This was an ARC from @netgalley ! I was not sure exactly what I was expecting when I was going into this book. But once I started it, I will say it had some relatable topics; not being happy in a relationship that is all you have ever known, having wondering thoughts if you are truly happy in a long term relationship and trying to figure out who you are once you are at a freeing time in your life. Samantha is definitely a relatable main character for any woman I feel! I’m not a mother as she is, but her other items she starts working on are things I see in myself. Watching how she worked while in her marriage and now that she is separated working through all the ways she had lost herself and didn’t heal. She was always pleasing others but never herself and molding herself to what the people close to her wanted and not what she was suppose to be. This was entertaining and cutesy the ending kinda felt a little rushed. I didn’t enjoy it though.

It is not lost on me that this is the 3rd book this summer I’ve read where the title are Taylor Swift lyrics. I’m not mad about it either! 🤍

Maisey Yate’s latest book, Cruel Summer was a roller coaster of raw self-discovery, learning to trust yourself and your desire to fully love and be loved. As a people pleaser, I related to the Samantha a lot in her desire to keep the peace and put the needs of all those in her life above her own. In doing so, she learns that she’s lost herself and the foundation of the life she created as a teen Mom comes crashing down at 40 years old.

We go on a journey that was not just about love but more so where she learns to give herself permission to let go of what is no longer serving her, break down emotional walls and release herself of everyone else’s expectations. I don’t think we can read this and not feel reflective of our own lives & our intentionality with others.

Samantha’s introspective character was very relatable. I I adored the MMC, Logan. He’s prickly and comes across as detached but he’s just protecting his heart. Unafraid of the tough conversations, or being sometimes brutally honest, he constantly challenges Samantha as she goes on this journey.

If you love unconventional romance stories, self-discovery journeys or friends to lovers this would be a great summer read for you! Thank you to @Harlequin and @Netgalley for sharing this book!

Samantha has the perfect life, until she doesn’t. Samantha and her husband Will have finally become empty nesters after becoming teen parents and it’s time to prioritize them. The only problem? Will wants to prioritize other people and expresses a desire for an open marriage. Unable to face an open marriage, Samantha proposes a trial separation. In order to pass the time, Samantha helps Will’s best friend Logan deliver classic cars across North America.

The one thing I can’t stand in books is when the main characters cheat, but when someone asks for an open marriage that definitely changes things. I love that during the separation, Samantha started to realize the parts of herself that she had given up and the parts of herself she wanted to reclaim. While there is a love story, the parts of the story I loved the most were the parts where Samantha and Logan were forced to face uncomfortable truths and decide what they really want out of life.

This book is for those who are okay with being uncomfortable and okay with thoughts and beliefs being challenged.

Thank you to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for this book for review. All thoughts and feelings are my own.

🔎 ARC Review

Cruel Summer

@maiseyyates
@readmirabooks
@netgalley

Publication Date: June 24th, 2025

My Rating:
🌟 4/5

👀Read if you like
Self Discovery
Husband's Best Friend 😉
40+ Main Character

“I think we should see other people…” That one sentence unravels Samantha Parker’s perfect life. She has a loving husband, three wonderful kids and a comfortable suburban lifestyle. But on the brink of their long-awaited empty-nest chapter, Will asks Samantha for something she never dreamed an open marriage.

Desperate to keep her husband happy, Samantha proposes a summerlong separation with no contact. She knows she has to use the opportunity to find herself, but she also has no interest in being with anyone but Will. She’s confident when the season is over, they’ll get back together like this time never happened.

Then Sam gets an offer of adventure from an unlikely source: Logan Martin, a classic-car restorer who happens to be Will’s best friend, asks Sam to help him drive across the country to make deliveries. Logan and Sam have never had an easy relationship. He’s prickly, aloof and a little too handsome. And as they traverse the winding roads and breathtaking backdrops of North America, her changing connection with Logan challenges everything she believed she wanted in life, love and passion. When her summer with Logan is up, will she go home to the familiar stability of her past…or choose the thrilling uncertainty of her future?

🔎 My review
The beginning of the book was SO sad and emotional, my heart was breaking for Samantha.She stood her ground and did what was best for her and let her guard down to have some fun and self discovery in the company of Logan (Her husband's best friend). I am still in awe of her resilience and am so happy to have read this!

Thank you @maiseyyates
@readmirabooks @netgalley for the ARC!

