Book Review: Just for the Summer by Abby Jimenez

This story had me feeling all the things and pulled in the entire time. Abby Jimenez knows how to pack a punch from the emotional moments to the entertaining ones. Just for the Summer is now available!

Just for the Summer by Abby Jimenz

A sharp and scintillating summer novel that will make readers laugh out loud and cry happy tears from the New York Times bestselling author of Yours Truly.

Justin has a curse, and thanks to a Reddit thread, it's now all over the internet. Every woman he dates goes on to find their soul mate the second they break up. When a woman slides into his DMs with the same problem, they come up with a plan: They'll date each other and break up. Their curses will cancel each other’s out, and they’ll both go on to find the love of their lives. It’s a bonkers idea… and it just might work.

Emma hadn't planned that her next assignment as a traveling nurse would be in Minnesota, but she and her best friend agree that dating Justin is too good of an opportunity to pass up, especially when they get to rent an adorable cottage on a private island on Lake Minnetonka.

It's supposed to be a quick fling, just for the summer. But when Emma's toxic mother shows up and Justin has to assume guardianship of his three siblings, they're suddenly navigating a lot more than they expected--including catching real feelings for each other. What if this time Fate has actually brought the perfect pair together?

4 out of 5 stars

Just for the Summer was such a great story. There was a fantastic mix of entertaining and emotional moments that I really enjoyed. I think Abby Jimenez is really good at balancing the light and heavy and I really appreciated how she did it with the subject matter presented. It had me laughing and crying as everything unfolded and I loved Emma and Justin getting to their HEA. Once I started, I had a hard time putting it down.

I liked Emma a lot. I felt for her, at times got a little mad at her, but I loved watching her figure out what she needed and taking the steps to make that happen. She had gone through a lot in her life and I loved her navigating it all and coming out on the other side. Justin was a sweetheart, an absolutely charming, caring man who put it all out there. I loved learning about what was going on in his life and how much he cared for his family. I thought Emma and Justin were wonderful together and I enjoyed their slow burn thanks to their breaking-the-curse agreement. I loved how they met, the fun between them, and how often they made me laugh. Their conversations were playful and inviting. There are obstacles in their way, things that were triggering for Emma, and it makes their path hard and emotion-filled at times but I was thrilled they got there in the end.

There is a nice cast of characters including cameos and mentions of some people that might be familiar if you have read this author before, those were fun additions that I loved seeing. I loved Emma’s best friend Maddy and the bond they had. I really liked Justin's siblings and what they brought to the story. There was a strong start with a lot of humorous moments that had me laughing and I liked the foreshadowing of what was to come. I thought there was excellent development throughout and when the heavy did come, it was balanced well. I feel like the majority of the heavy was at the end of the story, and some of it felt a little over the top. I enjoyed the ending but there was a lot of build-up to this major moment and I was left wanting more.

This was an amazing story full of heart and love, healing and self-acceptance as well as found families. It made my heart feel full!

Complimentary copy received from Forever Romance.