Continue to love all books by Courtney Walsh… it was refreshing to have a book where the primary relationship focuses on in the book was not the romantic one - but I also missed the romance being the primary focus at the same time. I LOVED Kelsey and Georgina’s relationship. This book was a fast read but slightly slower paced. This story was the sweetest read with the best reminders to live your life to the fullest, take time to slow down, apologize and forgive… and most importantly hold on tightly to those that you love.

This story brought me write back to my 20s when I drove my late grandmother to Michigan to visit her siblings. She was so giddy the entire trip which made me so happy and we just enjoyed our time together. After a brush with death, Kelsey meets and befriends Georgina, an older, lonely professional who has a life-threatening disease. Kelsey convinces Georgina to go on an adventure of a Summer of Yes. They learn things about love. About life. Just by saying yes. Yes to the unknown. To things that are risky. That scare you.
I did a tandem audio and e-read which led for an immersive experience, and a lot of feel good feelings.

Wow! I’ve had a lot of Courtney Walsh books on my TBR but this is the first one I’ve read. I love her writing style. I enjoyed the references to things like the Gilmore Girls and The Holiday movie. She also weaves in highly relatable themes, like at the beginning when the FMC is forced to rest due to a near-death experience. I think this will resonate with many women who feel they must constantly be working, unable to rest unless something serious, like illness, forces them to slow down. This book is about facing fears, saying yes to life, and embracing love.

If you’re looking for a clean romance, I recommend giving Courtney Walsh a read.

This book comes out on July 2nd. Thank you to NetGalley, HarperCollins Christian Publishing, and Thomas Nelson Fiction for an arc.

This was cute. It wasn’t what I was expecting though which threw me a little. There wasn’t a ton of a summer of yes, and it took too long to really get going for me. But the second half of the book did suck me in and I really started to like the characters. Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!!

4.5 stars
This is such a fun, entertaining, good read. Kelsey and Georgina are interesting, relatable, intriguing, captivating, complex, wounded, strong, entertaining characters. Their interactions and exchanges are entertaining to read and powerful. Their relationship is as good as the romance between Hayden and Kelsey. The secondary characters added to the fabric of the story and my enjoyment. This story and characters resonate with me. The story captured my attention from the start and held it until the very end. The book is easy to read and get into.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me an e-ARC of this book. This is my second courtney walsh book and it cemented her place at the top of my favorite authors list. I love the idea of this book and the message it gave. I loved every single character and I was filled so much joy and hope, while reading this book.

Title: The Summer of Yes
Author: Courtney Walsh
Genre: Christian, General Fiction, Women’s Fiction
Publisher: Thomas Nelson Fiction
Publication Date: July 2, 2024

Overview:
Kelsey Worthington, an almost-assistant editor at a major New York publishing house, is about to experience a crazy plot twist to her life. When a freak car accident lands her in a hospital room with wealthy and insanely successful businesswoman, Georgia Tate, fate may have it that their stories start to intertwine in the most unexpected ways. Kelsey’s cheerful, bubbly personality paired with Georgina’s cold, confident sarcasm makes this book a perfect grumpy-sunshine combo. Think road trips, beaches, and fancy hotels—all the fun summer vibes. Will Kelsey and Georgina say yes to the things they’ve always said no to? You’ll have to read to find out!

Writing Style:
This was my first Courtney Walsh book and I was pleasantly surprised! Her writing is witty, clever, and a lot of fun. She had some amazing one-liners that had me laughing out loud, and I was hooked right from the start. Her sense of humor is fantastic, and I loved the way she writes. The book is super easy to read, and her use of imagery is just beautiful.

Pacing:
Initially, the pacing of the book felt quick. I found this to be great because I was easily pulled into the story and wanted to know what was happening, I was hooked on every page! I couldn’t stop reading. However, as the plot progressed, I found that the pacing slowed considerably. Some chapters felt like filler, just trying to waste time until the resolution. Despite this, I still found the pacing to be decent with fun cliffhangers at the end of each chapter and POV changes that kept it interesting!

Character Development:
I have to say, Walsh truly outdid herself with the characters in this book. I would say my favorite part of the novel was the characters and their development. Each character was unique and carefully crafted, even down to their name choices. I could imagine each of them in their personality differences. Kelsey is cheery, vibrant, fun, but also a stereotypical young adult who is trying to find her place in the world. She is relatable, sometimes a little awkward but hilarious, adorable, and just felt real, in the best way possible.

