The Edge of Summer - Erica George

Author: Erica George

Narrator: Kathryn Lynhurst

Genre: YA Romance

Rating: 2.5 stars

In a Nutshell: Loved the whales. Liked the location and summery feel. Hated the main character. ONLY FOR OLDER YA READERS.

Story Synopsis:

Coriander, fondly called ‘Cor’, who is almost eighteen, is spending her summer at Cape Cod, working with the local marine institute to save whales from entanglement. She is also coping with the death of her best friend Ella and still sees her at key moments. Life at Cape Cod is going as expected, but the entry of local guy Mannix shatters Cor’s resolve of not dating anyone during the summer. The story focusses mostly on Cor and her rapport with the others around her, especially the budding relationship with Mannix, and partly on the whale initiatives

The story comes to us in the first person perspective of Cor.

Where the book worked for me:

👍 I am an animal lover and the reason I requested this book was that huge whale fluke on the cover. (I’ve never read a story set around whales.) The story does complete justice to the whale conservation and safety idea, providing a detailed glimpse of how our habits are damaging the natural world. If you need just one reason to read this book, it ought to be for the whales. I loved every scene related to the whales. The author's note at the end about whale conservation shows her knowledge and passion for the topic.

👍 There is queer representation in the book. It could have been better (a part of it felt very clichéd) but I appreciate the attempt, especially as one character goes by they/them and this pronoun usage is adhered to faithfully.

👍 There are some sweet moments between Cor and Mannix.

👍 Loved the setting of Cape Cod. The small town vibe came across well.

👍 Loved that gorgeous cover!

Where the book could have worked better for me:

👎 A character named ‘Coriander’ - sheesh! I love coriander the herb but to hear it as a character name was not just funny but also distracting.

👎 I just didn’t like Cor. I am still trying to figure out why everyone in the story went gaga over her. She was a liar, self-centred, irresponsible, and took almost everyone around her for granted, be it Ella, Mannix, her uncle with whom she is staying, her colleagues,… Two scenes towards the end irritated the heck out of me but as I don’t want to go into spoilers, let’s just say she wasn’t an ideal lead. (Hearing everything in her first person perspective made it even worse.)

👎 Mannix the character was sketched much better but I have a major issue with his portrayal. He was tall, handsome, kind, caring, a brave lifeguard, a good bartender, a knowledgeable plumber, an extraordinary chef, a home business owner, great with kids. In other words, Mannix is going to single-handedly spoil the expectations of young girls/guys all over the world. Does a character have to be so perfect? Isn’t it better to keep things realistic?

👎 The writing is quite surface-level. No depth to anyone or anything. Mannix’s relationship with his dad and Cor’s guilty conscience over Ella’s death are major topics but these are trivialised and brushed under the carpet. (Yeah okay, this is somewhat expected in a YA book.)

👎 It gets somewhat repetitive in between. (The audiobook helped a lot.)

👎 I hate it when the word “spastic” is used as a derogatory adjective. Some people might speak like this in real life but the usage shouldn’t be propagated through books, especially those meant for younger readers. It's rude.

The audiobook experience:

The audiobook, clocking at almost 9 hours, is narrated brilliantly by Kathryn Lynhurst. She captured the voices and accents of every single character wonderfully and I enjoyed the book far more because of her. 5 stars to her performance.

⚠ Note: Though this is marked as YA, it is not suggested for the younger end of that age segment. Content warnings: Multiple uses of ‘f*ck’ and ‘sh*t’, a sex scene (this fades to black but before it does, it does have some 18+ content), multiple instances of tongue kissing, underage drinking.

Recommended for older YA readers (16+) who are looking for a light and breezy read. YA Romance lovers will enjoy it.

2.5 stars. The audiobook made it much better.

My thanks to Tantor Audio and NetGalley for the ALC of “The Edge of Summer”. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the audiobook.