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michalice's review against another edition
4.0
I will admit that this is the first book I have read by Julia Green, and although Bringing The Summer follows on from Breathing Underwater it is able to stand alone as an individual book.
Bringing the Summer follows Freya as she is still learning to cope without the presence of her brother, her family are also mourning their loss, but in mourning are also distancing themselves from Freya, who often comes home to an empty house or parents busy working on things.
After a railway accident Freya finds herself in the company of Gabe and his enchanting family and soon realises that Birdy, from the railway accident, had ties with Gabe, Theo and their family.
I really enjoyed Bringing The Summer and found myself looking forward to meeting more of Gabe's family. There is never a dull moment with Gabe and his family around, they are active and there is always something going on in their home. I think this is what pulls Freya into their homestead, it gives her a break from the stillness and loneliness of her own family life and home. I adore their Mum and I love how she is raising the children and she has a huge garden where she grows a lot of her own food. She is also able to see right into the middle of any situation but offers advice if needed and doesn't stick herself in to try to fix everything.
When I first met Gabe I thought he was the perfect person for Freya to get to know, but as the story unfolds and he becomes distant and I could see their bond disintegrating I disliked what he was doing to Freya and how he was making her feel.
Theo on the other hand I disliked. I didn't like his attitude and to me he felt like he was better than everyone else and was not afraid to make sure people knew this, but as we learn more about him you realise he is just putting up a front to protect himself. Although both Freya and Theo are mourning thier own losses and they slowly start to form a friendship it is not until Theo acts out that Freya realsies he is not a perfect as he originally seems, and sets a plan in motion to help him begin to mourn propperly and let the past go in order to build a better friendship between them both.
Bringing The Summer is a quick read that I finished in a couple of hours but thoroughly enjoyed. Julia has woven in the right emotions to make the characters likeable and believable. Things like love, friendships, loss and family values are touched upon in the pages. After finishing Bringing The Summer I intend to not only buy Breathing Underwater to be able to read these books in order, but also other books Julia has wrote.
Bringing the Summer follows Freya as she is still learning to cope without the presence of her brother, her family are also mourning their loss, but in mourning are also distancing themselves from Freya, who often comes home to an empty house or parents busy working on things.
After a railway accident Freya finds herself in the company of Gabe and his enchanting family and soon realises that Birdy, from the railway accident, had ties with Gabe, Theo and their family.
I really enjoyed Bringing The Summer and found myself looking forward to meeting more of Gabe's family. There is never a dull moment with Gabe and his family around, they are active and there is always something going on in their home. I think this is what pulls Freya into their homestead, it gives her a break from the stillness and loneliness of her own family life and home. I adore their Mum and I love how she is raising the children and she has a huge garden where she grows a lot of her own food. She is also able to see right into the middle of any situation but offers advice if needed and doesn't stick herself in to try to fix everything.
When I first met Gabe I thought he was the perfect person for Freya to get to know, but as the story unfolds and he becomes distant and I could see their bond disintegrating I disliked what he was doing to Freya and how he was making her feel.
Theo on the other hand I disliked. I didn't like his attitude and to me he felt like he was better than everyone else and was not afraid to make sure people knew this, but as we learn more about him you realise he is just putting up a front to protect himself. Although both Freya and Theo are mourning thier own losses and they slowly start to form a friendship it is not until Theo acts out that Freya realsies he is not a perfect as he originally seems, and sets a plan in motion to help him begin to mourn propperly and let the past go in order to build a better friendship between them both.
Bringing The Summer is a quick read that I finished in a couple of hours but thoroughly enjoyed. Julia has woven in the right emotions to make the characters likeable and believable. Things like love, friendships, loss and family values are touched upon in the pages. After finishing Bringing The Summer I intend to not only buy Breathing Underwater to be able to read these books in order, but also other books Julia has wrote.
rebeccabooks's review against another edition
4.0
Originally posted here: http://rebecca-books.blogspot.co.uk/2013/03/bringing-summer-julia-green.html
After the craziness of Divergent and Insurgent, I decided to go with something more contemporary next, something I thought would make a nice relaxing and easy read.
