i think if everyone just TALKED AND LISTENED, like it were group therapy, 85% of their problems would be solved.

third person? fine, i’m okay with that but there are way too many people in this book to be going back and forth. i’d settle in with one character and then oH oKay we’re switching to someone else. i could never fully connect with these characters as individuals.

maggie and liz have such an infuriating relationship. you’re telling me two people in their mid twenties can’t just TALK? i get that shit happened between them, but seriously? they couldn’t be adults for ten minutes?

i didn’t like robyn. she was self-absorbed. great entrepreneurial spirit, but EVERYTHING had to be about her. cam just sucks at communicating lol. his issues with liz would be solved if he just talked to her 😐. and mac just sucks at being alone, which is fine but man c’mon.

Three Weekends + Four Friends 
Thank you, Dutton Books, for the gifted copy of Serendipity by Becky Chaldean {partner}

Genre: Fiction
Format: 🎧📖
Pub Date: 6.4.2024
Star Rating: ☆☆☆☆

“How much longer until all their calendars started to fill with weddings and showers, bachelorette weekends and plans? How much longer could they all find three weekends in one summer alone to commit to nothing but friendship?”

I wasn’t sure what I would find in the pages of Serendipity - I just knew I was drawn toward the title and the beautifully illustrated cover. What I found inside was a nostalgia-filled story that reminded me of the friendships I still carry in my heart even though we’ve all gone our separate ways. 

The setting of Fire Island provided the perfect setting and added an almost magical feel. Yes, the friends still went out drinking at night, but during the day, they became the sand castle-building kids of their youth. 

While I didn’t love the ending, I tried not to let that shadow my overall enjoyment of the story. I think a lot of people will enjoy the ending, but it just wasn’t for me. 

☀️The setting
🗣️ Multiple POV’s
🫶🏼 A love letter to friendship
👏🏼 Perfect summer reading
🤷🏽‍♀️ The ending was just okay

I recommend reading Serendipity if you’re looking for a light summer read to take to the pool, lake, or beach!

Maggie left her high school friends behind six years ago to follow her dreams in California. Now, she comes back to New York defeated only to have to confront everything she left behind, including her former best friend and the man whose heart she broke on her way out of town.

Just like she did with her previous novel, Chalsen crafts a beautiful story about love and friendship all wrapped up in the locale of Fire Island. Here's what I loved:

The setting: Of course. Fire Island works so well in this story, making me not only want to go there, but to easily see why the characters are so enamored with the island. It's beachy and filled with vacation vibes.

The structure: This story is told in sections, each showing the friend group for a weekend each summer month at Fire Island. This worked because it spaced out the story but also got right to the heart of it.

The characters: I really liked all of the characters in this book. Most of the story follows Maggie and Liz, but Chalsen also gives each side character a turn to shine with their own chapter. This added so much depth to the story.

All in all, this was a great book about friendship and love.

Thank you to the author and publisher for the gifted copy.

This book is the perfect summer read about family, friendships, & love. Set on Fire Island in New York where a group of best friends spend one weekend a month at the Serendipity House, they navigate their life in their now early twenties. While the friends may have changed, their love for one another clearly hasn’t. This read will make your heart soar & make you want to catch the next ferry to Ocean Beach in Fire Island.

Thanks to Dutton Books & NetGalley for the ARC :)

Thank you Dutton Books for my copy! All thoughts are my own.

I was truly so excited to read Chalsen’s new book. I read her first book in one sitting last year and it brought such Summer comfort in the middle of Winter. Sadly, this book missed the mark for me. While it still took place (mainly) on Fire Island, it lacked the personal charm of Kismet. It had all the ingredients for a book I’d love but I felt like I couldn’t get to know the characters in the way I expected, based on her first book.

