It Happened One Summer by Tessa Bailey Book Review
“Had she ever dated a real man before? Or had they all been boys?'”
(pg. 156)
About
Author: Tessa Bailey
Genre: New Adult Romance
Series: Bellinger Sisters Book One
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Tools of Engagement
Synopsis
Piper Bellinger is fashionable, influential, and her reputation as a wild child means the paparazzi are constantly on her heels. When too much champagne and an out-of-control rooftop party lands Piper in the slammer, her stepfather decides enough is enough. So he cuts her off, and sends Piper and her sister to learn some responsibility running their late father’s dive bar… in Washington.
Piper hasn’t even been in Westport for five minutes when she meets big, bearded sea captain Brendan, who thinks she won’t last a week outside of Beverly Hills. So what if Piper can’t do math, and the idea of sleeping in a shabby apartment with bunk beds gives her hives. How bad could it really be? She’s determined to show her stepfather—and the hot, grumpy local—that she’s more than a pretty face.
Except it’s a small town and everywhere she turns, she bumps into Brendan. The fun-loving socialite and the gruff fisherman are polar opposites, but there’s an undeniable attraction simmering between them. Piper doesn’t want any distractions, especially feelings for a man who sails off into the sunset for weeks at a time. Yet as she reconnects with her past and begins to feel at home in Westport, Piper starts to wonder if the cold, glamorous life she knew is what she truly wants. LA is calling her name, but Brendan—and this town full of memories—may have already caught her heart.
Review
Spoilers Contained Below
To those once in a lifetime summers,
Tessa Bailey is on her spicy romance game because every second I am on bookstagram, there seems to be a new Tessa Bailey book people are ranting and raving about and I cannot keep up 😅.
No joke, I feel like every time I go to Target, there is a new Tessa Bailey book I never knew existed. I mean, how did sis write all these books all at once. I cannot even get through that many blog posts in a day or a month. That’s wild, but kudos. Or maybe those are her old books that got new covers, either way, thank you Tessa Bailey for emptying my wallet 🙃.
It Happened One Summer came out last year or a few years ago, and I didn’t get around to it last summer because I was busy, and I wasn’t going to read a book with summer in the title, not in the summer, you know. So here I am, a year later having read It Happened One Summer. And if there’s anything to know, I like Tessa Bailey’s books for the most part—they are interesting and spicy—but some of her books in the Hot and Hammered Series *cough cough the second book cough cough*** wasn’t my favorite.
I did enjoy It Happened One Summer as it had strong characters, great arcs, spicy love, and very summer tropey romantic moments that I really enjoyed and needed to read this Summer.
My first impression of Piper, not going to lie, was that she sounded very out of tune with other people’s reality and was very privileged. I understood what Adrian (her boyfriend at the time) was saying about how it didn’t seem like Piper had a thought in her head unless it had to do with her social media or her social or physical appearance. I understood that he didn’t like how she never contributed anything to the conversation or didn’t seem interested in him, and that’s why her relationships were only surface level and didn’t last long. Piper was just ostensibly all about herself. There is nothing wrong with caring about yourself, and I can understand how being an influencer only emphasizes caring about your image, but I didn’t get a great vibe from her. I also didn’t like how the minute Adrian broke up with her, she trespassed in some hotel’s pool and had this big party with fireworks. Because she trespassed and had a flamboyant extravaganza, she got arrested, which makes sense because duh.
As punishment, her step-father, Daniel, sent Piper to Westport where Piper’s birth father was from. Piper didn’t know a lot about her birth father because he passed away when she was very young. However, she did know that his name was Henry Cross and he was from Westport, Washington. Henry passed away in an unfortunate accident when he went fishing/catching on a boat across the Bearing Sea and went overboard; the fishing/catching business was extremely dangerous.
Her mom, Maureen, moved out of Westport after her husband/Piper’s dad passed away because being in Westport was emotionally difficult for her when everywhere she went reminded her of the man she loved and lost. I understood how the mom needed to go someplace new to start over and move forward because that must have been painful to lose someone she loved and to now have to raise her two girls by herself. Because Piper and Hannah were young, they didn’t remember much about Westport either. Henry did leave Piper and Hannah something: a bar. Piper was to go to Westport for three months to learn a lesson, maybe learn more about her father, and prove that she wasn’t just some stuck up rich girl with no life skills.
