Book Review: Every Summer After by Carley Fortune

Posted May 9, 2022 by WendyW in Book Review, bookblogger, Uncategorized / 44 Comments

Every Summer After
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by Carley Fortune
Publication Date May 10, 2022
Published by Penguin Publishing Group
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Genres: Fiction / Coming of Age, Fiction / Romance / Contemporary, Fiction / Women
Pages: 320
Format: ARC

***I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.***


"A radiant debut."--Emily Henry, #1 New York Times bestselling author of People We Meet on Vacation

ONE OF THE MOST ANTICIPATED BOOKS OF 2022 --PopSugar

Six summers to fall in love. One moment to fall apart. A weekend to get it right.

They say you can never go home again, and for Persephone Fraser, ever since she made the biggest mistake of her life a decade ago, that has felt too true. Instead of glittering summers on the lakeshore of her childhood, she spends them in a stylish apartment in the city, going out with friends, and keeping everyone a safe distance from her heart.

Until she receives the call that sends her racing back to Barry's Bay and into the orbit of Sam Florek--the man she never thought she'd have to live without.

For six summers, through hazy afternoons on the water and warm summer nights working in his family's restaurant and curling up together with books--medical textbooks for him and work-in-progress horror short stories for her--Percy and Sam had been inseparable. Eventually that friendship turned into something breathtakingly more, before it fell spectacularly apart.

When Percy returns to the lake for Sam's mother's funeral, their connection is as undeniable as it had always been. But until Percy can confront the decisions she made and the years she's spent punishing herself for them, they'll never know whether their love might be bigger than the biggest mistakes of their past.

Told over the course of six years and one weekend, Every Summer After is a big, sweeping nostalgic story of love and the people and choices that mark us forever.


Every Summer After by Carley Fortune is an emotional and beautifully written coming-of-age story that I simply loved.  The story is a dual timeline that covers six years in the past and one weekend in the present.  

The summer after Persephone Fraser (Percy) turns 13, her parents buy a cottage on a lake in a rural town to spend the summers and holidays.   Percy discovers the boys next door to the cottage, Sam aged 13, and his older brother, Charlie, 15.  Sam and Percy form a bond that first summer, and as time goes by, the bond of friendship turns into more.  

Now Percy is 30 years old and working in Toronto as a senior editor for a popular decor magazine.  She recently broke up with her corporate lawyer boyfriend of seven months, the longest relationship she’s had in a while.  The longest relationship since Sam.  She gets a call from Charlie, telling her that his mother, Sue has passed away, and the funeral will be this weekend.  Percy hasn’t been back to the lake since she destroyed her relationship with Sam, twelve years ago.  She’s not sure she can handle seeing Sam again, but she knows she must go to Sue’s funeral.  

First love is such a powerful emotion, and in Every Summer After, we get a wonderful story about Percy and Sam and how they go from awkward friends to lovers over the course of six summers.  I enjoyed their easy friendship and their mutual love of horror stories and swimming at the lake, and how this friendship eventually developed into a powerful love.  

Their love, being first love was full of that passion and uncertainty that young lovers seem to possess wherever they live.  Their breakup was so realistic that I felt their heartache as I was reading the pages, and just couldn’t wait to see if they would figure out their issues and forgive each other. 

I highly recommend Every Summer After by Carley Fortune to anyone who loves a great romance. I received a complimentary copy of this book.  The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Canadian Cover:

As this book is written by a debut, Canadian Author and it is set in Canada. It makes sense that it has a different cover for the Canadian book.

About Carley Fortune

Carley Fortune is an award-winning journalist and author. Most recently, she was the Executive Editor of Refinery29 Canada and has worked at some of Canada's top publications, including The Globe & Mail, Toronto Life and Chatelaine. She lives in Toronto with her husband and two sons. EVERY SUMMER AFTER is her first novel.

Have you read Every Summer After? Do you want to? Which cover do you like best?

44 responses to “Book Review: Every Summer After by Carley Fortune

  1. Wonderful review, Wendy. I was declined for this book, but I definitely want to read it. Of course a Canadian author also adds more interest for me. I love the feeling of young love.

  2. Dual timelines seem to be popular lately, and I have to admit that I enjoy them. This book sounds so charming. I might have to try it.

  3. I just finished this yesterday and I’m writing review on this. It was emotive, cozy, and heartwarming read. It didn’t make me cry or anything and I could guess that big secret. It crossed my mind even before 50% of the book. But I still enjoyed this. Great review!

  4. I’m so glad to hear that you loved this book! It sounds like a great read that’s wonderfully written. I love the Canadian cover. Amazing review Wendy!

  5. This sounded good, but I had a lot on my plate so I didn’t download it. I’ve also come to realize switching timelines doesn’t always work for me. Sounds like this one got it right, though. Fab review, Wendy!

    • Thank you, Rachel. If only we could all read every single book that interests us! But, nobody has that much time!

  6. This does sound good. I love the idea of seeing Percy and Sam grow up together and fall in love. First loves are always so unforgettable. 🙂

  7. I NEED TO READ THIS. It sounds absolutely perfect for me. Friends-to-lovers is my favorite trope and I’m also a big fan of second-chance romance. A sweet and summery small-town story that’ll make me cry? Yes, please.

  8. Pam @ Read! Bake! Create!

    An excellent review of a beautiful-sounding book. Honestly, I prefer the US cover. The Canadian one seems to lean too hard towards the Taylor Jenkins Reid vibe for me.