I saw this book a couple of times at the library but was never sure about it, it looks too frivolous and the whole love triangle, something my friend would define as typical teen literature. But for some reason, when I was at the library the other day, I picked this up because I was interested in what the outcome would be reading the blurb. To say the least, this was completely different from what I was expecting.
Synopsis: On returning from a summer at the beautiful island of St Allia where her brother died two years previously, the train Freya is on hits a young girl killing her instantly.
Soon, she is brought into contact with a handsome and friendly Gabe who comes with a family that Freya could only dream of having herself. She visits their rural house often and embarks on a friendship with Gabe. His older brother, Theo, starts showing an interest in Freya after their initial meeting. But he is different to Gabe - dark, moody and unpredictable - forcing Freya to make difficult choices about what she really wants.
Review: A few days before I started this book, I was watching an old episode of Heartbeat (it was this soap from the 1990's set in 1960's Yorkshire about this police station in Yorkshire). In the episode, this girl had been kidnapped. Until the last few minutes, I had no idea who the kidnapper was but it turned out to be his young guy who worked at the baker that one of the policemen had talked to earlier in the episode. The guy has been a little obsessed with this girl since they were 12 years-old and she sent him a Valentines Card, he thought she was in love with him like he was with her, and she was just waiting for the right moment to tell him. He took her to this derelict house and said it would be their house to live in forever and no-one would break them apart etc until the police found them. He was pretty obsessed with her.
I started this novel with the assumption from the blurb and cover that this would be the typical, easy beach read to calm me after Insurgent and before I started The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer. The novel starts with Freya on the island taking one last swim before leaving her grandfather and his wife to go home before college starts. I was thinking 'Oh love triangle set at an English college, I can deal with this'. And for the most part, the novel is true to that as we're introduced to the host of characters and Gabe' family, wondering whether Gabe does like Freya in that way...all until Theo comes into the story. Theo was an unusual character, he is troubled to say the least having been close to the girl that killed herself, he is quiet and emotionless at times while also extremely passionate about things be it literature, a place or in this case, a person - and it's here my Heartbeat anecdote comes into play. Theo reminded me of the disillusioned, obsessed guy who desperately wanted this companionship despite what the female thought or the consequences and for that, I ended up disliking Theo because of how scary he becomes.
Despite my dislike for Theo, the rest of the cast of characters were well-written and engaging especially Gabe (although I still cringe at the name).
The only other book I've read by Julia Green was Drawing With Light which I thought was okay but the writing was a little rushed and predictable. In BRINGING THE SUMMER, the writing was so vivid and imaginative that I could imagine in my head Freya hiding in a bush when they play a game, the amazing Christmas dinner scene that portrays a heart-warming and traditional Christmas lunch that I wanted to join in with. I especially loved the scenes at the Fielding house with the descriptions of the nature around Freya, the homely, old feeling of the cottage and the way Green shows the house bursting with life and actions that comes across on the page. There are a whole host of characters but thankfully, it never got confusing.
The only thing I would say about the writing was that the relationships for me didn't feel realist, they were formed too fast for my liking especially with Theo. However, considering this is a short book, the relationships did become likable by the end but initially, they didn't seem genuine or real for me as a reader.
This is a good read and I did enjoy this book by the end. It took a while for the narrative to really get going and there were many times where I was like 'No don't do that Freya!' but I was left a little stunned by the ending. The book is powerful especially in highlighting the issue that isn't seen much in literature of obsession be it romantically or not. I had to read a book, Enduring Love by Ian McEwan, last year for English about two guys that are involved in a ballooning accident and one of them becomes obsessed with the other, starts stalking him and threatening the guy's girlfriend (for the record, this would be the last book I would recommend to anyone, it's that bad) but the way obsession is shown is terribly scary but thrilling in a way. That is like BRINGING THE SUMMER where I was both annoyed and scared by Theo and the extent of which he could ruin Freya's formed life after the death of her brother. As I said earlier, this book deceives you to think it will be a light read, one of those pink and fluffy time books, but actually there is a dark and threatening undertone running throughout that dissolves way too quickly than I would have liked at the end.