Honestly, round of applause for Hannah, sister of the year who went with Piper to Westport when Hannah didn’t have to.
What a great sister. I liked Hannah 💙
I already could tell the direction of where the book was going because rich girl goes to small town, not going to fit in but finds a nice rugged man and then starts to form a life there at the small town that was going to become like her new home. She was going to remake the bar and then everyone was going to come to like the bar and her and she was going to end up staying in Westport because she found the man she loved and a place that felt more like home 😅. Yea, and I don’t write all of this now just because I already read the book, but I could just tell that these things were going to happen the minute Piper was sent to Westport. It Happened One Summer‘s plot kind of reminded me of some of the qualities in The Simple Wild by K.A. Tucker, if you know what I mean. Tell me I’m wrong.
But yea, I already felt a big burly man was going to judge Piper and tell her she didn’t belong in Westport the minute she showed up. I mean, sis really went to a small town with a lipstick purse, stilettos, and legs for day’s. She probably looked like Barbie at a 7-11 😂. I don’t know.
It’s not hard for men to be easily infatuated by a beautiful girl.
Brendan was not infatuated, her was infuriated and irritated. The two I’s, if you will.
He was not wrong in thinking that someone like Piper wouldn’t stand a day in Westport. Gosh, not the dingy studio above the bar that had rats running around and a bunk bed where she constantly bumped her head when she woke up. But you know what, this girl had hutzpah to say f*** it and to prove them all wrong about her. Because even if she looked like Barbie, she had a backbone and did not give up in trying to make the best out of the situation. Now that I think about it, I really admired the way Piper wasn’t hissy about being sent to Westport, but she took the experience in stride. I liked how she never complained, but adapted, and I think that said a lot about her good intentions and her good heart that others couldn’t see.
Everyone kept touting on Piper’s beauty throughout the book, and Tessa Bailey really emphasized how drop-fish gorgeous Piper was. However, what I liked about Piper was how even if she was beautiful, she was also kind. She owned her confidence and her beauty, but at least she had a nice heart on the inside that made her beauty on the outside even more beautiful. I was starting to see Piper in a different light, and I liked that because her tenacity and kindness made her more human.
Brendan, like I, saw her as one way at first because Piper gave off this certain image. But I guess how we judge others says more about us than it does about that person because just because someone looks beautiful or doesn’t (in our eyes), doesn’t mean that they are what we associate with those titles.
Brendan is a guy who likes routines and things to be the same.
He was also OBVIOUSLY sexually frustrated to the point of being frustrated at Piper because here was a gorgeous woman that he thought obviously wouldn’t’ sleep with him, so what better to be than mad at her and treat her like shiz 🙃. You know, a typical man’s natural reaction. That was sarcasm, thank you very much.
But dude was sexually frustrated and you could tell from a planet away; he kept describing her finer features and how hard or uncomfortable his man bits felt. And then because he was physically attracted to Piper, he grew curious about her too because of some of the things she said in passing that made him believe that she was more than a bimble head. But we alllll knew he wanted to get some 😉.
I felt like Piper when she went grocery shopping 😂. Not that I ever talked to Siri when I was grocery shopping, looking for a two ingredient meal, but I have been there, standing in the aisle, not sure what I am doing. I liked how reliable Piper felt, and I loved how she was trying to do a kind gesture by making a meal for her sister because Hannah came all this way with her. Brendan was also at the grocery store that morning and saw Piper. He was still rude as heck to her, but when Piper clapped back at him, I was like, she pulled the mortality card on you my dude 👏🏼! She said, “Do you talk to your mama with that attitude?!” 😂
“Thank you for being so neighborly. You know, you obviously love this place. Maybe you should try being a better representation of it.”
(pg. 52)
She wasn’t wrong.
Just because you’re peezed for whatever reason, doesn’t mean you take it out on someone you’re judging before knowing.
I did like how her verbal slap woke him up and he was actually nicer to her afterward and gave her his pasta and pasta sauce. I freaking laughed though when she ran out on the street with a flaming hot pan. If I saw her on the street doing that, I would have actually been like what the literal heck, but gosh it was kind of funny to read.
