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Those Summer Nights

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After recovering from a life-changing injury, a teen girl must navigate a new job, an ex-best friend, and two surprisingly attractive coworkers in this “sweet, romantic summer tale” (Kirkus Reviews) for fans of Jenny Han and Siobhan Vivian.Hannah used to be all about focus, back before she shattered her ankle and her Olympic dreams in one bad soccer play. These days, she’s all about distraction—anything to keep the painful memories of her recent past at bay, including the string of bad decisions that landed her at boarding school for a year. Enter Bonanza, the local entertainment multiplex and site of Hannah’s summer employment. With its mini golf course, bowling alley, and arcade—not to mention her hot, flirty coworker Patrick—Bonanza seems like the perfect way to stay distracted. Until her boss announces the annual Bonanza tournament, a staff competition that brings her past Olympic nightmares crashing back into her present. On top of that, the Bonanza staff includes Brie, the ex-best friend she cut off last year, and Ethan, her brother’s best friend who became unreasonably attractive in her year away and who accepts her, even knowing her worst secrets. Under the neon lights of Bonanza, Hannah must decide whether she can find a way to discover a new self in the midst of her old life.

381 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 23, 2022

41 people are currently reading
3626 people want to read

About the author

Laura Silverman

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5 stars
228 (19%)
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492 (43%)
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346 (30%)
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 189 reviews
Profile Image for myo ⋆。˚ ❀ *.
1,324 reviews8,865 followers
May 25, 2023
3.5

this is such a fun book for summer, wasn’t sure how i was going to like it in the beginning cus i thought the mc was whiny but it actually surprised me in being very fun! also really enjoyed the romance!
Profile Image for rylan.
38 reviews25 followers
July 19, 2024
For me this was a very cute read but also had some darker themes to it. I enjoyed it a lot and loved all the characters! I also liked that the author put in flashbacks of Hannah's last summer. It helped Hannah's character development and my understanding of her. It also shows you why Hannah and her best friend had a falling out.

The romance was amazing. Ethan was perfect and I love him so much. Nothing felt rushed and I love how Ethan and Hannah were there for each other when they were having family and also self problems.

I also enjoyed the other side characters in the book such as her brother, family, and other co workers at Bonanza. They all helped Hannah in her healing journey and all of them provided a lesson for her.

I would recommend this book to everyone looking for the perfect summer read.

Read this book if you like:

-friends to lovers
-brothers best friend
-jewish representation
-mending friendships
-healing from loss

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for sending me and ARC.
Profile Image for Starr ❇✌❇.
1,752 reviews162 followers
August 18, 2022
I received an ARC from Edelweiss
TW: themes of addiction & recovery, death of a grandparent
3.7

Hannah doesn't really want to work at Bonanza, the entertainment multiplex her brother already works at and where everyone seems entirely too excited about their jobs, but getting a job is on her parents list. If she wants to stay home and not get sent back to the too expensive facility she's been in for months, then she'll do the work and prove to her family that they don't need to worry about her. But coming back also means remembering the person she turned into before leaving, and seeing if she can put those pieces back together. An attractive coworker is a good distraction from the complications of being home- but her growing interest in a different coworker, and family friend, is maybe one thing to deal with too many.

I appreciated the storyline of addiction in this. This character arc is all about putting yourself back together, reconciling who you've been with who you'd like to be, and taking responsibility. And while this alone is fantastic to see, normally with themes such as these you'd need to expect a heavy book overall. However, this is very much a light, summery read of friendship and romance, while allowing the main characters struggles to be more than the normal protagonist and object of affection's tend to be. I thought that elevated this book, and made to feel deeper.

Plus, Hannah herself is a likable and flawed character. I really enjoyed the way the narrative laid bare her flaws, her impulses, the way things went wrong, without a judgemental eye. Without coddling and apologizing for Hannah you still get gentle and understanding treatment of this girl who's imperfect and trying to be better.

I do truly wish that the cast had felt more expansive. Hannah is great, and I loved seeing her family dynamics, but for so much focus on soccer and anxiety about her ex best friend, Brie, there isn't all that much characterization or even effect on the storyline branching from these characters. I wanted more Brie over all, and I wanted to see more from the soccer girls and even Hannah's coworkers beyond thin context. I feel like if these are people that are meant to have had a large impact on her or her story, then we should have been able to get to know them better.

