Review – The Summer Deal by Jill Shalvis

Posted June 2, 2020 by Carole in 2020 New Release Challenge, Book Reviews / 18 Comments

The Summer Deal by Jill Shalvis
Series: Wildstone #5
Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks
Publication Date: June 2, 2020
Date Read: May 27, 2020
Length: 384 pages
Source: Won – Goodreads Giveaway
★★★★★

From New York Times bestselling author Jill Shalvis comes a friends-to-frenemies-to-sisters story… And then add in a love story (okay, two love stories). Shake. Stir. Read on a lazy summer day at the beach.

Brynn Turner desperately wishes she had it together, but her personal life is like a ping-pong match that’s left her scared and hurt after so many attempts to get it right. In search of a place to lick her wounds and get a fresh start, she heads back home to Wildstone.

And then there’s Kinsey Davis, who after battling serious health issues her entire twenty-nine years of life, is tired of hoping for . . . well, anything. She’s fierce, tough, and pretty much the opposite of Brynn except for one thing: they’re half-sisters. Kinsey is keeping this bombshell, and a few others as well. Long time frenemies from summer camp, there’s no way she’s going to tell Brynn they’re related.

But then Brynn runs into Kinsey’s lifelong best friend, Eli, renewing a childhood crush. He’s still easy-going and funny and sexy as hell. When he gets her to agree to a summer-time deal to trust him to do right by her, no matter what, she never dreams it’ll result in finding a piece of herself she didn’t even know was missing. She could have a sister, love, and a future―if she can only learn to let go of the past.

As the long days of summer wind down, the three of them must discover if forgiveness is enough to grasp the unconditional love that’s right in front of them.

My Review

I loved this book!  I have been a fan of Jill Shalvis’s books since I picked up one of her books a few years ago.  I haven’t read all of her books yet but I have kept up with all of her more recent releases.  This book might be my favorite out of those I have read.  I had such a great time with this book and found it really hard to put down.  This book is the fifth book in the Wildstone series but each of the books in the series read as stand-alone novels so you can feel free to jump into the series anywhere.  
I was taken by the cast of characters in this story right away.  Brynn is going back home to her two moms in Wildstone after being taken advantage of by her boyfriend.  Kinsey has lived with major health problems for a long time and feels like she has an expiration date so she avoids making connections with the exception of Eli.  Eli has been Kinsey’s best friend since they were kids.  He has had plenty of his own issues but he watches out for Kinsey even though they are just friends.  Brynn, Kinsey, and Eli all went to summer camp together and some of their memories of each other are less than pleasant.
All of the characters in this book felt very authentic to me.  Brynn’s entire life was turned upside down but she working to put things back together.  I loved her two moms but understood her desire to be out on her own.   Kinsey has been dealing with some pretty big health issues for years and I thought that she had a pretty good attitude about everything.  Eli has been through a lot of things in his life but he still wants to take care of those that he is close to.  
This book did a lot of things really well.  I love the romance between Brynn and Eli and thought that they were great together.  I was thrilled that we got a second romance in this book with Kinsey and Beck and I thought that their story was really well done.  The relationship between Kinsey and Brynn was really pivotal to the book.  I enjoyed seeing them open up and start to trust each other.  I thought that getting a glimpse of how they saw each other as kids through their journal entries added a lot to the story.
I would highly recommend this book to others.  I thought that it was a very well done story with a great cast of characters that focused on a variety of relationships.  I cannot wait to read more from Jill Shalvis!

I won an advanced review copy of this book from William Morrow Paperbacks through a giveaway on Goodreads.

The Wildstone Series
Book #1 – Lost and Found SistersMy Review
Book #1.5 – The Good Luck SisterMy Review
Book #2 – Rainy Day FriendsMy Review
Book #3 – The Lemon SistersMy Review
Book #4 – Almost Just FriendsMy Review
Book #5 – The Summer Deal – Now Available!
About the Author

New York Times bestselling author Jill Shalvis lives in a small town in the Sierras full of quirky characters. Any resemblance to the quirky characters in her books is, um, mostly coincidental. Look for Jill’s bestselling, award-winning books wherever romances are sold and visit her website for a complete book list and daily blog detailing her city-girl-living-in-the-mountains adventures.

18 responses to “Review – The Summer Deal by Jill Shalvis

  1. I have been eyeing this author's books, and I've actually read (and loved) the first book in the Wildstone series…so I'm off to check this one out. Thanks for sharing.

  2. Great review, Carole! I’ve never read anything by Shalvis and, frankly, I find her backlist pretty intimidating. But it’s great to know that I can jump into this one without any prior knowledge of the series.

  3. I also adored this book. Kinsey and Deck were my favorite couple. I loved him, and was rooting for Kinsey to come to her senses about him

  4. Great review. I am hearing some great things about this one. I do enjoy this author. Very curious about these books she has been writing lately.

  5. I love when the characters feels authentic and I'm so happy this book worked so well for you! I still have to give her series a go, but I really like to always hear her books have a good impact on readers 🙂

  6. I'm really interested in starting this series but man, I didn't realize how many books were already out. Great review and I'm so glad you're still enjoying it!

  7. Jill brings great characters to life in her stories. This does sound like a perfect summer read.

  8. Bea

    Nice review! Shalvis does friendships and relationships really well; it's her strength.

  9. She's a favorite author I always want to read. Her characters are excellent. Fantastic review!

    Anne – Books of My Heart