I love this book! It was fun and had such a good pace. It took place in the 90's which I also loved! Thanks for the ARC.

To say I loved this novel, is an understatement. It first got me because it takes place in the 1990s. My 90s teen era. It was a really great decade. Stacey is about the same age I was during the time this book is set. It brought back memories & emotions of my teen years & the fads back then. To top that off, Stacey’s story is real; it’s raw; it’s authentic, relatable. She goes through so many things that are common during the difficult teen years. I highly recommend this exceptional book by Jaime Townzen, a new author to me. I’d love to read another book she writes in this same era!

Thank you, Jaime Townzen, Palm Tree Press, Netgalley, & Kate Rock, for my gifted copy! All opinions are my own.

I really enjoyed this book. I feel like everyone can resonate with Stacey’s struggles and insecurities. They are part of growing up, and seeing her overcome them and become so comfortable around these group of people was so nice to see.

The vibes were also really cool, it took me back to the 90’s.

Thanks for the ARC! 🫶🏻

Take the plunge into the summer of 1996.
This was everything. Expertly captured what it’s like to be a teenager. The heartache, the worries, the emotions. Absolute perfection. She wanted an eventful summer, and that’s exactly what she got. Stacy is a typical teenager. She’s wanting more from her life and not always making the best decisions to get there. She's relatable, insecure, and finding herself.
The 90's setting was exquisite. A whole entity upon itself in the story that made it just a little bit more fun.
The emotions this evoked in me, not only as a woman who’s lived that teenage uncertainty but also as a mother to a soon-to-be teenage daughter, were unexpected. This showcases the worries and realistic situations of being a girl. I was completely enthralled with the story.

𝓐𝓫𝓼𝓸𝓻𝓫𝓮𝓭

🏊‍♀️👙🎨🖌️

Stars: 4 ⭐️

Genre: New Adult, Young Adult


I was absolutely “absorbed “ into this book

We are immediately greeted with a 90s vibe of doc martens and dr. Pepper. Stacey is a simple teenage girl figuring out life as she navigates the struggles of being a teenage girl: body image , relationships , friendships fitting in and discovering exactly who she is. This book is geared more towards new adult as Stacey grows within the book.

Townzen had a way of drawing me in and made me feel like I was growing up and discovering myself right along with Stacey. I felt connected to Stacey in some parts of the book as I too was struggling at one point or another during my teenage high school years trying to get boys attentions and wishing I looked a different way.

This book was light and fluffy mixed with some raw emotion especially near the end of the novel in a moment between Stacey and Gabe.

I loved that the plot was set in the 90s and Townzen did a wonderful job diving into it with the musical references and the style the characters had.



*thank you to NetGalley, Palm Tree Press and Jamie Townzen for allowing me to read this ARC*

First, I really loved the nostalgia in Absorbed. It really took me back to my high school years - I think in both a good and a bad way. It became an introspective on all of my own good and bad decisions from that time period. Which I think is a really powerful thing to accomplish in a work of fiction. I loved the incorporation of music and art throughout. I really enjoyed Stacey's growth arc. Overall this was a really good book and I would rush to pick up anything else by Jaime Townzen.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

I love the cool vibes the cover has going on. And this book took me back to the 1990s, with great music, MTV, fun fashion, and summertime!

It’s the summer before Stacey’s senior year, and she’s struggling to find her footing, identity, and first love. She lands a job at the local pool as a lifeguard and finds herself working not only with Jessie, her longtime crush, but with an eclectic group of people she doesn’t quite fit in with, but this summer is bursting with expectations and change.

I was surprised by how much ground this story covered. It touched on some deep topics and had some traumatic events. Stacey goes through one heck of a summer, from being pressured into sex and partying, to witnessing a drowning and seeing her friend being severely injured, all the while pushing away her closest friend, Gabe.

Stacey's love of art is also woven into the narrative. She keeps returning to her beloved art teacher, who helps her learn to open up and express herself through art.

This book contains relatable moments, tough lessons, and awesome pop-cultural references. I found it engaging and entertaining, and I became invested in the characters, especially Stacey. It reminded me all too well how tough growing up can be.


Thank you @KateRockBookTours and @jaimegetscreative for the gifted book and ebook via #NetGalley. Plus the fun PR gifts.

