Content Warning: It’ll make you snort into your wine glass with the grace of a reversing dump truck.
Lizzy Dent’s delightful novel and soon-to-be TV series The Summer Job couldn’t have landed in our laps at a better time. If the perfect heatwave companion exists, then Dent has well and truly crafted a 10/10 fren to unfurl under a parasol with this one.
The pitch-perfect tone makes it feel like you’re on a night out with the girls and its honest and self-deprecating protagonist, Birdy Finch (who also happens to answer to Heather), will have you rooting for her from the very first page.
A case of mistaken identity and Highland hijinks coupled with just the right amount of grit ensures this summer read holds its own where others often tail off into soppy delirium and tweedom.
If you’re looking for something to fill the Fleabag shaped hole in your life, prepare to plonk yourself on the beach for the day and inhale this page-turner quicker than hunks of baguette dunked in aioli.
Keep scrolling to see what the team thought of this laugh-out-loud Scottish (mis)adventure!
Have you ever imagined running away from your life?
Well Birdy Finch didn’t just imagine it. She did it. Which might’ve been an error.
And the life she’s run into? Her best friend, Heather’s.
The only problem is, she hasn’t told Heather.
Actually there are a few other problems…
Can Birdy carry off a summer pretending to be her best friend (who incidentally is a world-class wine expert)?
And can she stop herself from falling for the first man she’s ever actually liked (but who thinks she’s someone else)?
Lareese
Hands down one of my favourite reads this year so far! Lizzy Dent has crafted an absolute chef’s kiss ((shout out to James, the hot chef in the novel) of a summer read with The Summer Job. Birdy Finch is a wonderfully human character – fallible, self-deprecating and laugh-out-loud relatable. You can’t help but root for her from the very first page. Dent’s tone of voice, together with a stellar cast of characters, makes for the kind of book you can easily gobble down in one sitting and I think the comparisons between Fleabag, Bridget Jones and Bridesmaids are spot on. If you’re a fan of feel-good fiction with equal parts humour and grit, The Summer Job needs to be on your radar.
Rating out of 5: 5/5
Would you recommend? Och aye!
Charlotte
To me, this book feels like the ultimate in summer reads, only made better if I was sitting beside a pool with a Pina Colada in hand. A girl can dream. It felt very similar to the Sophie Kinsella Shopaholic series I read when I was probably too young to do so because similarly to Rebecca Bloomwood, Birdy certainly knows how to get herself into a pickle, and following her journey in doing so is such a joy. It’s a funny, feel-good, addictive read and one I’ll be recommending to family and friends in need of a poolside read for summers to come. The tone of voice made for an easy but gripping read and I would love to read more from Lizzy Dent after devouring this gem of a book!
Rating out of 5: 5/5
Would you recommend? 100%!
Danielle
I bloody loved listening to The Summer Job, it’s exactly my kind of read. If you love Richard Curtis movies and Nora Ephron stories then you will adore this novel from Lizzy Dent. I listened to this at the start of the summer throughout my staycation in Cornwall and I think the combination of the book being set in Cornwall and the knowledge that I would only be staycationing for 2021 made me really appreciate how much the UK has to offer. I’m not sure how easy I could have soaked up a beach read set somewhere more exotic! Birdy makes a brilliant protagonist, completely lost in the world, constantly comparing herself to her best friend, putting up with ludicrous treatment from an off again off again boyfriend, basically where plenty of women find themselves in their twenties. I often think about what it would be like to have a completely different life to my own, new city (or country!), new career path, I’m sure a lot of people do, so it was fun to live vicariously through Birdy heading up to Scotland on an adventure. I immediately fell in love with Bill, Irene, James, and Roxie, they all instilled so much confidence in Birdie until she was finally able to see it herself. The pace of the book is kept up by key events and Birdy’s daily struggles through the dinner service but the underlying questions regarding her best friend Heather’s personal struggles and why she originally applied for the role keep you reading on. I was quite excited for it all to come to a head, and I was so pleased for a happy ending. I hope I’m not giving too much away!
Rating out of 5: 5/5
Would you recommend? YES! Great for the end of summer or even a cosy transitional read!
Darcey
I really, really loved this book! I read it on the beach (pebbly Brighton beach and not a lovely sandy beach in Spain but we take what we can now) and it was the perfect book to sit back and relax with. I think we can all relate to Birdy in some way or another, living adult life with past trauma, in and out of relationships we know aren’t good for us and even down too feeling a little lost career wise. I really enjoy books with such relatable characters, something about it is really soothing to me. Also, spending the Summer in a beautiful Scottish hotel, drinking delicious wine (trying to learn wine lists not so much) and flirting with a very attractive chef? Sign me up! This is a real feel-good, laugh out loud read, perfect for the Summer! Would definitely recommend if you like a good rom-com.
5/5
Would you recommend? Yes!
