Summer Term by Molly RingleMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
Paige Huntley, a grad student teaching a summer course, is surprised to see film star Aidan Grey on her class roster. She's getting over a broken engagement, and has been thinking a lot lately (maybe a little too much!) about her urbane dissertation adviser, the attractive but married Stefan Serovinak. The last thing she needs is the distraction that comes with having an attractive celebrity in her class. But as summer term unrolls, she finds there's something about Aidan that she didn't expect, and begins to find hard to resist. Aidan has come home to the remote college town where he grew up to finish his degree and figure out if he's as enthused about this whole Hollywood thing as he once thought. Meeting the attractive, down to earth and clever Paige was definitely not on his syllabus. Take these ingredients, stir in some stalkerazzi fans, a pushy agent, and a great cast of side characters, plunk them down on a sleepy summer college campus, and you have a charming, funny, sometimes suspenseful, and very satisfying light romantic novel.
For some reason this book makes me think of a lovely German wine - light, sweet but not cloying, with many classic, familiar elements, but still fresh and original. It's definitely a Qualitatswein mit Pradikat - a superior wine with special qualities. The characters are maybe a little too good to be true (that's one sensitive and understanding movie star, you've got yourself there, Paige!), but isn't that part of the fantasy fun, really? There is definitely some toe curling mclovin' going on, too - this is def an adult romance, and there's a bit more of the old je'ne sais quoi going on than in the YA I'm used to reading (wow, what you girls are getting up to these days!), but it's sweet and intense and conveys so nicely the dizzying, overwhelming emotions that engulf our mc's and catapult them into and out of each others arms, even against their better judgment and common sense. And isn't that what love is supposed to do?
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Okay, this review simultaneously made me want to read this book right now, go back to college, have a hot summer romance, drink a delicious German wine, and have some good old-fashioned toe-curling! Brilliant review of what I'm positive will be an excellent book! Putting it on my TBR pile right now!
ReplyDeleteAwesome! Thanks so much, Fred--and Elizabeth! :) I do love this review, and yeah, some chilled German wine sounds lovely right now.
ReplyDeleteHi Fred. I'm here because Elle Strauss suggested your blog. Now I'm your newest follower.
ReplyDeleteNice to meet you!
Hello! Elizabeth told me about your blog and I am SO GLAD she did! Glad to be a new follower and love your review. This book sounds great.
ReplyDeleteMatt and Abby, thanks so much for stopping by, you both have such awesome blogs, I look forward to reading more of both of you! And Abby, yes, it really is a good book, I have turned into a major fan of Molly Ringle, I put up another review just now, and you can see me gush a bit more about her.
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