Girls Just Wanna Have Sun

Summer Lovin' #4

by Rachel Lacey, Quinn Riley (Narrator), Emily Lawrence (Narrator)

While vacationing at a lakefront house with her friends, a woman prepares to risk it all for the one that got away, in this second-chance sapphic romance from award-winning author Rachel Lacey.

All Morgan wants is a relaxing day on the water. Instead, she accepts a “yes day” challenge that results in a series of increasingly flirty encounters with the beautiful woman she kissed eight years ago. This challenge—and Juliette—will push Morgan out of her comfort zone, but if she succeeds, she might get to say yes to something even more love.

Rachel Lacey’s Girls Just Wanna Have Sun is part of Summer Lovin’, a sweet and sultry collection of short summer romances that turn up the heat—and the heart. Read or listen to each short story in one easy, breezy sitting.

Genres: Romance, Novella, Audiobook, Contemporary, Summer, LGBT, Short Stories

2 pages, Audible Audio

Published May 26, 2026

About the author

Rachel Lacey is an award-winning contemporary romance author and semi-reformed travel junkie. She's been climbed by a monkey on a mountain in Japan, gone scuba diving on the Great Barrier Reef, and camped out overnight in New York City for a chance to be an extra in a movie. These days, the majority of her adventures take place on the pages of the books she writes. She lives in the mountains of Vermont with her family and a variety of rescue pets.

Reviews

[kat · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.75/5 stars

no cause i actually wanted to love this one a lot but for some reason i just ended up not wanting to follow along with the story :(( i can see the potential, maybe it couldve been better if it was a longer novella?? idk

[ren ౨ৎ (rozanov's version) · Rating 3 out of 5]

i usually adore second chance sapphic romance with a touch of bisexual awakening. but... the way that juliette absolutely seemed disinterested in morgan really took me out of this story. 🫠

[Sara · Rating 2 out of 5]

I love a sapphic romance, but this was just boring. Juliette came across as very standoffish, hot and cold, and Morgan was just a bit of a wet blanket. I was more invested in the dog than the relationship. I liked the bisexual rep though.

[Vanya · Rating 2 out of 5]

too insta-lovey to me

[paula ♡ · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 ⭐

For my first FF romance, it was pretty cute. I think I would have enjoyed it more if it was a little bit longer

[Emmi · Rating 2 out of 5]

A cute read for a sunny day this was not. Dull, no chemistry, and their feelings towards each other were in such stark contrast that I saw no point in rooting for them. Morgan was smitten and often relived the kiss they shared eight years ago, while Juliette was annoyed but then all of a sudden shifted gears. I am fully aware that it's not uncommon for novellas to be insta-love, but Juliette suddenly doing a 180 and then yearning on top of that? Tsk. Sure, Jan. Unfortunately, I would not recommend it.

[Gabrielė|Kartu su knyga · Rating 2 out of 5]

Visai trumputė, vos 57 puslapių istorija, kuri pasakoja apie Morgan ir Juliette.
Morgan su kolegomis atvyksta prie ežero, kur ketina nerūpestingai praleisti dieną. Visas nerūpestingumas išgaruoja, kuomet ji sutinka su kolegės pasiūlymu, viskam tą dieną sakyti "taip". Taip susikerta jos ir Julliete keliai, nors kadaise jie jau taip pat buvo susidūrę. Ir Morgan to negali pamiršti jau aštuonerius metus..

Tai buvo lengas, neįpareigojantis skaitinys. Nesu skaičiusi daug short story, tačiau ši istorija man pasirodė tikrai kiek per trumpa. Neįtikino manęs ir tai, jog Morgan kadaise pabučiavo Julliete ir to bučinio nepamiršo tiek metų. Na, visa šita dalis manęs visiškai neįtikino 😜
Tad kažkokių didelių emocijų man ši istorija nesukėlė, kaip ir minėjau prieš tai, lengva bei trumpa istorija ✨️

[MJ · Rating 5 out of 5]

An Anna Moss shout out!! Love that 😍
This was such a cute novella! I really enjoyed it and tandem read with the audiobook (which is included with the KU book) this is part of a Summer Lovin’ series and I think the rest in that series are MF.

Written in Third Person with 2x POV’s. Narrated by Quinn Riley & Emily Lawrence. Sapphic Romance, Second Chance, Summer Vacation, “Yes Day”, Dog Companion, One Tent.

