You don’t understand how obsessed I was over this series back in the day. It got me through my 20’s and we’ve seen it as a movie and it flopped (but I loved the movie). And now it’s a tv series on Peacock starting September 15th! I don’t even have Peacock which kind of sucks because how many streamings services do I need to pay for? 😩
I know book to tv adaptations alway have changes but I just hope the series is GOOD. Will you be watching it? Here’s the trailer:
Another movie I watched while working on stuff was Hello, Goodbye, and Everything in Between! The book is written by Jennifer E. Smith and I’ve read two books from this author but not this particular one.
Here is the synopsis from Goodreads:
On the night before they leave for college, Clare and Aidan have only one thing left to do: figure out whether they should stay together or break up. Over the course of twelve hours, they retrace the steps of their relationship, trying to find something in their past that might help them decide what their future should be. The night leads them to family and friends, familiar landmarks and unexpected places, hard truths and surprising revelations. But as the clock winds down and morning approaches, so does their inevitable goodbye. The question is, will it be goodbye for now or goodbye forever?
Charming, bittersweet, and full of wisdom and heart, this irresistible novel from Jennifer E. Smith, author of The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight, explores the difficult choices that arise when life and love lead in different directions.
Here’s the trailer for the movie which you can find on Amazon Prime Video:
I thought the movie was cute and fun and Jordan Fisher is an amazing actor. He’s been in P.S. I Still Love you on Netflix and he was on the live tv version of Rent! I am so impressed with his acting and singing skills – he just leaps off the screen, he has that blinding smile and his energy is just infectious.
The story basically takes place in the span of 24 hours. Aidan and Clare have their last date before ending things (like they planned in the beginning) and it’s going well until Aidan tries to convince Clare they should try it out and be together long distance. I loved all the scenes with Aidan and Clare on their dates – they really were the cutest couple. It was a good movie, short, sweet and a little problem that gets resolved in the end.
Have you read the book or watched the movie?
~ Yolanda
While I was making some metal hand-stamped keychains for my Etsy shop I looked for a movie to watch and ended up watching Our Chemical Hearts. I recognized the actor who plays Henry (Austin Abrams) as the guy who plays Dash in Dash & Lily on Netflix and of course he plays Ethan from Euphoria .
I didn’t read the book that is the basis for the movie but I remember seeing the title around years ago. Here is the synopsis from Goodreads:
Henry Page has never been in love. He fancies himself a hopeless romantic, but the slo-mo, heart palpitating, can’t-eat-can’t-sleep kind of love that he’s been hoping for just hasn’t been in the cards for him-at least not yet. Instead, he’s been happy to focus on his grades, on getting into a semi-decent college and finally becoming editor of his school newspaper. Then Grace Town walks into his first period class on the third Tuesday of senior year and he knows everything’s about to change.
Grace isn’t who Henry pictured as his dream girl-she walks with a cane, wears oversized boys’ clothes, and rarely seems to shower. But when Grace and Henry are both chosen to edit the school paper, he quickly finds himself falling for her. It’s obvious there’s something broken about Grace, but it seems to make her even more beautiful to Henry, and he wants nothing more than to help her put the pieces back together again. And yet, this isn’t your average story of boy meets girl. Krystal Sutherland’s brilliant debut is equal parts wit and heartbreak, a potent reminder of the bittersweet bliss that is first love.
Here’s the trailer for the movie which you can find on Amazon Prime Video
The movie is sad ☹️. Grace is going through some major stuff and Henry is falling in love with her. It was not going to be an easy happy ending for these two. But do they learn about themselves in the journey of their relationship? Definitely. I think it was a good movie, but like I said – it’s a sad one. I liked Henry’s friends though, they were a cute, and quirky bunch.
Have you read the book or watched the movie?
~ Yolanda
My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Title: The Summer I Turned Pretty
Author: Jenny Han
Format: ebook (borrowed)
Pages: 276
Publication Date: 5/4/09
Publisher: Simon Schuster Books for Young Readers
Categories: Young Adult, Romance, Teen, Summer, Coming of Age
Belly measures her life in summers. Everything good, everything magical happens between the months of June and August. Winters are simply a time to count the weeks until the next summer, a place away from the beach house, away from Susannah, and most importantly, away from Jeremiah and Conrad. They are the boys that Belly has known since her very first summer—they have been her brother figures, her crushes, and everything in between. But one summer, one terrible and wonderful summer, the more everything changes, the more it all ends up just the way it should have been all along.
Content Warning: cancer
I read this back in 2009 and gave it 4 stars on Goodreads! That was 13 years ago…wow, I was single or just about to date my hubby. Crazy how long ago it was and my headspace was super different. Now I’m in my early 40’s with 2 kids, one who’s about to turn 10 years old. 😅 I don’t usually review re-reads but I will definitely do them if I never did a review for them on this blog. And I only did a re-read of this because the series on Amazon came out and I think they did such a good job. But so many people said lots of things were changed and I wanted to see what they were since I didn’t really remember the book except for being annoyed with Belly and being in love with Conrad. 😂
Here’s what I thought:
+ This is a such a quick read, it’s only 276 pages! Now young adult books can be like 500 pages long, so this was quick. It gave all the summer vibes as expected. I did forget all the time jumping it did from past summers to the present. The show didn’t do as many flashbacks as the book.
+ Jeremiah and Belly have more time together in the book than in the show. I can feel their bestie vibes.
+ Conrad is still that guy! I can see why I fell for Conrad because he’s the hurting, handsome guy and I was reminded that Belly was always in love with this guy. It’s always Conrad for her.
