Beloved young adult romance author Jenny Han reached new levels of fame when the screen adaptation of her novel To All the Boys I've Loved Before was adapted into a Netflix movie in 2018. But Han has many dedicated followers from her first book trilogy, The Summer series, which opens with The Summer I Turned Pretty.
The trilogy gained a lot of new fans when it was adapted into a streaming series for Amazon’s Prime Video, which debuted on June 17, 2022.
The Summer I Turned Pretty and its two sequels, It’s Not Summer Without You, and We’ll Always Have Summer, follow Isabel "Belly" Conklin as she comes of age over the course of several summers at Cousins Beach. Belly visits the beach every year with her mother and brother, her mother’s childhood best friend, Susannah Fisher, and Susannah’s children, sons Conrad and Jeremiah.
When we first meet Belly, she’s 16, transitioning out of a (very relatable) awkward phase and finding herself caught between the Fisher boys. Throughout the trilogy, we see Belly go through high school, college, and an eventual wedding—although you’ll have to listen to the series to learn the identity of her groom! It’s the perfect combination of romance, teenage drama, and family conflict, with countless heartfelt moments sprinkled throughout.
So, whether you can’t get enough of the Amazon Prime Video series or you’re lining up a healthy TBLT (To Be Listened To) queue for when you’ve finished watching, check out these delightful audiobooks perfect for fans of The Summer I Turned Pretty. We've got love triangles, summer romance books, easy beach reads and touching coming-of-age recommendations for any listener who loves Jenny Han.
YA Books Like The Summer I Turned Pretty
If you’re a Jenny Han fan, you’ll love this YA romance book by K. L. Walther. Meredith Fox heads to Martha’s Vineyard on her family’s annual vacation after losing her sister, Claire. She shut everyone out but is determined to rejoin the world this summer.
In The Summer of Broken Rules the annual family vacation is the perfect place to reconnect. Meredith is dateless at the family game of assassin, which has become a Fox family tradition. She finds herself forming an assassin alliance with a cute groomsman. She tries to focus on the game and honouring her late sister’s legacy but can’t help falling for him.
Morgan Matson's powerful novel about hope in the face of heartbreak will be a hit with Jenny Han fans. Second Chance Summer follows Taylor Edwards from an average but somewhat distant family.
One day, Taylor’s dad gets a terrible diagnosis, so the family decides to spend one last summer together at their Pocono Mountains lake house. They begin to reconnect and comfort one another. Taylor realizes her former best friend and her first boyfriend from years ago are still in the area.
This stunning romance title is a story about second chances, whether they are with family, friends or love.
If you're looking for another YA trilogy full of summer love and scenic locations, then this trio by Jenna Evans Welch is a perfect choice. Each book in the series follows a different main character on a trip to a different country. The first, Love & Gelato, follows Lina on her journey to discover more about her parents in Tuscany—where she also falls for the charming Ren. Love & Luck focuses on siblings Addie and Ian on a trip to their aunt's destination wedding in Ireland. And in Love & Olives, Liv travels to Santorini to help her father research the lost city of Atlantis. All three books are perfect summer escapes, full of adventure and travel, family drama, and whirlwind romances.
Two powerhouse YA authors, Becky Albertalli and Adam Silvera, teamed up to create this stunning queer summer romance. Ben goes to the post office to return a box of his ex-boyfriend's things, and on the way, he has a chance encounter that feels like fate with aspiring Broadway star Arthur. But when they fail to exchange contact information, they must rely on destiny to bring them back together. What If It's Us is a tender, endearing, and widely relatable love story that shows how messy, true-to-life meet-cutes can still end happily ever after. (And if you enjoy this listen, there's more! Be sure to check out the sequel, Here’s to Us.)
For listeners looking for a coming-of-age summer romance that digs a little deeper, Leah Johnson's Rise to the Sun is a wonderful story, meditating on themes of grief, family troubles, and fear of the future. Toni is reeling from losing her musician father and trying to figure out who she is before she starts college. Olivia tries to bounce back from a breakup without relying on a new crush. Their paths collide at the Farmland Music and Arts Festival, where their connection—and all the right music—gives them what they need to move forward.
Megan McCafferty's young adult Jessica Darling series has lots for listeners to love, with five novels following the angsty and drama-filled life of teenager Jessica Darling. When her best friend moves away from her hometown of Pineville, New Jersey, Jessica feels no one understands her snarky sense of humour or struggles to fit in. Sloppy Firsts and its four sequels follow Jessica through first love, heartbreak, family chaos, and much more. Fresh, funny, and relatable, Sloppy Firsts kicks off Darling’s must-read novel series that has been brought to life as an even more incredible audio series narrated by Rebecca Serle and Katie Schorr.