After helping put out her pan fire, I enjoyed their first real conversation at the restaurant where Brendan always went to to get Fish and Chips. This was the first time they were amicable and really getting to know each other. One of the things I liked the most about Brendan in this scene was how we see how he is who he says he is; He was someone who also knew what he liked and stuck to what he knew, and he felt like the kind of person who didn’t play games and was direct with what he felt or meant. I liked that, but sometimes being very direct with other personalities, might not be received the best. But I like the no games part about his personality because he was very clear with his intentions and that’s absolutely refreshing 😂.
I freaking laughed though with how Piper was like, “Try the Pot Pie,” and then Brendan was like “no because then I would have to eat the whole thing because I don’t just go sampling things and moving on” (pg. 86). Dude, she’s just asking you to try something, not commit to pot pie 😂. But I get his thinking. I just thought he was being a bit extreme. Not him actually trying the pie and then saying he hated it but ate the whole thing anyway. We love the commitment though.
After their hospitable conversation, their relationship really shifted from I-hate-your-stinking-guts to I- want-to-be-with-your-stinking-guts—yes, I am aware how weird that sentence sounds. But I thought it was really cute how he went to her house the next day and brought over coffee and donuts for Piper and Hannah. Then he fixed the lock so that when he left for his sailing trip, they would be safe and protected and he wouldn’t have to worry about them. I also liked how he hired someone while he was gone to pad the bunk above Piper’s so that she wouldn’t bruise her forehead anymore. How sweet 🥺.
I also thought it was cute when she accidentally went to Brendan’s ex-wives celebration of life, thinking it was a party and he chased after her to comfort her. This moment between them really emphasized how he was trying to change his opinion of himself to Piper and wanted to be more than just friends. I mean, the changing the lock and calling someone to fix the bunk above hers were friendly gestures, but going out of his way to hug her when she was crying because he wanted her to feel better, obviously highlighted some very real feelings there.
And also, OKAY, Mr. “I don’t just go putting my arms around girls” (pg. 144). 🙈
I’m SCREAMING.
Okay. I see you Brendan.
Direct and intentional. My man 😂.
Let’s go back to ex-wife’s celebration of life. Because a much as I like how direct and no-shiz Brendan was, there was this overshadowing relationship that Brendan used to be in.
Brendan was married to Desiree Forrester, Mick Forrester’s daughter. Mick Forrester was someone who took Brendan in and kind of taught him the sailing and crabbing ways. He even gave Brendan the Della Ray because Mick was so close to Brendan and trusted him. Brendan and Desiree naturally got together because Mick liked Brendan and probably only trusted Brendan to be with his daughter. So Brendan and Desiree got together and were married, however, Brendan voiced that there was no real love connection—just a marriage of platonic care.
When they were married, Brendan was hardly around because he was so focused on his job, and many weeks he would be out on the water. So when he got home, he wasn’t the best husband in wanting to spend time with his wife, but did his own thing. I understand he was busy as the captain and his work was timely, but if he really loved his wife, he would feel excited to return home to her after each trip and want to make the time with her meaningful before the next. But there was never that love there. Seven years ago, the Desiree had an unexpected aneurysm and Brendan wasn’t there. Heartbreakingly, Desiree passed away. Even if Desiree passed away several years ago, Brendan still wore his wedding ring to honor her, which I thought was respectable and sweet. Even before knowing their relationship and how platonic it was, I still thought Brendan wearing the ring showed what kind of man Brendan was—respectable and kind.
However, I did agree with Fox that it was okay if Brendan wanted to move forward. Just because you are moving forward from a person you used to care about or love, doesn’t mean that that feeling ends even when we move forward because we will carry that emotion or experience in everything we do. I think that when we are ready or when we want to, that we have to give ourselves permission to move forward in knowing that we should live our life with love, happiness, and care and that spending so much time in sorrow wouldn’t be the way our loved ones would want us to live. Again, it is not dishonoring their memory or that feeling, but carrying that feeling with everything you do because you know what it meant to love so deeply.
