AS MUCH AS I EVER COULD

A summer of love provides a girl with the strength needed to recover from a car accident in which her little sister and mother were killed.

Eight months after the accident, CJ carries emotional and physical scars. Hoping a change of scenery will do her good, her father sends her to summer at Memaw’s house on Edisto Beach, South Carolina. That her father has reached out to his estranged mother is enough to shock CJ and help start her healing process. If it is surprising that CJ, who has said she will never drive again, falls for Jett, a race car driver, it just adds to the sexual tension. But it is the way the couple confides in each other that brings about the biggest change. The consummation of their relationship offers a solid example of consent so it’s disappointing that contraception is glossed over with a weak hint at condom use. A dramatic event nearly throws CJ off track, but soul searching and a loyal network of family and friends bring her around. Well-drawn characters, expressive language, and a slow reveal of the details of the accident will hook readers. Most affecting is the heavy dose of a start-and-retreat, butterflies-in-the-stomach romance that becomes a large part of CJ’s cure. All main characters seem to be white.

A swoonworthy summer read with a hopeful lesson about how to move forward without fear.