The Summer and the City

Review Time! Candace Bushnell is the critically acclaimed author of Sex and the City. Last year she published her first YA novel, The Carrie Diaries, a prequel to The Sex and the City. The Summer and the City is the sequel to The Carrie Diaries. Thanks to Harpercollins for the review copy!

(Goodreads) Summer is a magical time in New York City and Carrie is in love with all of it—the crazy characters in her neighborhood, the vintage-clothing boutiques, the wild parties, and the glamorous man who has swept her off her feet. Best of all, she's finally in a real writing class, taking her first steps toward fulfilling her dream.



This sequel to The Carrie Diaries brings surprising revelations as Carrie learns to navigate her way around the Big Apple, going from being a country "sparrow"—as Samantha Jones dubs her—to the person she always wanted to be. But as it becomes increasingly difficult to reconcile her past with her future, Carrie realizes that making it in New York is much more complicated than she ever imagined.

The Short Story? – The sequel to New York Times #1 Bestseller did not disappoint! A vibrant summer adventure of hardship, sex, friendship and everything in between. Carrie takes us on an epic journey through New York. Great characters, fantastic plot and a brilliant ending. The Summer and the City is a girl’s best friend!

The Long Story? – I admit I’ve never actually read Sex and the City but I’ve watched the TV show and seen the movies and I love it! Honestly, I’m still not quite convinces that The Summer and the City is written for a YA crowd. It’s really mature and would have been written for an olden YA crowd. Chick Lit readers would love this or YA contemporary readers!

I liked the plot of The Summer and the City better than The Carrie Diaries. With The Carries Diaries I felt that the plot lacked a sense of adventure. It wasn’t thrilling and rather mundane, growing up in the 80’s- boring. Growing up in the 80’s, spending the summer in New York, dreams, ambition, friendships and sex? Much more interesting! The Summer and the City is a cross between Chick Lit and YA Coming-to-Age. First sex, strong friendships, chasing dreams and ambition mixed with the hardships of being a woman, Chick Lit for the YA crowd! It’s written for an older YA audience and it’s really rather realistic. Unlike other YA fictions which contain some level of “fiction”, Bushnell doesn’t downplay anything, bittersweet relationships, the ugly side of friendships and the insecurity of not reaching your dreams. It’s all very refreshing!

The characterization was another one of the strong points of the novel. Again, the characters were very real and they were easy to connect to. Carrie was a likeable character, she was annoying at times and stubborn and yes, she has a huge ego but the best characters always have flaws and Carrie was a brilliant and entertaining protagonist. Samantha and Miranda are great supporting characters and they’re definitely great friends. I think that by the end of the novel, Carrie had matured a lot, she’s discovered the truths of the world and I think that I (kind of) matured along with her. I put myself in Carrie’s shoes throughout the novel and this is one summer adventure that stays with you long after you finish reading!

Bushnell has a writing style like no other. The Summer and the City is quite a comfortable read but Bushnell unique writing style does take some time to get used to. Her choice of language is richer than other YA novels, the words and sentence structure are more sophisticated and it’s written for an older crowd. It probably won’t be as enjoyable for a younger YA reader! Great novel, a solid read and Carrie’s got a very strong narrative voice!

The Summer and the City is not to disappoint. Fantastic sequel to The Carrie Diaries. A novel that every girl should read because it’s about everything. Life, dreams, friendship, sex, romance and the City! Fantastic plot, well-written and great characters. Mature, realistic and brilliant, The Summer and the City is one unforgettable novel!

Rating – 5/5


Badass Bookie xx