This story was cute and a perfect YA read for long summer days.
I love the roadtrip idea and I liked the fact that it’s not all perfect and loveable but it comes with realistic struggles. However, I missed a little bit of depth in the characters and although all the Swift references where cute, they became just a little much in the end. Nonetheless, 3 stars.

The synopsis of the book really drew me in and intrigued me, but I just didn't like this book. I found the characters be annoying, right off the bat, and couldn't get past that. I thin k that my HS students will enjoy this book but I did not.

a cute coming of age story with loads of Taylor Swift references! Good pacing and a fun quick read. Definitely recommend.

It can be broken.
It can be restored.
It can be found in oneself and, an essential component in a relationship.

This book pays homage to Ms. Swift and her extensive music collection, but is essentially young Carson. Trusting her friendships will be sustainable despite distance. Trusting herself to speak out without judgment of others. And, finally, trusting in a new relationship despite what she discovers about him and her family.

This ARC was provided by the publisher, Running Press | Running Press Kids, via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Being a Swiftie, I really loved the Taylor Swift References, but there were times when they didn’t make sense, like she was trying to cram them into the book. I really liked this book in the beginning, i thought the story was really cute (even though they picked up some random guy) but at the end I wasn’t really sure how I felt about it. To me Dean seemed stalkerish, when you find out everything. It was a good read but there were a few things I didn’t like.

I wasn't sure how I was going to feel about this book with all of the Taylor Swift references, but you know what? It was adorable. It was a lovely coming of age book with friends trying to navigate their last summer together before college. Putting them in close proximity as they travel across the nation to get to a Taylor Swift concert and forcing them to confront the not so great parts of themselves was well done. The plot twist felt a little obvious, but I think it worked well for this book.

I greatly enjoyed this one, and I love that there was a focus on friendship and growth. Definitely recommend!

A wonderful read!
This novel drew me in from the very first page and kept me hooked until the end. The characters were vibrant and relatable, the writing was engaging, and the story had just the right balance of heart and humor. Highly recommend!
Many thanks to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for my ARC. All opinions are my own.

I love everything Almost Famous related and I love Taylor Swift, so as soon as I read the comps, I knew I had to read this. Sadly, all the miscommunication was annoying me a little, so I didn't enjoy it as much as I hoped to. It was still a quick read, and all the references were super fun.

Thanks to NetGalley and Running Press for the ARC!

Cause the sign on your heart said it's still reserved for me. 13 Days of Summer written by Stephanie Kate Strohm is for all of my SWIFTIES!!!!!! Throughout this book you will find cute moments, silly moments, heart wrenching moments, lyrics, song titles, and albums from the Queen of Pop Music, the one and only Taylor Swift. If you are looking for a fun and cutesy book about friendships, a cross country road trip, Taylor Swift, and a semi romance novel for the beach this summer, then look no further than 13 Days of Summer and make sure it's on your summer reading list and mark your calendars for June 3rd, 2025 for the publication date of this summery read. Originally this book was going to be four stars for me because it was such a fun and cute story, but the insta- love and this miscommunication made me knock it down to three stars, unfortunately. When I first saw that stunning cover, I knew I had to get my hands on this book immediately and I'm so glad I had the chance to read it early because it was too fun to pass up. Despite this book being Taylor coded, you don't need to be a Swiftie to read this one, although you might not get all of the references. This book is also for the girlies who are graduating high school and losing friendships along the way because things happen and things can change at any moment. I can't recommend this book enough if you are looking for a sweet and cute palette cleanser. I also knocked it down to three stars because this book is centered around a group of friends going cross country for a Taylor Swift concert and at the ninety-nine percent mark we only got a tiny glimpse of the concert.

THANK YOU TO NETGALLEY AND RUNNING PRESS FOR AN ARC OF THIS BOOK IN EXCHANGE FOR AN HONEST REVIEW!!!!!!!

LYRICAL QUOTES

"Cause I see sparks fly, whenever you smile".

