Author: Jenny Han
Total Pages: 320
Personal Rating: 2/5
Review:
If there were one word to describe this book it would be FILLER. Usually, within a trilogy (or book series), there are 1 or 2 books where nothing really happens but you force read in order to not miss any details. This phenomenon is so common that it actually has a name: Second Book Syndrome, and I couldn’t describe It’s Not Summer Without You in better words. The book starts off with the death of Susannah (the Fisher boy’s beloved mother). After the death of Susannah, it seems as if all the characters in the book start to fall apart as the glue that holds them together is no longer there. Belly hasn’t spoken to Jeremiah or Conrad mainly due to the short-lived romantic relationship of Belly and Conrad. But when Jeremiah calls saying Conrad has disappeared, Belly knows what she must do to make things right again. And it can only happen back at the beach house, the three of them together, the way things used to be.
So let me explain my low rating. First off, I could totally skip this book and move on to the third book while still being completely aware of what is going on. The plot of this book literally goes nowhere and it maintains the stereotypical teen-romance plotline. I had so much hope for this book because there was so much potential for Belly’s character development, but she still remained the ditsy girl that she is characterized to be, as she is still in love with both of the Fisher boys and maintains a temperamental attitude. For example, after the death of their mother, the Fisher boys are in a state of mourning without their mother and after Belly sees Conrad being comforted by another girl, she completely freaks out and begins to spew rude words at him. She tells Conrad that she hates him and word for word tells him to “go to hell”. Maybe you might see why I’m not a fan of this book.
I would not recommend this book at all but since it is a part of a trilogy series, it’s like a known fact that you must read the book to be done with the series. I don’t know if Jenny Han was going for a book that is literally “hot air” because at this point the series is kind of turning into a joke.
Thanks for the honest review!