Big Summer by Jennifer Weiner / Surprising turn of events

Big Summer by Jennifer Weiner

This novel was my first book by Jennifer Weiner. That means I can’t really compare it to any of her other books. All I can say is that when I opened the book I had no idea what to expect. But overall I was positively surprised by it and feel Big Summer would make a great summer read.

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Six years after the fight that ended their friendship, Daphne Berg is shocked when Drue Cavanaugh walks back into her life, looking as lovely and successful as ever, with a massive favor to ask. Daphne hasn’t spoken one word to Drue in all this time—she doesn’t even hate-follow her ex-best friend on social media—so when Drue asks if she will be her maid-of-honor at the society wedding of the summer, Daphne is rightfully speechless.

Drue was always the one who had everything—except the ability to hold onto friends. Meanwhile, Daphne’s no longer the same self-effacing sidekick she was back in high school. She’s built a life that she loves, including a growing career as a plus-size Instagram influencer. Letting glamorous, seductive Drue back into her life is risky, but it comes with an invitation to spend a weekend in a waterfront Cape Cod mansion. When Drue begs and pleads and dangles the prospect of cute single guys, Daphne finds herself powerless as ever to resist her friend’s siren song.

A sparkling novel about the complexities of female friendship, the pitfalls of living out loud and online, and the resilience of the human heart, Big Summer is a witty, moving story about family, friendship, and figuring out what matters most. 

Big Summer by Jennifer Weiner

MY THOUGHTS

I wasn’t sure what to think about the book during the first 50%. The story focused mainly on the heroine, her social media presence as an influencer, her relationship with her former best friend, and her being plus size. It became a bit much at times.

But then at around 50% it became interesting. There was suddenly a mystery and I really started getting into the book.

I enjoyed the last half of the book the most, and became quite invested in the plot and characters. The mystery, the budding love-story, the backstories, it all came nicely together. It started making sense.

In the end, the story touched on quite a few heavy subjects. Sometimes it tried a bit too hard. But all in all the plot was entertaining, and I would recommend this to anyone for their summer tbr.

If you are interested in all things social media, this book is definitely one to look into. It’s a very timely novel, and the author does a great job of describing the world of a social influencer.

I’ve noticed that more and more authors use social media, social influencers, and the dark side of all things social media in their stories, which makes it a timely, but not necessarily timeless novel.

In the end, I really enjoyed the mystery part. The story suddenly became fast paced, intriguing and the author added some nice twists to it.

I received a copy of this book from  Atria Books  for free in exchange for an honest review.
My opinions have not been influenced by the publisher or the author.

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Big Summer by Jennifer Weiner