This is a tough one for me to rate; I wanted to like it better (like so many others did), but I really struggled to relate to the characters. They were ultimately just so juvenile and lacking maturity. Throughout the book I felt like I was reading about high school kids instead of actual adults. Even after Liv had to take on additional responsibilities, I never viewed her as a grown up. Finn was even worse. The story itself was kind of sweet and kept my interest, particularly as the book went on, and I was happy with the ending. Ultimately though, my issue with the characters kept me from liking this book more.

I typically enjoy reading romance books, but this had such a slow start it felt almost too hard to keep going. We follow the motion of Liv, our main character, and her life. She met Finn one summer and their relationship had always been a push and pull. They would always get together during the summer when Finn would visit from LA and if they're both single, they would resume the relationship they had. As we go through the story, I found that Liv is struggling with moving on in her life and is perfectly content with where she is at. Quite the opposite of Finn as he wants more out of his life and career. Liv feels like she can't really live her life and she assumed responsibilities of other people including caring for her older brother after their parents passed. The book did discuss grief pretty well and had a very good story. I enjoyed the read, but definitely wouldn't plan on re-reading it any time soon.

What a heartfelt & emotional roller coaster. It’s definitely an “all the feels” type of book which are my favorites.

Paige Toon is fast becoming one of my favorite authors. There is just something about the way she writes about pain and loss and love and hope that draws me in and makes me want to bury myself in a warm blanket with hot tea and savor the story. And I, for one, love a story that is not just a surface, easy beach romance. I love characters who are deeply conflicted and having trouble finding their way through painful moments. Having to make decisions that are difficult but must be made in order for your life to move forward is the real world. Paige made me care about all the characters from the beginning and hope for a happily ever after, and I got it, albeit different than I expected, and I loved that too.

This story was tender and heartbreaking. It is told in the present and the seven summers of Liv's life and loves. She has endured tragedy and had her life dream swept away from her and replaced by responsibility and a fun job in a bar but by no means a career. She meets Finn, a musician/singer playing at the bar and their love story begins. But they lead two different lives on 2 different continents so as much as I was screaming for Liv to go with him, I understood why she could not. Their love endures when they see each other each summer but then Liv meets Tom. I don't want to give any spoilers but will say that the anguish that Liv goes through is so real. You feel for each of the characters. And when you think you know how it ends, there is a twist to the story and a lovely epilogue as well. This was beautifully written but don't be surprised if you need to reach for a tissue at several points in the story. It is that engrossing. This was my first book by Paige Toon but it won't be my last.

Paige Toon's Seven Summers is a great beach read. Liv is an appealing lead character, her love interests ring true, and you come to care about the characters. The characterization of Liv's brother Michael is especially vivid and you can see him in his world.

The Story is told looking backward and then unfolding one summer at a time as you move from the present to past summers. The mechanism works well and it's not distracting as some time jumps can be in other books.

This is my first book by this author and I look forward to reading some others. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy of Seven Summers in exchange for an honest opinion. This book is available now.

𝗠𝘆 𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴: 4 ½✨⭐️
SEVEN SUMMERS
🤍𝗚𝗲𝗻𝗿𝗲: contemporary romance
📖 448 pages
𝗘𝗺𝗼𝗷𝗶𝘀: ☀️⛱️🎨🐚🎶🩷🏄🏼‍♀️🎤🎹😢🍹🚁💔

𝗪𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗜 𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗻𝗱? 👍🏼

𝘐𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘢 𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘬, 𝘐’𝘥 𝘩𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘩𝘢𝘭𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘴

🧡𝗿𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲🧡

Thank you @prhaudio @netgalley for the #gifted copy!

@paigetoon has done it again with SEVEN SUMMERS, a beautifully written novel that spans 7 summers & multiple timelines, all seen through the eyes of the MC, Liv. The story is filled with summer nostalgia, vividly capturing the essence of its sunny settings. The single POV narration adds depth & intimacy to Liv’s journey, making her growth throughout the book compelling & relatable.

It is an emotional, raw, & real exploration of heartbreak, love, grief, regret, music, & new beginnings. The supporting characters, especially Finn & Tom, are well developed & add richness to the story, making it hard to choose a favorite, don’t make me!! Liv's complex relationships with her parents & her sweet brother Michael (I just love him ☺️) enhance the story's authenticity.