Thank you to Net Galley and the Publisher for the ARC in exchange of my honest opinion. The book is good. I read it in one sitting. It is a very realistic tale of how, when we are young, most of the things we think we want, are not what they seem to be. This book navigates the life of Stacey, a teenager in the path of self discovery, finding her voice and cultivating her self love. It shows how some experiences can help you identify the true meaning of the relationships in your life and how they shape the person you’ll become. It was a very enjoyable read and I believe it has all the qualities of a great coming-of-age story

Reading this book brought back the nostalgia. What with names like Lands End, Baskin Robbins, and Mervyn's to name a few. One of my jobs when I was in college was working at Mervyn's. So, I really enjoyed the flash back to this time period.

Stacey finding herself in the situation that she did with Jessie was overwhelming. Jessie should have listened to Stacey. Yet, Stacey feeling the pressure to fit in, found herself giving into the peer pressure and bad-mouthed Jessie.

This is a character driven story. I felt for both Stacey and Jessie. What they both did was not right. As the saying goes..."Two wrongs don't make a right."

The perfect Millenial Romance story for everyone who liked to be in the 90s

The plot, the caracters was perfect.

I adored the story from the start.

This was an easy read for me (and a perfect winter time beach read.) I was immediately taken bake to the 90’s - the author did a great job describing the time and the setting. I was a life guard in high school and I definitely connected with Stacey.

As a proud elder millennial I LOVED the 90’s references, especially the music ones (if you go to the author’s page, there is a link to a Spotify playlist that I highly recommend!!)

This story takes us back to high school and we revisit so many of the social pressures of being a teenager (who do you want to be vs trying to fit in vs peer pressure) along with sometimes not making the best decisions - to me, that made the story and the characters relatable.

There are some tough topics and tragedy and I thought they were handled well and in a very realistic way. We see friendships have ups and downs and there is one particular scene towards the end that was so honest and really touched my heart regarding high school relationships.

We get to see Stacey have some good character growth as she tries to navigate her life. She really connects to art and music and I loved that she really discovered her passion for it.

✨What to Expect:
☀️YA/New Adult Fiction
💿90’s Nostalgia
❤️Coming of Age
🎨High School Angst & Discovery
🛟Lifeguard FMC
🎸 90’s Music References

A book to read and share that reminds you how specific a time era can be to your growing up, but how truly universal growing up is.

This book was a real surprise for me. I thought it was going to b a cutesy rom.com I realizing the 90s in a movie montage mashup of now classic summer movies my own youth, granted I was a little older than Stacey and her friends, but this book was so much more than I thought. This was high school as I remember it, the world of simmering passions, high feelings, confusion, uncertainty, and all the insecurities and fears that a person can conceive. I saw a lot of myself in Stacey and her friends and also in their classmates and rivals. Literally this book will transport back and leave you reflecting on what you survived. Luckily for most of us, these sad and tragic events the Stacey must experience are ones that will only play out in fiction, however the power and nuance of Jaime Townzen's writing comes from.bringing us along for every feeling, thought, and conversation that just captivated me. This was a true bildungsroman that covered so much more than just growing up, but showcased how Stacey fights to become the woman she is in the process of becoming during this one summer in 1996.

This is a powerful female coming of age story that will make you nostalgic for the 90's and make you think how much of looking back at that era is so powerful because the distance and pop culture.

Thank you Jaime Townzen, Palm Tree Press, & netgalley for the ecopy of this book that I read

Stacey Chapman: relatable, infuriating, and the embodiment of every time I thought I could handle life solo at 17 (spoiler: I could not). She’s got big dreams, even bigger blind spots, and the kind of self-sabotage skills that make you want to reach through the pages and shake her by the shoulders.

Reading Absorbed felt like watching teenage me make every frustrating mistake possible while refusing to ask for help because OBVIOUSLY, the world was out to get me (Stacey gets it). Stacey’s spiral is equal parts cringe-worthy and heartbreaking, but that’s what makes her feel so real. Who hasn’t been the captain of their own disaster parade at some point?

At first, I thought I was in for a lighthearted ‘90s nostalgia romp with skateboards, lifeguard shenanigans, and dreamy summer crushes. But nope, this book had other plans—plans that involved a gut-punch halfway through, leaving me muttering “Oh no, Stacey. Oh no.” The stakes skyrocketed, and suddenly, I wasn’t just reading a lighthearted YA novel anymore.

It’s not just a book about mistakes, though—it’s about the messy process of figuring yourself out. Watching Stacey untangle her bad decisions and start to see her worth beyond her mistakes was the kind of catharsis I didn’t know I needed.

Bottom line: Stacey’s journey is a rollercoaster of relatable teen angst and maddening decisions, but it’s also a raw, unflinching look at growing up and finding your voice.

