This took me a little while to get into, and I initially wasn't sure how I would get on with it in comparison to previous Carley Fortune novels - all of which I have adored. Soon though, I fell in love. First with the absolute dream book boyfriend Charlie - I just loved his banter and wit, and then seeing him and Alice develop their friendship.
At times I was so frustrated with both of them - the obvious miscommunication and Alice's misguided treatment of her Nan to name a few issues, but the characters dealt with all of this and there was real growth within everyone.
I was also delighted to return to Barry's Bay and of course see how Percy and Sam were doing 🥹
There were some other wonderful supporting characters along the way too, Nan was a particular delight! (And her and Charlie's friendship!)
Alice and Charlie's "seventeen year old" summer was so much fun - a perfect summer read!

Thank you for this arc.
First of all I'm a bit fan of Carley Fortune books- as soon as the sun starts to come up I grab one of hers to read.
This book was so so good, I loved to finally get Charlie's story because I loved Sam's and Percy's book and was so glad to read about them now and how there relationship progressed. Charlie and Alice's story was beautifully written, the banter between them was funny and how much Charlie is going through behind closed doors and how he struggles to open up fully with Alice. Alice and Charlie are a perfect fit and how he is with her family and Alice's nan..taking care of them both ways just so lovely to read. I loved this book so much. Perfect summer read.

I loved this book SO much 😭 One Golden Summer has become my hands-down favourite of Carley’s books, and I’m sure it will be a favourite of 2025 🌟

𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙗𝙤𝙤𝙠 𝙛𝙤𝙧…
🚤 just for the summer romance
💙 friends to lovers
🚤 found family
💙 forced proximity
🚤 secret sad boy
💙 opposites attract

𝙨𝙮𝙣𝙤𝙥𝙨𝙞𝙨…
When photographer Alice offers to take her Nan up to Barry’s Bay for the summer, the green eyed flirt who lives next door takes her by surprise.

𝙢𝙮 𝙩𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙨…
This book is ✨everything✨ I laughed, I cried, and I found a new favourite couple 🫶🏼

Well I’m in love with Charlie Florek 😭 …which I absolutely did not see coming 🫠😂 I was extremely apprehensive about his book but he is such a wonderful character who cares so much for everyone around him 😭 Yes he’s a massive flirt with a huge ego, but really he’s a little broken and a secret sad boy 🥲

On the surface Charlie & Alice are so different… but underneath it all they share so many thoughts & fears. Charlie feels like he doesn’t deserve his HEA, and Alice doesn’t think risking her heart again for one is worth it 💔

Charlie & Alice have become one of my favourite book couples - watching them fall in love was so much fun! Their flirting and the banter is a joy to read 🥹 They balanced each other perfectly - I love it when I read a book couple who I feel sure will last past the epilogue, and these two absolutely would 🫶🏼

The summer lake vibes yet again are perfect - I loved being back in Barry’s Bay and I’m booking my flights to Kamaniskeg as we speak x

OGS is not without a dose of angst & heartbreak, as with all of Carley’s books, but the ending definitely had me crying happy tears, I loved it 🥹

the first summer book i read taking place at a lake house / beach every year when the weather finally starts to warm is not a decision i take lightly, but receiving this arc it was an easy one to make!

i did find it slow to get into and hard to connect with the characters initially, but i came to care for them all (charlie especially ily) in their own ways.
i liked alice as a character but i felt that her photography career was such a prominent part of the story and yet it was just the same point reiterated over and over again, especially at the start - i wanted to know more about her than just be told continuously how disillusioned she was with her job & enjoyed it a lot more once we got there!

loved the hazy, warm atmosphere that flooded this book - like everything was dappled with sunlight. a beach read that takes you by surprise!

I love Carley Fortune's book, especially Every Summer After so I was excited to return to the Florek boys and this was everything I wanted it to be. The perfect escapist summer romance, I loved Charlie and Alice's story. They were both well-developed characters and I enjoyed seeing their banter develop into something more. Carley's books are perfect for fans of Emily Henry, particularly fans of You and Me on Vacation.

Enter my new favourite romcom - I LOVED this book so much! So much that I was up two hours after I usually go to sleep because I just couldn’t put it down.

First of all, I adored the lake setting and bucket list idea, but mostly it was all about Charlie, aka the perfect hot book boyfriend. The chemistry and romance between Alice and Charlie was just perfection, and I could honestly have read another 200 pages of their story! Perfect summer reading.

Thank you to the publisher for giving me an e-arc to review on Netgalley.

This was my first book of Carley’s and wow it did not disappoint. This story honestly had me reading it in 24 hours. The character’s are so loveable and the plot was just perfect.

Alice heads to Barrys Bay with her Nan for some well deserved time away from life to find herself again and on the way she meets the dazzling Charlie.