This is a part sequel to Julia Green's Breathing Underwater but having not read that, I perfectly understood what was happening as I'm guessing what happened in that book is summarised throughout this one. So don't let that put you off this book. Although I sound negative, I did enjoy this book despite my surprise at finding this dark tone to the novel. It's a lovely book for amazing characters and a twisted plot line topped off with a wonderful protagonist.
I give it a 3.5 out of 5
After the craziness of Divergent and Insurgent, I decided to go with something more contemporary next, something I thought would make a nice relaxing and easy read.
I saw this book a couple of times at the library but was never sure about it, it looks too frivolous and the whole love triangle, something my friend would define as typical teen literature. But for some reason, when I was at the library the other day, I picked this up because I was interested in what the outcome would be reading the blurb. To say the least, this was completely different from what I was expecting.
Synopsis: On returning from a summer at the beautiful island of St Allia where her brother died two years previously, the train Freya is on hits a young girl killing her instantly.
Soon, she is brought into contact with a handsome and friendly Gabe who comes with a family that Freya could only dream of having herself. She visits their rural house often and embarks on a friendship with Gabe. His older brother, Theo, starts showing an interest in Freya after their initial meeting. But he is different to Gabe - dark, moody and unpredictable - forcing Freya to make difficult choices about what she really wants.
Review: A few days before I started this book, I was watching an old episode of Heartbeat (it was this soap from the 1990's set in 1960's Yorkshire about this police station in Yorkshire). In the episode, this girl had been kidnapped. Until the last few minutes, I had no idea who the kidnapper was but it turned out to be his young guy who worked at the baker that one of the policemen had talked to earlier in the episode. The guy has been a little obsessed with this girl since they were 12 years-old and she sent him a Valentines Card, he thought she was in love with him like he was with her, and she was just waiting for the right moment to tell him. He took her to this derelict house and said it would be their house to live in forever and no-one would break them apart etc until the police found them. He was pretty obsessed with her.
I started this novel with the assumption from the blurb and cover that this would be the typical, easy beach read to calm me after Insurgent and before I started The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer. The novel starts with Freya on the island taking one last swim before leaving her grandfather and his wife to go home before college starts. I was thinking 'Oh love triangle set at an English college, I can deal with this'. And for the most part, the novel is true to that as we're introduced to the host of characters and Gabe' family, wondering whether Gabe does like Freya in that way...all until Theo comes into the story. Theo was an unusual character, he is troubled to say the least having been close to the girl that killed herself, he is quiet and emotionless at times while also extremely passionate about things be it literature, a place or in this case, a person - and it's here my Heartbeat anecdote comes into play. Theo reminded me of the disillusioned, obsessed guy who desperately wanted this companionship despite what the female thought or the consequences and for that, I ended up disliking Theo because of how scary he becomes.
Despite my dislike for Theo, the rest of the cast of characters were well-written and engaging especially Gabe (although I still cringe at the name).
The only other book I've read by Julia Green was Drawing With Light which I thought was okay but the writing was a little rushed and predictable. In BRINGING THE SUMMER, the writing was so vivid and imaginative that I could imagine in my head Freya hiding in a bush when they play a game, the amazing Christmas dinner scene that portrays a heart-warming and traditional Christmas lunch that I wanted to join in with. I especially loved the scenes at the Fielding house with the descriptions of the nature around Freya, the homely, old feeling of the cottage and the way Green shows the house bursting with life and actions that comes across on the page. There are a whole host of characters but thankfully, it never got confusing.
The only thing I would say about the writing was that the relationships for me didn't feel realist, they were formed too fast for my liking especially with Theo. However, considering this is a short book, the relationships did become likable by the end but initially, they didn't seem genuine or real for me as a reader.
