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SkyLaaa ♡

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SkyLaaa ♡ is currently reading

The Summer Love Strategy

by Ray Stoeve (Goodreads Author)

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Reading for the 2nd time

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SkyLaaa ♡ said: " 𝐑𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐆: 𝟓/𝟓 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

🌈 This story was genuinely so comforting to read. The amount of representation in this book is immensely abundant, and it matters so much to me as a trans woman. It seems like everyone knows some kind of friend in the LGBT community, 𝐑𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐆: 𝟓/𝟓 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

🌈 This story was genuinely so comforting to read. The amount of representation in this book is immensely abundant, and it matters so much to me as a trans woman. It seems like everyone knows some kind of friend in the LGBT community, or has a family member that is LGBT, and the neighborhood feels like such a safe haven. Much like the colors of the rainbow, the overall tone of the book felt very vibrant and full of color. It made moments of hopelessness and disarray feel that much more impactful and heartbreaking.

⚠️⚠️⚠️ 𝐒𝐏𝐎𝐈𝐋𝐄𝐑𝐒 𝐁𝐄𝐋𝐎𝐖 ⚠️⚠️⚠️

🏀 The characters are also written so considerably well. Starting with Hayley, the protagonist of the book. She is an anxious, love-stricken, mess of a lesbian, but she is so endearing. She has so many moments that really resonated with me; moments that made the book feel that much more real. Her sheer panic and history with liking Leia, and the authentic fear of rejection from her family for her sexuality being the impetus for her fear of losing Talia and her friend group felt so real. That moment in her life, although gradually hinted at throughout the book, really culminated in the scene where she finally tells her mom that she likes Talia, in a beautiful moment between them. Basically every moment between them felt like a warm embrace. Her thought process behind pulling her friends away and being completely avoidant of them amidst her panic was also heart-wrenching. I felt the panic attack she endured during the double date. I felt her moments of blurred helplessness and consternation. Her days of seeing everyone's texts but never replying to them. Her emotions may not make sense to someone who was on the receiving end of it--like her friends--but the sense of understanding is very much prominent after seeing her thought process, and the book does acknowledge it as flawed too. Sometimes people feel like the best thing they can do in situations like this is to avoid everyone in the hopes that the problem will dissipate.

🔐 If there's anything that's a key takeaway from this book that I got, it's that it's never a good thing to bottle up feelings. Leaving anything inside thinking that the problem will go away will only lead to an exponentially uncontrolled avalanche that will affect things even outside of your friendship or relationships. We see this happening with Hayley and how it affected her basketball practice. Her leaving her keys during practice was truly a heart-dropping scene; her team's disappointment and ire towards her in that moment felt awful. I truly felt heartbroken for her in those moments, because it mirrors moments that I went through. Again, it all feels real.

💭 I cannot overstate just how much I enjoyed reading from Hayley's perspective. Something she does throughout the book is fantasize about the future without it even being certain, or have random memories of the past in relation to what she is experiencing. Her emotions are very complex, and she has moments of reflection, remorse, and reconciliation. These moments, such as her coming to terms of jealousy seeing Talia with others, or apologizing to Bri for yelling out at her for an understandable reason after hearing her justification, are highlights of this. Her growth throughout the book is very noticeable, and I am so happy she got the happy ending she deserved--making all of these little considerations to truly have that one-to-one moment with Talia. I was smiling the entire time they confessed their love to each other after the horrifying incident at the party. Their friendship is beyond cute. It truly felt wonderful seeing them help each other out with the strategy, and just be there to comfort one another. It reminded me a lot of the friendship I have with my best friend, who recommended me this book to begin with! The vibrancy of these comforting moments between them truly juxtapose the moments where they are in strife with one another, and that enhances the reading experience for me. It makes instances of resolution feel truly satisfying.

♾️ Talia herself is such a beautifully written character. Major points for her being trans, of course. She is just such a comforting woman, and I'm so happy her identity isn't ever questioned; it's just accepted. The scene where Hayley and Talia are just at the MUNA concert together was so wonderful, and it also felt cathartic for me to read. Having recently been to my first concert, the emotions I have almost perfectly mirrored Hayley's. The scene very realistically displayed the feelings and energy present at this kind of setting. Huge highlight for me, and Talia's autistic traits are also very respectfully written as well! Another highlight I'd love to point out is the texts between her and Hayley on their first day enacting their strategy. The affirmations between them and how they felt similarly despite only seeing Hayley's anxious perspective at first was such a good scene. The fact that she's also a curly black-haired woman-loving-woman also just adds to how much I see myself in her.

🥰 Their friend group is also such a lovely cast of characters! Jacob is such a sweetheart; Kev has humorous moments of his own; Bri and Karina are also very sweet, and looking back I totally see the "breakup" they had as foreshadowing for the fallout Hayley and Talia had, considering they were both stirred by miscommunication. I also loved the scene where Bri talked some sense into Hayley by saying "Fuck Rose." Those two words alone gave that moment so much more power and emphasis, especially enhanced by the shock that came afterward. I loved the moments of everyone being together, supporting one another, and the sheer comfort that exuded from their combined trust.

💕 There's so many other little arcs and coinciding storylines that I thoroughly enjoyed, which will all be laid out in this one section. Hayley has such a delightful family--I especially thought the moment between her mom and dad reminiscing about how they got together was really cute. Sam's frightening conflict of using they/them pronouns was also genuinely so heartfully well-written, and it again had that theme of closing off everyone that loved them. I felt extremely happy for them being accepted. The plot between Hayley and Mel was also so devastating, Mel not working things out with Hayley because she wanted to give her ex another chance (truest wlw moment). The thoughts Hayley had seeing Talia talk with Rose were so accurate, and I'm glad she at least reconciled with her after the double date disaster. Finally, I really enjoyed how Hayley and Sherika's relationship with one another evolved throughout the story. At first it's full of devastation and avoidance, and then overtime it morphs into mutual trust, respect, and appreciation.

⚠️⚠️⚠️ 𝐄𝐍𝐃 𝐎𝐅 𝐒𝐏𝐎𝐈𝐋𝐄𝐑𝐒 ⚠️⚠️⚠️

🏳️‍🌈 Overall, this book is absolutely wonderful. I adore the themes of miscommunication, closing oneself off, emotional fear, friendship, and acceptance that this book comments on. It does it to an exemplary degree. The characters are all incredibly endearing, and I genuinely didn't feel any disdain towards any of them. It made this book that much more of a comfort read for me. The relatable struggles and mannerisms with both Hayley and Talia were also incredibly authentic and made them both meritoriously written characters; I loved them both so much. This is the best possible book I could've started off with, and it really made me fall in love with reading again, just like when I was in middle school. This book is incredibly important to me, and I can see it being immensely important to anyone that is queer and needs characters to relate to, struggles to resonate with, and a comfortable setting to distract themselves in. I cannot string enough high praises for this book enough; it is such a heartwarming and gratifying read! ...more "

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"revisiting the first book i truly fell in love with <3" — Jun 30, 2026 09:05AM

Nov 16, 2025 03:27PM · see review

SkyLaaa ♡’s Quotes

“I love being femme. That word, femme--ever since I came across it last year on one of my favorite queer websites, it's been an anchor in my chest, something reminding me that the way I dress and talk, the way I am in the world--is powerful.”
― Ray Stoeve, The Summer Love Strategy

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