Title: The Extended Summer of Anna and Jeremy
Author: Jennifer Ann Shore
Genre: Young Adult, YA Romance
Book Blurb:
Is one summer enough time to change everything? Anna Wright is always on her best behavior — turning in homework assignments early, keeping her head down during disagreements, and living life vicariously through action movies. Faced with the reality of her reputation as a lame, high school cliché, she decides now is the time for a change, so when hotshot basketball player Jeremy Blake interrupts her late-night plotting over a bowl of Cinnamon Toast Crunch, she convinces him to help. As they explore the summer together, Anna can’t help but wonder what else will fall into place as autumn approaches. "The Extended Summer of Anna and Jeremy" is a mature young adult novel with coming-of-age themes including self-discovery and teenage love and relationships.
My Review:
Anna is tired of being the same old boring goody two shoes so after mulling over her life while eating a bowl of cereal, she vows to make some changes. She’s going to make a bucket list and when her brother’s best friend, Jeremy, walks into her kitchen, she decides to start by kissing him. She’s crushed on him for as long as she can remember, and she’s floored when he agrees to help her with her list but with more spontaneity. As the summer rolls on, she spends all her time with him. She makes it perfectly clear it’s just for the summer but when it’s back to school time, Jeremy doesn’t want to go back to just being friends. Can Anna see past her list to what’s in front of her or will she break Jeremy’s heart?
The Extended Summer of Anna and Jeremy is a beautifully written summer romance/coming of age story. I connected with Anna right away as she reminds me of a very younger me. Anna is a heroine every girl can relate to and her reactions to all that life throws at her is spot on. Figuring out where you fit in and foraging your own path is a main theme to this book. Another powerful theme has to do with Jeremy and his basketball career. The pressure from his father is something many young athletes deal with on a daily basis. It was such fun exploring Anna and Jeremy’s feelings and attraction.
While some readers didn’t care for the timeline of the book (flashbacks and flashforwards), I found it appealing and broke up the monotony of Anna’s single POV. It was easy to follow along and added just the right amount of dramatic tension to the story.
If you’re looking for a unique young adult romance with realistic characters you’ll fall in love with, pick up The Extended Summer of Anna and Jeremy. Highly recommend! I hope the author plans on a sequel because there’s many characters I want to know more about.
Favorite Character/Quote: Anna. She’s so much like I was at that age, only I didn’t have the courage to try new things. Her addiction to movies and cereal cemented her as my favorite heroine of 2019.
My Rating: 5+ stars
Buy it Now:
Free to read on Kindle Unlimited!
Author Biography:
Jennifer Ann Shore is a writer and an Amazon bestselling author based in Seattle, Washington. She has written two novels: "New Wave," a young adult dystopian, and "The Extended Summer of Anna and Jeremy," a young adult romance — published in 2018 and 2019, respectively. In her decade of working in journalism, marketing, and book publishing, she has won numerous awards for her work, from companies such as Hearst and SIIA.
Be sure to visit her website (https://www.jenniferannshore.com) and follow her on Twitter (@JenniferAShore), Instagram (@shorely) or your preferred social media channel to stay in touch.
Reviewed by: Mrs. N