“This isn’t fair to you. Dragging you back through this . . . loss every [gosh]damn year. You deserve to move on.”
(pg.133)
I think it is honorable and amazing that they do celebrate Desiree each year to keep her memory alive, but I also do not think it is fair to Brendan to keep having him relive this sorrow if he’s trying to move forward.
My grandparents passed away in the past five years, starting when I finished college. One happened five years ago, then three years ago, then two years ago, then a year ago. And after the first few years, my family gathered to celebrate their birthday, holidays, or when they passed. My situation is different from Brendan’s because my grandparent’s passing is still a very surreal and fresh emotion, so celebrating their life each year is something we enjoy and love to do because we love them. If I am being honest, the days my family gathers to celebrate my grandparents, are not as much depending on the grandparent because we get busy as people, but also I feel like if we spent all this time feeling sad about them, we would not feel happy about the memories we did have with them—the memories we want to cherish. We still celebrate their birthday, holidays, and the day they passed, but not in sorrow, truly in joy for the life they lived. Do not get me wrong, I do find myself feeling sad in moments and memorabilia when I think of my grandparents, but we also have to remember that they would not want us to be sad. They would want us to be happy and to love, and to lead with the love they left in us.
So if I placed myself in Brendan’s shoes, I would start to feel like going to these celebrations for a wife he never really loved would feel difficult to move on because I would have all this expectation to feel mournful and to be there. And I don’t think Brendan is a awful person for wanting to move on and be happy, but I understand him.
It is okay to move forward with love.
“There was a ghost between them and a ring on his finger, and all of it needed resolving first.”
(pg. 137)
Piper’s darn right.
She can’t start a relationship with a person who is wearing his wedding ring and who needs to work through his emotions to figure out if he wants a new relationship.
After putting his arm around her when comforting her, Brendan finally let go. He wanted to move forward, so he took off his ring, which was a momentous moment for him. That had to feel weird; to take off this powerful symbol that he held onto for so long. When he took off his ring, I loved how he had this whole internal monologue of recognizing that he wasn’t the best husband, but forgiving himself for it. Forgiving himself for his faults was necessary to help him lift the weight off the reason he also still wore the ring—he felt guilty for not being a good husband when he was with her, so he wore the ring to feel like he was still a good husband. But once he forgave himself for not being the best husband, he could move on and be a better man for his next love, which was Piper.
He really said, “Let me court your a**.”
No man goest though all this effort to help you if they do not like you. He really went through all this effort to help her take apart some of the things in the bar so they could redo it. I liked how he was with Hannah and Piper to talk about a new vision for No Name because No Name had a history with everyone in Westport, and now it was being made anew by the people who owned it—-past mixing with present. Brendan showed her the outside area and gave ideas of what the space could be. Also, he took the time to build her a freaking pergola! Like, if a person is spending all this time and effort for you, then that’s not for nothing!
You know what also made me freaking cackle? When Brendan made an insta just to follow Piper and look at her thirst pictures 😂. *cough cough sexually frustrated cough cough ** Not him having no followers, no pictures and just following her. Yea, because that’s not suspicious or weird. I loved loved loved Fox and the rest of the Della Ray crews insta handle ideas 😂—CRACKED me UP.
But he freaking built her a pergola to gain the courage to ask her out, which was kind of sweet 🥺. I liked how he didn’t beat around the bush about how he felt about her and what he wanted because I feel like some guys would do all these nice gestures and act like they mean nothing when deep down he likes the person. Be Brendan, be direct haha.
Their first date was wholesome and cute—very on-brand Brendan behavior. I loved how he had his cute little house and he had candles on his dining table, and he put his personally-caught fish in the oven—-a homemade meal. I loved seeing inside his mind and how he didn’t think that someone of Piper’s standards would like such a low-key dinner in his humble house. But in her brain, she absolutely loved how personal the gesture was because she was so used to men going through loops and bounds for the fanciest dinners or the best things, but here was a nice man who made her a nice meal from his boat to table. That meant more to her than a man who spent so much on her—the thought that counted. I agree with Piper. Personally, I too, would like if a partner cooked me a nice meal for a date rather than take me out to an extravagant fancy restaurant where I do not know half the things on the menu. I mean, there’s a time and place for a fancy restaurant, but I like a thoughtful gesture.