This is a good read and I did enjoy this book by the end. It took a while for the narrative to really get going and there were many times where I was like 'No don't do that Freya!' but I was left a little stunned by the ending. The book is powerful especially in highlighting the issue that isn't seen much in literature of obsession be it romantically or not. I had to read a book, Enduring Love by Ian McEwan, last year for English about two guys that are involved in a ballooning accident and one of them becomes obsessed with the other, starts stalking him and threatening the guy's girlfriend (for the record, this would be the last book I would recommend to anyone, it's that bad) but the way obsession is shown is terribly scary but thrilling in a way. That is like BRINGING THE SUMMER where I was both annoyed and scared by Theo and the extent of which he could ruin Freya's formed life after the death of her brother. As I said earlier, this book deceives you to think it will be a light read, one of those pink and fluffy time books, but actually there is a dark and threatening undertone running throughout that dissolves way too quickly than I would have liked at the end.
This is a part sequel to Julia Green's Breathing Underwater but having not read that, I perfectly understood what was happening as I'm guessing what happened in that book is summarised throughout this one. So don't let that put you off this book. Although I sound negative, I did enjoy this book despite my surprise at finding this dark tone to the novel. It's a lovely book for amazing characters and a twisted plot line topped off with a wonderful protagonist.
I give it a 3.5 out of 5
lucylexislawton's review against another edition
3.0
I don't have so much to say about this book - I found it fine.
The part of the book I appreciated most was the aesthetics. Gabe being full of light, Theo of darkness. Home Farm, particularly, was my favourite piece of scenery. The stark difference between Freya's house and Gabes'. All of that swimming, and St Ailla.
I also liked the characters. Gabes, Theo, Freya, Danny (not that we got much of Danny. I think a sequel may be in order).
Theo liking Bridie just because she was broken and fragile is kinda gross for several reasons - it comes across kind of fetishy and advantage-taking, and also it's the classic stereotype of men preferring weak women - but it kind of makes sense, given his annoying, pretentious character.
Not that I hated Theo - I was quite taken by him, when he wasn't being a total cunt.
I appreciated the deliberate haunting, broken undertone of a seemingly overly sunny book. There were also some nice metaphors I picked up on. And the plot itself was simple, but interesting.
I found Miranda a bit of an asshole - like when she told freya not to get “deep and philosophical” when they were literally having a regular discussion, what the fuck was that about? Generally, she kind of seemed like a bad friend. I felt the book could've been better with a less annoying best-friend character. (And can we talk about how gross it is that Freya's dad flirting with Miranda was supposed to be a non-concerning or even relatable detail?! Like, hello, she's sixteen? What do you mean he "can't help himself"?)
I did like the ending - the Danny-buying-the-lighthouse detail. I like Evie and Gramps. This story as a whole was pretty sweet. An easy sort of read, but its darker, pained themes underneath stopped it being pure fluff (not that I don’t like fluff). However, something about it just bored me ever so slightly - I felt it was lacking something. I suppose it was quite a short and simple book, so perhaps it's just the plot itself. A lot of the characters, including Freya, felt quite flat and one-dimensional - I would've liked to get to know their ins and outs better, but again, I don't know if this book (and its frequently misused punctuation, but let's not go there) was suited for that.
I think I'll try some more of Julia Green's stuff if I see it in a library, just to see if it resonates with me more, or holds the same aesthetic charm that Bringing the Summer did.
The part of the book I appreciated most was the aesthetics. Gabe being full of light, Theo of darkness. Home Farm, particularly, was my favourite piece of scenery. The stark difference between Freya's house and Gabes'. All of that swimming, and St Ailla.
I also liked the characters. Gabes, Theo, Freya, Danny (not that we got much of Danny. I think a sequel may be in order).
Theo liking Bridie just because she was broken and fragile is kinda gross for several reasons - it comes across kind of fetishy and advantage-taking, and also it's the classic stereotype of men preferring weak women - but it kind of makes sense, given his annoying, pretentious character.