"Don't blame me, love made me crazy".

"You don't know if it's gonna be forever or if it's gonna go down in flames when you start dating someone".

"It does feel like a perfect night to fall in love with strangers".

"I had a marvelous time ruining everything".

NON LYRICAL QUOTES

"Swifties"- noun. The fandom of the American singer/song writer- Taylor Swift.

"Taylor just had this way of getting to the truth of a matter, right down to the great big heart of how you were feeling".

"This life is sweeter than fiction, because we are going to see Taylor Swift".

"Chick for you, my chick".

"Sometimes one simply must leave the desert and embrace the ocean".

"There isn't only value in being an artist. There's so much value in being the person who loves and appreciates the art. Art wouldn't exist without that love. In some ways, it's just as important as the act of creation".

CROSS COUNTRY ROAD TRIP DESTINATIONS
Maine- Home state
Massachusetts- Holy Grounds- a coffee shop and a Taylor Swift song.
New York- Hotel- overnight stay.
Ohio- gas, Southwest quadrant park- Balloon fest.
Illinois- Skyscraper penthouse for an overnight stay.
Iowa- rest stop/bathroom break.
Nebraska- Tenderfoot Saloon and Dance Hall- restaurant.
Colorado- Eleanor's family ski cottage- overnight stay.
Utah- group of friends went to the bathroom behind cactus on the side of a desert highway.
Nevada- rear ended by a reckless rat bastard on the highway.
California-Taylor Swift Concert.

Carson Hart's lucky number has always been thirteen and she claims it's always bringing her good things since birth. Carson's birthday is April 13th, her field hockey jersey was number thirteen, and it also connected her to Taylor Swift. Carson grew up with the albums- Fearless, Speak Now, Red, 1989, Lover, and Reputation, but she also loves new and old music from the Queen of Pop. Carson has never ever been in love before. Carson claims she felt like Taylor was singing just for her. Carson has never been to any concert ever that wasn't sponsored by her public library. It's the summer before college and Carson and her two friends will be taking a cross country road trip to see Taylor Swift in California. Carson Hart, Noemi Levin, and Eleanor Lin Hanson are all eighteen years old and the most devoted Swifties in the state of Maine. The concert is in thirteen days, so therefore they have thirteen days to drive cross country. This group of friends had to convince their parents to let them attend the concert alone, but they have to check in at least once a day and stop for a full night's sleep every night. During their trip, they take so many Polaroid pictures, the independence without their parents felt pretty amazing. They had a random karaoke contest at a Wild West themed restaurant in Omaha, Nebraska for a rhinestone cowboy hat, so of course the girls sang 22. At a random rest stop, the girls pick up a random person.

Dean Andrysiak is a James Dean look alike. Dean is a yearbook photographer, so he took a picture for Carson in front of her favorite coffee shop. Dean is the "hitchhiker" the girls picked up a long the way, he's trying to get to LA as well, but his best friend was going back to his girlfriend and left Dean behind at some random coffee shop. Carson and Dean have the same birthday- April 13th. Could Carson and Dean possibly be lovers at first sight? Dean reads books, he's a salty French fry lover, and he's taking a gap year before college. But meanwhile he's doing a coast to coast photo essay before returning to college. "When your name is Dean, you a rebel without a cause". During their cross country trip, Dean flirtatiously carpooling with Carson and her friends. Dean carries lip balm and he's super serious about self care, Lord this man is such a green flag. Dean lights up when he talks about his abuela- which is so freaking precious. Dean is always leaving the sweetest compliments when he takes pictures of Carson along their journey. The Taylor Swift concert is at SoFi stadium in Los Angeles, California on August third, Eleanor's outfit is a shimmery bodysuit and rhinestone cowboy hat, Noemi's outfit is a striped bodysuit and high waisted shorts from the Anti-Hero music video, and Carson's outfit is a black fedora, black shorts, we are never getting back together like ever t-shirt, and red lipstick. There were so many cute and adorable moments in this book, but there were just a few times were the miscommunication trope drove me absolutely bonkers between the group of girls and also between Carson and Dean. Maybe I just wasn't the right target audience as this was more YA than anything, but I still thought it was super cute and I recommend to all my Swifties.