They also had nice conversation—much better conversation than she had with her other dates. I liked how they talked about real things happening in each others lives because they wanted to get to know each other. Brendan said how he is building a ship or something in Alaska and intends to give the Della Ray and the Captain role to Fox. I never thought about Brendan’s captain role on the Della Ray until he mentioned it, but yea, that must be challenging to also feel like he owes Mick something because Mick gave him the Della Ray. Also, Piper’s friends suck and aren’t really friends. I mean, if your friends are not checking on you the minute you ostensibly “disappear,” then they are not your friends. True friends would check on you when they haven’t heard from you 👉🏼👈🏼.
I bet Brendan liked dessert though 🤪, if you know what I mean.
HAHAHAHA.
Tension released.
Honestly, I wonder how Tessa Bailey gets her Inspo for such SPICY moments and scenes 🤪. I mean, any smut author, I wonder 🙈??????/
A big HAHAHAHHAHA. I know.
Joking, I don’t, but I have a hunch.
Kind of made like an ice cream cone in the summer and melted when Brendan gave Piper his house key right after they finally got together. Brendan was leaving for a few weeks on a crabbing trip, and he wanted to give her his key if she needed it. Giving Piper his key felt rushed, but also I kind of liked how, again, direct, he was with how he felt. My heart swelled when there was the storm and Piper was so worried about Brendan’s safety, so she ran to his house to feel closer to him 🥺. I mean, sis ran through a typhoon when she should have stayed in her house, but I loved the reason why she ran through the typhoon. I don’t know, I just got the sense that when Piper went to his house, that she always belonged or that he already carved out a place for her with having everything she would need. I just loved the homeyness of their relationship already.
If Tessa Bailey made Brendan go overboard and injured, I would have revolted 😫. Glad he was safe.
I was mush when Piper ran to Brendan and she tried not to convey her very real emotions—relief—towards him. But I bet he could have felt how she felt by her tears and the fact that she was even there—that she cared deeply about him.
No, but seriously, is there not security cameras in this hospital because someone was getting a show 🙈. When they left that hospital room after being all flushed, they ran into Mick who saw them together. Honestly, it’s not fair of him to judge Brendan if Brendan wanted to move on, and Mick had no right to judge Piper either because she was the person Brendan wanted to move on with. I don’t know, I understand why Mick feels like he has a say in Brendan’s life, but it is Brendan’s life and he should want him to be happy.
Because Piper was terrified out of her life for Brendan’s safety, Brendan took her to the Della Ray to reassure her of his safety. I loved loved loved that he thought to take Piper to the Della Ray because showing her the boat and where he worked would ease her nerves of where he spends most of his time.
What I liked most about Brendan showing Piper the Della Ray was their serious conversation. I honestly love when main characters talk things through and not skirt around the issues or their feelings because gosh knows many problems in books would be solved if characters just communicated. I loved how the night before they were even saying, “Let’s save that for the conversation.” So they knew they were going to have this talk. Brendan’s worries were about his wife and her overshadowing presence in their life and in Westport. I thought that was great that he opened up about what his relationship was actually like with Desiree because she could understand how that dynamic was. And no one understands someone’s relationship than that person in that relationship. I also liked how he was honest that his relationship with Desiree wasn’t all rainbows as people made his marriage out to seem.
Something Brendan also had a huge problem with was the way Piper spoke to herself. She would demean herself as someone who wasn’t talented or just someone that people thought was only pretty. You know, as someone who judged Piper from the first pages, I do feel like when we see the surface of someone, we assume based on what we know of people similar to that person. But that’s just it—-we only know the surface. So even I know that we have to check our assumptions and remember there is always more to people than what we see. I loved how Brendan saw all these beautiful qualities in Piper that she failed to see—her affability, tenacity, and character. Piper did have a huge heart with how she offered to walk Abe up the steps of the Museum every Friday just so he could read his newspaper because she knew how much reading his newspaper there meant to him. I loved how she easily made friends with everyone because she made them feel seen and heard. I also loved how she spoke to her newly discovered Grandmother, Opal, and was there for her when Opal finally wanted to leave the house after all these years. Opal had been staying at home because she wanted to spare others her grief when her son passed away. I understand she needed Tim to grieve, and sometimes people do not know how to act around people who lost someone because they are uncomfortable in not knowing how to speak to that person. But that didn’t mean that Opal should have felt like she could not go out and live her life. I also understood why Opal was angry at Maureen, Piper and Hannah’s mom, because the mom just left, which felt like she left Henry behind. But if I was Maureen, yea, being in Westport would have been painful. She needed to start fresh to heal, and the mom needed to start fresh in a different way—like when Piper low-key gave her a makeover and brought her out on a night in the town.
