‘Twenty Boy Summer’ – Sarah Ockler

Twenty Boy Summer

This was the kind of book that I would have adored as a teenager; as an adult, I found myself feeling quite wistful as I read this.

Frankie comes up with a crazy plan for the summer vacation that she is going on with her best friend Anna – they have to talk to a new boy every day in an attempt to get Anna her summer fling. Anna agrees to the plan, though she doesn’t reveal to Frankie just how painful the experience will be.

Anna has always been part of a triangle with her best friend Frankie, and Frankie’s brother, Matt. The three were always inseparable, until the night their car crashes and Matt is killed.

This kind of experience would be upsetting enough for anyone, but it happened only weeks after Matt had finally declared his love for Anna. They had a perfect few weeks and were about to reveal their shifting relationship status when the accident happened. Anna hasn’t told anyone what happened between them, so she is left to grieve alone.

If I’m being honest, this could have been a really depressing story but it wasn’t at all. There was a definite sense of waiting for the inevitable secrets to spill out, but it was fairly light-hearted fun. I enjoyed watching Anna come to terms with her feelings and learn how she might come to accept what happened to her.