Declan and Oliver’s romance was sweet, but it developed a bit too quickly to feel fully believable. A slower build with more tension would’ve helped. Despite the reality dating show setup, the story didn’t focus much on the show itself. The writing was easy to read, but some emotional moments felt underdeveloped, and secondary characters were a bit flat. Still, it’s an entertaining, fast-paced read with a fun premise—great if you enjoy light queer romances in reality TV settings.

Thank you for the ARC of this book.

Think Love Island…but two of the men get it on!


We follow Declan, a famous boxer who has been on and off “dating” his best girl friend for years, and has decided to give “love” a real shot in the villa. Then there’s Oliver, who’s still in love with his ex-girlfriend and has entered the villa with every intention of winning and using the prize money to follow her to NYC.

Sprinkle in one of them being in the closet and the other having a bi awakening, and you get Summer of Love.

I loved the concept of this book and it had so much potential and could have been so good but, I think it just fell a bit flat. I didn’t buy into the relationship; it felt like it came out of nowhere, and the chemistry and tension weren’t really built up at all. I found myself not really caring by the end, as it became quite predictable.

Overall, it was a fun read, and I imagine BookTok will eat it up but it just wasn’t for me

This was a fun read. I am not really a huge fan of reality TV and I don't watch any reality dating shows so I was unsure how I would feel about Summer of Love. Overall I would say that I enjoyed it. The characters were likable and the relationships were sweet (though very unrealistic for reality television). My only real complaint is that I felt Oliver and Declan romantic relationship progressed too quickly. It felt like they had barely become friends and then all of a sudden they were into each other. I wish the author had spent a little more time building the tension between them before getting them together.
*3.5 rounded up

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC!

Here’s what I loved about this book; Declan and Oliver falling in love, the setting of being on a dating reality show, the friends they made. When the story between the two of them picked up, it was really good. But there wasn’t anything else interesting about the story. The beginning and ending was a lot of time jumps that I didn’t feel were necessary, I would have liked to have more of the reality show aspect. There was barely any games or dates and we didn’t get to see most of the dates. So I struggled with seeing a future for any of the characters. I also hated the miscommunication in this. I understand they were on camera but it maybe twice is enough.

Sweet and heartwarming. There’s not a lot of character exhibition but they are fun. The promise of the drama of a reality show is delivered. The writing is simple. Sometimes it gets hard to keep track of the characters. It would’ve been much better with a bit of stronger character development, feelings and stakes.
Thank you for the ARC.

Thank you to Netgalley and Canelo for the ARC in exchange for a review!

If you love watching reality TV you will really like this book! This had all of the drama you could ever need, while also showing how production manipulates what happens during these shows. I wish the side characters had a bit more depth, as I think they had a lot more potential. I also would have also liked a little less focus on what was going on in the show, and more development between the relationships between the characters. The book was really like watching a reality TV show, where you don't really see much depth behind the people participating. I did appreciate the last part of the book post show finale, but I wish it had a bit more!! I wanted to watch the relationship between Declan and Oliver grow, as they didn't have much time to do that during the show in front of all the cameras. Overall, a light and fun debut book!

“Too Hot To Handle” but make it a book that explores the “what if…?” almost everyone has thought about at least once while watching the reality: What would happen if two contestants fell for each other when they’re not one of the straight couples the show’s aiming for?

I’ve always found the idea interesting, so it was really entertaining reading about how nuanced said situation can be, and the complications it can entail.

I enjoyed it overall, it was a light read. That being said, I didn’t like everything about it: Every female character was treated as a prop for either of the main characters (or their “mates”). They weren’t just their own characters, and, as accustomed as I am to reading female centered books, I heavily disliked that. But hey, that’s just my perception!

[Thanks to NetGalley, Canelo, and the authors for providing me with a free ARC of this book in exchange for an honest opinion!]

3.5 🌟
Spice: just kissing
Format: audio

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

I was excited for this one, unfortunately for me ot didn't deliver. The sole focus being more on the reality show and so many contestants instead of Oliver and Declan made me downright bored. It took away from any character development for them and made the chemistry non existent. I feel I'm being generous with my rating, but the audio was enjoyable to not DNF.