[Kayla | Kayla Reads Smut · Rating 1 out of 5]

I LOATHE third person. It really takes me out of the story. But you know what else takes me out of the story, insufferable characters. Both of these women were so annoying. With Juliette playing it like she had no clue who Morgan was and also rolling her eyes. And then Morgan just being a scaredy cat about every little thing. These two should have taken the sign from Roux the dog who very clearly did everything in their power to keep these two apart.

[Lindsey · Rating 2 out of 5]

the fmcs just werent likable imo

[casey ౨ৎ · Rating 2 out of 5]

tropes
💋 second chance ish
🐾 found family
🩵 sapphic romance

this one fell short for me because morgan just idk annoyed me?

[Lia Reads · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was too cheesy for me. I was excited for it to be a sapphic romance but for me the story left a lot to be desired.

[Tierney Moore · Rating 3 out of 5]

It pains me to be down on a Rachel Lacey story. I adore her work. But this was a good idea suffocated by necessarily being pruned to the bone to fit a short-story word count, making this feel underdeveloped.

Don't let this put you off every other sapphic romance Rachel Lacey has written. She's normally great.

[labibliofille · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was fine, but kinda "meh". :/

[lauraღ · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars. This was fine, but ultimately... meh. I wish I'd liked it more, especially because it's the first one of these Amazon romance short stories to be sapphic. I usually don't have much luck with romance novellas or short stories, because it's never enough time/words (in my opinion) to show two people falling for each other. However, I thought I might have better luck with this, since it's second chance. I assumed that we would be following a couple who already had a history and a connection, and we would see them rekindling their romance. That's something that could definitely hold up for a novelette.

Unfortunately, no. Morgan and Juliette's history together is just a shared kiss from eight years ago. That would be fine, except for the part where we're supposed to believe that that was enough of a foundation for them to become infatuated in the present day. Especially since the events of the story take place in like, one day. It was fun and cute, but only that. So yeah, while there's nothing wrong with this, it didn't move me in any way. Listened to the audiobook as read by Quinn Riley and Emily Lawrence, which was the only reason my rating ended up being this high, because they were great.. (And I'm still probably being overly generous.)

Don't start here with this author! She has much better books in her backlist. Or again, I might be biased, because I just don't seem to click with really short romances.

[Alex · Rating 1 out of 5]

I swear I'm not trying to be a hater, I usually like the Amazon Original Stories themed collections but I feel like Summer Lovin' is gonna be the exception because this is the 4th book in the collection and so far none of the books did it for me.
This is already a novella, why the unnecessary drama of Juliette pretending not to recognize Morgan? And on top of that Juliette spent most of the story being annoyed with Morgan than "falling in love".
Also Morgan was so bland it's tragic.
The only good thing about this was the dog 🤷‍♀️

[ilana · Rating 2 out of 5]

Zero chemistry 🫣

[Toni · Rating 4 out of 5]

Summer Lovin indeed

KU Read
57 Pages
Book 4 in the Summer Lovin' Collection
Sapphic Romance
Second Chance-ish
Summer Vacation
One Tent
Low Spice
"Yes Day"

This is a nice summer romance and my first book by Rachel Lacey. It had all the summer by the lake vibes and being out in nature. Morgan shows him for the final day and is shocked to see the woman she had her Bi-Awakening with 8 years ago, only Juliette doesn't remember Morgan, or does she?

[Shannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

So far Rachel Lacey's story is my favorite in the Summer Lovin' collection. A bisexual awakening, Sapphic romance set at a lake house that has a perfect combo of summer vibes and new love. It was good on audio and perfect for fans of authors like Alexandria Bellefleur or Ashley Herring Blake.

[Guerunche · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this! Short, sweet and sapphic - part of a special Amazon Originals Summer Lovin’ collection created for the mainstream.

And our Rachel Lacey and fave narrator Quinn Riley are a part of it! The more sapphic work available to the masses, the better for all of us.

[bookmarksandbarbells · Rating 3 out of 5]

First of all, I love the title.

Second, I felt this one had a good buildup and foundation. Granted they didn't "know" each other well but they had a prior connection and spent the whole day together alone in nature.

Cute FF romance.

