The Summer Job

By: Lizzy Dent

Narrated by: Emma Sidi

"My perfect summer read! Sure to be one of the sweetest, funniest, and sexiest books of the year." (Emily Henry, number one New York Times best-selling author of People We Meet on Vacation)

Named a Best Beach Read by Cosmopolitan, Entertainment Weekly, New York Post, Bustle, Country Living, Parade, Fortune, and more.

What if you could be someone else? Just for the summer....

Birdy has made a mistake. Everyone imagines running away from their life at some point. But Birdy has actually done it. And the life she's run into is her best friend Heather's. The only problem is, she hasn't told Heather.

The summer job at the highland Scottish hotel that her world class wine-expert friend ditched turns out to be a lot more than Birdy bargained for. Can she survive a summer pretending to be her best friend? And can Birdy stop herself from falling for the first man she's ever actually liked, but who thinks she's someone else?

One good friend's very bad decision is at the heart of this laugh-out-loud love story and unexpected tale of a woman finally finding herself in the strangest of places.

©2020 Lizzy Dent (P)2020 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

One of Cosmopolitan’s New Books to Feed Your Wanderlust

One of Marie Claire’s Ultimate Summer Beach Reads

One of Entertainment Weekly’s 20 Best New Books to Read in May

One of New York Post’s 30 Best Books on Our Summer Reading List

One of Bustle’s 20 Best Beach Reads of 2021

One of PopSugar’s Best Romance Books aAbout Travel to Read This Month

One of Real Simple’s 31 Best Beach Reads

One of Country Living’s 30 Can’t Miss Beach Reads for This Summer

One of Parade’s 25 Books You’ll Want to Read This Sizzling Season

One of Fortune’s 10 Entertaining New Books to Read This Summer

One of The Pioneer Woman’s 20 Best Beach Reads of Summer 2021

One of SheReads’ Most Anticipated Romance Books of 2021

One of PureWow’s 18 Best Beach Reads of Summer 2021

One of Life Savvy’s 17 Can’t Miss Books Hitting Shelves This May

One of Glitter Guide’s 9 Books to Add to Your May Reading List

One of Hello Giggles’ 11 Best New Books to Read in May

One of Bon Appetit’s 15 Must-Read Novels to Gift Everyone on Your List

“My perfect summer read! Sure to be one of the sweetest, funniest, and sexiest books of the year.” (Emily Henry, author of Beach Read)

“Witty and funny and it packs an emotional punch.... Loved it, I'm in the queue for more Lizzy Dent.” (Josie Silver, author of One Day in December)

“Fresh, funny and filled with delicious food and wine.” (Beth O’Leary, author of The Flatshare)

Good writing, terrible main character

The Summer Job
Birdy takes on a summer job in Scotland with a borrowed resume, a move that is equal parts opportunistic and foolish.
The Summer Job contains heaps of humorous phrases like, “only mildly ostentatious,” that made me giggle. I was immediately struck by the superb ambient descriptions, both sensory and physical. (Do not even get me started on the mouth-watering breakdown of food and wine.) There are also a host of astute observations of human behavior and motives that added dimension to a simplistic plot.
Because the entire premise of the story revolves around a colossal lie, much of the book is anxiety-inducing. The protagonist has very real personal challenges, but her troubled backstory was not enough to excuse her excessively bad judgment and unparalleled selfishness.
I struggled to get through this one. The overall writing and scene-setting were some of the best I have read in a contemporary romance novel (feels more like general fiction) and I am intrigued to see what Lizzy Dent writes in the future. My aversion to this story boils down to my intense dislike of the main character. Her idiocy and self-destructive tendencies knew no bounds and I felt sorry for everyone else in the story.
Plot – 4
Writing & Editing – 4
Character Development – 3
Personal Bias – 2
Final Score: 3.25

Loved it!

Brilliantly read and performed with a lovely lilting English accent and a wonderful romcom story! If you enjoyed Bridget Jones —you will love Birdy!!

Good Summer Listen

This book was average. Sweet story, but half way through I predicted the end. There were some funny lines that got me chuckling. It's an easy summer read, but doesn't leave me connected to the characters or wanting more in the end.

I wanted to like it . . .

But it dragged in the front half and switched directions at the end. Main character was awful. Don’t waste your money or time.

Too asinine for words.

With so many excellent writers and novels out there waiting to be published, how ever did this book make the grade.
Save your money.

The Summer Job

This is our June book club selection and I am curious about our upcoming discussion points. I was bored and struggled to finish. Long dead-end chapters, no plot twist or climax.

A job listening to it

I’m just tired of ballsy talk. Cute story too much language. Not ready to give up great stories and writing.