In all the kind things Piper was doing, she slowly weaved her way into the hearts of those in Westport and was becoming the heart of Westport just like her father.
However, Brendan wasn’t sure if she was actually going to stay in Westport after the bar was done and the three months were up. She could very well leave to her old life in L.A. I know, and we all knew, that L.A. and her lifestyle before wasn’t for her anymore. She grew to love Westport so much like a second skin, and she formed a community with the people. She was living rather than thinking about how others thought about her life. Living in the moment is much more powerful than the “living” Piper thought she was doing. She wasn’t living. She also didn’t sound like she missed whatever empty life she had back in L.A.—no real house of her own, no real friends, no real life except her social media life. Her life was being built in Westport.
But I understood Brendan’s concerns because Piper would seemingly have to give up her whole life to be with him, which is a big ask. I knew deep down Piper would move and sacrifice everything to be with Brendan, but Brendan wasn’t so secure in how she felt because he wanted a black and white answer and not this whole wishy washy feeling of her possibly leaving—he wanted security.
I FREAKING laughed when he went to Fox for advice. Nothing against Fox (we love Fox), but it was comical that Brendan went to his best friend for romance advice, when Brendan didn’t feel like someone who went for others for advice. It also felt like he really didn’t want to be having this personal conversation about this love life with his friend. Not Fox comparing women to fishing, and then saying that he didn’t have advice to actually keep the “bait/woman” once you had them. Okay, Fox. I FREAKING CACKLED when Fox told Brendan about this records convention in Seattle and how Brendan should do something spontaneous to show Piper that he was changing and could get out of a routine. When Piper called, he told her all about maybe going to Seattle and that there was a records convention that Hannah could enjoy and that Fox would come. Not Brendan taking Fox’s idea and using it is as his own just to get Piper and Hannah way for the weekend.
A magnet doesn’t have as much romantic tension compared to what’s happening between Fox and Hannah. I mean, they spent all this time together at the records store and then Fox was the one who suggested the records convention because maybe he likes Hannah and wanted to bring her somewhere with something she loved. I loved their witty banter and how Fox was in tune with Hannah and her taste/love of music. I loved how she played him the song ‘No Scrubs’ as the song for her mood when she was glad. I loved how Fox laughed at her joke to him. And then it was so cute how they sat next to each other and shared a headset to listen to Hannah’s music. Yea, I want to know everything that’s going on there 🥺💙.
But that’s for next book 😉.
While I’m on the Fox and Hannah train, when they were at the convention, Hannah mentioned to Piper how she saw this Fleetwood Mac album that she really wanted but the album was too expensive to buy. When Hannah said she wanted the album but couldn’t purchase it, I was like, “Fox is going to get it for her!” At the end of the book, the Fleetwood Mac album was at her door 🥺💙. FOX GOT HER THE Fleetwood Mac she wanted!!!!!!!!!!! HE LOVES HER 😭. You cannot tell me that a guy who is not interested in you would not conveniently look up a records convention for you because he knows how much you like records and music, and then buy you the record he noticed that you really wanted. No guy, no person, does anything like that if there isn’t some deep rooted feelings lying in the trenches of these emotions he needs to navigate. But her loves her 🤧.
SCREAMS.
Anyway, this post isn’t about Fox and Hannah, this is about Piper and Brendan. But I’m looking forward to writing Hook, Line, and Sinker’s book review because, yes, yes, I read it already because I had to.