Georgina is probably my favorite character, in all her business-like wonder. She is absolutely hilarious, a little bit cold, successful, but also real. She has lived a lot of life and now that she is aging, she is confronting her life and what she’s achieved but also what she has sacrificed. She is a softy deep down, but she likes to believe she is a lot stronger than she is. She is sweet, talented, and witty.
I won’t share any more of the characters, at risk of spoiling them, but you will just have to read to find out how amazing they are!

Some notes on characters that I wish were altered slightly. I wish we could have heard more from Georgina’s POV. We didn’t get a lot of chapters from her. I also wish we could have seen more from Kelsey’s parents, I loved her mom’s character and would have liked to see her be a bigger part of the story. And we don’t get to meet her dad at all which makes me sad! Also we don’t get to meet her sister either, I think that would have been a fun dynamic to have seen. I also would have liked to have seen less from Ravi, but we can talk about that more a little bit later.

Setting:
I cannot talk about this book without talking about the DREAMY settings this author includes. This is another thing that stands out about this book. I am a sucker for New York settings, it’s just so fun to me. The energy, the buzz, the dreaminess of it all. I just love it. But also, the other setting she spends part of the book in is cozy, sleepy, and beachy. Ah, I just love it all! Walsh truly outdid herself in this area too! I could feel the places she described and found myself imagining I was there.

Themes:
There are some themes I absolutely LOVED in this book. The focus on reconciliation and forgiveness is absolutely incredible. I don’t think I have ever read a book with such a beautiful focus on forgiveness. It was so refreshing to read a book with a theme like that. I also loved that the book addressed the theme of being able to “have it all”. I think our culture has lied to us when it has said we can have it all in life. This quote, on page 81, from Georgina’s perspective, really stood out to me “I’d done my best to make it work – did I, though? – but society lies to women when it says they can have it all. A family, a career, success at home and success in the workplace.” Walsh does an incredible job highlighting that it is impossible to have it all. To be successful in all areas of life at the same time is an illusion. I think that’s a tough theme to talk about and I am incredibly grateful that she took the time to struggle through this and I was thoroughly impressed with how she tackled it.

I did find some of the themes she brought up to be less appealing. The portrayal of men overall I found to be negative which was a bit disappointing to me. While I recognize there are men who have done things incredibly wrong and there are creeps out there, I was disappointed to see such an overall negative view of men in this book. I believe success for women doesn’t have to mean diminishing men, I would have preferred there to be a more balanced depiction of this when regarding business in this novel. But, while I don’t agree with some of the themes in this book, I think Walsh did a fantastic job of making me think about the themes and ponder them. So job well done!

A Little Reader’s Note: Is This a Christian book?
Something Walsh did amazing in with this book is her ability to talk about romance without explicit content. This novel is completely closed door with no sexual content. However, I will say there were some comments made that I was surprised to see, not because of the romance, but because it is coming from a Christian publishing company.

I also really did not enjoy Kelsey’s relationship with her best friend, Ravi. Their friendship seemed unrealistic and a bit problematic, especially from a Christian perspective. Again, there is nothing that happens between them, I just wouldn’t expect this sort of plot point from a Christian book. The problem for me is that they spend a considerable amount of time together, text one another, and have a few chummy, intimate moments together, yet the claim is that there is absolutely nothing going on and they have never had feelings for one another. I mean, if I were Ravi’s girlfriend, I would have some major issues with this relationship dynamic. I think it’s harmful to spread this idea that adult guys and girls can have this sort of relationship with no repercussions. Then, when the other person in the relationship does have issues with it, they are deemed controlling and having trust issues. I am shocked this was included in a book marketed as Christian.

