Book Review: Since Last Summer by Joanna Philbin

Since Last Summer
Rules of Summer #2
Author: Joanna Philbin
Reading Level: Young Adult
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Released: June 3, 2014
Review Source: Poppy

Rory McShane should be excited to spend the summer in East Hampton with Connor Rule, her generous, smart, cute boyfriend. After all, Rory's no longer the hired help at the Rule family mansion on the beach, and she and Connor have made it through a year of long-distance dating. But now, in the months leading up to college, Rory can't help but wonder if she really belongs in Connor's world. Isabel Rule is still trying to get over Mike, the devastatingly sexy surfer who broke her heart last summer. Enter Evan, an aspiring filmmaker who's kind, funny, and crushing on Isabel. He'd be the perfect summer fling -- so why can't she seem to forget about Mike? Set against a backdrop buzzing with the rich, the famous, and the wannabe rich and famous, Since Last Summer, a companion novel to Rules of Summer, is the perfect beach read.

Summer Reading. It’s what we long for when May comes around. We start examining our "to be read pile and quickly begin looking for that right read, that we can sit on the porch with, the sunroom, the beach, or our cozy reading nook. Two books called out to me. Rules of Summer and the sequel, Since Last Summer, both by Joanna Philbin These are novels that should be read in order. Today’s review is on the latest, Since Last Summer.


This story is filled with emotions, relationships, confusion, hopes for second chances, life changes, decisions, and more decisions. Just a lot to take in for a good smooth summer read. The main characters are Rory and Isabel, whom both bring a lot drama to the storyline. Rory is trying to figure out her love life, while Isabel, is trying to make sure that she has one. The setting is East Hampton. The place everyone, who is anyone wants to be. There is talk of a divorce that seems to highlight a large portion of the novel throughout . Nevertheless, the focus still comes back to Rory and Isabel and their ever changing relationships. In the end, the novel swirls into a mixture of a little bit of ya to contemporary to coming of age. I can really see this read for upper young adult readers, specifically girls. Not so much for female adult, young adult readers. However, Joanna does have a talent for character development. Each one was truly realistic. She has other published books that I will be checking out in the near future.

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ABOUT JOANNA PHILBIN

  

Joanna Philbin was born in Los Angeles and raised in New York City—and spend many summers on the Hamptons. She holds a BA from Brown University and a JD and an MFA from the University of Notre Dame. She is the author of the Daughters series, and lives and writes in Los Angeles.