Not that I hated Theo - I was quite taken by him, when he wasn't being a total cunt.
I appreciated the deliberate haunting, broken undertone of a seemingly overly sunny book. There were also some nice metaphors I picked up on. And the plot itself was simple, but interesting.
I found Miranda a bit of an asshole - like when she told freya not to get “deep and philosophical” when they were literally having a regular discussion, what the fuck was that about? Generally, she kind of seemed like a bad friend. I felt the book could've been better with a less annoying best-friend character. (And can we talk about how gross it is that Freya's dad flirting with Miranda was supposed to be a non-concerning or even relatable detail?! Like, hello, she's sixteen? What do you mean he "can't help himself"?)
I did like the ending - the Danny-buying-the-lighthouse detail. I like Evie and Gramps. This story as a whole was pretty sweet. An easy sort of read, but its darker, pained themes underneath stopped it being pure fluff (not that I don’t like fluff). However, something about it just bored me ever so slightly - I felt it was lacking something. I suppose it was quite a short and simple book, so perhaps it's just the plot itself. A lot of the characters, including Freya, felt quite flat and one-dimensional - I would've liked to get to know their ins and outs better, but again, I don't know if this book (and its frequently misused punctuation, but let's not go there) was suited for that.
I think I'll try some more of Julia Green's stuff if I see it in a library, just to see if it resonates with me more, or holds the same aesthetic charm that Bringing the Summer did.
serendipity_viv's review against another edition
3.0
I didn't realise this book was part of a series until I read the interview with the author at the end, so this book can be read easily as a standalone.
The book follows the autumn and winter of Freya's life and is told from her perspective. Over the past couple of years she has seen a lot of changes occur since the death of her brother, and it is quite obvious that she is looking for something to fill the void. Her home life has become non existent and she develops a friendship with Gabe, it is clear that his home life appeals to her more than he does. It also doesn't take her long to fall for the dark charms of Theo, one lost soul reaching out to another. Both have lost and grieved but Freya doesn't realise at first how much it is affecting Theo. It takes her a while to lift off her rose tinted glasses to see that Theo desperately needs more than she can give him.
The lingering presence of Birdy, hangs around the book like a veil of unhappiness. Theo and Freya are affected quite dramatically by her death, but in different ways. It is obvious that her memory needs to be put to rest and Freya goes to great lengths to do this for Theo. By the end of the book, you see her shutting another chapter of her life as she moves onto another one.
I loved Gabe's family! They seemed to colour the pages of the book as soon as they entered the story. I could see why Freya was so attracted to their home and wanted to be part of her life. The author did a fantastic job in contrasting the two different lifestyles occurring. The cold, emptiness in Freya's home in comparison to the warmth and vibrant life in Gabe's home. The description of Christmas Day was just beautiful and definitely how I would love to celebrate it.
I did struggle to identify with and warm to Freya. I am not sure why, but I didn't find her voice very strong in the novel. The people around her appeared vibrant and colourful, so it may have been the way the author wanted to portray her. I was often surprised by her parent's reactions to her overnight stays - I can't imagine being this vacant as to my children's whereabouts at sixteen, although I could be labelled as an overprotective parents.
I am going to look at getting hold of the first book in the series, Breathing Underwater, as I would like to know more about Freya's back story.
This book was brilliant at examining grief and learning to cope with it; finding a way to live with it and move on.
The book follows the autumn and winter of Freya's life and is told from her perspective. Over the past couple of years she has seen a lot of changes occur since the death of her brother, and it is quite obvious that she is looking for something to fill the void. Her home life has become non existent and she develops a friendship with Gabe, it is clear that his home life appeals to her more than he does. It also doesn't take her long to fall for the dark charms of Theo, one lost soul reaching out to another. Both have lost and grieved but Freya doesn't realise at first how much it is affecting Theo. It takes her a while to lift off her rose tinted glasses to see that Theo desperately needs more than she can give him.