I really enjoyed Summer of Love! The Love Island-inspired setup was such a fun and fresh idea—I haven’t read anything like it before, and it totally hooked me from the start. Declan and Oliver’s relationship was so sweet, and I loved watching the chemistry build between them.

That said, I do wish their connection had been explored more while they were still on the show.

Overall, this was a sweet, easy summer read with a unique premise and a charming romance. I’d definitely recommend it to fans of reality TV and LGBTQ+ love stories!

Declan was only looking for some free marketing when he signed up for a reality dating show. He was going to be going with his best friend because people thought they were dating and they thought it could be fun. They are wrong though, because Declan is gay.

But, since only his best friend knows, Declan is going to spend the summer dating women and trying not to think about how much he wants to kiss his cute bro instead.

I have to start saying that I don’t like reality shows, so I wasn’t the audience for this. I requested the ARC because I had enjoyed another book with a similar premise and this was marketed for fans of Red, White and Royal Blue (still trying to figure out WHY, they didn’t have anything in common other than being a new adult and the lack of spice).

Summer of Love was different from what I was expecting. First, the reality show stole the focus from the romance during the majority of the book. I thought the reality dating show was only going to be a plot device to make it fun and set the meet cute, and that it would fade to the background as we progressed.

It wasn’t like that.

We had more conversations with other people than between the main couple, which it’s not necessarily bad, but you need to enjoy reality shows to appreciate the story. We even had a few POVs of a woman who worked on the reality show, which shifted the focus from the romance even more. The secondary characters were easy to like though, even if a few of them felt a bit flat, but I think in some cases (Niall and Stella, for example) it was done on purpose to add a bit of humor.

The second thing I was dreading after seeing the ratings was the writing style. This was a debut, so I went with the bar set very low and was surprised about how easy it was to read. However, even though the writing wasn’t bad, I had problems with the execution of some secondary plotlines, sometimes it felt the pacing wasn’t completely right and, specially, we needed to see more of what the characters were thinking. For example, at some point they kiss and they don’t really think about it. It was so weird I actually went to check if I had imagined the entire scene. Was a kiss really that insignificant to the main characters that they didn’t think about?

I wanted to see the characters’ fears, their dreams and goals. I feel the majority of their thoughts were about the reality show and not their feelings towards the person they were supposedly falling in love with. Still, it was a book that was easy to read and the characters were easy to care about. Though it was frustrating at first, I ended up appreciating the dialogues with the secondary characters.

Overall, I wasn’t the audience for this but I read it fast and it was pretty entertaining. I’d recommend it if you love reality shows and, at some point, you shipped two men who were dating women and wanted them to be together instead.


I kindly received an ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I would recommend this book to reality show lovers who enjoy fast pace books which are easy to binge. The concept of the story is enjoyable and the writing is really good.

*Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this free ARC in exchange for an honest review. Pub date: June 5, 2025

“For anyone who needs a queer story with a happy ending” — a welcome dedication page in 2025!

Hard to keep track of all the characters because I wasn’t really invested in any of them until after the halfway mark. Maybe if you watch all of the reality dating shows, this will reel you in from the start but it was slow going for me.

This follows Oliver (recently dumped by his gf of forever) and Declan (closeted gay boxer who is healing from an injury) who find themselves on a hetero reality dating show with a ton of other couples chosen by the producers. I felt like the focus on other cast members cheated us from what we could’ve had with Oliver and Declan. I really enjoyed these two and their story but feel like we only got half a book about them in the end!

a good ole fashioned rom-com reality show with an mm twist(?) -- sign me up.
there's a lot of expected turns in this funny summer popcorn book, and a few interesting swerves as well. there's also a couple of unpolled threads (red herrings even?). Mixed with how much I actually liked the two main characters Dec and Oliver, and altogether it makes for a rather enjoyable ride. definitely one I'd recommend to others..

This multi PoV love drama is great for lovers of dating reality shows. Paige is vying for a leg up and a promotion, Declan and Oliver who are contestants have their own motives for why they want to win at this game show of love. While the drama is plentiful, I didn’t find it to be typified by romantic swoony plot arcs. I found it difficult to connect to the couple and even though the premise is described upfront it still three me off how heavily the book leans into the reality show element of the plot. For a majority do the time it’s the interactions stemming form the show that are the star and that left me honestly dissatisfied

However of you love these kinds of shows this one literally reads like a behind the scenes of one so it might be for you.

