
The Book:
It Happened One Summer by Tessa Bailey, 2021
The Characters:
Piper and her sister Hannah
Brendan
Get it on Amazon | Bookshop.org
It Happened One Summer will be available on July 13, 2021. Many thanks to Avon and NetGalley for providing me with an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.
The Plot (from Goodreads):
Piper Bellinger is fashionable, influential, and her reputation as a wild child means the paparazzi are constantly on her heels. When too much champagne and an out-of-control rooftop party lands Piper in the slammer, her stepfather decides enough is enough. So he cuts her off, and sends Piper and her sister to learn some responsibility running their late father’s dive bar… in Washington.
Piper hasn’t even been in Westport for five minutes when she meets big, bearded sea captain Brendan, who thinks she won’t last a week outside of Beverly Hills. So what if Piper can’t do math, and the idea of sleeping in a shabby apartment with bunk beds gives her hives. How bad could it really be? She’s determined to show her stepfather—and the hot, grumpy local—that she’s more than a pretty face.
Except it’s a small town and everywhere she turns, she bumps into Brendan. The fun-loving socialite and the gruff fisherman are polar opposites, but there’s an undeniable attraction simmering between them. Piper doesn’t want any distractions, especially feelings for a man who sails off into the sunset for weeks at a time. Yet as she reconnects with her past and begins to feel at home in Westport, Piper starts to wonder if the cold, glamorous life she knew is what she truly wants. LA is calling her name, but Brendan—and this town full of memories—may have already caught her heart.
The Review:
I absolutely love seaside tourist towns. Westport sounds like the ideal place to live for me, even if it wasn’t for Piper!
My two favorite things about this book were Piper’s growth throughout the story, and her relationship with her sister. Although I’m astounded whenever I read about rich no-longer-kids that can’t do anything for themselves since they’re used to daddy’s credit card paving the way, Piper and Hannah didn’t stay that way for long. I loved reading about them working together to figure out what to do with their time in Westport, and I loved how Piper so easily made friends there.
I guess the trope here would be opposites attract. I enjoyed Piper and Brendan’s relationship, and how she was able to pull him out of his seven year funk following the death of his wife. Brendan also helped Piper find herself outside of the party scene of LA. I thought they balanced each other out pretty well and ended up being a good fit.
The sex scenes in this one were a little too over the top. I’m all for a steamy sex scene, but in this case it felt like they were trying way too hard to be sexy and just turned out awkward and forced. I sent a screenshot of a particular salad-tossing scene to my boyfriend and a friend to laugh about, because it just was so unnatural and unsexy. Also if anyone ever referred to my vagina as my “entrance” in real life, I guarantee you I would vomit. If you’re the sort of reader that prefers closed-door romance, this one is definitely not for you.
Overall, I enjoyed this quick little romance. I could picture myself in Westport, and overall enjoyed the characters. I read on Goodreads that this was inspired by Schitt’s Creek, so if you’re a fan of the show then this is the rom-com for you! I’m excited to read Hannah and Fox’s love story next, coming in 2022!

2 Comments
Comments are closed.