In this audiobook by bestselling YA author Sandhya Menon, you’ll find a joyful summer romance and a love triangle featuring two brothers. Intelligent, funny, and thoughtful, Twinkle dreams of becoming a filmmaker, so she’s super excited to get invited to direct a film for the Summer Festival by Sahil, the twin brother of her longtime crush, Neil. When Twinkle starts getting anonymous love letters signed “N,” she’s confident they’re from Neil. But while working on her film, she falls head over heels for Sahil. This listen is told through letters and voiced by dual narrators Soneela Nankani and Vikas Adams.
If you got all caught up in the family exploration and childhood-friends-turned-lovers aspect of The Summer I Turned Pretty; then you'll love New York Times bestselling author Sarah Dessen's big-hearted The Rest of the Story. Emma Saylor lost her mother when she was ten and didn’t remember much about her. When her father heads off to his honeymoon with his new wife, Emma spends a summer with her mom’s family and digs into her parents’ history. But it’s her childhood best friend, Roo, who helps her piece together the secrets of her past. Emma even falls in love throughout a magical summer in this heartfelt listen.
Adult Books Like The Summer I Turned Pretty
If you loved The Summer I Turned Pretty, prepare to fall head-over-heels for this sweet summer love story. Canadian author Carley Fortune's Every Summer After takes listeners on a journey of six past summers and one weekend in the present.
A decade ago, Persephone Fraser made the biggest mistake of her life and felt she could never go home again. Instead of spending summers on the lake, she stays in her Toronto apartment. Persephone gets a call that summons her back to Barry’s Bay one day. She is instantly reminded of those six summers she spent with Sam. When the old flames cross paths again, their connection is undeniable. But is their love greater than the biggest mistakes of their past?
Part of the joy of Jenny Han's Summer trilogy is following Belly, Conrad, and Jeremiah as they mature through summers together and see childhood friendships bloom into something more. You'll find similar delight in listening to Emily Henry's People We Meet on Vacation. Apart from sharing the same Ohio hometown, Alex and Poppy have nothing in common, and that's fine—in fact, their differences have allowed them to develop a romance-free best friendship over the years. That is until one of their annual summer trips ends dramatically, and they stop talking for almost two years. At a crossroads in her life, Poppy reaches out to Alex and tries to rekindle their friendship with another summer trip—but will it spark something unexpected? Julia Whelan narrates this captivating listen.
Timothy Janovsky's debut novel is a sweet new adult summer romance about first love, coming of age, and exploring what you want in a relationship. Fresh out of college with a degree in film studies, movie lover Wren is spending his summer working at the local drive-in theatre. Yet, despite his knowledge of and passion for classic romantic movies, he's never been kissed. When he gets drunk on his birthday, Wren emails all the boys he's almost kissed—a move he especially regrets when he finds out one of those boys is working at the same drive-in for the summer. After all, Wren is no longer a closeted teenager, and maybe, finally, his dream of a perfect kiss before the credits is within reach.
If you love listening to family beach vacation stories filled with swoon-worthy romances, Priscilla Oliveras's Keys to Love series is your escape. Island Affair, the first in the series, follows social media influencer Sara on a family vacation to Key West. Sara feels like she’s finally coming into her own, but her successful siblings (and their perfect spouses) make her feel like she’s never enough. When her boyfriend ghosts her for the trip, Sara recruits Luis—a laidback firefighter paramedic and dive captain—to play the role of her adoring fiancé. But as Sara gets to know Luis and his big Cuban family, she wonders: Could their fake relationship become something real?
While this listen deals with darker themes than the Summer series, it’s a great pick if you loved watching Belly, Conrad, and Jeremiah return to the same beach year after year, growing, learning, and adapting to each other along the way. In 1977 Uruguay, being gay could lead to imprisonment, torture, or worse. Still, within this oppressive regime, five young women who love women somehow find each other. Together, they discover an isolated, nearly uninhabited cape, which they claim as their secret sanctuary. Over 35 years, Carolina De Robertis's Cantoras follows the five courageous queer women as they return again and again to Cabo Polonio, where they are free to be themselves.
Everything You Need to Know About the Television Adaptation of The Summer I Turned Pretty
The eight-episode TV adaptation of The Summer I Turned Pretty was released on Prime Video in 2022. Author Jenny Han is the executive producer of the series, along with the production company wiip (an independent studio led by veteran entertainment executive Paul Lee). Han also wrote the pilot.
In the series, Lola Tung stars as Belly Conklin, which is her first professional credit. Completing the love triangle, Christopher Briney plays Conrad, and Gavin Casalegno plays Jeremiah. Belly’s mother, Laurel, is played by Jackie Chung, and Rachel Blanchard plays Susannah. The show is full of the same heart, warmth, and teenage nostalgia that makes the book series such a joy to listen to.
