The Summer I Turned Pretty Trilogy

I read this series very quickly. They are short, easy reads that I honestly think should have been one book instead of three. And honestly, I was disappointed in all three of them. I expected a lot more from Jenny Han after the success (and how much I enjoyed) To All The Boys I've Loved Before.

I felt like the entire first book with all set up with absolutely no pay off which is probably the main reason I said that this should have been one book. I truly believe if this had come out in 2009 and I had to wait for the next book, I never would have finished the series.

It was a good coming of age story. A classic love triangle teen romance. I've just seen better. Much better. Throughout the series, I actually had to remind myself at times that this wasn't the author who wrote The Kissing Booth because I felt they are so similar and honestly Noah and Elle are a much better story. I realize this was Jenny Han's debut series which I feel gives her a little bit of slack here. She hadn't quite found her footing yet and I am happy to know she finds it later on. Maybe she found it with her Burn series which came after this. I haven't read it yet so I can't say but I know it's there with To All The Boys I've Loved Before.

From here on out there will be spoilers- you've been warned...

Her characters were great. I really loved Belly, the boys and even the mothers. They were really well written and you cared about each of them. A few tears slid down my cheeks when I read that Beck was gone. Her presence was missed not just for the characters but in the books themselves. It was a plot device used to justify a lot of choices each characters made but I think her being in the sequels would have made them better.

My biggest problems with this book:

1. Nothing really happens

2. The big time jumps into the future

3. We see her in a relationship with Cam more than either Fisher boy

In the first book, Belly gets her first boyfriend at the beach and it isn't actually either of the Fisher boys. She realizes that Cam can't compete with either boy in her heart (especially Conrad) and she just lets her summer romance ends there. She also learns Beck's cancer is back and that's why the boys have been so weird this summer. Conrad and Belly kiss near the end but tells her he doesn't want their relationship to happen like this. In a flash forward, he comes to pick her up in Boston in the winter but we don't know why.

In the second book, Beck is dead. In flashbacks, you find out that Conrad and Belly had a short relationship (if you can even really call it that) which ended at prom and blew up more at the funeral. In the present, Conrad goes missing so Belly and Jere go looking for him. Obviously he is at the beach house. Turns out, their dad wants to sell it and Conrad is trying to stop him from doing so. Thanks to Laurel they save the house. Jere kisses Belly near the end and confirms he still likes her. Conrad finds them kissing in the car. Even though he is jealous he won't say he loves her and she realizes she needs to choose the brother who can admit how she feels.

In the third, Jere and Belly have been dating for 2 years. When she finds out he "cheated on her" (insert Ross screaming "WE WERE ON A BREAK") things look rough and their future uncertain. She wonders if she will ever forgive him. Not only does she forgive him, she agrees to marry him...(um what!? I honestly lost all respect for her here) Everyone is against the wedding, especially her mom. They have a huge fight and she moves out and into the summer house, which Conrad happens to be staying at. Nothing happens between them except for some weird longing looks. The night before the wedding Conrad confesses he loves her and ruins everything. Belly realizes she still loves both Fisher boys. Jere realizes he doesn't want to marry someone who loves two people and not just him and calls off the wedding. Flash forward, Beck and Conrad are getting married.

I think the most interesting thing in this entire series is that she actually had a 2 year relationship with Jere and almost married him. It was obvious from the first book that she was going to end up with Conrad so the fact that she got so serious with Jeremiah is what set this book temporarily apart from the rest like it. Unfortunately, we never really got to see their relationship. It went from a kiss in the car to two years later and we missed everything in between. I think that if we had seen that relationship develop properly, if we thought there was a chance they would actually get married, that we believed that Conrad was truly a first love not a last love, than this series could have been great. With that being said, despite knowing they would end up together, we never really got to see her with Conrad either. I feel like their love was told to readers throughout the series instead of shown.

The Summer I Turned Pretty is going to be a TV Show on Amazon debuting June 17, 2022. I can honestly say that I am excited for this show. I know I didn't particularly enjoy the books but the trailer looks great and I think the show will allow it to breathe in ways the book didn't. I think it will have an opportunity to really bring these love stories to life and allow us to see the parts that were missing from the novels.