[✮`,— maddie .ᐟ.ᐟ · Rating 3 out of 5]

╰┈➤ 3 stars ⭐️.ᐟ ˎ

My first sapphic romance, which is perfect considering it's June (happy pride, btw!). I like the writing, but the characters were... not my fav, personality-wise.

[Read.and.Blossom · Rating 3 out of 5]

Aw a cute bi awakening

[Ashley Reads · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.75⭐️

[Caroline Isnor]

DNF at 50% both main characters give me such an ick I can’t

[Bianca Swart · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.75

This was sweet, I have nothing negative to say, sapphic just isn't my thing. 

[s · Rating 1 out of 5]

giving me all of these reasons why juliette is exasperated and annoyed with morgan and im supposed to believe they’ve got it bad for each other the next morning oh ok

[Xanny Books · Rating 3 out of 5]

⭐ 3★ — Girls Just Wanna Have Sun by Rachel Lacey

A sun-soaked sapphic second-chance romance that starts off like a peaceful lakefront escape and slowly turns into an emotional storm you can’t paddleboard away from.

Morgan arrives at a vacation with friends expecting calm, healing, and distance from her life—but instead gets hit with the emotional equivalent of a wave she absolutely is not prepared to handle: Juliette. The same woman she kissed eight years ago. The same kiss she never truly recovered from. The same woman she has spent nearly a decade trying not to think about (and failing spectacularly).

What follows is a mix of forced proximity, soft chaos, and unresolved longing wrapped in a “yes day” challenge that pushes Morgan out of her carefully controlled emotional shell. Saying “yes” becomes less of a game and more of a slow emotional undoing. Juliette, warm and effortlessly magnetic, gently pulls her back into a version of herself that actually feels things instead of burying them.

Their dynamic is all tension and memory: acting like strangers while clearly still carrying that one kiss like it never ended. Juliette teaches her paddleboarding, Morgan tries to stay composed, and both of them are lying through their teeth about how unaffected they are.

Morgan’s attraction to Juliette never really left—if anything, it sharpened over time. Juliette’s tattoo alone is practically a character in itself, serving as the visual trigger of Morgan’s bi awakening from years ago. That detail alone carries so much weight in how this reunion feels: not new, but unfinished.

Then the story leans fully into its rom-com chaos: a runaway dog, a sudden storm, a collapsing tent, and two women forced into close quarters with absolutely no emotional defenses left intact. It’s messy in a light, readable way—not dramatic, but just chaotic enough to strip away all the pretending.

The payoff is exactly what the story has been building toward: confession. Not explosive, not dramatic—just honest. The kind of truth that finally gets said when there’s nowhere left to hide.

Still, while the chemistry is strong and the nostalgia hits, the story stays very soft in its execution. The emotional conflict never fully deepens beyond surface-level tension, and some of the potential intensity between Morgan and Juliette feels slightly underused. It leans more sweet than gripping, more breezy than consuming.

Overall, it’s a gentle second-chance romance about timing, avoidance, and the terrifying simplicity of wanting someone you never actually stopped wanting.

3★ — enjoyable, soft, emotionally warm, but missing a bit of depth and bite to make it unforgettable.

[Eclectic Queer Reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excuse me Mrs. Lacey you know you ain't right, right!? This was such a fabulous tease and it ended so abruptly that I'm selfishly impatiently waiting for the entire story because I know you just wouldn't leave us on the edge. I am upset (light weight jk) because you know good and well that we would fall extremely hard for Juliette and Morgan and Roux omg I just know his character art will be the cutest! I'm extremely dramatic and yes you just have to take it at this point because then you had Quinn Riley as one of the narrators and just left us hanging... 10s across the board and it was only one hour and some change...Awesome experience!

[Lex · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️
This was such a cute, summery read, and it honestly felt like the perfect little escape. The whole story has that warm, breezy vacation energy. The romance is soft and sweet, and I really liked how the characters balance each other. Their connection builds in this easy, natural way that fits the setting so well. There’s a nice mix of fun moments, quiet emotional beats, and that cozy closeness that happens when two people end up spending more time together than they expected. Even when the characters are working through their own stuff, the book stays light and feel‑good, never losing that sunny tone. The friendships and side characters add a nice warmth too, making the whole world feel inviting.
Overall, it’s a sweet sapphic rom‑com that delivers exactly what I wanted: sunshine, softness, and a quick, happy escape that leaves you smiling when you close the book.