Review: We'll Always Have Summer by Jenny Han

5 very emotional chocolate chip cookies.

Cover Love: Yes. I don't love it as much as the first cover, but it fits with the rest of the series.

Why I Wanted to Read This: I loved the first two books (The Summer I Turned Pretty and It's Not Summer Without You--links to my reviews). I was so excited when this one was available through Simon & Schuster's Galley Grab program. I held off reading it for a few weeks, but finally broke down. Here's the synopsis from GoodReads:

It's been two years since Conrad told Belly to go with Jeremiah. She and Jeremiah have been inseparable ever since, even attending the same college-- only, their relationship hasn't exactly been the happily ever after Belly had hoped it would be. And when Jeremiah makes the worst mistake a boy can make, Belly is forced to question what she thought was true love. Does she really have a future with Jeremiah? Has she ever gotten over Conrad? It's time for Belly to decide, once and for all, who has her heart forever.

I Kept Reading Because: I couldn't put it down. At all.

Romance?: Oh yes. So much romance and so much love.

What I Liked (& Didn't): The first part of this book was hard to read. Everyone was acting so awful: Laurel (Belly's mom) was being a bitch, Jeremiah and Belly were being immature and stubborn and Conrad was once again trying to figure out his feelings.

I had ended the second book firmly on Jeremiah's side because Conrad was so crappy to Belly, but the first book & Belly's memories had already made Conrad so wonderful. It was hard to watch him self-destruct like he did. It was good to see him with his life back together. He had grown and matured and once again he was a boy worthy of bring loved.

You certainly got the feeling that Jeremiah was marrying Belly just to spite Conrad. I do believe that Jere loved Belly, always, but there was certainly an underlying reason to his desire to marry Belly so quickly.

And Belly's mom! Ugh. I understand Laurel's fear and unhappiness, however, why couldn't she see that the more she dug her heels in the more Belly felt she had to marry Jeremiah--she couldn't back down.

I enjoyed having a few chapters from Conrad's point of view. It was so nice to finally hear why he was such an ass in the second book. Sigh.

I don't feel I can write anymore without giving things away, however, the ending is very satisfying and while I am not sure it worked out well for everyone involved, I feel it worked out well for the reader.

Jenny Han wrote a tangled love story and wrote her way out of it. She is brilliant.

And Susannah was present--in spirit, loved that addition!

To Sum Up: Read these books. They are wonderful. Put them on your summer reading list and be ready to read all three straight through.