REVIEW: Our Perfect Storm by Carley Fortune

 

OUR REVIEW:

As per usual, whenever I see a new Carley Fortune at the library, I immediately put myself on the list to check it out. And as usual, I find that her latest novel, Our Perfect Storm, was a pleasure to read. It had all of the things I've come to associate with her novels: two friends who have a long history together, who care deeply about each other, but have not acted upon it (at least in this novel). In this particular novel, there was a chance for this love story to start sooner, but as it happens in many romance novels, there was an epic miscommunication or misunderstanding that led to Frankie and George to keep each other firmly in the friendzone. This, of course, creates a situation where feelings go unrequited and tensions eventually begin to form, which all come to a head after Frankie's fiancée dumps her hours before the wedding. After weeks of depression and moping, Frankie invites George to go on her honeymoon and it's during this time that feelings emerge and these two discover that they were meant to be together all along.

In addition to the back and forth of the present and past, and the intense emotions they delve into, I also enjoyed this novel for the way the setting and food were described. I enjoyed it so much that I found myself wondering if I could one day visit this beautiful place. 

Very sold summer read.

BUY IT: https://amzn.to/3Qod3yp

SYNOPSIS:

Best friends have one week in paradise to fix their friendship or fall apart in this heart-stopping, utterly romantic new novel from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Every Summer After and One Golden Summer.

Frankie and George have been best friends since they were eight years old. Both passionate, impulsive, and headstrong—they’ve always clashed . . . and come back together. Until now. It’s the eve of Frankie’s wedding weekend, and she doesn’t know where they stand or even if George will show up as her best man.

Then, at the start of the festivities, in walks George. For one glorious evening, surrounded by her loved ones, Frankie’s life is finally perfect. But it all comes crashing down when her fiancé dumps her the next morning, leaving only a note as an explanation.

Crushed and confused, Frankie returns to her family’s home to wallow. But George has a different idea and a plan for healing Frankie’s broken heart. He wants her to go on her honeymoon. With him. For one week, to the lush rainforests and misty beaches of Tofino.

Frankie agrees, seeing the trip for what it really is: one last chance to repair their friendship. Even if it means unearthing secrets and long buried feelings neither knows how to handle. Even if it means falling apart for good.

REVIEW: One Golden Summer by Carley Fortune

OUR REVIEW:

I've yet to read a Carley Fortune novel that hasn't been a fantastic read and One Golden Summer continues that streak. Gah, I loved it so much that it was one of those reads that you simultaneously couldn't get through it fast enough as you wanted to slow down the reading....it's one of those novels you want to last forever. 

There was so many things that made One Golden Summer so much fun to read. It felt nostalgic--those memories of summer always are, aren't they? And the chance to kinda sorta relive it? Who can pass that up? And there's the back and forth between Charlie and Alice...*chef's kiss*--their chemistry? So good. And then you throw in the wisdom of her grandma and some characters that some of you may recognize from earlier novels...and the hurt so good OH SHIT moment and you've got yourself a fantastic read. Loved it and so sad that I have to wait for the next one to come out, since I've read every single thing she's written. 

BUY IT: https://amzn.to/44hHb2y

SYNOPSIS:

I never anticipated Charlie Florek.

Good things happen at the lake. That’s what Alice’s grandmother says, and it’s true. Alice spent just one summer at a cottage with Nan when she was seventeen—it’s where she took that photo, the one of three grinning teenagers in a yellow speedboat, the image that changed her life.

Now Alice lives behind a lens. As a photographer, she’s most comfortable on the sidelines, letting other people shine. Lately though, she’s been itching for something more, and when Nan falls and breaks her hip, Alice comes up with a plan for them both: another summer in that magical place, Barry’s Bay. But as soon as they settle in, their peace is disrupted by the roar of a familiar yellow boat, and the man driving it.

Charlie Florek was nineteen when Alice took his photo from afar. Now he’s all grown up—a shameless flirt, who manages to make Nan laugh and Alice long to be seventeen again, when life was simpler, when taking pictures was just for fun. Sun-slanted days and warm nights out on the lake with Charlie are a balm for Alice’s soul, but when she looks up and sees his piercing green gaze directly on her, she begins to worry for her heart.

Because Alice sees people—that’s why she is so good at what she does—but she’s never met someone who looks and sees her right back.

 

REVIEW: This Summer Will Be Different by Carley Fortune

 

OUR REVIEW:

I *think* this may be my favorite Carley Fortune novel to date. 

As you can see from the synopsis Lucy and Felix's love story wasn't ever really meant to be. He's her best friend's brother and off limits. She's his sister's best friend...and off limits. So after their first night together they decide to proceed as friends only. Except that they clearly have chemistry and long for each other and despite what they think, they aren't really good at hiding these things. But they try. For five years, they try really hard to obey the rules. They fail, but vow to try again. 

We learn all of this through the drama of the day with Bridget alternating with the flashbacks of those previous five years and how Lucy and Felix become who they are to each other. I loved reading about their fleeting meet ups as much as I enjoyed reading about who they were and who they were becoming. As unlikely as it seemed-that these two could fall for each other over a series of sporadic meetings-I actually believed that it could happen. 

