From the Bookshelf of forever and evermore swifties…

The Summer of Broken Rules

K.L. Walther

Start date: August 1, 2023

Finish date: August 31, 2023

Discussion: 2023

Why we're reading this: both for august which we are comparing to hey stephen
[close] both for august which we are comparing to hey stephen

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Showing 2 of 7 topics — 81 comments total

2023

the invisible life of addie larue - i forgot that you existed, rwylm, wildest dreams, mtr and wcs
By millie , lovermore · 3 posts · 32 views

last updated Sep 30, 2023 11:26PM

little women- champagne problems
By millie , lovermore · 18 posts · 46 views

last updated Sep 29, 2023 02:07PM

What Members Thought

Feb 12, 2022 haley rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favorite-reads-5-stars

there is just something about summer books set in little beach towns with the sweetest little love interest that makes it feel like the pages are laced with crack

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Sep 02, 2023 Chanda Ferguson rated it it was ok

“The Summer of Broken Rules” is a YA contemporary romance, also categorized in ChickLit, and I suppose my disappointment in this one could be blamed on myself. Maybe I went in with too high of expectations for the story based on popular opinions, but I just felt bored and unengaged most of the time.

My favorite aspect of the novel was Meredith’s special connection to her sister Claire who has passed away. As she copes through the loss of a her best friend, Meredith changes and the direction of h “The Summer of Broken Rules” is a YA contemporary romance, also categorized in ChickLit, and I suppose my disappointment in this one could be blamed on myself. Maybe I went in with too high of expectations for the story based on popular opinions, but I just felt bored and unengaged most of the time.

My favorite aspect of the novel was Meredith’s special connection to her sister Claire who has passed away. As she copes through the loss of a her best friend, Meredith changes and the direction of her life is changed by that. This depiction of grief felt like the most authentic portrayal in the book, and it was these moments of discussion about Claire and the loss of her that connected me most to the novel. However, the focus of the story was on the romance, and it just felt too instant for me to believe.

Thus, I didn’t feel emotionally involved with the book and as the focus became more on Wit and Meredith, I found myself waiting for a different scene. I felt the same way about the water gun fight, the break-up with Ben, the romantic conflict, the tension with her cousins, and most other aspects.

While I didn’t thoroughly enjoy this novel, I’m also not the intended audience, so perhaps that also influenced my lack of interest in the story. I did appreciate some of the Taylor Swift references, but even these eventually began to draw me out of the story because they happened so much. Reading this story made me conscious of the fact I was reading, and I honestly kept thinking to myself that when I was teaching Creative Writing, I was reading better stories from some of my students. I did have a creative bunch of kids at times, but honestly, some of their stories had more voice, original ideas, and engaging romances than this did for me. I hoped to be convinced by the end, but it felt lackluster all the way through.

If you prefer escapism literature that doesn’t feel realistic, but has entertainment value, this could be a good option for you. It’s extremely light-hearted, and I could see readers of Colleen Hoover, Carley Fortune, or Jenny Han enjoying this story as well. I honestly didn’t dislike it, but I just didn’t love it either.

Book 126/150
⭐️⭐️ 2.5 ...more

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Jun 20, 2023 dani ౨ৎ rated it liked it

3.75*

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Feb 05, 2025 oria rated it liked it

I feel like a few years back I would have enjoyed this alot more but it isn't really my style anymore! That being said, it was still a nice book. There were quite a few characters though so I kept forgetting who was who. Not a bad book though! ...more

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