College senior Carson heads out on a once in a lifetime cross country road trip to see dream artist, Taylor Swift, with her two best friends in the world. With anxieties about college brewing, a mystery boy joining the gang, and the lore of her besties rich and famous influencer mom cropping up throughout the trip, the trio is in for a wild ride.

This book has a fun premise and really could have been something special. It could have used the allure of Taylor to rope kids into reading a really great book! However, here’s the thing… I went into this willing and ready to love it. I did NOT go in with bad intentions or hater energy AT ALL, but I simply don’t think it was that fucking good. It was WAY too simplistic, WAY too packed with clunky references… unrefined, didn’t really offer much… and overall read like a middle schoolers fan fiction. Every single thing was a meme, or a reference, or a Taylor lyric. Literally even offhand comments were pop culture scenarios that have actually happened. GENUINELY the author didn’t offer too much. Because she lacked the ability to show a certain emotion in her own words, she had to tell us in a less than graceful comparison.

Now I’m willing to offer up that maybe I just was not the target demographic for this and a really young elementary reader would DEVOUR this… but the characters were supposedly eighteen and read far to juvenile for their age. Also they were repeatedly so mean and dramatic to each other? There was a massive plot point about a lesbian relationship that HAUNTED the entire journey and was simply NEVER circled back to (wtf). The density of references and forced nature of so many of them just ended up reading as brain rot characters for me. A TikTok sound reference -spelled out word for word word because it DIDN’T NATURALLY FLOW- is not a good look for a book. It wasn’t seamless enough of a joke to be included without explanation. It just ???? Wasn’t necessary and won’t age well either? Very bizarre read.

With the state that this digital ARC was in, I would ALSO not buy it to put in the hands of young readers because it was littered with errors and is supposedly being published in two days. I have no way of knowing if nonsensical sentences or incorrect words were fixed up. That could be confusing, or simply make it appear that such sloppiness is the norm for a product that is supposedly finished and people are paying for. Not a good standard to set for someone still in their early education.

The lyric references were overwhelming and those were only the ones that I CAUGHT. I can’t even IMAGINE how many other references or lines went over my head. I can’t imagine even the most dedicated Swifty riding for this read. Maybe some will love it, but again, it just wasn’t that good. What could have been a magical journey, was made to be a flop. I was excited to recommend this to kids going in, but honestly will not even be doing so.

This book is Stephanie Kate Strohm at her finest and cements her reputation as author that GETS teens. As Carson and her friends set out to see Taylor Swift, they encounter hilarious obstacles along the way during their road trip. We learn so much about all three girls, and their ability to love each other, and Taylor Swift, fearlessly.
The pace of the story was perfect.

A must read for Swifties! I’m not actually one myself (don’t really have anything against Taylor but she’s not my favorite either) so I’m sure a lot of the references were lost on me. I did get some of them though and I enjoyed finding them like little Easter eggs scattered through the story. Plot-wise, there wasn’t a ton happening but it touched on relevant subjects like life after high school and how friendships change over time. The romance was really instalovey but the focus was more on the friendship between the girls. I also loved the road trip aspects and all the stops they made. This is a light read perfect for summer and enjoying at the beach!

What’s not to love about a book bursting with Taylor Swift quotes and enough references to make even a die-hard Swiftie scream, “It’s me, hi, I’m the reader, it’s me”?

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing the digital arc in exchange for my honest review.

This book has a bit too much Taylor Swift to keep a non swiftie interested. It felt like it went on and on without a true plot or excitement to the story. There needed to be more to keep teens interested.

This is such a fun YA book! I'm a huge Swiftie, so I love all the references and that they are trying to get to the Eras concert. This definitely gives all the fun summer vibes.