Taking Brendan shopping was like putting a giraffe in an ice rink—bizarre, but hilarious. Not a classic dude who told Piper she looked good in every pair of jeans she tired on, but then Piper being like, “They aren’t that great.” She was looking at the detail of the jeans and how it made her feel, but Brendan was looking at that booty 😂. Literal spit take when he said “spoiling you makes my d*** hard.” UHHHHH, excuse me? Oh-kay.
After their trip to Seattle, Piper moves in with Brendan and Hannah offers to stay in Brendan’s guest room. I loved how Brendan put a record player in Hannah’s room. You know, he had to impress the sister and stay on her good side if wanted to stay with Piper 😉.
There was this obvious sense of foreboding on Tessa Bailey’s part that things would just go to pieces soon 🙃. Yea, thank you for letting me prepare. Piper was getting calls from back home—from her friend Kirby–about how, WOW, people noticed Piper was gone and that Piper making a big reappearance would basically gain Piper the most traction in her career. The possibility of Piper leaving was looming like a ominous storm cloud, and Brendan was just asking to fight her on whether she was going to choose to stay or go back to LA, which wasn’t fair to her. I mean, like he even said, giving up her whole life to be in Westport was a lot—a big life change—and that’s something he should have given her more time to process or talk to him about. They could have talked through what their life would look like if she stayed or what they could do together to make the transition easier. I think that sort of conversation would have eased both their fears. Ultimately, I felt Brendan was insecure about how a woman that beautiful and perfect would choose him and this small town—like why would she pick something smaller than the life she had?
Well, because her feelings were bigger than the life she had—more potent.
He was reacting out of fear and that led to him giving her an ultimatum or the ultimate choice of either showing up at the dock to show that she chose them or that if she didn’t show up, that he would know she chose L.A. He walked out after their argument and went to stay on the ship before the ship departed the next morning. He did need to cool off, but I didn’t like how he made her feel like she had to choose right at that moment. I understand that the uncertainty wasn’t fair to him either because he should know where she stood and feel secure in their relationship, but their relationship was still so new. Yea, she had some reservations.
I knew she would choose him though. But I also knew that something was going to go wrong because something always goes wrong. GOLLY.
When Piper went for her usual morning run and walk with Abe, but he FREAKING FELL DOWN, I was like, it’s over, she’s missing the boat 😫!!!!!! No way in heck would Piper ever just leave Abe when he just fell down and has a bash in his forehead. I was like, hurry up Abe’s son, Piper’s got places to bend people to see!!! But she missed the boat and now he probably thought that she didn’t choose him. OUT OF ALL THE DAYS HE HAD TO FALL 😫. Not that I wanted Abe to fall or ever wanted him to fall, but gosh, she had to goooooooo to her love of her life and declare what an idiot he was for questioning her love.
But he left.
Those women at the dock had no real clue why she was a blubbering mess. She wasn’t crying because she missed Brendan, she was crying because she missed telling him that she chose him—missed opportunity. But I didn’t like this insinuation that she wasn’t strong enough to be with Brendan because a sailor’s wife had to appear strong. Piper was more than strong you idiots. Sorry, I was upset at this whole situation 😂.
Also, what a shizzy day. First, Daniel didn’t show up, which Piper had a feeling her step-dad wouldn’t care to put her and her accomplishments first. I mean, Hannah and Piper redid the whole bar with the help of some townspeople, but they did that on their own. They took No Name, and gave it such a meaningful name—Cross and Daughters 💙. The name was truly a blend of the past and the present—to honor Henry and his legacy with his daughters who were reconnecting with him and the town. I loved how they painted the new sign so the sign had more personalization. Second, no one came to their Labor Day opening celebration, which was a shizzy move from everyone. I get that Piper and Hannah weren’t raised in Westport, but I thought they weren’t petty enough to not show up. My heart was so sad that no one came after all their hard work. No one showing up felt like a real slap in the face like they weren’t a part of this town no matter how hard they tried. Third, Mick showed up and basically told her she would never replace Desiree, which no DUH because he name is Piper and she’s her own person you butthat.