& can we have a moment for the gorgeous 😍 cover that is just the beginning of the novel’s appeal?! I will never not read a book by Toon & could not recommend this more!

𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗶𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲:
◽️ summer romance / nostalgia
◽️ multiple timelines
◽️ 2 different lives/paths
◽️ grief & starting over
◽️ love triangles
◽️ wrong time, right boy
◽️ beach towns

𝗣𝗹𝗼𝘁: Liv & Finn meet 6 summers ago in Cornwall & are bound together by a tragic night. Despite Finn's life in LA & Liv's in Cornwall, they promise to reunite each summer if they are single. This summer, Liv meets Tom, a mysterious newcomer, & they fall for each other. For the first time, Liv envisions a future without heartbreak every autumn. She faces an impossible choice, especially after learning the shocking reason Tom left home.

What a gorgeous, beautiful, heartbreaking and achingly tender story. A fun, light rom com this, is most definitely not, What it is however is a deep and heartbreakingly human story about life, loss and love and a great reminder of how short our lives are.

The story follows Liv and Fin and their relationship over several summers while jumping between the past and the present.
I fell in love with their love story from the beginning. They are both very lovable characters with very complicated life situations doing their best to chase their happiness and live their lives to the fullest.

I flew through the first 70% in one day but I had to slow down because a great deal of the writing hit too close to home so please check the trigger warnings. I do with that the epilogue was longer. I also didn't see any of it coming and I was left sobbing.

I will be reading a lot more Page Toon from now on. I highly recommend this book!

Thank you PENGUIN GROUP Putnam | G.P. Putnam's Sons and #NetGalley for the ARC. My opinions are my own.

A heart wrenching and emotional coming of age story. Beautifully written and relatable with characters that are easy to root for. Told in alternating time lines with a "will they won't they" tension.

Told as a duel timeline between the present day and the events of the six previous summers, Toon writes an emotionally beautiful, complex love story.

I found the story to be not just a romance, but a coming of age story as Liv gives up on her plans she had for her life and becomes sort of stuck. This was extremely relatable to me and I really connected with her character.

It’s so hard to review Seven Summers without revealing too much and spoiling the read for others but I absolutely loved this read. This was my first Paige Toon novel and I will be absolutely inhaling all of her other novels!

** thanks to NetGalley and Putnam for the ARC and chance to read and review **

4.5 Stars! ⭐️

This book was absolutely HEARTBREAKING but I really loved it! Prepare yourself for a rollercoaster of emotions that will have you invested from start to finish…but maybe have some tissues ready because boy did I cryyyy 😭

I loved the setting and the dual timelines worked so well for the story - I couldn’t put this down once I started.

Thanks to Penguin Group Putnam & NetGalley for the ARC! 🩷

Wow, I loved this book!! Seven Summers is a heart wrenching, emotional rollercoaster that you won't be able to put down. I love a book that gets me to reach for the tissue box, but can also make me giggle and Seven Summers did not disappoint. I had conflicting feelings of not wanting to put the book down vs not wanting the book to end. I enjoyed all of the characters!! Special shout out to Michael's comedic relief -it was an A+. This is my first book written by Paige Toon, and you bet I will be reaching for her other books in the near future!

Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the chance to review an advanced copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

I can easily see this book made into a miniseries, as we follow the love story of Liv and Finn over seven summers. Liv is a sculptor, with a goal of moving to London and working for a studio when a tragedy strikes. Staying in St. Agnes, Liv has her friends and her brother to anchor her when she meets Finn. Their attraction is undeniable, but Finn lives in LA and only comes home for summers. Their relationship deepens, but difficult decisions remain. Recommended if you like emotional love stories with ups and downs. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

This was the first book I have read by Toon. I wanted to give this a 5 star for the second 1/2 of the book but I felt like the first 1/2 was a slow burn and just lacked much excitement. The last 20% of the book had me wanting to come back more and see what would unfold.

I loved the character development of Liv, Finn and Tom. I love that the story didn’t go the typical way you would think. I loved seeing Liv grown into her own as the summers unfolded and the choice she ultimately made between Finn and Tom.

Just when you think the story is over though there was a giant epilogue which I loved! The way Toon describes love in Livs perspective was super well written. I really enjoyed this book and would recommend it to other.

Someone told me it had Taylor Swift vibes but honestly I never got any of those vibes!

Oh my goodness, I was not prepared for what a heart-wrenching read this would be!