This may also be part of the reason why the romance didn't really work for me. In theory the friends to lover-slash-brother's best friend romance should have been cute, and it has its moments. But there's so little base for this to be built on it just came off weird to me. There isn't really a lot of chemistry and there seems no real reason for Hannah to have this sudden, intense attraction to this guy beyond the fact that she knows him- in a family capacity, honestly- and he's gotten cuter. I don't know if that's solely a personal issue, but it didn't really take time to sell me on them working together well or on Hannah's feelings being more than temporary. I also think this may not have worked for me because this is one of those romances that feels entirely propelled by a desire to fix oneself, and that turns me entirely off, as it is as unhealthy as it is unsustainable.

Finally, while I thought the idea of mixing these heavier topics with a softer story was an interesting one, and one that will be great for many readers, the end result just leaned too saccharine for me. The tone was too fluffy instead of finding an equal balance, and the neatness of the storyline just came across a bit hokey.

This is an interest book, with an important character arc and conversation swaddled in something of a beach read.
Profile Image for Kass.
196 reviews5 followers
September 6, 2022
Thank you Penguin Australia and Netgalley for providing me with this read.
I don't usually read YA books but this one was it. I enjoyed this from start to finish. I love that this book does not focus just on romance but it goes into each character and their lives. It focuses on what they go through and them developing into the new stages of their lives.
Also i don't really reading friends to lover but when i do its great. The romance was so fluffy and cute. This story explores titles such as grief, loss, healing an inner turmoil. Its definitely a book everyone should read. I am truly excited on the next release this author will bring!
Profile Image for Shannon.
8,323 reviews424 followers
January 21, 2023
A fun brother's best friend YA summer romance that takes place at an amusement park. I really enjoyed how the female main character was trying to recover/comes to terms after a life changing injury suddenly ended her soccer playing abilities. Aside from the love triangle story line there was also a good second chance best friendship plot which I also liked a lot. Good on audio too.
Profile Image for Lisa Mandina.
2,306 reviews494 followers
December 27, 2022
This author wrote a favorite book of mine from 2020, Recommended for You, and this one sounded right up my alley as well. Unfortunately I didn’t get a chance to read it until I got a copy to review as part of the library committee I’m on. This is a possible nominee for the 24-25 school year. I really enjoyed it. It had more depth than I expected from the title and what I was thinking. The main character had a lot she was dealing with and a lot to come to terms with to get her life back on track. I liked the Jewish character representation and really all of the different the diverse characters and story lines contained in this book. Another winner for me!

Review first posted on Lisa Loves Literature.
Profile Image for grieshaber.reads.
1,696 reviews41 followers
January 12, 2025
Ahh, I loved this so much! After a soccer career-ending injury and the death of her bubbie, Hannah sinks into a depression that leads her to make a lot of bad decisions, which prompts her parents to ship her off to a boarding school to finish her Junior year. She's back for the summer, and if she can meet her school and her parents' list of demands, she can stay home for her senior year. One of those demands is to get a job. Her year-younger (and BF) bro gets her a job at Bonanza (a megaplex entertainment venue - mini golf, bowling, go-karts, etc.), and it changes her life. Well, so does her crush on her brother's best friend, her struggle to make amends for past mistakes, and the challenge to find a new way to sate her need for competition.

I love a YA story that centers on teens working. It's such an underused trope! And this is one of the coolest workplaces I've ever read, with tons of fun and interesting side characters. I also really enjoyed Laura Silverman's writing. I found myself stopping frequently to highlight passages. One of my favorite books on this year's Gateway list!
Profile Image for Iris || readby_ash.
323 reviews44 followers
July 12, 2022
A big thank you to NetGalley for the arc.

I did enjoy this book, however there was something about it that Irked me. I found it hard to connect with the character’s, and the plot was not my favourite. I also wasn’t a fan of the prose. Definitely not my taste.

5/10
Profile Image for Saanvi.
243 reviews1 follower
September 14, 2025
3 ⭐️ the writing was really cringy sometimes
Profile Image for Hayley (hayleyinpages).
580 reviews7 followers
July 7, 2023
This was a all-in-one-sitting kind of read! I finished it so fast! There’s something alluring about Laura Silverman’s writing. You know the characters enough that they feel fully formed, but also there’s an air of mystery as you get to know them more. I really enjoyed this summer YA with Jewish main characters, a fun romance, and healthy relationships- healing friendships, parent- child relationships, brother-sister bond, and great coworkers. What more could you ask for in a quick summer read?

I can’t wait to see what Laura whips up next.
Profile Image for Meghan Lew.
413 reviews31 followers
August 16, 2022
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an arc copy of this book.

Okay, this was such a cute read! While there were defiantly highs and lows through the book, I couldn’t help but smile through most of it.

