Published: June 2nd 2015
Pages: 352
Publisher: HarperTeen
Synopsis
Before: It was the perfect summer of first kisses, skinny dipping, and bonfires by the lake. Joy, Tali, Luce, and Zoe knew their final summer at Camp Okahatchee would come to an end, but they swore they'd stay friends.
After: Now two years later, their bond has faded, along with those memories.
Then: That is, until their fateful flash of a photo-booth camera transports them back in time, to the summer they were fifteen--the summer everything changed.
Now: The girls must re-create the past in order to return to the present. As they love through their second chance summer, the mystery behind their lost friendship unravels. and a dark secret threatens to tear the girls apart all over again.
Always: Summers end. But this one will change them forever.
Thoughts
I thought that this book was such a good read. I say this because it was a typical summer read but it was mixed with some elements that you would not normally see in a regular contemporary, which I loved. But I was slightly disappointed with the fact that it was not really friendship orientated, but it was more so focused on the romance aspect with the four friends. In that sense it was kind of misleading, because in the synopsis it talks about building their friendship back up, meanwhile when you read the book, it talks more about the romances. This is why my rating is not a full 5/5 stars. Nonetheless, I recommend this book if you guys want something that is different from a typical summer contemporary, (that involves time travel), friendship, and romance.
All of the main characters in this book were good to read about as well. They were all so different and that's what made them interesting. However, I did like some more than others. Tali was one character that I didn't like too much in the beginning. But the more I read about her, the more my perspective on her grew and she became one of my favourite characters. Luce was my least favourite in terms of personality but yet she was the one I could relate to the most out of everyone, in terms of her family problems (which I have gone through similar issues). Joy and Zoe were also good characters but they didn't really stick out to me as much as the other girls. I loved how each of the characters had their own issues to overcome with Tali and her father, Luce and her family, and Zoe with coming to terms with her sexuality. But with Joy, it is never expressed clearly on what her issues are but it all comes out towards the end.
*Spoiler Alert* One of the friends passes away from some unknown cause (I believe it was cancer, but it is not clearly stated). And in the end they are all coping with their loss and I believe this brings the three friends closer together which brings back the friendship aspect in the book. However, like I previously mentioned, I was a bit disappointed that it focused more on the romances, rather than on their friendship (even though that's what the book is supposed to be about). There was some mention of their friendship and the possibilities of wanting to reconcile with one another, but nothing was actually done to make it possible.
What I loved most about this book was that, this was not a typical summer contemporary. But with the fact that it involved time travel, I thought this was an interesting twist on a summer read that I would never see in any other contemporary. This book definitely has some depth, but for the most part it is a light hearted read that I strongly recommend.
Rate
4/5
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