I liked the premise of this book and thought it was a light, easy read, but it wasn’t my favorite Josie Silver book (my favorite is One Night on the Island btw).

I feel like the execution was a little off on all the different plots/storylines. Kate is supposed to keep this huge secret, but immediately tells multiple people and even WRITES IT IN AN EMAIL. Why would you put that in writing? Way to make me immediately not feel sorry for you.

Also, this is supposed to be a romance, but the romance part was a little blah for me. I’m not sure how they went from being attracted to each other to declaring their love for each other. I was pretty surprised when I read that. There wasn’t enough romance throughout the rest of the book to make it believable.

I also wish we would have seen more of her daughter or that she would have been written in a better light. Every time she’s in the book, she’s either acting dumb and/or selfish.

Regardless, Josie Silver is still one of my faves and I’ll definitely pick up her next book!

🥰Thank you so much to @randomhouse @dellromance for the gifted book !

📖Title: Slow Burn Summer
✍️Author: Josie Silver Summer
📅Pub Date: June 10, 2025

💕I've read most of Josie Silver's books and they're always cute and fun reads for me!

✍️Overall, I liked the idea of the plot, but it was more focused on the plot than the romance, which is fine, just nice to know what to expect!

💕As the title suggests, the romance is a SLOW burn and I was waiting for the romance and the plot to pick up a little bit, especially during the midpoint where it lagged for me.

✍️I think the ending made up for it and was worth the wait though!

💕Overall, I think it will be a hit for many, especially Josie fans!

This was cute but just wasn’t working well for me. The premise was zany and if it has made more sense, I may have enjoyed it more, but there were just too many plot devices to make it all happen. I also saw the email to her daughter and immediately knew what was about to happen. I joyed the author’s last book a lot more unfortunately.

Many thanks to NetGalley, Random House | Ballantine | Dell for gifting me a digital ARC of the latest rom-com by Josie Silver. All opinions expressed in this review are my own - 4 stars!

Kate is a former soap opera actress whose life is falling apart. She lands a job playing the part of a novelist for her former agent's son, Charlie, who has taken over for his dad. The book is sure to be a hit, but the writer doesn't want to be known for writing a romance novel. Kate gets to be the face of the book for interviews, social media, and signings - until things go wrong. There's also sparks of romance between Kate and Charlie, but will the book come between them?

As you would expect from Josie Silver, this is a fun book that would be perfect for your summer reading list. I liked the peek into the book publishing and promoting world, as well as the relationship between Kate and her sister. Kate was a fun character, and her exploits will have you laughing along with her while also rooting for her. Pack this in your beach bag!

Charlie hires Kate as a “ghost author” to be the face of a new love story whose author wants to remain anonymous.

Josie Silver is a must read for me and this book is another example of why. The characters were well developed and lovable. (Everyone needs a sister like Liv!) The romance certainly wasn’t center stage, but I enjoyed the different take on the genre and the “bookish” focus. I would definitely recommend you add this to your summer TBR pile!

Thank you to Random House for providing a free ARC for review via NetGalley.

Entertaining with actually laughing out loud at a few points. I wanted it to be a bit longer really. As usual with the author makes me want to travel to meet these people and see the places from the story.

I really enjoyed reading this book.

The plot was original, and the characters were all written to either love or hate them. Both of those kinds of characters are fun to read, and I imagine, fun to write.

This was a perfect read for the start of summer. I'd recommend it.

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Slow Burn Summer by Josie Silver 3.5 stars rounded up. Josie is an automatic buy author for me. One day in December is one of my favorite books ever.

I enjoyed this story but felt like the romance was not the main focus so then the ending felt a little “insta-love” to me.

I’ll continue to read everything she writes and will recommend Slow Burn Summer (with a side note that this book is about finding yourself and starting over vs a romance)

Thanks to NetGalley for the arc!!

I decided to take a break from reading my favorite genre, historical fiction, and dive into some romance titles this past week, which led me to reading two of Josie Silver’s latest works. I’ve only read one of Josie’s books, One Day in December, and I really enjoyed it, so I was hoping for another entertaining read. Slow Burn Summer started off with a bang, but the last half of the book dragged a bit and was honestly a little cheesy. Would I still recommend it? Of course! What is a romance story if it’s not a fun little escape, and that’s exactly what this was. I also like that it was a closed door romance. If you’re searching for a lighthearted love story, then you can’t go wrong with this one.

When talent agent Charlie Francisco recruits former soap star Kate Elliott to pose as debut romance novelist “Kate Darrowby,” it seems like a simple gig—some interviews, a few book signings, and a summer tour. But things get complicated when the novel becomes a massive hit, and the lines between fiction and reality start to blur.

Kate’s charm and warmth shine, especially in her relationship with her sister Liv, which adds heart to the story. The first half offers a fun, behind-the-scenes peek at the publishing world with just a hint of romance, which felt refreshingly unique.

