“It Happened One Summer” by Tessa Bailey

“It Happened One Summer” by Tessa Bailey was definitely a page-turner – I think I read this book within 72 hours and that’s while taking care of Sofia! I mentioned before that I am alternating between fiction and non-fiction reading so I wanted to pick up a lighter read after finishing “Hamnet” by Maggie O’Farrell.

“It Happened One Summer” is a story about Piper Bellinger who is a spoiled 26-years-old living in LA and dedicating her life to parties. When one of these parties goes a bit too far, she is punished by her family and is sent to the small fishing town of Westport where she is originally from to learn the value of money. There, she falls for a sea captain and their relationship takes off. Writing more would be a spoiler so that’s as much as I can say.

Originally, I came across this book from the video by Jack Edwards where he reviewed BookTok – yep, the books that are popular on TikTok. I don’t have TikTok to start with so I don’t know what is trending but I like someone with good literary education putting things to test. He said this book was good so I was like, sure let’s try it.

I think the book was definitely well written and it sucked me in very fast. I also think that as long as a book makes people read, it is already a good thing. However, I found that the characters were interesting only on a surface level. I did not see a deep transformation of a spoiled brat or how she would realize her horrible behavior and attitude. It just felt like things were rushed through in a light rom-com way. Maybe it is what it is supposed to be after all and I should not be looking for a deeper meaning, haha.

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“A fisherman’s life was rooted in tradition and he’d always taken comfort in that. Protocols might change, but the rhythm of the ocean didn’t. The songs remained the same, sunsets were reliable and eternal, the tides would always shift and pull”.

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“But all she could think about was … who would have coffee with Opal tomorrow? Who would walk Abe to the museum? Those visits made her feel a million times better than the momentary bursts of internet stardom. Because it was just her, living in real moments, not fabricating them for the entertainment of others”.

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Overall, it is a quick, light, and enjoyable read. Just keep in mind that it is PG-rated if you are giving it to your kids!