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A review by thebooknerdscorner
The Edge of Summer by Erica George
4.0
A summer romance that dives deep into the intricacies of grief, love, and the struggles to make a difference.
Coriander "Cor" Cabot spends every summer in Cape Cod, but this one is bound to be different from the rest. This summer, Cor will be there without her best friend, Ella. This is due to the fact that Ella passed away in an unfortunate drowning accident last year. Now, Cor will do anything to finish the bucket list that they made together. This includes interning at the Marine Research and Conservation Alliance without her best friend by her side. Before her intern even starts, Cor runs into an attractive lifeguard by the name of Mannix who might just be the distraction she needs. But can Cor truly accomplish everything she needs to if she is sidetracked by this handsome boy for the entire summer?
I didn't expect to like this one as much as I did. But despite the fluffy, summery vibes, this book dives into much deeper content than I expected it to. The conservation of marine wildlife is a prime focus of this book, which is a message that I can always get behind. Any time that whales were mentioned, you can just feel the author's love for them bleed forth from the page. I'm glad to see people pass along their passion in the hopes that other's will want to make a difference, too.
Even though it is a romance and Mannix seems to be the perfect guy, both he and Cor have their fair share of issues, which made this book more realistic. Cor suffers from the grief of losing her best friend, and she also has to push to find the way back to her true self. Cor was such a jerk to Ella and often came off as very self-absorbed and rude throughout the duration of the book. Cor does have a huge growth arc during this book, however, she still has a long ways to go before I would want to be her friend. Mannix, on the other hand, wrestles with finding his place in the world. He has many hobbies and passions, yet struggles to follow the path he truly desires due to the expectations of his family and friends. The third act conflict between Cor and Mannix felt a bit forced, but I think it was important that Cor learns to stand up for herself and that Mannix faced some unwelcome truths.
I also really liked the supporting cast in this one. Kyle (they/them) and Mia (she/her) were great allies for Cor to meet during her internship. These two were really great to her, even when she wasn't the greatest friends to her. Cor's uncle, Jack, and his "not boyfriend" Chad, also added quite a bit of color to this summery story. I love that Jack sticks it to Cor where it hurts when she makes stupid decisions; she truly does deserve it after a couple of the dumb things she does. Mannix's crew (minus Jacob) are also pretty cool, though they are much less memorable than Kyle and Mia. Noah seems like a really nice guy though.
Something that stuck out to me about this romance, was the way it was written. Yes, I think that several elements of it were rushed, but they were many times that I whipped out my phone to take a picture of the way that the act of being in love was described. Also, Mannix was really tolerant with this girl. She is truly awful at communicating and goes behind his back multiple times for pretty much no reason. The things she did were never nefarious, but looking back on the things she did make Cor feel just a tad bit sus. I appreciate when there is some back and forth minor problems between the characters rather than just one huge explosion at the end.
Overall, "The Edge of Summer" isn't just a light and fluffy summer romance to read to make you feel good. It covers realistic issues such as grief, heartbreak, family expectations, and discovering oneself. It certainly isn't a perfect romance and certain scenes were a little crunchy, but for the most part, I found it very enjoyable. A perfect read if you want to hold on to that summery feeling for just a little longer while also delving into some heavier topics.
Coriander "Cor" Cabot spends every summer in Cape Cod, but this one is bound to be different from the rest. This summer, Cor will be there without her best friend, Ella. This is due to the fact that Ella passed away in an unfortunate drowning accident last year. Now, Cor will do anything to finish the bucket list that they made together. This includes interning at the Marine Research and Conservation Alliance without her best friend by her side. Before her intern even starts, Cor runs into an attractive lifeguard by the name of Mannix who might just be the distraction she needs. But can Cor truly accomplish everything she needs to if she is sidetracked by this handsome boy for the entire summer?
I didn't expect to like this one as much as I did. But despite the fluffy, summery vibes, this book dives into much deeper content than I expected it to. The conservation of marine wildlife is a prime focus of this book, which is a message that I can always get behind. Any time that whales were mentioned, you can just feel the author's love for them bleed forth from the page. I'm glad to see people pass along their passion in the hopes that other's will want to make a difference, too.
Even though it is a romance and Mannix seems to be the perfect guy, both he and Cor have their fair share of issues, which made this book more realistic. Cor suffers from the grief of losing her best friend, and she also has to push to find the way back to her true self. Cor was such a jerk to Ella and often came off as very self-absorbed and rude throughout the duration of the book. Cor does have a huge growth arc during this book, however, she still has a long ways to go before I would want to be her friend. Mannix, on the other hand, wrestles with finding his place in the world. He has many hobbies and passions, yet struggles to follow the path he truly desires due to the expectations of his family and friends. The third act conflict between Cor and Mannix felt a bit forced, but I think it was important that Cor learns to stand up for herself and that Mannix faced some unwelcome truths.
I also really liked the supporting cast in this one. Kyle (they/them) and Mia (she/her) were great allies for Cor to meet during her internship. These two were really great to her, even when she wasn't the greatest friends to her. Cor's uncle, Jack, and his "not boyfriend" Chad, also added quite a bit of color to this summery story. I love that Jack sticks it to Cor where it hurts when she makes stupid decisions; she truly does deserve it after a couple of the dumb things she does. Mannix's crew (minus Jacob) are also pretty cool, though they are much less memorable than Kyle and Mia. Noah seems like a really nice guy though.
Something that stuck out to me about this romance, was the way it was written. Yes, I think that several elements of it were rushed, but they were many times that I whipped out my phone to take a picture of the way that the act of being in love was described. Also, Mannix was really tolerant with this girl. She is truly awful at communicating and goes behind his back multiple times for pretty much no reason. The things she did were never nefarious, but looking back on the things she did make Cor feel just a tad bit sus. I appreciate when there is some back and forth minor problems between the characters rather than just one huge explosion at the end.
Overall, "The Edge of Summer" isn't just a light and fluffy summer romance to read to make you feel good. It covers realistic issues such as grief, heartbreak, family expectations, and discovering oneself. It certainly isn't a perfect romance and certain scenes were a little crunchy, but for the most part, I found it very enjoyable. A perfect read if you want to hold on to that summery feeling for just a little longer while also delving into some heavier topics.