Lastly, I don’t think mentioning God’s name once or twice makes a book to be marketed as Christian. While the overall themes may hint towards biblical ones, I left this book feeling like it really missed out in this area. And this is a problem I would say I have more with the publishing company than the author. I have read several pieces of Christian literature over the years. I have seen it done very awkwardly and poorly but I have also seen it done very well. And I don’t think Christian literature has to be cringey and awkward, it can be done very well. However, the reason why I feel this book missed the mark is I left it thinking overall the good and reconciliation and forgiveness that came out of the characters was just chalked up to them being good people. Many of the conversations about spirituality seemed way more New Age than biblical and there was no development there. Just because I am a Christian doesn’t mean that I don’t see life as broken, confusing, hard and messy. I think it’s powerful for characters to struggle with what they believe and wrestle with the meaning of life. But every time Kelsey and Georgina wrestled, God was never a part of the answer. It feels like a cop out to not address the topic of spirituality when going into this book when it was marketed to me as a Christian read. Especially when a big part of the book is each character's “awakenings” and confronting what life means. It seem unrealistic to not include God in that.

Conclusion:
The Summer of Yes by Courtney Walsh is an engaging and heartwarming read, perfect for fans of women’s fiction and those who enjoy a good grumpy-sunshine dynamic. Despite some of my opinions on the themes and overall confusion about the way it was labeled/marketed, I do think this book was sweet, fun, and thought-provoking. This would make a super fun beach read, wholesome book club read, and a worthy addition to your summer TBR!

Rating:
With that, my overall rating of this book is 3.5 stars. I received a complimentary copy of this book, so thank you to NetGalley and Thomas Nelson. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own!

Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas Nelson Fiction for this E-ARC.

I am just simply not okay. It took me two weeks to finish this book. 1. Because I really did not want it to end. I am deeply invested in these characters. 2. Because I couldn’t actually see the pages. I was crying too hard.

I am not sure if this book was meant to be so extremely heartfelt or if it’s just the perfect book for where I’m at in my life right now but I have SOBBED through this whole book.

I will be having a summer of yes. Starting now.

Kelsey, a woman who feels content with the life she has, until she gets hit by a car on her way to work. She meets Georgina in her hospital room, when Georgina happens to share the same room with her. Together they embark on the journey of a lifetime. A summer of yes. Of doing things you wouldn’t normally do because you think other things in your life are more important. Money, work, climbing the ladder.

But you really only get one life. And what do you do when you think about how you might be wasting that, just so you can ahead at your job. Or so that you can buy the newest car or iPhone?
If you’re me, you read this book and then cry for two weeks. Then you go out and say yes to things you might not normally say yes to. Drive two towns over to try the ice cream place you’ve been meaning to get to for 3 years. Go scootering because your fiance wants too. Stay up and watch the sunrise while sitting on the beach.

Do all of those things but absolutely also read this book. This book is hands down my favorite read of 2024. It’s funny, cute, heartfelt and perhaps life changing. I adore it with my whole heart. It has absolutely the most perfect ending. I have no faults in this book. And if you do after reading it, I will not be listening. I love Georgina. I love Kelsey. I love everything about it.

Do yourself a favor and read it right now. Perfect summer read. Grab a pint of ice cream and some napkins first though.

Thank you NetGalley, publisher and author at an opportunity for an arc in exchange for my honest review. The Summer of Yes is the first book I have read written by author, Courtney Walsh. I stumbled upon this title in searching for upcoming releases and many of the reviews recommended it, so of course, I requested it when I had the chance.

The Summer of Yes is uplifting, and has a lot of humor. It’s a lighthearted read and throughout the book we see the themes of forgiveness and grace wonderfully integrated.

The book is full of banter, love and some very likeable characters. I enjoyed the dual pov, The humor and the life lessons.

Georgina is dying of kidney failure and all her success and money can’t change her fate. When she meets Kelsey in the hospital and they form a disgruntled bond over their similarities in being women who always choose work over everything they start their journey, “the summer of yes”.

The back and forth between Kelsey and Georgina is one of my favorite relationships in this story. The roadtrip to North Carolina and the scenery was perfect setting for the emotional journey that they take together. The base idea for this story although not brand new was still charming and sweet and I enjoyed the characters and the grace they have for each other.

Thank you to NetGalley and Courtney Walsh for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

I adored this story from the very first page! It has the same vibe and voice as The Happy Life of Isadora Bentley while telling a completely different story. Walsh's fan base is going to be so happy with this one!

Although the main character, Kelsey, bugged me in the beginning, I enjoyed following her character growth as she learned to say "yes" to more of the things she'd spent years saying "no" to, as well as learning to say "no" to things that weren't helping her live a fulfilling life. In a lot of ways, one of the things I loved most about this story was that it reaffirmed choices that I had to make early on in my marriage that did a lot to shape my future. I have no regrets, but reading about Georgina's put life into perspective. The characters felt so real and relatable, which isn't easy considering that I have basically nothing in common with either of them.