Both characters experience quite literally one golden summer, reliving their former years through a checklist that helps them reminisce on their younger years and realise how precious life is all whilst experiencing a whirlwind love for the books.

I honestly loved reading this and felt it was so well paced, it had such a great structure and kept me wanting more after every chapter. I’m usually a person who hates the whole ‘third act breakup’ if it’s not done right but Carley did it so well and wrapped it up pretty quickly too and used that time to develop her characters further rather than moping around.

Overall, this is a must read romance for the summer and one so many will love!

This book felt like nostolgia as I was reading it. It made me long for summers spent with friends as a teenager where everything felt possible. I loved seeing Alice and Charlie get to live out their summer together and grow from who they once were. You could really see the character development of Alice from the start of the book, and of Charlie from both this book and Every Summer After.

I enjoyed so much about this book - the lake setting, the characters, the story and development. It was also great to go back to Barry's Bay and see more of Percy and Sam's story. I really liked how there were elements and characters from both the first book, as well as a new cast of characters in this one, especially Nan who was a wonderful character.

I do feel like it was a bit insta-love, so it was somewhat annoying how long the whole 'just friends' argument went on when all of their actions were saying otherwise. The third act conflict was also annoying and predictable, but I did appreciate how it all wrapped up.

First of all, I was VERY nervous to read this book because I didn’t like Charlie’s character after what he did in Every Summer After. But I think he is growing on me. I have forgotten how big of a flirt he is that I am chuckling on every single thing he says. I do think that Alice Everly play a HUGE part in making me love this book more, I feel like I can relate to how she’s feeling. I love Nan, she makes me miss my grandma so much <3, we used to be so close too. I also lowkey love Alice’s family. I feel like I understand their family dynamic so much. The amount of lines that I have highlighted in this books are so many lol. It’s been a while since I’ve felt this giddy reading a romance book and this book has done it! The banter is unmatched. As always, the vibes of the feelings and places, the way Carley Fortune wrote them never misses. One thing about Carley Fortune is it is going to be descriptive so that I can vividly picture what’s going on in the book in my head as clear as day. I also think I like this one more than Every Summer After :)

I’ve been a bit hit and miss with Fortune’s book, but I’m so happy to confirm I loved this one. Since reading Every summer after, I know that Charlie needed his own story and I’m so glad we got it.

We see Alice and her Nan returning to Barry Bay after an incident to escape and rest for the summer. Then in comes Charlie in all his glory ready to whisk Alice away on the summer she wishes she has when she was seventeen (and she unknowingly took her most famous picture of him).

You get to see a beautiful relationship build between the two of them, as well as being joined by a beautiful cast of supporting characters and Percy and Sam pop in too. I loved Nan so much and she made me miss my own who sadly passed.

This was everything I wanted and more. Despite the incident that happened in the first book with Charlie and Percy, I wanted him to get his own HEA. And Carley did well for our boy.

This book really came into itself in the last 30%. It was so gorgeously sweet and endearing. It was a coming of age story to inspire all of us who have come of age and need to know that there is still more to come.

Carley Fortune does romance in such a truly romantic way, something I think can be rare at the moment. And this book didn't miss. We got to witness multiple beautiful characters find their happiness and peace again.

One issue was that there were lots of spelling mistakes which at times could make this kind of hard to read but I'm sure they'll be fixed.

Perfect summer vacation book and the strongest one yet from this author IMO. Alice and Charlie set out to have a fun friends-with-benefits summer and catch feelings along the way.

Where to start? This book was perfection. I absolutely loved it. I will admit that, after Every Summer After, I was a little apprehensive about getting Charlie’s story, but it surpassed my highest expectations! I ended up falling in love with Charlie, and quite early on!

Their connection was so strong, so natural and really beautiful to watch unfold. Alice is such a relatable character to me, being someone who is the supporter, the yes person, the pleaser. Charlie is jovial, arrogant and confident. They complement each other perfectly.

The development of both characters really stands out in this for me. Getting to know Charlie and his background more, and how this is affecting his future, really made him such a strong MMC. He’s so considerate and caring, he feels so deeply. I really fell in love with him. Alice’s love of photography and the expression of emotion it brought out was so good. The descriptions of the photographs, both past and present, gave this story such a unique edge to it. It can tell you things that people can’t, and it can move your life in directions you didn’t think possible. Stand back and enjoy the moment. Click

Carleys writing was as beautiful as ever. She tells a story in a way that just absorbs me completely. There is nothing I would change about this book, at all.

Thank you so much for the opportunity to read & review this book. I truly loved it.

“Good things happen at the lake”

This book was everything I wanted it to be and more! I’m calling it now. This is going to be the Summer romance read of 2025! I feel like it was written to be consumed poolside with some sort of fruity cocktail.

