Sunburn is a tender and heartbreaking coming-of-age novel set in small-town Ireland, where Lucy struggles with the weight of societal expectations and her own forbidden love for her close friend, Susannah. As their bond deepens, Lucy is forced to confront the suffocating pressures of family, tradition, and her growing feelings, leading to a devastating choice that will change everything. A beautifully written exploration of love, identity, and the complexities of growing up in a conservative, close-knit community.

This is now the 3rd time that I have read this book in its entirety and it is so damn good that I’ll be chasing this feeling for the rest of my life. No exaggeration here. The lyrical writing, the sapphic longing, the way I'm still having to convince myself that Taylor Swift did not write this story under a fake name. This book has it all. This one is special. It's got it all.

TAKE ME TO CHURCH!!!!!

5/5 stars. Perfection. Needs a movie adaptation ASAP and a LARGE PRINT FORMAT edition for us low-vision girlies!

This is a “vibes” book, driven by prose, setting, and analysis rather than plot, so it won’t be for everyone. Some may find the protagonist too wordy, dramatic, analytical (she is) but if you want to be swept along with the angst, obsessions, and wonder of first love, you will, like me, be charmed. This is an LGBTQIA love story, and set in rural Ireland, and both of those elements are thoughtfully explored, but it as, at the end of the day, a story of love and growing up.

Many thanks to Melville House and NetGalley for the digital copy of this to read. This probably isn’t surprising, but as a lesbian and a recovering Catholic, Sunburn hit on every level for me. The religious imagery, the sapphic yearning, the desperation to capture lightning in a bottle and then let it out without hurting anyone, but it’s never possible not to hurt anyone, is it? Chloe Michelle Howarth’s writing in this book is gorgeous, lyrical, and haunting. I could’ve underlined something on every page.

It reminded me of a more grown-up version of Nancy Garden’s Annie on My Mind, with a little bit of Eva Baltasar’s influence in terms of the way the book handles sensuality and describes the female body with a woman’s gaze, but still a lustful one. It’s hard to deny that Howarth has perfectly and accurately depicted a very specific feeling and brought that feeling to life in a beautifully-described place. Still, in its specificity, Sunburn still engages with the universal.

Can you tell I absolutely loved this book? Giving this five stars has been one of the easiest decisions of the year so far.

THIS BOOK!!!!! changed me.
for the better? Im not sure.
was it devastating? yeah.
did I have an amazing time? in a sense.

the ultimate moral of the story:
DO NOT ❌ get into a wlw situationship.

This book was emotional warfare for sapphics who grew up in the church and love sally Rooney. A perfect intersection of my interests and identity!

It was genuinely devastating and the writing was incredible. HOW IS IT A DEBUT NOVEL!!!!! HOW!!!! I am gutted and I cried and I laughed and most importantly I felt so seen. Loving women is a beautiful thing!!!!! And it’s also deeply scary and vulnerable. I think this captured a lot of the scary yet wonderful feelings one feels when coming to terms with their sexuality. I absolutely adored it and for sure one of my favorites all year.

I read Sunburn earlier this year and it is one of my favorite novels. This is a true 5-star read for me.

It follows Lucy, a girl from a heavily religious, small town. Lucy has committed the grave sin of falling in love with her best friend. Not only that, she realizes that she will never be able to happily live the life that she was raised for. This novel is raw compulsory heterosexuality and a true reflection of what many lesbians faced growing up.

Sunburn is so heavy and suffocating. It is all consuming. “To be with her is a sin, to be without her is a tragedy.” There was not a single moment where any of Lucy’s words or actions didn’t weigh heavy on my chest.

This took me a second to get into because it is a bit dense, but it is so beautiful and poetic and romantic and there’s absolutely a reason why everyone on sapphic booktok is obsessed with it. The characters are all so complex and real and the writing is extraordinary. This is one of those books that absolutely lives up to the hype.

Thanks to NetGalley!!!

This is the epitome of literary fiction for me. The writing is so beautifully done I want my memory erased just so I can experience this all over again.

