The Last Summer of the Garrett Girls

by Jessica Spotswood

Told through alternating points of view. Since their parents' deaths, the four Garrett Girls have always stuck together, and this summer should be no different. But what starts as a few months of fun, togetherness, and friendship turns rocky as responsibilities and romance tangle up their relationships.

• ISBN10: 1492622192
• ISBN13: 9781492622192
• Publish Date: 5 June 2018
• Publish Status: Active
• Out of Print: 29 June 2021
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Sourcebooks Fire
• Format: Paperback (US Trade)
• Pages: 368
• Language: English

Reviews

[readingwithwrin]

Thank you to Sourcebooks Fire and Netgalley for the free e-book.



Last Summer of the Garret Girls follows four sisters from the ages of preteen to college age.

We have Des the oldest, Bea a recent high school graduate, Vi who is in early high school, and Kat who is also in high school.

This truly was a perfect summer read for me. It was light and funny but also dealt with a lot of real life things as well.

Des being the oldest has given up going to college so that she can help out there grandma with raising the other girls, as well as now running the families bookshop. While she loves doing it, she also feels a little bit like it's just expected of her now and like she is missing soo much of life, that her best friend is getting to experience.

Bea is in a way stuck. She's planned out her whole life with her longtime boyfriend, but now she's not sure if that's what she wants.

Vi has a huge crush on a girl, but the girl has a boyfriend and is also from a family that doesn't appear to support the LGBT community. Vi is also a huge reader and was one of my favorite characters.

While Kat might be the youngest, she's also the one that they all watch the closest because she is recovering from an eating disorder. She is also now set on making her ex-boyfriend want her back.



Overall I really enjoyed this story. The sibling bond between all the girls, and the real-life things they were going through felt real. With four different storylines, you would think this would get confusing at times, but it doesn't! Each girl has a distinctive personality, making it so you can tell instantly who each one is.



I did have two favorites out of the four girls. Des and Bea. I liked the other two characters storylines, but I loved Des and Bea's because they were a little older, and as an older reader who is now dealing with some of the same things they are now it was really easy for me to connect with them. Bea struggle with school is something I myself am going through right now, it's a really tough choice and no one can make it for you (well they can, but it most likely won't end well). Des is dealing with a lot of responsibility, and she also feels stuck because of it. She wonders if she really is missing out on what's going on, but she also realizes that she is needed and loved right where she is.



I loved seeing all of the girls grow and change throughout this story, and I wish them all the luck in the world in their bookish universe.

[Sam@WLABB]

My love for family stories is endless, and The Last Summer of the Garrett Girls was one that combine so many wonderful elements to yield a thoughtful, fun, and heartwarming story of four sisters, who experience cataclysmic changes over the course of a summer.

• Pro: Sister stories are always so wonderful, and these sisters are closer than close due to losing their parents when they were younger. The bond between them was unquestionable, and there were some fabulous scenes where that sisterly love just burst from the page.

• Pro: I like multi-POV books. This one has four - one for each sister, and I thought Spotswood did a great job keeping each voice distinct. I had no problem telling them apart.

• Pro: Each character was dealing with her own issues, some bigger than others, and I think there is a little something there for everyone to relate to.

• Con: I love popular culture, but for some reason, I don't like too much of it in the books I read. I do understand that this story revolves around four teenaged girls, but there were a lot of references.

• Pro: There is lots of feminism celebrated here.

• Pro: I am giving a shout out to the grandmother, because I love them, and the Grarrett Girls' grandmother was really special. She didn't get a ton of page time, but the time she did get was quality time, and I really liked the way she interacted with the girls and helped guide them along the way.

• Pro: I kept finding myself smiling and laughing, because this book was a lot of fun. It was also all sorts of cute and adorable with just a touch of drama to keep us on our toes.

• Pro: Books set in small towns are always winners for me, and this one had all the charm you expect form a coastal little town. I loved meeting all the business women, touring the shops, attending a field party, and celebrating Fourth of July with the Garretts and their neighbors.

• Pro: Each character experienced some growth during the book, but the one who changed the most was Kat, and her story was probably my favorite as well. Kat was not the most likable in the beginning of the book. However, after entering into a fauxmance as a revenge plot against her ex-boyfriend, she undergoes a lot of personal changes, and I really liked late-summer Kat a lot.

• Pro: There's romance, and you know I can never get enough of that. Kat had her fauxmance storyline, and Vi had a really special first romance, which was terribly sweet. I shipped both couples, and it was delightful seeing how their relationships developed.

Overall: A delightful, which thoughtfully explored the dynamics of sisterhood and growing up.

*ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.

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