The lingering presence of Birdy, hangs around the book like a veil of unhappiness. Theo and Freya are affected quite dramatically by her death, but in different ways. It is obvious that her memory needs to be put to rest and Freya goes to great lengths to do this for Theo. By the end of the book, you see her shutting another chapter of her life as she moves onto another one.
I loved Gabe's family! They seemed to colour the pages of the book as soon as they entered the story. I could see why Freya was so attracted to their home and wanted to be part of her life. The author did a fantastic job in contrasting the two different lifestyles occurring. The cold, emptiness in Freya's home in comparison to the warmth and vibrant life in Gabe's home. The description of Christmas Day was just beautiful and definitely how I would love to celebrate it.
I did struggle to identify with and warm to Freya. I am not sure why, but I didn't find her voice very strong in the novel. The people around her appeared vibrant and colourful, so it may have been the way the author wanted to portray her. I was often surprised by her parent's reactions to her overnight stays - I can't imagine being this vacant as to my children's whereabouts at sixteen, although I could be labelled as an overprotective parents.
I am going to look at getting hold of the first book in the series, Breathing Underwater, as I would like to know more about Freya's back story.
This book was brilliant at examining grief and learning to cope with it; finding a way to live with it and move on.
thebookaddictedgirl's review against another edition
4.0
Freya's about to start her A levels, but she's still trying to cope with her brother's death. She's just begun to think she's ready for a new start.
And then a railway accident leads her to Gabes - gorgeous, sweet Gabes abd his big, bubbly, warm family.
Soon Freya is falling in love - but not really with Gaves, but with his family.
But then Gabes' brother Theo shows up - mysterious, dangerous Theo.
As she gets closer to Theo, Freya has to question what she really wants.
Byt us she ready to make the difficult choices?
I loved Julia Green's Drawing With Light, so I couldn't wait to get my hands on this one. From the cover - and blurb, actually - I thought this would be a light read. And while it was fun and quick, it also tackled some really tricky issues. I just love everything about Julie's books, loved how complex her main characters were and how she made a clichéd idea into something new and amazing and beautiful. Also, I so wanna be a Fielding!!
The characters were all so amazing and varying and believable. Freya was really sweet and strong, but broken over her brother's death. She was really clever and sensitive and observational, was mature for her age and sensitive too. What I really loved about her was that she wasn't perfect. She made mistakes. But she was so sweet and genuine that you had to love her. Gabes was so sweet and cute and arty. I’d love to have him as a friend. He was simple and straight forward and so cute, just so not-complicated and warm and genuine. I just wanted to hug him! Theo was quite, mysterious, dark and broody. I loved how we slowly got to see beneath the arrogance to see the sensitive, vulnerable boy within. He was dark and dangerous - the kind of boy you know you shouldn't get involved with but intrigues you anyway. And the Fielding family - oh how I adored them all! They were so big and cheerful and close. And their house - I wish I'd lived there! It was so wonderfully describes, so lived in and homely. They were all so bubbly and fun and real. My family's big and fun and close... but I still want a Fielding family!! I especially loved their Christmas - loved it to pieces - loved them to pieces!
I loved all the characters, how padded out they were. As I mentioned before, I adored the Fielding family and all of them in the family! I also loved Freya's grandparents and friend from the island, Danny. Danny seemed really sweet and I felt he was a character who could have been added to - just 'cause he seemed so darn cute!
The writing was beautiful - as Green's writing always is! Green has this wonderfully simple and beautiful way of writing that always leaves me wanting more. There's magic there. You can see everything, feel everything. The plot was one I guess you’d call self-discovery. I should have been against it - two brothers, one girl is kinda cliché - but in this it just... wasn't. While the plot is incredible and addictive, the writing and Fielding family just stole the show for me. But I must admit, I had no idea where the plot was going and at some points I was actually scared! And I loved how through the Fieldings, we slowly got to know about Bridie, who she was before she died. As for the ending, it was perfect.
