truly enjoyed reading this book and I know my patrons will enjoy it as well. I will definitely be recommending this to my library to add to circulation!

I loved that this book was written I. A dyslexic friendly font! I also really enjoyed the relationship between brother and sister and the romantic “impossible” relationship between a librarian and a woman who is dyslexic and doesn’t read. Yay for the positive plug for audiobooks in this.

I love that this book highlighted neurodivergent characters, and I also commend the author and publisher for making this particular book dyslexia friendly. Many people are turned away from reading because it is anxiety-inducing, difficult, and brings up bad memories. Thank you for seeing these readers and inviting them to enjoy this book as much as I did!

Now- this was such a swoony beach read. Easy to follow, endearing characters, and the MMC is so swoony. As a reader, nothing is sexier than another reader…. AND he reads to her. Good god!!!!!!

This is a google book. The two main characters are Samantha and Ben. They meet on the ferry going the vineyards. Ben has ya new job as the director of the library. Samantha has quit her job as a chef in Boston and came ho,e to take care of her teenage brother, while her parents go a trip to Europe. There is an instant attraction. They start to date. They each have issues but together they work it out and fall in love.

I love McKinlay's cozy mysteries and her romance is also above par. A great beach read--or anytime you need a comforting, sexy read!

Samantha Gale has come home to Martha’s Vineyard for the summer to house-sit and chaperone her teenage half-brother, Tyler, while her parents take a summer getaway. Sam is a chef, recently passed over for a merited promotion, and currently at loose ends as she tries to figure out what is next in her career and her life. The summer will lead in some interesting directions for her as she gets the opportunity to really get to know her much younger half sibling, reconnect with an old friend, and meet an intriguing love interest in the library’s interim director… an interesting twist for Sam, who has dyslexia, and has long struggled with her relationship with books and the written word.

This book captured me from the first page. The banter, laugh out loud dialogue coupled with siblings drawing closer and a hot librarian male main character made this such a fun read for me. I learned so much about dyslexia and coping mechanisms that I never knew before. And the food, I nearly starved to death while reading this book. As a little plus, Jenn has included some recipes at the end of the book that I can't wait to try!

* I had such high hopes for this one. Mainly because of the plot, which was set in Martha’s Vineyard. I have always wanted to visit that island! However, the location was where my love for this book started and stopped.

* I liked that the FMC (Sam) was neurodivergent (dyslexic). However, Sam constantly talked about being dyslexic. It was her entire personality. She dragged herself down daily because of it. It made it to where she literally couldn’t function in day-to-day activities. Her disability was used as a crutch. By the end, she was no better, she never overcame her adversities or stopped labeling herself as “broken”. We never saw any healing or growth from her.

* It’s perfect fate that she meets Ben, an avid reader. Opposite’s definitely attracted in this situation. However, I felt like we never got to know Ben. We just knew about him in relation to Sam. This book could have benefitted with a dual POV.

* I didn’t like how (before she told him her disability), she kept making comments about how an avid reader could never fall in love with a non-reader. This was repeated several times. It got annoying, honestly, because that honestly how it is in most relationships— one is a book lover and the other isn’t. At least it’s like that with my husband and I. And he admits that he never once thought I wouldn’t like him because he didn’t like books😂

* For the first 50% of the book, the story was more about her adapting to her temporary home, finding a job, reconnecting with her bff, and building a better relationship with her half brother. Romance felt like a subplot.
* The plot felt slicey and dicey. It didn’t flow as nice as I would have liked.

* The narrators voice sounded very formal, given the subject of the plot. Her voice didn’t fit the story or the main character.

Samantha Gale decides to chaperone her younger brother and spend a summer on Martha's Vineyard.. She is looking for work as a chef but finds love instead. The library's interim director keeps showing up and even if she is a non-reader with dyslexia….these two show us that opposites attract! This is a cute, light hearted summer romance!

wow. wow. wow.

