Review: The Summer Proposal by Vi Keeland

Item: The Summer Proposal
Rating: 4
Author: Kate

Posted August 11, 2022 by Kate

Review: The Summer Proposal by Vi Keeland

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Genres: Adult, Romance, Contemporary Romance, Hockey Romance, Sports Romance
Publisher: Independently Published
Source: Libby (My Library app)

The first time I met Max Yearwood was on a blind date.Max was insanely gorgeous, funny, and our chemistry was off the charts. He also had the biggest dimples I’d ever laid eyes on.Exactly what I needed after my breakup.Or so I thought… Until my real date arrived.Turned out, Max wasn’t who I was there to meet. He only pretended to be until my real date showed up.To say I was disappointed would be an understatement.Before he left, he slipped me a ticket to a hockey game a few blocks away, in case things didn’t work out on my actual date.I tossed the ticket into my purse and went about trying to enjoy the man I was supposed to meet.But my real blind date and I had no connection.So on my way home, I decided to take a chance and stop by the game.When I arrived, the seat next to me was empty.Disappointed again, I decided to leave at the end of the period.Just before the buzzer, one of the teams scored, and the entire arena went crazy.A player’s face flashed up on the Jumbotron. He was wearing a helmet, but I froze when he smiled.You guessed it: Dimples.Apparently, my fake blind date hadn’t invited me to watch hockey with him, he’d invited me to watch him play.And so began my adventure with Max Yearwood.He was everything I needed at the time—fun, sexy, up for anything, and only around for a few months since he’d signed with a new team three-thousand miles away.Max proposed we spend the summer helping me forget my ex. It sounded like a good plan. Things couldn’t get too serious when we had an expiration date. Right? Though, you know what they say about the best-laid plans.

I love a flirty book and this one more than delivered!! I fell into this one after reading “House of Sky and Breath” by Sarah J. Maas because I didn’t want to get stuck in a reading slump in the wake of that knockout story. Luckily, I picked the perfect story. It’s not complicated, but it is sweepingly adorable with great characters and THE FLIRT was so on point, I was giggling like a schoolgirl imagining myself in Georgia’s spot.

This is the second book this year (and ever) that I’ve read a story following a heroine whose boyfriend suddenly decides to go off and have an open relationship, and she’s left reeling and decides to try to dive-in, too. (Hello “The Heart Principle” by Helen Hoang.) It’s a little silly, but I’m not sure it’s too unrealistic for some women to be gaslit into this situation. The story picks up when Georgia finally decides to try dating again while her fiancè is abroad and enjoying himself, and meets Max while he pretends to be her blind date. When her real (boring) date shows up, he excuses himself and invites her to a hockey game later in the evening, just in case her date doesn’t deliver. She goes, and is shocked to see her date on the ice instead of sitting in the seat next to her, like she thought.

I love hockey stories. I LOVE HOCKEY STORIES!!! I didn’t even know I was picking one up, and I think that’s just a win for my subconscious choice in reading this one. I also really loved Max. He was a sweetheart, but also a cocky, swoony flirt that I love reading. It was so nice to see how he put himself out there for Georgia, even aware of her situation, charmingly getting her to agree to a summer of fun.

“If you love something, set it free. If it comes back, it’s yours. If not, go fuck yourself because you were an idiot for letting it go in the first place.”

The banter that they had together was incredible – this is honestly what I live for in light and easy romances like this one. There was drama, but it was very low angst because they had such a solid relationship. Their conversations that we experienced were authentic and interesting, they had incredible chemistry (and sexy times), but they just had genuine fun together. Even though they had an expiration date, they were all in for each other during the summer. They really opened up and understand one another.

I really loved that Georgia, because of her special situation, made sure to be respectful to both men. She may have been confused and not really on-board with the “open relationship” thing, but she never cast Max aside when her fiancè reared his ugly face, and she didn’t disrespect her partner, either. She handled it with grace, and I loved how respectful she was to them both (even if her fiancè didn’t deserve it).

I really appreciated the effortless way Keeland built this up. It was light and easy, but it had a nice intensity that burned steadily all the way through that carried us through the drama. My only complaints are that ending was a little abrupt and Georgia dithered a bit too long, but that is her character, so it’s understandable. The story had a nice depth to it, even though it was more lighthearted, and I’ll definitely be seeking out more of Vi’s works.