This is a book that is destined to become a comfort read, and one I want on my shelf so I can revisit it!

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for giving me an advanced copy to review. I was not required to leave a positive review and all opinions are my own.

Kelsey has an accident, meets Georgiana and then proceeds to re-examine her entire life. Along the way, there are road trips, boat rides, and Hayden.

I loved Hayden! His patience, easy going nature, solid grounding, even his willingness to forgive. I also liked Kelsey and Georgiana's dynamic. The sass between them was pretty fun. I also liked the idea of looking at my decisions and WHY I say no (or could I say yes).

But overall, this was just ok for me. Not sure if it was just my mood - but I had some issues with Georgiana's behavior and POV. (Maybe we were supposed to? but... it didn't mesh well for me.) Also, the constant soapbox/platitudes/in your face message felt a little forced and contrived rather than a natural progression.

I LOVED Happy Life of Isadora so perhaps I was really wanting more of that sort of discovery for the character and maybe it's just that this didn't quite match my expectations.

Again, it's probably a "me" problem because there are a lot of fun elements and a good basis of a story here.

3-3.5 stars

"What if...just, what if...I've been given a second chance here? What if I'm waking up to where I am, and I don't like it?"

The Summer of Yes needs to be on every reader's "YES" list and rushed to the tippity top of their TBRs because this book is an "LC", you know, the life changing kind of book.

Also, it may be important to note that once you pick this book up you'll actually be saying a lot of "No's" to various things like: to-do lists, dinner requests, household chores, sleeping etc.

I love that this book had two storylines that intermixed. We have Kelsey's POV and we have Georgina's POV. Each make this story richer and more all-encompassing. These characters are so different from each other and yet parallel and compliment each other so well.

Overall, having both is an amazing gift from Courtney Walsh.

You'll also be introduced so some amazing side characters (cough-cough...mostly looking at you JP - if there was ever a spin-off for this character, I would be first in line to read it. Just sayin').

The struggles, the victories, the experiences and the romance are all BIG YES's in my opinion.

If you want a book that will entertain you as well as move you and expand your heart...this should be your next read!!!

This read is for sure a top read of the year and on my all-time favorites list!! I give it all of the stars, two thumbs up and if I could give it a million more of each, I'd do that too!

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Content: near death experience, life threatening condition, estranged mother/husband/son relationship, mild innuendo, friendships, second chances, romance-kisses only.

While picking up coffee, assistant editor Kelsey Worthington gets hit by a car and ends up in the hospital. Kelsey's life revolves around work, and she just wants to get out of the hospital and back to work. Things change when the head of a beauty company Georgina becomes her hospital roommate. Kelsey wants to know if Georgina believes her devotion to work was worth it. Her admission to regrets, leads Kelsey to a summer of saying 'Yes' to life and opportunities and she is going to take Georgina with her. I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. I really like the relationship that builds between Kelsey and Georgina. I love the messages about taking time to reflect and that it's never too late to change. It's not totally realistic, especially with Kelsey's romance, but I enjoyed its positive message and read it all in one day.

My thanks for the ARC goes to NetGalley and Thomas Nelson Fiction. I'm voluntarily leaving a review.

Genre: Romance, Sweet Contemporary Romance, Christian Fiction, Women's Fiction
Spice Level: Kissing!
Format: Dual POV

I feel like *THE SUMMER OF YES* is a very different book from Courtney Walsh.
And I loved it! Sure, it's still a romance, but it's also about friendship between women and different generations.

There are four pivotal relationships in this book.
1. Kelsey and Georgina: the two viewpoint characters, who are mirror images of one another but at different seasons of life. This relationship of a growing friendship is why I would call this romance women's fiction. These women are growing.
2. Kelsey and Hayden: they meet and don't exchange names, then they meet again . . . da, da, dum—they are cute and fun.
3. Georgina and her estranged husband: this is a smaller point in the book, but critical for Georgina's arc. Do they work things out? Well, you'll have to read to find out more.
4. Georgina and her son: again, this isn't the biggest relationship, but he intersects with all the primary actors.