Synopsis:

“It’s been six years since Maggie followed her screenwriting dreams to Los Angeles and forgot to look back. But things in Hollywood didn’t go quite to plan. Now, twenty-five and suddenly home in New York, Maggie doesn’t know who she’s more anxious to see: her ex-boyfriend, Mac, or her ex–best friend, Liz.For Liz, Maggie is the girl who abandoned her at the worst possible moment and an unwelcome surprise who could derail her perfect summer. Liz is recently engaged to her high school sweetheart, Cam, but Maggie’s arrival brings old wounds bubbling to the surface, exposing the cracks in Liz’s apparent happily ever after.When Maggie accepts her former friends' unexpected invitation to join in their summer share house, a rental named Serendipity, she knows it’s the chance she needs to get her life back on track. For three weekends, Maggie, Liz, Cam, Mac, and their closest friends will take the ferry to Ocean Beach, Fire Island, for some sun-kissed bliss, if only they can avoid the drama of their past catching up to the present.With the nostalgic flavor of a stack of sepia-toned Polaroids, and perfect for fans of Emily Henry, Jennifer Weiner, and Ann Brashares, this big-hearted, page-turning story delves deep into a complicated friend group as they navigate one messy yet magical midtwenties summer.” —NetGalley

What I Liked:

The Setting—I loved the author’s debut novel set on Fire Island and while I liked the idea of this book, I just think it kind of missed for me. There was too much going on.

The Group of Friends—I loved the group of friends and the image of them gathering together for multiple weekends in the Summer at a beach house. The dream!

What Didn’t Work:

The Writing—I felt like there was a very distinct shift from the author’s first novel to the second. I didn’t click with the style in this one!

The Switching 3rd POVs—There were so many characters and I felt like I never got to know the ones I wanted to spend time with, as the POVs getting changing. It was also written in 3rd POV making it very impersonal for personal stories.

Character Authenticity: 3/5 Spice Rating: 0/5 Overall Rating: 2.75/5

Not a fan of this one. There were way too many characters and too many story lines for their to be any real weight to the story. As soon as I started settling into a story line, it completed shifted. Maggie was a terrible character and had no valid reason to have the personality she had or justifications for her actions. Mostly, everyone was just all over the place in this book. Ended up skimming the last part because I lost interest.

Love this story of friendship, growth, and healing! Can’t wait for the general public to love it!! Thank you for the chance to read it, we will have this on our floor!

Very sweet story of love, friendship, grief and growing up, I enjoyed this and think it will be a popular beach read this Summer. Makes me want to travel to Fire Island!

Serendipity by Becky Chalsen is a captivating tale of friendship, love, and self discovery set against the backdrop of three transformative weekends in a Fire Island share house. As Maggie Monroe returns to New York after a Hollywood detour, her reunion with ex-boyfriend Mac and estranged friend Liz sets the stage for a summer of nostalgia and healing. The author beautifully explores the complexities of relationships and the quest to reclaim one's life.

This book owned me. It literally took over my life and my heart. It consumed me. Captivated me. I didn’t just read the book, I lived this story through these characters and I loved it.

After loving Kismet, I was so excited to read this next book from Becky Chalsen. This was a great story of friendship and second chances. I highly recommend.

good book honestly it was fun but it was still a bit stagnet it gave emily henry vibes but not in the best way i guess

Serendipity by Becky Chalsen is a captivating and relatable story about love, friendship, and second chances. Maggie, a screenwriter, returns home to New York after six years in Los Angeles, unsure about who she's more anxious to see: her ex-boyfriend, Mac, or her ex-best friend, Liz.

Liz, who is engaged to her high school sweetheart, Cam, sees Maggie's arrival as an unwelcome surprise that could derail her perfect summer. However, Maggie's acceptance of the unexpected invitation to join their summer share house, a rental named Serendipity, opens up a chance for her to get her life back on track.

The story is well-written and engaging, and the characters are well-developed. The author has done an excellent job of capturing the complexities of relationships and the dynamics between friends and exes. The book explores themes of forgiveness, second chances, and the importance of communication in relationships.

The setting of Serendipity, a rental house on Fire Island, adds a magical and romantic element to the story, and the author has done an excellent job of bringing the location to life. The drama of the past catching up to the present adds an element of suspense to the story, making it hard to put the book down.

Overall, Serendipity is a heartwarming and relatable story about love, friendship, and second chances. The book will leave you rooting for Maggie, Liz, and their friends as they navigate the complexities of their relationships and try to find happiness and closure.