#books #bookreviews #bookworm #bookstagram #bookobsessed #heartfelt #selfdiscoveryjourney #canarystreetpress #NetGalley #husbandsbestfriend #oldermaincharacters #CruelSummer

I loved the theme of self discovery in this book, but other elements were just a little too heavy for me! I went in thinking it would be a light Summer Romance, just based on the cover, so that threw me for a loop thinking I’d enjoy this more than I did. So just fair warning, it’s not a light and warm, fuzzy Summer romance.

Thank you to HTP Books and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I read this book quite a while back but then realized I had never posted my review. I wasn’t quite sure what to think of this book when I read the description and it was a bit different from the other books I had read by this author but I did enjoy it.
Samantha Parker had it all, or so she thought. Married with three children, good home and married to the man she had always expected to spend her life with. She never dreamed that her husband Will would drop the bombshell of suddenly wanting an open marriage! Unable to accept that decision she proposes a trial separation for the summer with no contact. Each can do as they like and at the end of summer they re-evaluate. Never dreaming that one summer could change her life so much, Samantha agrees to help her husband’s friend Logan Martin, a classic car restorer deliver his restored cars to their new owners.
Logan had been around their family for a long time and he was mainly friends with Will, his prickly personality made it hard to become it hard to be a close friend to Samantha so she was shocked when he offered her a job in helping him deliver the restored cars and just get a break from everything going on.
Little did she know that he had always been attracted to her and would have gladly become closer has she given the slightest hint that she wanted his attention. Although looking forward to the break and change of scenery, Samantha wasn’t looking forward to spending that much time with Logan.
But as the trips progress, feelings and opinions change for the both of them and watching their journey was an amazing trip in itself. From frenemies to friends to lovers, she had no idea how much her life could change for the better in such a short period of time. Did they stand a chance at their happy ever after? Read this amazing book and enjoy the ride!

Such a good book! Although I did think that Samantha really needed to just get it together sometimes, I was pleased with the journey and the ending!

When Samantha's husband of 20-some years drops the bomb, "I think we should see other people," Samantha's world is shaken. Samantha and Will have been together since high school, when they found themselves expecting a baby while still in school. Samantha and Will got married and raised their children, who are now out of the house and on their own. Now Will thinks that they should separate, so that he can find what else is "out there," that he can explore. Samantha thought that they were happily in love, and that now that they had an empty nest, that they could travel and see the world. Will didn't see it that way.

Samantha agrees to the separation, but only if they both agree not to stay in their marital home, but both get out of the house and travel. Samantha ends up helping Logan, Will's best friend, to deliver classic cars across country for the summer. Logan has always been in their lives, as Samantha helped watch Logan's daughter after the death of his wife. The attraction between Logan and Samantha simmers as their cross country adventures begin.

Thanks to NetGalley and the Publisher for the Advanced Reader Copy of this title. Cruel Summer is available now!

Spicy, male female, 3rd person single point of view, contemporary romance. I read the blurb so I knew what I was going to read, but I'm surprised it affected me so much. I cried way more tears than I expected to, but this isn't a sad story. It's about the female lead character taking an emotional journey, and centering herself. It was a bit too tied up in a bow, but I appreciated the happy ending.
(Also, I will be using the phrase "penile hypocrisy" in my own life now.)

I love the growth and the pain in this book. Maisey captures the emotions of heartbreak so perfectly. She also captures the aftermath, the growth, the finding yourself which I rarely see this well done. The romance is great and a main plot point, but the focus is on Samantha and how she transforms and picks herself up after a 20+ marriage fails. A few parts felt a little slow but overall I was enthralled. Great book.

This book was okay. Well written overall, but just felt very disconnected from the characters. Parts of this felt repetitive and overdone.

3.5 stars

Thank you @htp_hive @htpbooks @htpbooks_audio for the complimentary DRC & audiobook.

‘ “I think we should see other people…” That one sentence unravels Samantha Parker’s perfect life.’

Can you imagine hearing those words from your husband of over 20 years? That’s exactly what happens to Samantha in Cruel Summer. To try and save her marriage, she agrees to a summer with no contact, no rules. What follows is a journey of self-discovery, growth, and some hard truths.

I really enjoyed it. Samantha and her husband were teenage parents, from a super religious and gossipy town… so there was a lot of past baggage for her to unravel while thinking of decisions she made throughout her life. A lot of people, women especially, will be able to relate to at least one or two of the things that she went through. As a teen mom a lot of her experiences hit close to home for me.

That being said, I did struggle with some of the repetition as Samantha delved into her past, I felt a lot of events, or circumstances were brought up too often. One character also did something towards the end that was so out of character and felt so out of the blue that I was actually really angry, and not in a, ‘this book is so good it made me feel things’ kinda way. All in all, I recommend this if you enjoy contemporary fiction, romance, and stories of self discovery.