Green tackled some tricky issues in this book, but like everything she does so effortlessly. She doesn't make light of them but instead balances them with a light plot. Also, it's message was so subtle you didn't really get it til the end. It wasn't... obnoxious, like other books.
One girl, two brothers, one huge happy family and a dead girl who bought them all together... Bringing the Summer was a beautiful, edgy, fun read, one I couldn't put down. It just grabbed me from the word go; Julia Green has this way of bringing a story and characters to life through her words, characters that just get inside your head. I must get my hands on Breathing Underwater and I am seriously desperate for whatever Julia brings out next! I loved the book: it had strong themes, but left me feeling all happy inside, warm. It wasn't as hard hitting as some of the other books I've read this year, but I loved it and it was a great read.
And then a railway accident leads her to Gabes - gorgeous, sweet Gabes abd his big, bubbly, warm family.
Soon Freya is falling in love - but not really with Gaves, but with his family.
But then Gabes' brother Theo shows up - mysterious, dangerous Theo.
As she gets closer to Theo, Freya has to question what she really wants.
Byt us she ready to make the difficult choices?
I loved Julia Green's Drawing With Light, so I couldn't wait to get my hands on this one. From the cover - and blurb, actually - I thought this would be a light read. And while it was fun and quick, it also tackled some really tricky issues. I just love everything about Julie's books, loved how complex her main characters were and how she made a clichéd idea into something new and amazing and beautiful. Also, I so wanna be a Fielding!!
The characters were all so amazing and varying and believable. Freya was really sweet and strong, but broken over her brother's death. She was really clever and sensitive and observational, was mature for her age and sensitive too. What I really loved about her was that she wasn't perfect. She made mistakes. But she was so sweet and genuine that you had to love her. Gabes was so sweet and cute and arty. I’d love to have him as a friend. He was simple and straight forward and so cute, just so not-complicated and warm and genuine. I just wanted to hug him! Theo was quite, mysterious, dark and broody. I loved how we slowly got to see beneath the arrogance to see the sensitive, vulnerable boy within. He was dark and dangerous - the kind of boy you know you shouldn't get involved with but intrigues you anyway. And the Fielding family - oh how I adored them all! They were so big and cheerful and close. And their house - I wish I'd lived there! It was so wonderfully describes, so lived in and homely. They were all so bubbly and fun and real. My family's big and fun and close... but I still want a Fielding family!! I especially loved their Christmas - loved it to pieces - loved them to pieces!
I loved all the characters, how padded out they were. As I mentioned before, I adored the Fielding family and all of them in the family! I also loved Freya's grandparents and friend from the island, Danny. Danny seemed really sweet and I felt he was a character who could have been added to - just 'cause he seemed so darn cute!
The writing was beautiful - as Green's writing always is! Green has this wonderfully simple and beautiful way of writing that always leaves me wanting more. There's magic there. You can see everything, feel everything. The plot was one I guess you’d call self-discovery. I should have been against it - two brothers, one girl is kinda cliché - but in this it just... wasn't. While the plot is incredible and addictive, the writing and Fielding family just stole the show for me. But I must admit, I had no idea where the plot was going and at some points I was actually scared! And I loved how through the Fieldings, we slowly got to know about Bridie, who she was before she died. As for the ending, it was perfect.
Green tackled some tricky issues in this book, but like everything she does so effortlessly. She doesn't make light of them but instead balances them with a light plot. Also, it's message was so subtle you didn't really get it til the end. It wasn't... obnoxious, like other books.
One girl, two brothers, one huge happy family and a dead girl who bought them all together... Bringing the Summer was a beautiful, edgy, fun read, one I couldn't put down. It just grabbed me from the word go; Julia Green has this way of bringing a story and characters to life through her words, characters that just get inside your head. I must get my hands on Breathing Underwater and I am seriously desperate for whatever Julia brings out next! I loved the book: it had strong themes, but left me feeling all happy inside, warm. It wasn't as hard hitting as some of the other books I've read this year, but I loved it and it was a great read.
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