Carley Fortune created these two characters that I really adored. I loved Lucy's dream for herself and I loved Felix's ambition and drive. I loved Bridget's part to play in it too. And, I loved that as much as this was a story about Lucy and Felix, it was just as much a love note to Prince Edward Island ...a place I'd never really thought about much and now feel like I should go visit. 

I'm all over the place in this review and I really don't care to or want to fix it, so I'll just end with this: This Summer Will Be Different was hard to put down because I cared about the characters and wanted them all to be happy by the end. I loved that it was sweet and kind and romantic and it hurt so good. It's one of those novels I could definitely read again and not feel bored. 

BUY IT: https://amzn.to/4dHMjzL

SYNOPSIS:

This summer they’ll keep their promise. This summer they won’t give into temptation. This summer will be different.

Lucy is the tourist vacationing at a beach house on Prince Edward Island. Felix is the local who shows her a very good time. The only problem: Lucy doesn’t know he’s her best friend’s younger brother. Lucy and Felix’s chemistry is unreal, but the list of reasons why they need to stay away from each other is long, and they vow to never repeat that electric night again.

It’s easier said than done.

Each year, Lucy escapes to PEI for a big breath of coastal air, fresh oysters and crisp vinho verde with her best friend, Bridget. Every visit begins with a long walk on the beach, beneath soaring red cliffs and a golden sun. And every visit, Lucy promises herself she won’t wind up in Felix’s bed. Again.

If Lucy can’t help being drawn to Felix, at least she’s always kept her heart out of it.

When Bridget suddenly flees Toronto a week before her wedding, Lucy drops everything to follow her to the island. Her mission is to help Bridget through her crisis and resist the one man she’s never been able to. But Felix’s sparkling eyes and flirty quips have been replaced with something new, and Lucy’s beginning to wonder just how safe her heart truly is.

The story of Lucy and Felix had the perfect amount of tension and conflict and romance. 

REVIEW: Meet Me at the Lake by Carley Fortune

OUR REVIEW:

After reading Every Summer After, I stalked all the places I knew to stalk to find out when Carley Fortune would be releasing her next book and as soon as it was available on the Libby app, I downloaded it. Honestly, I didn't really even know what Meet Me at the Lake would be about, I just knew that if it was anything like her debut, I'd enjoy it. I think I naturally assumed it would be connected to the first book and might have been a smidge disappointed when it wasn't, but that disappointment quickly faded into nothing as I was quickly taken with the story of Fern and Will. And by the end, I enjoyed it even more than Every Summer After. 

Just like Every Summer After, the narrative of Fern and Will swings between the past and present. We get to see their first meeting and then their second; we get to know them as they were and as they are. We learn how they ended up so far from where they originally thought they would be and mixed in with that we get to know their losses and complications and everything in between. And finally, we get to see the hows and whys of them falling in love, how they almost break it, and how they end up making it work. One added addition? Journal entries of Fern's mom (which will all make sense once you read it). 

When I take a minute to think about why I prefer Meet Me at the Lake to Every Summer After, some of that has to do with the how less anxious I was as I was reading. Fortune's first novel had me twisted up in anxiety knots way more than this novel and while I appreciated the tension it created in the first novel, it made me so antsy. In this novel, the anxiety level was way lower and I felt like I could really enjoy the story of these characters. I also enjoyed how honest and flawed they were and how willing they were to learn and improve. Other things were: Fern and her tough, filterless demeanor, Will and his gentle-family first moral code, the Roses, the whole premise of where Fern grows up and ends up, and just the whole vibe, now that I'm thinking about it. 

Meet Me at the Lake was the right book at the right time. I needed a romance that had a little bit of everything and wasn't too deep or too shallow, a romance that was easy to read and follow, and a romance that has me excited for the next one that she writes. A great summer read. 

BUY IT: https://amzn.to/43pa3Dj

SYNOPSIS:

A random connection sends two strangers on a daylong adventure where they make a promise one keeps and the other breaks, with life-changing effects, in this breathtaking new novel from the New York Times bestselling author of Every Summer After.

Fern Brookbanks has wasted far too much of her adult life thinking about Will Baxter. She spent just twenty-four hours in her early twenties with the aggravatingly attractive, idealistic artist, a chance encounter that spiraled into a daylong adventure in the city. The timing was wrong, but their connection was undeniable: they shared every secret, every dream, and made a pact to meet one year later. Fern showed up. Will didn’t.

At thirty-two, Fern’s life doesn’t look at all how she once imagined it would. Instead of living in the city, Fern’s back home, running her mother’s lakeside resort—something she vowed never to do. The place is in disarray, her ex-boyfriend’s the manager, and Fern doesn’t know where to begin.

She needs a plan—a lifeline. To her surprise, it comes in the form of Will, who arrives nine years too late, with a suitcase in tow and an offer to help on his lips. Will may be the only person who understands what Fern’s going through. But how could she possibly trust this expensive-suit wearing mirage who seems nothing like the young man she met all those years ago. Will is hiding something, and Fern’s not sure she wants to know what it is. 

But ten years ago, Will Baxter rescued Fern. Can she do the same for him?