Our main character Hannah goes through some tough changes, from losing her grandmother to her Olympic dream being ripped away. I really related to her journey because shifting your view of the future isn’t easy to do, especially when you have had a one-track mind most of your life.

The romance was absolutely adorable in so many ways. First off, friends to lovers just creates butterflies in my stomach. I also like that nothing was rushed, and everything played out well around Hannahs's own growth within herself.

I also really enjoyed her interactions with the other characters and her family. All of them provided some lesson for her, and nothing felt forced. And her interactions with her ex-best friend were interesting because friendship at any age can be challenging and hard to navigate.

The only thing that really bothered me was the flashback portions. While some of them were very helpful to Hannah's development and my understanding of her, many felt out of place and were used more for filler.
Profile Image for Dreamer.
567 reviews6 followers
August 29, 2022
Excellent YA Contemporary read, full of fun summer vibes. We follow Hannah as she picks up the pieces of the previous summer when she lashed out at everyone around her after losing both her grandmother and the sport she lived for. She sets out to achieve the four goals outlined by her parents, so that she can complete her senior year of high school at her old school, rather than being sent away again.

At first, Hannah just goes through the motions; she gets a job, she's nice to her family and co-workers, and she plans to basically 'fake it' with her parents' list. Until her job and co-workers turn out to be lots of fun, and reconnecting with her brother and old friends turns out to heal the soul. And her brother's best friend? He grew up in the year she was away.

#NetGalley - I voluntarily read a Review Copy of this book. All opinions stated are solely my own and no one else’s. Read more reviews! http://dreamerjbookreviews.blogspot.com
Profile Image for Brooke.
328 reviews162 followers
December 9, 2023
3.5*

Enjoyable read; I liked watching MC Hannah grow as a person and learn to process what her life looks like now (after her accident). The romance between Hannah and Ethan wasn’t rushed and was fun to read. The side characters didn’t come across as interchangeable and actually had distinctive personalities. The relationship Hannah had with her brother and parents felt organic and I was happy to see her parents have a larger part in the story than what is typical for most YA books nowadays.

I did not care for the flashback parts as much. They seemed to be out of place and made the story disjointed at times, which is why it wasn’t a 4* read for me. There were also some darker elements in those parts that didn’t seem fully addressed by the end of the book, almost like they were glossed over. But overall, this is a fun coming of age read and one of Silverman’s better books in my opinion.
Profile Image for Olivia.
22 reviews
April 16, 2022
*I won an ARC of this book in a giveaway hosted by the author*

hold up, let me wipe up my happy tears before I even attempt to write this review.

Laura Silverman absolutely freaking nailed it with this book, y’all! High school summer jobs, friendships, relationships, grief, personal growth, this book literally has it all. It was written so well and kept me interested (and laughing and crying) the entire time I was reading!!

The Bonanza Cult sounds the greatest place to be and I can’t wait for more people to experience this amazing story!
Profile Image for L ✨.
431 reviews12 followers
June 18, 2023
I didn’t know what it was to truly miss someone until I lost her.


3.5 ☆

I didn't enjoy THOSE SUMMER NIGHTS as much as I loved Silverman's other books, but it was the perfect summer ya to get out of my reading slump. The story wasn't as heavy as I expected, even if it dealt with grief, injuries and addiction, because it focused a lot on having a good support system. It was actually pretty fun to read thanks to all the chaos that happened at the amusement park.
Profile Image for Anderson Elizabeth.
173 reviews15 followers
August 22, 2022
Those Summer Nights is perfect for lovers of
Summertime job
Brothers best friend
Coworker crush
Jewish representation
Mending friendships
Healing from loss
Then and now storyline
Bucket-list (but in a homework way)

Those Summer Nights is about Hannah as she comes home from a year of boarding school. When Hannah returns home for a summer job she is facing the results of a summer of hardships and questionable life decisions following the passing of her bubbie and her soccer career coming to an abrupt halt.

Hannah gets a job at Bonanza with the help of her brother giving a job recommendation. Bonanza is a local entertainment multiplex that is filled with a variety of fun games and an eclectic group of coworkers and frequent customers.

Some of the best parts of this book included Hannah‘s healing journey as she is processing the weight of her loss both with her family and with her soccer career. I also really enjoyed the cast of characters that were built up in the bonanza. The Golden oldies stole the bowling alley for me. I love those women so much and would like to personally adopt all of them to be bonus grandmothers for me.