Summer of Love is fun and fast paced, and definitely one of those books you can binge read by the pool! Oliver and Declan are adorable, and their chemistry is palpable! However, I wish things hadn't felt so rushed between them.

Figuring out your sexuality is hard enough on your own, but figuring it out on national TV is a NIGHTMARE! Oliver and Declan have recently joined the cast of Britain’s hit heteronormative romance spectacle Summer of Love. Declan is a closeted professional boxer whose career is on the line and only signed up as a favor for his best friend. Oliver is a ballet dancer recovering from a disastrous break-up. When both boys should be playing the game to find, or at least pretend to find love with one of the ladies on the show, but instead are forced to confront their feelings for each other drama ensues. Fans of reality TV shows like Bachelor in Paradise and Love Island will enjoy the comfortable formula of Declan and Oliver’s tryst, but those seeking a little more substance and spice will be disappointed as everything remains appropriately brief and chaste for TV. That said, Easton provides a breezy beach read perfect for a romance fans next summer getaway.

Summer of Love is a Love Island-inspired novel about two men competing on a reality dating show who end up falling for each other instead of the women.

The Characters:
Declan: a boxer, who is there for fame and to make the world stop thinking he's dating his best friend Georgia, without also having to come out as gay.
Oliver: a ballet dancer, who agreed to the show on drunken whim. He wants to win the money so he can move to New York and win back his ex-girlfriend Sophie.

Declan and Oliver start as rivals, before morphing into a bromance, then a romance. It is very easy to love Oliver, who is kind and earnest, but I also became very fond of Declan. At the beginning, he's a dick with all his scheming, and he's also very inauthentic. However, I think through his POV you understand why he's being like that (even if you don't approve) and you also see how gone is from Oliver from the very start. The build up and slow burn of their relationship was delicious.

You don't need to be a fan of reality dating shows to enjoy this story. I haven’t really seen much reality dating tv, except a season of Temptation Island because my friend was on it. However, I have read several books with this general plot line. Summer of Love still felt very fresh and unique to me.

Additionally, there is a whole cast of characters that you get to follow as they seek love and/or fame (the fellow contestants), revenge (Georgia's ex-boyfriend), or high ratings (the show's host and producers). Altogether, what you get is a fun book with good vibes, great for reading by the pool.

4.5⭐️ but I’m rounding up because I was really feeling it.

This was such a fun, summer read!! As someone who watched and devoured seasons of Love Island, this book was very reminscent and scratched a similar itch! It was fun to think about the things happening behind the scenes that us as the viewer weren't privy to, but as a reader we could be! It was especially fun watching their relationship blossom from enemies to bromance to lovers. I especially loved the couple of chapters that took place after the show, and the epilogue was so adorable!!

I absolutely adored this book. It’s one of my most enjoyable reads of the year so far, and I’ve read A LOT. It has very similar shades to one of my all time favorites, The Charm Offensive, as well as various reality tv shows, particularly Love Island, Too Hot to Handle, and Perfect Match.

Oliver and Declan were great together, but I wish we got to see more of them actually together. They’re both hiding who they are, as that’s the concept of the reality show they’re on, and they keep getting involved in “relationships” with various other women on the show, mostly just to keep themselves popular in the eyes of the general public and to stay on the show as long as possible. Loved that there was a dual POV, but Declan was the clear main character, as even though Oliver got just as many chapters, Declan was the one who was fully developed. There was a lot of attention given to the others on the show with them as well, which I liked, but it could have been dialed back a bit to focus more on Oliver and Declan themselves and how they find themselves falling for each other.

Overall, it was a very solid debut for this duo, and I really look forward to see what they come out with next- whatever it is, I’ll definitely be reading it!

This was a great summer read! I liked that it was dual pov between Declan and Oliver and I also really liked them both as characters. I also thought the setting of a love island type show was a fun one and was definitely one of the better done books I’ve read with this format!