~ Because I’m so much more older – this actually bored me a bit. Belly is whiny and understandable because she is young! It’s jumping timelines from when she’s 11 to 14 to 15, etc…so we see her as a whiny girl. And I can’t see that much changes from 11 to 16. I can see why Conrad pushes her away and I’m glad he does.
~ There are SO many changes from the book to the show, I can see why hardcore fans didn’t love the show! There is no debutant ball in the book, Steven doesn’t stay for that summer when she turns 16 – he is in flashbacks though. I get why they made the changes….how do you stretch out this 276 book into 7 episodes? I felt like they did have all the parts from the book in the show though – like all those late night talks with Conrad. I don’t mind the extra stuff I thought it made it entertaining. But yes so many different changes from the book.
Why you should read it:
Why you might not want to read it:
My Thoughts:
I’m glad I did my first read in 2009 and loved it as a story about a young girl who has these amazing summers with 2 boys and their lovely mom. It’s about friendship at its core and love. At my age now, I do prefer the show because there is many more things happening to keep me entertained but I can see why that didn’t make fans of the series happy also because a whole lot of things were added! But I will say this – them using “This Love” from Taylor Swift for the trailer was genius because this song is ALLLLLLL Belly and Conrad forever feels lol. So here’s a video:
📚 ~ Yolanda
“I love Conrad and I probably always would. I would spend my whole life loving him one way or another. Maybe I would get married, maybe I would have a family, but it wouldn’t matter, because a piece of my heart, the piece where summer lived, would always be Conrad’s”
― Jenny Han, The Summer I Turned Pretty
“It’s hard to throw away history. It was like you were throwing away a part of yourself.”
― Jenny Han, The Summer I Turned Pretty
What is going on?! These two have a chokehold on me. 😭
I’m not here to talk about how this season compares to the actual book because I read that book so long ago I’ve forgotten any details about it. For those who know the books inside and out, I’m sure they will be some disappointment. I’ve learned my lesson about comparing books and movies/shows though. It’s a given there will be changes to fit whoever’s vision it is for the screen and now I just try to stay open to their interpretation to save myself from being disappointed. But Regency romance is what got me reading when I was a teenager (sneaking around, reading these books my older cousin had on her shelf! lol). It used to be my favorite genre to read until I got back into Young Adult via Twilight. For years…like 20 years 😅, I’ve always wanted more regency romances on screen and seriously, I feel blessed that Shonda Rhimes and Netflix decided to do a series like this. It’s long overdue for a romance lover like me. Anyway, I have to share my thoughts because I thought after bingeing it I would be done with the season and go on to waiting for Season 3. But I can’t let go!
Why am I obsessively going back to watch Anthony and Kate scenes every day? And now I found Bridgerton-tok and let me just say…you tiktokers are so good at editing and picking the best music for your tiktok videos. I love it. I found some good ones on youtube also. So thank you for sharing your amazing edited videos, you are saving me from going to Netflix everyday to watch their scenes.
After bingeing the season in one night/morning….I found myself loving Anthony, Kate, Edwina, the Bridgertons (of course), Lady Danbury, the Queen, and Newton. I did not love the Featherington’s storyline because I just wanted more Anthony and Kate. I didn’t mind the love triangle either, it made things complicated but I think it heightened their longing. Also, Penelope’s villain era has begun I suppose? Her relationship with Eloise made me sad…but I’m sure they’ll be besties again in another season. Eloise has a moment with a boy too and okay…when they talk about books? I melted. I love the costumes, the balls, the scenery and the music!
Speaking of melting…Jonathan Bailey as Anthony Bridgerton is my god…sooo freaking good. He devours Kate with his eyes. And his smiles just made me want to swoon…😍. He really cleaned up from Season 1, now he’s trying to really handle being the man of the house and honestly he’s doing a good job at it, a bit of a control freak maybe (but he’s the eldest), and he is so afraid to love because of watching his dad die, and watching his mom grieve. So his search for a wife comes with no requirement for love. And then Kate comes along, knocks him off kilter, and it’s all he can do before coming undone in front of her. But honestly his acting was fantastic, he made me cry. And watching Anthony and Kate try to fight their feelings has me obsessed.
These two…wow…Simone Ashley who plays Kate is STUNNING. They are electric and I love the chemistry between them. It had everything I want in an enemies to lovers forbidden romance: the arguing, the longing, the glances, angst, then the little hand touches, the almost kisses (killed me), and then the flashbacks about their night together 🥵. People may complain it’s not enough sex (because of Season 1) but my favorite movie is Pride and Prejudice where there was only one kiss. Even the PBS show series was fantastic and that one didn’t even have a kiss. So for me…the lack of sex scenes was not a problem. I found the attraction, the restraint and love story between Anthony and Kate quite beautiful. And when they finally stop fighting one another…ugh…the confession of love brought tears to my eyes. But it’s a slow burn for sure.
This show came out on 3/25 and here I am still rewatching their scenes everyday – I can’t stop. I love them fighting, I love them almost kissing, I love them kissing, I love them smiling at the end with their happily ever after. 🥰 I hope we see more of their happy ever after in Season 3. I hope they are in every season until this series is concluded.
I don’t know who’s story is next in season 3 but I hope it’s as good as Daphne/Simon and Anthony/Kate!
~ Yolanda
**SPOILER ALERT**Don’t watch the following video if you haven’t watched the series yet! But I couldn’t help sharing this one. Why are they so gorgeous together? 🥺 They seriously wrecked me.
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