All the stars for Nancy Peterson’s narration.

After 22 years of Marriage Will tells Samantha he wants to see other people, so not knowing what to do Samantha decides she wants to separate for the summer to figure things out and decides to take a road trip with her husband's best friend.
I was pleasantly surprised by this book and loved it. the book had me hooked from the start and i could not put it down, eager to find out what Samantha was going to do next.

This book came out of nowhere and was the most fabulous story! If you are a fan of The Summer I Turned Pretty, but you're an adult this book could have the relationship love triangle for you. (Belly & Conrad, Belly & Jeremiah. IYKYK).

I listened to the audio on this one and I spent the entire time rooting for Samantha. After her husband of over twenty years asked her for an open marriage I was so living for her adventures with the swoon worthy Logan. He's got hot bad boy turned single dad energy AND he restores classic cars. Again, swoon! The journey for this story is glorious and the destination will leave you satisfied!

Thank you to #NetGalley and #HarlequinAudio for an advance listening copy of #CruelSummer. A woman goes on a road trip of self discovery. 4 stars.

Raw. Real. Heartbreaking. Healing. Empowering. Romantic. Unforgettable. Those are but a few of the many words that flowed through my mind while on the emotional journey that is Maisey Yates' Cruel Summer.

Rarely do coming-of-age stories feature 40-year-old protagonists but that's exactly what happens to Sam in this book. She's settled in a comfortable, predictable marriage. She's happy - or thinks she is - but to be honest, she's never known anything else...until her husband blows it all to bits. Thus begins a summer unlike any she's previously lived. Crisscrossing the U.S. and Canada with Logan opens her eyes to places she's never seen and her heart to feelings and realizations she never considered. Realizations such as maybe her marriage was never perfect and maybe she's spent the past twenty-two years molding herself into what others expected her to be rather than fulfilling her own wants and needs. Realizations such as maybe what she wants for her future is something completely different.

I've been reading Maisey Yates for a long time. Cruel Summer, in my opinion, is one of the best books she's written. The lead characters are so vividly depicted, I forgot they were fictional and became wholly invested in them, their journeys, and their happiness. I appreciated their complexities, their emotional layers that were gradually revealed, and shared past experiences that took on new meaning as perspectives changed. And I cheered enthusiastically for the ending my heart was begging to see.

This is an immersive story of heartbreak, growth, healing, and forgiveness. It's also a heart-tugging journey of learning to value your needs, your worth, and your right to love and be loved for your complete, authentic self. I couldn't put it down.

Top Dish review

ARC received from publisher via NetGalley
Fair and unbiased review

Thank you to Netgalley and Canary Street Press by Maisey Yates,

Cruel Summer took a little while to pull me in, but once it did, I was fully invested. This story is equal parts emotional, dramatic, and ultimately satisfying. While the slower start had me wondering where things were headed, I’m glad I stuck with it.

The characters are layered, each carrying emotional baggage that unfolds gradually in a way that feels honest and human. Once the story found its rhythm, I found myself really caring about where these people would end up.

If you're looking for a summer read with emotional depth and a satisfying conclusion, Cruel Summer is worth a spot on your list. Just be patient with the pacing early on.

This book beat, battered, and broke my heart. And pieced it back together. I wanted to cry, to rage, high five, and hug Samantha. Cruel Summer is a romance, but more than that, it's about finding yourself and going against the beaten path, and creating happiness that makes sense for you, even if it rattles your life a bit. It's incredibly introspective and the internal journey Sam goes on is beautiful and complex. It's about overcoming grief and loss. Going against expectations and doing what makes you happy. Even when it's hard. Especially when it's hard. This book isn't your typical romance with a typical HEA, but I loved every painful second. Thanks Netgalley for the e-ARC!

This was a wonderful book about love and life, and I absolutely loved it!

I was hooked on the story of Sam from the first moments in the Texas Roadhouse, and I really enjoyed watching her character arc play out. Will + Logan were perfect foils for each other, + I really think Sam made the right choice at the end of the summer!

Thank you to the author and Harlequin Trade Publishing + Canary Street Press for my advance copy!

I really enjoyed the honesty in this book about how women lose themselves in the expectations and needs of others. Especially, when they have been raised in a strong religious conservative area. It felt like the story was more about Sam’s growth than it was about her romance with Logan, which was fine with me. At times, harsh and critical, it was a good story about personal growth and reflection.