Themes in this book include love, forgiveness, sacrifice, work, friendship, women navigating life, wake-up call.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It's a feel-good read.

Happy reading!

The Summer of Yes is a story of friendship, family, new beginnings with some romance. Kelsey Worthington is a junior editor, although her dream was to be an author. She is a workaholic, who doesn't like to venture out of her comfort zone. She says "no" more often than she says "yes". After her scare, she decides to shake things up. While she is in the hospital, she shares a room with Georgina Tate, a wildly successful businesswoman. Georgina sacrificed everything to become the woman she is today, including her family. Now she has failing kidneys, with only a transplant to save her life, if a match can be found. Kelsey decides they both need to change their lives and comes up with the idea of a road trip and "The Summer of Yes". What Georgina wasn't expecting was Kelsey surprising her with a visit to the town where her husband and son live. This is the place where both women can start their new beginnings.

This book has such a great message. How much do you want to give up to be successful? Is it worth it all in the end? I really enjoy books with multi-generational friendships and this was another good one. Georgina has so many regrets. All she has is her company, but that isn't enough. I liked that she was willing to take a chance and go on this adventure with Kelsey. Her son Hayden and her ex-husband still loved her, but only wanted her back if she was ready and made the effort. I really liked both of them, their love and loyalty were amazing. Kelsey's journey was a bit different. She has been told before that she doesn't have what it takes to be a published author, so it is a huge step to try again. I liked how the relationship between Kelsey and Hayden developed. He knew who she was, but she didn't realize it at first. He was such a likable character, caring, honest, hard working and forgiving. This is a story that will make you look at your own life and rethink your priorities. It was an emotional story and had my feelings all over the place. This was a great story of love, forgiveness, reconciliation, friendship, priorities, our mortality and more.

This was my first Courtney Walsh book and it will NOT be my last! I have seen her share that she wants to provide lighthearted romances and she did just that with this one. I enjoy a little bit of some spice in books like a lot of people I know, but this was so refreshing to not have that aspect of it and I really enjoyed it.

This book follows Kelsey when she has a near death experience and meets Georgina in the hospital. Georgina is who all girls wants to be in the working world and Kelsey can't believe she's sharing a room with her. When Kelsey realizes they are similar in a lot of aspects and have no visitors she takes a moment to reevaluate her life. That's where the comes up with the Summer of Yes and she hounds Georgina until she agrees to join her.

Both ladies embark on a great summer adventure and it was a joy to read about! Courtney Walsh made this story so inspirational. I loved Georgina's quote "And there's one important thing I forgot about being a young woman with dreams." "We all need someone to believe in us." That's so true even outside of books. I loved the banter between Kelsey and Georgina throughout this story. They had a familiarity about each other because they were so much alike and they were so sarcastic together. They had me giggling so much. There were some heartbreaking moments but then the lighthearted side was brought back. This was such a fun, inspirational, lighthearted read for the summer that I highly recommend!

Thank you Netgalley and Courtney Walsh for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review!

I wanted to like this, and maybe I'm just not in the right headspace to enjoy it right now, but this just felt like I was getting preached at and I was getting annoyed. I definitely want to give Courtney Walsh another shot with a different book (or try this one again another time) because I have heard great things from friends, so I'm excited to read more from her soon!

Kelsey's enthusiasm is infectious, and it's easy to get swept away. After a life-threatening experience, she had a realization that she hadn't truly been living. During a chance encounter with her idol at the hospital, she decided to have a summer with no regrets. From then on, she embraced saying yes and pushing herself outside her comfort zone. Written quite well, The characters in this uplifting and inspiring story serve as a reminder that life is about more than just being consumed by ambition; it's also about finding balance.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 10 starts

2024 book of the SUMMER! WOW! What a ride.

This was my first Courtney Walsh book, and it didn’t disappoint at all. In fact, I’ll probably go and read ALL her books now.

This story made me laugh, cry, laugh again, and cry. It was full of banter, love, a mean old lady, and a determined MC. Kelsey's growth throughout the book was inspiring. I felt like I knew her personally. Georgina, the other main character, was my favorite—grumpy but wonderfully feisty.

The themes of forgiveness and grace were beautifully integrated. Seriously, you’ll want to read this book when it comes out. You are gonna love it!

Thank you, NetGalley, for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.