This was such a good book. I loved the story and the writing so much. The characters were great and the story flowed smoothly. Will definitely read more books by this author in the future.

This was such a quick and easy read. Once I started, I did not want this book to end. Growing up in the 90s, this book took me right back to some of the best times in my life. With the band references, I was able to play a soundtrack of this book in my head while reading. This is a coming-of-age story about self-discovery with a character who I completely related with making this story so much more real. Highly recommend this one to all readers!

I thought that this was such a well done coming of age story. I really enjoyed it a lot.

It's 1996, Stacey is a teenager struggling to fit in when she lands her dream summer job as a lifeguard at the community pool. Her life spirals out of control when she takes things too far, trying to fit in.

In my opinion, the blurb at the beginning of the book gives way too much away. it references an accident at the pool where one of the characters suffers a spinal cord injury. To me, this was a huge part of the book and would have been better left as a surprise, but since it is there, I am openly talking about it.

The book isn't all fun in the sun. Stacey faces some very real and very adult situations that she needs to figure out how to cope with.

I loved all of the 90's throwback references with TV and music, and everything else. The one thing that upset me greatly was a scene towards the end where Stacey and her best friend were driving to the beach and blaring Oceans Avenue by Yellowcard and singing at the top of their lungs. The book was set in 1996. Stacey was between her Junior and Senior year of high school. I was perturbed because that was a scene from MY life from between MY Junior and Senior year of high school. That song came out in 2004. It bothered me because it was such a defining time in my life, but other than that, I think the rest of the throwbacks were accurate.

Overall, I read the book in one evening. It was a great read if you are looking for what feels like contemporary fiction with a little bit of a throwback. Depending on your age, you will probably remember how cool it was to be a lifeguard at a pool or the beach in the 90's, and how desperately you wanted to fit it.

It all started when Stacey daydreams of having the best life with a new boyfriend and lifeguard job during summer. In this coming of age novel, Stacey embodies many teens with her insecurities. I felt like the author did a really good job creating a well rounded character. As any teenager, mistakes are made, and it all matters how we handle them. I loved seeing how Stacey’s character grew as the story progressed and the time she spent with her art teacher. Just comes to show you how sometimes, a teacher’s job can be life changing for some. This book does have a tragedy and it was sad but I loved how all of the characters came together for one another. Perfect for lovers of the 1990's, coming of age, and self discovery. A beautiful reminder to be your true self.

This was a fun and cozy read perfect to read during the Holiday break. Feel good and full of humour.

Stacey struggles with identity, peer pressure, and the consequences of her choices during the summer before senior year. The story tells of Stacey’s misguided attempts to find love and confidence while grappling with the fallout of a coercive relationship . A tragic pool accident leaves her ex lover paralyzed and Stacey is forced to confront her role in the events leading up to the catastrophe.

While the book attempts to tackle heavy topics like consent, peer pressure, and self-discovery, the execution falls flat. Stacey’s character lacks depth, making it hard to empathize with her poor decisions or root for her growth. The plot feels underdeveloped, especially with Stacey and Jessie's missing chemistry, and her love for art. The author also could not seem to balance serious themes with the melodrama of teenage life, making it hard for me to keep up till the end

This book was unexpectedly great. To be honest, I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect when I read the description of a summer in the 90’s, but I assumed it’d be a nice light read…
This is geared more towards New Adults, as it deals with some heavier topics and language. But I think the author did an amazing job at keeping the narrative fresh and entertaining. Even the concept of coming-of-age felt refreshing in this book. I liked how Stacey grew within the story and understood herself and the people around her better. It felt real. The 90’s vibes and various music references made for a unique and exciting setting that made the whole story feel relatable too. The author really captured that pocket feeling of summer when you spend your days with the same people in the same place. I found the characters all engaging and dynamic. And I liked that the lifeguards formed a tight-knit family while working at the pool.
Although Stacey was working with her crush, I wouldn’t really classify this book as a romance. This book focuses more on Stacey; the pressures and expectations of post-high school colliding with social strifes as a teen. Though I will say, near the end of the book there is such a tender moment with her best friend Gabe that really threw me off guard. His explanation of young relationships was an interesting take to see in a teen romance (even though it wasn’t really a teen romance.) But in tone with the rest of the book, it was a captivating.

Favourite Quote:
“If there was a bush of perfect roses, or a wall covered in paintings of perfect roses, they all would become really boring. A real rose bush is beautiful because of all the stages of blossoming. The ones that stand out are uniquely imperfect. That is the feeling I wanted to capture."