Review: The Boys of Summer (Summer #1) by CJ Duggan

The Boys of Summer

Author: CJ Duggan

Series: Summer

Pages: 321

Amazon

Release date: 19^th December 2012

Synopsis. (Goodreads)

It seemed only natural to nickname them the 'Onslow Boys'. Every time they swaggered in the front door of the Onslow Hotel after a hard week's work, their laughter was loud and genuine as they settled onto their bar stools. I peeked through the restaurant partition, a flimsy divider between my world and theirs. I couldn't help but smile whenever I saw them, saw him ... Toby Morrison. Quiet seventeen-year-old Tess doesn't relish the thought of a summertime job. She wants nothing more than to forget the past haunts of high school and have fun with her best friends before the dreaded Year Twelve begins. To Tess, summer is when everything happens: riding bikes down to the lake, watching the fireworks at the Onslow Show and water bomb fights at the sweltering Sunday markets. How did she let her friends talk her into working? After first-shift disasters, rude, wealthy tourists and a taunting ex-boyfriend, Tess is convinced nothing good can come of working her summer away. However, Tess finds unlikely allies in a group of locals dubbed 'The Onslow Boys', who are old enough to drive cars, drink beer and not worry about curfews. Tess's summer of working expands her world with a series of first times with new friends, forbidden love and heartbreaking chaos. All with the one boy she has never been able to forget. It will be a summer she will always remember. Warning: sexual references, and occasional coarse language

Review: 3 ½ out of 5 stars

A very BIG thank-you to my wonderful blogging friend and awesome author Marie Landry for sending me a copy of The Boys of Summer by C.J Duggan. I can’t believe I hadn’t picked up this book earlier.

Set in the fictional Aussie town of Onslow, The Boys of Summer follows the story of seventeen year-old Tess McGee who has been convinced by her best friends Ellie and Adam to take a job at the Onslow Hotel over the summer break, initially hesitant because she is socially inept she soon realises this is the place to be – with them and a group of older boys nicknamed the Onslow Boys her summer becomes quite the adventure.

There were so many things I loved about Tess, she was quiet, handled a taunting ex with dignity but there were also things that made me cringe but were also realistic for her age; she had a huge crush on 22 year-old Toby Morrison and was a little too full-on with him I think, I wish she would have let him chase her and make the effort so I felt her actions were too much and caused unnecessary miscommunications.

Toby was quiet and seemingly reserved, he did have a girlfriend at the beginning of the book but you could see the chemistry he had with Tess; I would have liked more page time with him to get to know him a little more or for him to show more outward emotion but I didn’t feel we got this.

All of the Onslow boys were wonderful but real stand-outs were Sean, Chris and Stan; I adored Sean’s wit and humour – he broke the bro code but he was sweet and quite charming; Chris was broody but intriguing and I found Stan really sweet. They were a pretty swoon worthy cast. I’m also hoping Adam gets his own book, he was an amazing best friend as was Ellie.

The Boys of Summer is beautifully written with many topics which are true to life and believable and I love the Aussie setting and CJ Duggan’s descriptive details, the flashbacks to music I grew up with had me humming along which I thought was great.

Overall, an entertaining read and a great start to the Summer series.

 

About the author: 

C.J Duggan is an Australian author who lives with her husband in a rural border town of New South Wales, Australia.
The Boys of Summer is Book One in her Mature Young Adult Romance Series.
For more on C.J and ‘The Summer Series’, visit www.cjdugganbooks.com

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