When Hannah said Piper’s sparkle was gone, that broke my heart. Piper was a great person, and for someone to lose their sparkle—what made them them–that’s terrible. She lost her man, the town didn’t seen to want or like her there. I don’t blame Piper for going back to L.A. because she felt like that was where she belonged—kind of like she wasn’t deluding herself by staying there, thinking this was her new home. I knew though that returning to L.A. would be worse because the extravagant, glamorous life wasn’t for her anymore. She had changed so much where small town life, tight-knit community, and love was powerful. She didn’t need all the extra things when she had the most valuable things you couldn’t buy.
I was glad Brendan was self-aware that he was a stupid head when he was on that boat 😂. She told you to have faith, and you go ahead and doubt her. Heck, you left.
Sucks.
I was like, “YOU NEED TO GROVEL and go to your woman.”
But oh no no no, let’s back up. HOW DARE WESTPORTIANS show up LATE ☹️. I’m sorry, here was Piper thinking she was an outcast and that everyone hated her there, so she left, when really people were watching the news and din’t want to party in case something bad happened at some oil rigging. I mean, respectfully, I get, but couldn’t anyone called the bar and been like, “Sorry, let’s party later when we know it’s safe.” I mean, the whole situation was unfortunate. TOO LATE TO PARTY, Piper left!!!!!!
I loved it though when everyone whose heart was touched by Piper, voiced how much Piper helped them—like they were advocating to her goodness and belonging in the town. She was putting down roots to make Westport her home by connecting with the people; she was always going to stay.
The ending felt rushed when they reunited and he basically carried her off the stage and that freaking glittery unicorn or whatever. But bro did grovel, so let’s go. I would have liked more behind the scenes emotions of the angst when Brendan was going to Piper. I would have also liked a bigger conversation between Brendan and piper about what happened/did not happen at the dock and where they were going to go from there. Just running into each other’s arms and acting like he was her white knight, felt too easy for me as a grand gesture.
The epilogue was interesting; the epilogue more so set up the next book than brought wholesome closure to Brendan and Piper’s story. My biggest question was why was Hannah leaving Westport again? I forgot. I know why Piper’s staying, but why was her sister going? I didn’t think Piper could survive without Hannah right by her side. But I was jumping over the moon knowing there was more to the Fox and Hannah story. Fox wasn’t going to survive without her being in Westport, and she had to go back to Westport somehow in the sequel.
Overall, It Happened One Summer was a classic whirlwind summer romance that I did enjoy. I loved Piper’s character arc not because she so much changed as a person, but my perspective of her changed. I think Brendan had more changes as a character in being open to try new things (as much as he could) 😅, and opening up his heart again. I also thought they had a very honest romance with deep conversations and cute moments that highlighted the beatify of their relationships. I mean, the spice be spicin’ too 🤧. I would have liked to seen more connections to Henry and learning more about him through Opal or through other people in the town. I like that we did get some moments with finding his photograph or his memorial, but I felt like there could be more said about this important person in their life; part of Westport was also getting to know the dad again and I felt like we touched the surface of that. I also would have liked to seen Piper find herself more in terms of her passions because she did have drive and kindness, but I wanted to see what she could do with her “Piper sparkle” or what she was interested in—more personal growth moments. I did like how she learned how to cook, as in cook pasta. Not Brendan literally eating the same pasta three nights in a row because he didn’t have the heart to tell her he was tired to pasta. My one pride and true dish, too sis haha.
Anyway, what was your favorite part of the book? Least favorite part? What did you think of the book?
What are your plans for this summer? Trips? Relaxing? Seeing friends?
Let me know below in the comments as I love hearing from you all 💕
I hope you have a beautiful day whenever and wherever you might be reading this 😊.
And as always, with love,
Rating
4.26 Full Bloom Flowers
Characters: I learned to admire Piper once I got to know her more and how kind and caring her heart was. Also, Brendan’s straightforwardness was absolutely refreshing because no one needs games 👏🏼
Plot: Cute and spicy small-town romance where he falls flat on his face HARD 😂
Writing: Tessa Bailey balances story-telling with spice and everything nice
Romance: As much as there were spicy, intimate scenes, I enjoyed how Piper and Brendan’s relationship felt natural and right with their honest conversations and how much they worked through things together. I liked how there were no games or absolute miscommunications that couldn’t be fixed.