Liv is a sculptor who lives in Cornwall, England, while Finn is a singer/songwriter who lives in L.A. One summer they meet in Cornwall, and bound together by tragedy, they are quick to fall in love.

Finn only visits Cornwall in the summers, so they are forced to part ways. Before they do so, they vow that if they are both still single the following summer, they will pick up where they left off.

We then watch the relationship between Liv and Finn unfold over the course of the next seven years. The author alternates between past and present timelines so that we are able to see where Liv and Finn are in present day, but also watch them rekindle their romance for each of those seven summers. It’s heart wrenching each time they part ways, but they really do make the most of the time they have each year. Their romance is a beautiful one and you just feel like they are truly destined to be together someday.

In the present day, Liv finds herself with a huge choice to make because she meets Tom, a wonderful local man who falls in love with her. Liv recognizes that it’s a different love from what she has experienced with Finn, but she’s torn because there doesn’t seem to be a sustainable path forward for her and Finn. Tom is a sweetheart, but I was still rooting so hard for her and Finn to figure out something.

I flew through this book in just a couple of sittings because I just had to know who Liv would find her happily ever after with.

Seven Summers was such a wonderful read. The writing is beautiful, the characters are layered, & the storyline is captivating.

I really enjoyed this as an immersive read with the e-book & audiobook. Natalie Simpson is a new-to-me narrator and I loved the way she delivered this story.

If you’re looking for the perfect beach read, look no further than Seven Summers!

4 1/2 stars

I love Paige Toon's books and have read almost all of them. I came across her books years ago, and she quickly became a fav of mine!

🐚 Seven Summers has multiple timelines, which I always enjoy - it jumps between the six past summers of Liv and Finn and the current summer of Liv and Tom. I loved the atmosphere of the beach/pub where it mostly takes place in Cornwall, and as usual with her books, tissues are needed (I definitely cried 💔)

Paige Toon writes such amazing characters that I always fall in love with - and Liv’s brother Michael, who has Down Syndrome, is one of my favourite secondary characters ever! He is very charismatic - blunt and loving at the same time. 

I really enjoyed this book, but felt that it was similar to Five Years From Now - another one of the author’s books  - which just happens to be my favourite. If you haven’t read that one I’m sure you will absolutely LOVE Seven Summers, but if you have, you might feel the same way.

💌 Thank you @netgalley and @putnambooks for my EARC in exchange for my honest review.

This book was EVERYTHING!!! My heart cracked and healed so many times.

Fifteen! Twenty!!! A million stars for this book!!!!

Liv was strong and courageous and I loved that she finally fought for the love she deserved in the end. Michael was the sweetest most hysterical downs brother ever and he kept it raw and real which is what she needed!

The amount of music and songs in this book has me starting a full playlist for this book because I just wanted to listen to everything Finn sang and played for Liv. Finn was a dream of a man who adored Liv and I hated so much that distance kept them apart. 💔💔

And Tom with his sand art! And openness! Oh god he was the most incredible vulnerable human being! Give me Tom allllll day long!

The ending had me completely tore up. I sobbed on a plane staring out the window as it poured and my daughter told me the sky was crying with me. And then in true Paige Toon fashion, she patched it back up with a happy ending that even I never saw coming.

Another winner from Paige Toon! I love her use of characters that feel realistic and relatable - you grow so fond of these protagonists and can't help but continue to root for them. Her writing is beautiful and always tugs at my heart strings. I loved watching the characters interact each summer and grapple with their choices. This one is definitely a roller-coaster for your emotions but is a story I will not soon forget.

Paige Toon has quickly become one of my new favorite authors. I see her name on a book and quickly find myself requesting it.

Seven Summers is a beautiful, albeit heartbreaking read. Liv and Finn seem destined from the beginning to constantly be surrounded by grief and loss. And they are also separated by an ocean. Can they work through the distance and their own insecurities and heartbreaks to be together? Or are they even meant to?

There is just so much about this book that I can't get into. It's a hard read at times but it's well worth it. If you don't mind using a box of tissues and losing more than a few tears, give this one a chance. It's truly a beautiful story and pulls at the heartstrings time and time again. It's life at it's most real and raw.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC.

What a great summer read. Wow. I truly and thoroughly enjoyed this book. It had the perfect amount of romance / heartbreak. Love triangle elements but none of the drama. I love sweet books with happily ever afters. Highly recommend