I devoured this in one day! There is so much to love about this book. First off, the cover is adorable. The plot? adorable. The spice? hot, hot, hot! Sam and Ben were such a delight from the very beginning. This book also covers topics of dyslexia and being neurodiverse with such care. The author really wrote a beautiful story around inclusivity and visibility that I really cherished. I do want to take time to note that I also really loved the Portuguese background and culture in this story. My boyfriend is Portuguese so I was salivating at all of the different dishes and it really had me missing his VoVo and her home cooked meals!

This had so many elements to love and probably should be on everyone's summer reading/beach reads list!

Read if you like:
-Single POV
-He's a librarian & she's dyslexic
-Complicated families
-FOOD, calling all foodies
-Audiobooks!! We all know its the elite way to read
-The sexiest scene while he's reading to her (YEP)
-Sibling bonding
-Martha's Vineyard summer vibes

Disclaimer/Spoiler(y): there IS a third act break up, which we don't really get a deep dive into (which is probably my only complaint) but don't worry there is an HEA. This is why I would give it about a 4.5 star rating!

Thank you Netgalley, Berkley Romance and Jenn McKinlay for an eARC of this book. I adoredddd it!

I really great romance featuring a neurodivergent lead, a hot librarian, and a sizzling New England summer. I really enjoyed this story, the main character is awkward, flawed and real. Her relationship with both her brother and romantic interest grow in a really beautiful and realistic way. The whole story is full of scenery that makes you feel like you’re spending a summer on the island and all of the characters are wonderful.

3.75 stars

Jenn McKinlay concocted a really fun summer beach read. Summer Reading follows Samantha who hates anything to do with reading mainly because of her dyslexia. She falls for a bookish librarian named Bennett. I swoon over a main male character who is bookish! I wish this book was dual POV because Bennett was an absolute delight, and I would have loved to read his POV.

On to the atmosphere, if the book is set in Martha's Vineyard (which Summer Reading is), I am absolutely sold on that setting alone! The perfect summer beach read vibes!

Sam also has a younger half-brother who she is chaperoning, and I have to give Jenn McKinlay credit for writing this teen character very well. Sometimes kids are not portrayed realistically, but Jenn nailed it! I love that in watching him and teaching him Samantha was also able to get some insight from her younger bro and that experience with him helped her character grow because she needed it!

Which brings me to the part of the book I did not like, and it was a big part considering Sam is the narrator of the story. I found her to be a little too self-depreciating and had no sense of self awareness of the queen that she is. With that being said, it leaves plenty of room for character development, so if that is your jam then you might enjoy this book more than I did.

I recommend this book for people who are looking for a beach read/summer vibes, opposites attract, a bookish boyfriend, and dyslexia and neurodivergent representation.

Many thanks to Netgalley, Berkley, and Jenn McKinlay for the ARC.

Summer Reading is available for purchase right now!

The attraction between Ben and Sam is irresistible - which McKinley writes perfectly. The scenes are sizzling and the sexual tension exquisite. What I loved about this novel is the inclusion of a neuro divergent character with dyslexia. Sam's character is written with empathy and in a realistic way. I enjoyed reading what is inside her head and the reason for her choices.

I wanted to love this book so badly and I enjoyed it, but didn't love. What I loved was the scene, Martha's Vineyard in the summer, a budding romance between a librarian and a chef, and a chance for more family bonds to grow between siblings. I loved the focus on dislexia and ADHD and a real glimpse into someone's experience of how it affects their every day life because that is a disability that is frequently downplayed.

However the romance fell flat; so many generalizations about "Readers" and the characters just didn't feel well developed or multidimensional over the course of the book.

This was a great summer read. Our main character Sam has dyslexia and I thought the representation for that in the book was awesome. The whole book is about Sam spending the summer in Martha's Vineyard watching after her 14 year old brother and trying to find a new chef position.
We also have some romance between her and Ben, a library director and book lover. I did like how the male was the book lover in this read as it's usually the female, that was a fun twist.
Overall enjoyed this read. It was fun, romantic and dealt with some tough topics. do feel like it was trying to do to many things though. It was a little scattered for me if that makes sense.