Hannah‘s brother Joey is a cinnamon roll of a human being and should be protected at all costs. Joey has such a caring and compassionate personality I enjoyed every single thing that he was on. He cares so much for his sister and bonanza. Silverman did an amazing job at bringing his character to life.

Ethan is yet another cinnamon bun that needs to be protected at all costs. Ethan and Hannah get to help each other learn how to talk about the things that weigh heavily on them and I think that that is a really special bonding experience to have with someone.

Thank you, Simon and Schuster Children's Publishing, Margaret K. McElderry Books, Laura Silverman herself, and NetGalley for giving me access to an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Profile Image for Rachel Taylor.
468 reviews3 followers
June 26, 2022
*I won my advanced copy of this book from the author in an Instagram giveaway*

Let me just begin by saying that I had planned to read this book by the pool on vacation, but I started it a few days before and devoured it before we ever reached our destination.

This story is one about loss, grief, searching, repentance, healing, romance, and community (to name a few!!). The entire novel is incredibly organic and feels truthful. Silverman wraps up this tumultuous storyline in a way that feels so real to me. Our main character, who has lost so much, is not miraculously healed/recovered/over it, but she finds peace in her situation, which is an exceptionally worthwhile story for YA readers.

I have also read Recommended for You, and despite only reading 2 of her books, I'm adding Silverman to my list of favorite YA authors. In comparing those two books, one of the things I really enjoyed about both is the sense of a workplace community for her teenaged characters. I don't know if I read a lot of YA books where their workplace is essentially a character in the book, and I feel like she does this well. I also love in both novels the many Jewish themes and references. This is also something not often seen in YA novels.

The ONLY thing I'd change about this book is the name of Patrick Cho. This is only because, for us Gilmore Girls fans, this is the same name as the unseen boy who kisses Lane Kim on the forehead. It drove me nuts as to where I'd heard that name before, but I finally figured it out. 😅
Profile Image for Yapha.
3,281 reviews106 followers
July 31, 2022
Hannah's life turned upside down after sophomore year. Her beloved grandmother died and an injury ended her soccer career (around which she had planned her entire life). She spiraled so badly out of control that her parents sent her to boarding school for her junior year. Now she's back for the summer, with a set of conditions to meet or she'll be sent away again. She's desperate to stay but still doesn't see life without her grandmother and soccer. Her brother helps her get a job at Bonanza, an entertainment complex. It is here that Hannah os able to come to terms with what really happened and figure out where to go. This was a great summer read! Highly recommended for grades 8 & up.

eARC provided by publisher via Edelweiss
Profile Image for Emma Reid.
1,595 reviews44 followers
August 11, 2022
This is a cute and fast read, though there are definitely darker elements in the flashback chapters. Hannah's Olympic dreams are shattered (like her ankle) and, after a year away at boarding school, she's back and trying to prove herself to her parents. My favorite part about the entire book was the haven that is Bonanza. This flashy adventure zone is reminiscent of the arcades and funplexes of our youths and just emanates good vibes. At times it got a bit dark, but it's contrasted nicely with the burgeoning summer romance between Hannah and Ethan.

*Thank you to Simon & Schuster and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review*
Profile Image for Meredith.
406 reviews
July 22, 2025
I’m not exactly sure how to rate this book. I’m thinking 3⭐️ but I just finished it and it did take me a week to read because I kept putting it down and picking up other things. That being said, the author handled a lot of big issues in a YA appropriate way. And while I wasn’t a huge fan of the female main character, by the end I found myself proud of her growth throughout the book.
Profile Image for Adeline.
37 reviews
July 2, 2024
Oh my goodness!! This book!! I’m in love!!! Did I read this book two times in two days- yes I did! This book had me crying and giggling into my pillow. Let’s be real I was only there because Ethan was there. If you know you know. We need more cute and innocent romances like theirs!!
Profile Image for bre :).
38 reviews132 followers
August 22, 2022
4.5/5
this book was super cute! hannah, the main character, had amazing character growth! this was a fun & fast summer read :)
Profile Image for Paige.
366 reviews1 follower
September 24, 2023
2.5 stars
I'm sick so I decided to read this. I was so excited to read this, but sadly it disappointed. I wish it didn't.
Profile Image for Helen Boyette.
11 reviews
February 7, 2024
i liked this book a lot. it had way less romance than i expected, and i love the whole game center job, and how we slowly started to uncover her past through flashbacks.
Profile Image for Aven Jackson.
5 reviews
November 27, 2024
it's a good book! i'd say that since it's not a romance book, some of the romance elements seem a bit unnecessary to the plot, but it is a good story overall.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 189 reviews

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