The second half didn’t quite land as strongly for me—the humor veered a bit slapstick, and the romance developed a bit too fast. Still, it’s an engaging, cozy read perfect for fans of bookish rom-coms and second chances.

A big thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine | Dell for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine | Dell for allowing me to read an ARC of Slow Burn Summer by Josie Silver, in exchange for my honest review.

4 1/2 stars!

A wonderful summer (or anytime) read! A love story where the main "character" is a book! This was such an enjoyable story, with lovable (human) characters, and witty dialogue. It's impossible to not fall in love with quirky, lovable, finding her way, Kate!

I look forward to reading more by Josie Silver!

This was my second Josie Silver's book. I was excited to review an ARC of this book from NetGalley and the publisher.

Kate Elliott is adrift in her life. Her only child, Alice, is away at university and is avoiding her calls. She caught her husband having an affair. She is living above her sister's dress shop after the nasty divorce left her without anything to her name.

On a whim, Kate sends a letter to her talent agent from twenty years earlier. She is offered an acting job like no other she had ever heard.

A famous author had written a beautiful love story but didn't want to publisher it let alone publisher under his name. The talent agent needed an actor to play the role of the author and be the "guardian angel" for the book.

This isn't your typical rom-com. The story line of the famous author not wanting to be known for writing the love story was an interesting twist.

With about 20% left it got a little weird with the trifle incidents. It was a little too cheesy and outlandish for me. Otherwise I would have given this a solid 4 stars.

i appreciated that this was a closed door romance.

3.5 stars rounded up to 4.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Slow Burn Summer was a cute, sweet read. I would classify it as women’s fiction instead of romance, since it focuses primarily on Kate’s journey of self-discovery and finding herself again after her daughter is grown and she goes through a terrible divorce just before she turns 40.

Kate used to be an actress, but gave it all up for love. Now, almost twenty years later, her daughter is an adult and her husband had an affair and she needs a job. She’s hired to “play” an author for a romance book. The real author doesn’t want to be connected to the book in any way, so Kate’s name and picture will be on the book and she will have to do podcasts and interviews and act as a real author would. This all gets very complicated and the lies keep building up until it all blows up in her face.

I liked the “book about a book” aspect of this, and it was gratifying to see Kate rediscover her love of books and writing and decide to go after her dreams. The romance with Charlie felt like an afterthought, and there wasn’t much buildup to it, so I wasn’t invested in that aspect of the story. Overall, it was an easy, feel-good, cozy book that would be a good summertime read.

Thank you to Dell, Ballantine Books, Random House, Penguin Random House, Josie Silver, and NetGalley for the ARC and PR package.

📔Slow Burn Summer
✏️ Josie Silver
📆 June 10, 2025
⭐️⭐️⭐️

READ IF YOU LIKE:
📖 women’s fiction
📖 journey of self discovery
📖 books about books
📖 characters in late 30’s
📖 she’s hired to pose as an author
📖 actress x agent
📖 both divorced
📖 dual POV

Unfortunately I didn't love this book, and didn't finish it. I found myself having a hard time getting into it

I was pleasantly delighted to realise, about halfway into this book, that this was less of a traditional romcom, and more a romance about the love of a good book! Kate is an empty nester - her daughter has left for college and her husband has left her for her secretary, looking for something to do with her life. She considers going back into acting (which she gave up at 20 to marry her husband) when she is offered an unusual opportunity - to play the part of the author of a book whose author has asked to remain anonymous.

I'm not sure the book's title is totally appropriate. The book is less of a slow burn and more of a roller coaster ride. And while the romance is there between Kate and her agent, what I really enjoyed is that Kate falls deeply in love with the book she is promoting, and feels strongly about making sure people connect with the book. The book focuses on how reading can be an important escape for those going through tough times (which is why I am so focused on romantasy at the moment) and asks what a reader would do to allow a book to find its community.

I really enjoyed the book, but I felt that it was marketed with more of a romance focus than the love of books. This is perfect for someone who loves books, loves sharing books and loves discussing books.

It was ok. The premise was far fetched and the relationship was a little too sudden. Definitely too many plot holes in the non romance to make sense.

This book was just ok for me. It was a little too predictable to keep my attention from drifting. Kate was entertaining and Charlie was great, but I felt as a duo they were boring.

I'm still a Josie Silver fan and can't wait to read what she comes up with next!

**Thanks Ballentine/Random House Publishing Group via NetGalley for access to this e-arc in exchange of my honest opinion.

I really enjoyed Slow Burn Summer. I thought the overall plot of Kate being hired as a “ghost author”/actress was very fun and it was exciting trying to figure out who the real author was. One thing I did not like was the insta love between Kate and Charlie.

This was an entertaining, well-written book. It was fun, charming and I didn't want to put it down. I enjoyed this book and will look for more books by this author.

Cute albeit a very slow burn romance. Sometimes the story bordered on too long for me — there were some parts that were dragging quite a bit but overall, I liked it. Not necessarily the best romance I've read but definitely one that's enjoyable.