If you love summer nostalgia, witty banter, slow burn with serious sexual tension and foundry family vibes that will pull on your heartstrings then you need to read One Golden Summer!

Firstly I LOVED everything about Alice’s character. When she was describing her teenage self so many parts felt so reminiscent of younger me and how I felt than I couldn’t help but relate to her.
The relationship that developed between her and Charlie felt so organic and their BANTER?! I wasn’t expecting it to be so good! Also the sexual tension and chemistry between the pairing was EVERYTHING!

It was so nice to see snippets of Percy and Adam from ‘Every Summer After’ but I feel like this book could have easily been read and enjoyed as a standalone!

I genuinely have no notes! This book was romance PERFECTION!

Carley is once again proving why she is an auto-buy author for me!
I didn’t know how much I needed Charlie’s story. The chemistry with him and Alice was instant and I loved the slow burn romance mixed in with their banter.

Carley is an expert at writing summer locations, what I wouldn’t give to be sitting by the lake at Barry’s Bay reading this book..
I was really in need of a book that pulled me in instantly, this delivered on that and also had a sweet side story with the relationship between Alice and her Nan.

Only rating four stars because I guessed what would happen in the final act!

Thanks so much to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an E-ARC.

This one wasn't my favourite unfortunately. I didn't really connect with Alice, which is a shame, because I loved Charlie in Every Summer After and I was really looking forward to reading his story.
The romance felt very insta-lovey and the whole "we're only friends" thing started to get on my nerves, especially when they got cross with people saying otherwise. They weren't just friends at all. I also didn't buy into how obsessive Alice was over the kids in a photo she took when she was 17 years old. That was a little flimsy.
I could've done with a lot less angst and a slower unfolding of the end of the book instead. It felt very rushed and it was resolved too quickly in comparison to how long winded everything else was.

One Golden Summer is Charlie's book who we first meet in Carley Fortunes first book Every Summer After. Whilst that one was not my favourite book by this author I was so excited to get Charlies story and his happily ever after and this book did not disappoint. The book is set back in Barry's Bay and is the perfect setting for this summer romance. Alice is visiting for the summer with her nan who used to visit with friends here every summer many years ago. She meets Charlie and they decide to compete a bucket list of items that Alice wishes she had done when she visited when she was seventeen. I loved the easy and fun relationship Charlie and Alice build. This is a great, easy to read summer romance that is perfect for an escapist read this summer!

If, like me, you loved Carley’s first book Every Summer After then this is the book we have been waiting for! This is Charlie’s story and we do get a little catch up with Sam and Percy too!

We return to Barry’s Bay with Alice who is taking time out this summer to help her Nan recuperate after a fall. The familiar lake house and town seem like the perfect place for relaxation they both need. Although their peace is disturbed by one of their lake neighbours on a familiar boat Alice recognises from her childhood memories of the lake.

Charlie Florek is a charming, handsome and completely self assured man and he teases Alice like he was born to do it. He is also very sweet with Alice’s nan. Alice and Charlie agree to a summer fling to tick an item off Alice’s to do list but as always nothing ever stays just for the summer!

The chemistry between Charlie and Alice is so palpable. They’re so obviously meant to be and whatever reason Charlie has for holding back is kept close to his chest throughout the story. The setting and the sentiment both Charlie and Alice have for Barry’s Bay just adds to the story and of course the cameo from Sam and Percy is perfect.

This was my first five star of the year. It’s an emotional but really enjoyable read that you’ll fly through this summer. I already want to re-read it!

4.5 ⭐️

I loved this book so much!!! Carley did such a good job with her story telling in this novel. The characters, the setting, the emotion, it was so perfect!

This is going to be THE book this summer! I can’t wait for everyone to fall in love with Charlie and Alice 💛. Sadly I don’t have a Nan so this book really made me miss mine. I loved Alice’s connection with her Nan, it bought me so much comfort 😭!

Some quotes I loved:

“He’s one of those flame-like people who we all gravitate towards like moths, soaking in their warmth.”

“It’s one of the most terrifying things we all do: allowing people to see us without all our protective layers.”

Thank you to @netgalley & @michaeljbooks for the early e-arc !!!

Thank you to Michael Joseph, Penguin Random House + NetGalley for the opportunity to read One Golden Summer before it’s published. I do love a redemption arc and this was Charlie Florek’s. The question I need an answer to though is - Nan + John’s second chance at love story, when?!

Definitely read Every Summer After before picking this up, as there are mucho spoilers, an easy lighthearted read that I managed to read in one sitting. A lovely bit of escapism from 2025 reality! One Golden Summer is out on 8th May 2025 🧡