This story story follows Lucy and her struggles with growing up queer in a small Irish town in the 90s. It’s a mix of everything. This novels shows us different dynamics of love but also of shame and the power that can hold. We’re shown the complexities of mother and daughter relationships. And we see firsthand the meaning of true friendship.

Sunburn just felt so real and honest. It’s a forbidden love story with real obstacles and real heartbreak. And this is a book I could not put down and I think a lot of people will feel the same!!

I had such high hopes for Sunburn but I just didn't enjoy it as much as I had anticipated. I felt my mind drifting off frequently which is usually a sign that i'm not 100% invested in the story or writing style.

Thank you NetGalley and Melville House Publishing for the ARC!

When I started this one I thought I was going to enjoy it thoroughly. But it was mostly forgettable. I got to the end and realized that I couldn't quite sum up what had happened or how I felt about it. I do think that there are some people who this will work for and I will be sure to tell them that they should look into it. I wish I had more of a well-rounded review but I really breezed through it without retaining much.

On a sentence level, it is beautifully written.

So poignant and heartbreaking. Beautifully written. Lucy and Susannah live in a time and place where being gay/lesbian is unheard of, unacceptable. The intensity of first love, especially as a teenager, is something that will always be a part of you. It gets burned into you, your mind, your soul. It feels like /the/ love. My heart breaks for the two of them traveling through life having to had separate and not see things through. Breaking up, choosing not to be together, when you still love each other is harder than any other break up. This novel perfectly displayed the questioning of sexuality, wanting to fit it and be accepted that you fake who you are to get it. There is nothing quite like the first teenage relationship - especially one such as this. My heart shattered knowing that people have gone through and still go through this. Such an exceptional novel.

I enjoyed this, but the format for the eARC was pretty messed up and difficult to read; it was unreadable on Kindle so I had to switch to my laptop reader, and even that had some formatting difficulties.

Thank you, Net Galley, for the ARC copy of Sunburn. This was uniquely and intricately well-written. It was the 90s, Irish, sapphic literary fiction I didn't know I needed. The author's characterization of small-town life, expectations, judgments & beliefs was told in a story-telling style that raised a basic premise to a masterpiece.

The descriptions. The lushness. The violent and grotesque metaphors. The symbolism. Sunburn is so wonderful-not necessarily because of what happens- but because of how the story is told.

I did not expect to love this as much as I did- and I couldn't stop reading it. I devoured this one. Thank you Chloe Howarth, for your beautiful work.

Reminiscent of growing up in small town in Uk. This is 1990s Ireland. Gay wasn’t even a term spoken of. Well written and evokes small town communities. Thank you to the author. Thank you to #netgalley and the publisher for an ARC.

The whole book I wanted to yell at Martin.
Overall I did enjoy this book, it had many impactful quotes. I enjoyed the internal monologue regarding Lucy's sense of self. This is exactly the kind of book I want to read, I wish it could go on forever.

A coming of age story in which the main character is forced to choose between pleasing her family or following her heart. Ain’t that the way. Though the main character is mature and introspective, the teenage awkwardness & anxiety was very real and reminiscent. The characters felt genuine - flawed and emotional. There were some that I wish we had gotten to know a bit better. The book was hard to put down and the writing itself was lovely.

When I first started this book I was not sure it was going to be for me. It seemed to be a simple coming of age story. The more that I read the more that the story pulled me in. The struggles that the characters were dealing with were relatable. I feel that some stories make loving someone seem easy and this story shows how hard it can be. I would recommend this book to anyone, but especially those in the LGBTQ community who are looking to understand the way they grew up in a world that didn't accept them.

Such a good coming of age story about girls being girls. But the message in here is clear. A beautiful story.

really well written book with strong themes and discussions of religion and identity and how our fls love is treated as a sin. 5 stars. tysm for the arc.

This was a 5 star read. It was a soft, beautifully written story about finding the courage to be true to yourself. It meant a great deal to me having grown up in a conservative home and finding myself at a young age compromising who I was and maintaining a relationship for a long time simply for the church and my family. I found my heart breaking for Lucy and for myself over and over again throughout the entirety of this novel. Thank you, Chloe, for writing something so deeply relatable. This is my favorite read of the year so far.