Perfect for fans of:
- Kelly Quindlen’s You Drive Me Crazy
- Jenny Han’s To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before but replace fake dating with queer confusion
- Summery romances
- Sophie Gonzales’ Only Mostly Devastated
- Grease but make it gay
Review:
“Just because you’re telling a good story doesn’t mean it’s the right story. And I think it’s really important to tell the right story.”
Readers, let me tell you, I have one hell of a history with this book. I started the ARC last year right before a gigantic book slump and decided to DNF it for the time being – and then I picked it up again in February and wouldn’t you know it? It turned out to be one of my new all-time favourite #LGBTQIAP+ YA romances (which just goes to show that book slumps are the actual worst and that second chances are important).
Honestly, this book was the perfect summer read. While flipping through the pages, I could imagine everything from Lara’s perfect summer tan to the warmth of the sun during parties at Jasmine’s friends’ places. The vibe of the book is very much a cozy embrace of everything you associate with summer, from lounging at the beach to cooling off under a cold shower, sand sticking to every part of you. It gave Lara and Jasmine’s summer romance that extra bit of glamor.
In this book, we have Lara, who comes back to school after a summer of firsts with a girl, only to find her long-time crush Chase Harding finally paying attention to her. Which would be all fine and well, if there wasn’t someone she knew strutting through the halls of her high school all of a sudden: her summer love Jasmine, who’s pretending she doesn’t know Lara.
What can I tell you, I was absolutely hooked by this premise. Watching Lara get her dream with Chase, finally being acknowledged by the other students who usually worship her best friend Shannon instead, feeling more confident and happier after a summer of self-discovery, only to then have her be completely and utterly confused by her lingering feelings and her growing resentment for Jasmine for messing up what should have been the romance of a lifetime? I could not stop reading.
Adler also strikes a lovely balance between the tender moments that Jasmine and Lara share in the flashbacks with their summery vibes, and the longing and confusion Lara can’t quite articulate in the present. Lara knows that there’s something she desperately needs, but for most of the book, we – like her – can’t grasp what will make her happy. Will it be going to Homecoming with her dreamboat of an epic crush, Chase Harding? Or, maybe, just maybe, chasing after the girl that got away, even if it means recalibrating all her beliefs?
I absolutely loved the discussion of changing dreams and ideals. Lara’s struggles were so relatable as she tries to understand her changing outlook on life and romance, and wonders how her mother and friends will react to her not following the traditional path. I think that a lot of the time, especially as teens, we follow dreams we think we’re supposed to (whether that’s a crush, an academic goal or the pressure to please others instead of ourselves) and listen more to what others prescribe as #relationshipgoals instead of what our hearts tell us. And Adler really pinpoints that angst and confusion, when suddenly all your wildest dreams come true and you realise that it might not be what you wanted, after all.
Watching Lara realise that she may be living a good story, but not necessarily the right one for her was as compelling as it was eye-opening. I can see Cool for the Summer becoming a comfort read, not only for bi teens, but anyone who’s part of the LGBTQIAP+ community and doesn’t really know where they fit yet. I know I found myself in Lara, and I hope a lot of readers do, too.
With its summery vibes and rollercoaster of queer confusion, Cool for the Summer is the sexy, sweet and steamy beach read of the year!
Cool for the Summer is available from Amazon, Book Depository, and other good book retailers, like your local bookstore, as of May 11th 2021.
Will you be picking up Cool for the Summer? Tell us in the comments below!
Synopsis | Goodreads
Lara’s had eyes for exactly one person throughout her three years of high school: Chase Harding. He’s tall, strong, sweet, a football star, and frankly, stupid hot. Oh, and he’s talking to her now. On purpose and everything. Maybe…flirting, even? No, wait, he’s definitely flirting, which is pretty much the sum of everything Lara’s wanted out of life.
Except she’s haunted by a memory. A memory of a confusing, romantic, strangely perfect summer spent with a girl named Jasmine. A memory that becomes a confusing, disorienting present when Jasmine herself walks through the front doors of the school to see Lara and Chase chatting it up in front of the lockers.
Lara has everything she ever wanted: a tight-knit group of friends, a job that borders on cool, and Chase, the boy of her literal dreams. But if she’s finally got the guy, why can’t she stop thinking about the girl?
Cool for the Summer is a story of self-discovery and new love. It’s about the things we want and the things we need. And it’s about the people who will let us be who we are.
