The Darkest Summer: A Review

Title: The Darkest Summer

Author: Ella Drummond

Release Date: July 18, 2019

Publisher: Hera Books

Genre: Fiction, Suspense

Rating: ★★★

Disclaimer: Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review. It has not influenced my opinions.

This book deals with the small town mysteries in midst of a sweltering summer where Sera encounters her long lost friend Dee. Sera has been wondering what happened to Dee and her family and why they left so suddenly fifteen years ago.

The story is set mostly in the present with a few back and forth chapters that serve as a comparison for Dee and Sera's friendship between then and now. We notice the huge change immediately and, as the reader, you can't help but feel for Sera. This reunion clearly wasn't what she was expecting. During Dee's time back she is distant and far from the joyous girl Sera once knew. As soon as Dee was introduced I knew there was something fishy going on with her and her brother, Leo. Although I was able to correctly guess what they were hiding, it wasn't until the very end I was able to confirm it which meant that my nerves where through the roof for the whole book and I couldn't stop reading it.

However, uncovering Dee's tragic past isn't the only thing Sera wants to do. There is a new neighbor that Sera begins getting close to and he has secrets of his own. By far his secrets where the hardest for me to decipher but when you find out it all makes sense and the dots connect perfectly. I really liked the fact that there were no loose ends in the book; everything tied up wonderfully.

I think this is a perfect read for people who, like me, love trying to decipher the mysteries before they're revealed and who love to read books in one sitting. It gets quite fast paced once we are introduced to the characters properly and makes for a good summer read! I also liked the way it written because I could see it so clearly in my head, it was like watching a movie.