"Two years ago, Carley Fortune dazzled readers with the beach read of the summer, Every Summer After. She hit The New York Times best-seller list again with her sophomore novel, Meet Me at the Lake, and now, she’s back with her third romance novel. In This Summer Will Be Different, Lucy takes a last-minute trip to Prince Edward Island to support her best friend—and promises herself that she won’t end up in bed with her best friend’s brother yet again. With a gorgeous setting and a story that is equal parts female friendship and sexual tension, it may be her best book yet. Here’s why I couldn’t put it down:
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Lucy is the tourist vacationing at a beach house on Prince Edward Island. Felix is the local who shows her a very good time. The only problem: Lucy doesn’t know he’s her best friend’s younger brother. Lucy and Felix’s chemistry is unreal, but the list of reasons why they need to stay away from each other is long, and they vow to never repeat that electric night again.
It’s easier said than done.
The setting that had me researching flights
Carley Fortune took us to lakes in her first two novels, but in her third, she changes it up. Instead of the private communities of Barry’s Bay and Muskoka, we get an entire island. And while Prince Edward Island may only be 2000 square miles, Fortune takes us to every corner of it. We hike the soaring red cliffs. We lounge on the vibrant green lawns. We crash into the royal blue waves. And just like Lucy, when we catch sight of the Cows Creamery cow statue at the airport, we feel ourselves relax.
I was so entranced by Fortune’s Prince Edward Island that I looked up flights, and it turns out that PEI is only a short trip from Lucy’s home in Toronto. Fortune’s descriptions of fresh oysters and crisp vinho verde reminded me of the equally delicious food and drink of Elin Hilderbrand’s Nantucket, which I have traveled to because I read about it. So, if anyone wants to go to PEI with me, I’m available.
The friendship that brought tears to my eyes
As is the case in most romance novels, the main character has a ride-or-die best friend. But what isn’t the case in most romance novels, Lucy and her best friend, Bridget, haven’t been friends for long. Their friendship begins after a disappointing work event, where Lucy’s heel snaps off, and Bridget takes her home on her bicycle’s handlebars. It grows quickly, deepening over kitchen dances and late-night conversations as the two live together. And it remains strong when Bridget moves in with her fiancé, and both Bridget and Lucy get busier and busier with their careers.
What makes Lucy and Bridget’s friendship so special is that they learned how to become adults together. Bridget was there to encourage Lucy to quit the PR job she hated in order to work at her aunt’s flower shop. Lucy was there to make hot toddies and mash bananas on toast whenever Bridget was sick. Bridget was there for Lucy when she lost someone important to her. And now, Lucy will be there for Bridget when she suddenly flees Toronto for PEI a week before her wedding.
The sexual tension that kept me turning pages
When Lucy and Felix first meet, they know one thing: They’re going to have sex. And they do. Four times. Their relationship isn’t supposed to be anything more than that, but when Lucy discovers that Felix is Wolf, Bridget’s younger brother, everything changes. Because now, they absolutely cannot have sex again, but they absolutely do have to continue seeing each other.
Every year, Lucy and Bridget escape Toronto for the coastal air of Prince Edward Island. And every year, Lucy finds herself in the company of Felix. He’s picking Lucy up from the airport. He’s shucking oysters in his parents’ kitchen. He’s showing up with Lucy’s favorite wine. And he’s looking amazing doing all of it—a paperback shoved in his back pocket, the muscles in his arms flexing, the smile on his face inviting. I mean, can you blame Lucy for not being able to stay away?
The career path that reminded me it’s always OK to change your mind
When Lucy first meets Bridget, she is working in public relations. It’s only a job to her, and she dreams of quitting to work at her aunt’s flower shop. With Bridget’s encouragement to forgo her parents’ disapproval, that’s exactly what she does. Lucy thrives in her new role, taking over ownership of the store when her aunt decides to retire. With a huge order for Bridget’s wedding, a meeting with a hospitality company that could change her life, and a reliable second-in-command, Lucy should love her career. But as she’s constantly pulled from flowers to spreadsheets, she finds that she doesn’t. Despite this realization, Lucy never looks at her time at the flower shop as a failure. Instead, she continues to crush it as she takes the time to figure out what the right next step looks like for her.
The references to a classic that put a smile on my face
Carley Fortune isn’t the first person to set a novel on Prince Edward Island. Back in 1908, L. M. Montgomery published Anne of Green Gables, the first in her series of six books following Anne Shirley, an outspoken, red-headed orphan who moves to PEI when she’s adopted.
When Fortune shared a November 2023 newsletter declaring her love for Anne of Green Gables, especially the 1980s film adaptations, I suspected This Summer Will Be Different would be filled with references to the children’s classic. And I wasn’t wrong. Fortune opens each section with a quote from the series, and Lucy and Felix even go to Green Gables Heritage Place. This Summer Will Be Different is by no means an adaptation of Anne of Green Gables, so those unfamiliar with the classic won’t feel lost. But those who know Anne Shirley will find even more to love in this novel, which is already filled with so much.
Lucy is the tourist vacationing at a beach house on Prince Edward Island. Felix is the local who shows her a very good time. The only problem: Lucy doesn’t know he’s her best friend’s younger brother. Lucy and Felix’s chemistry is unreal, but the list of reasons why they need to stay away from each other is long, and they vow to never repeat that electric night again.
It’s easier said than done.