Seven Days in June

I initially bought this book simply because I'm an author with a women's fiction book coming out soon, and I wanted to read another women's fiction book by a fellow UVA alum! At first, since the book is about an erotica author and contains pop references out the wazoo, I was tempted to write it off as trendy and trite. That said, this novel quickly drew me in, far exceeding my expectations, mainly because the characters totally drew me in. I'll mention a few notables...

Shane: For me, Shane was the perfect male love interest. As a person who's been through my own addictive struggles with food and relationships, I'm a sucker for recovering addicts. As far as I'm concerned, recovering alcoholics are the best of both worlds - they're bad boys, but they're being good! What could be better? Shane was deep and complex and weird and dark but also sweet and kind and vulnerable - not to mention those hazel eyes. Plus, I'm a marathon runner, and I loved that he channeled his addictive tendencies into long distance running. In case I haven't made it clear: Shane checked ALL my boxes.

Audre: This tween girl - protagonist Eva's daughter - was so cool! I didn't want to like her, because I don't have kids and don't relate to the whole mom thing. But Audre was really fun! I loved that she was a tween practicing therapy - without a license, obviously, and more competently than plenty of adult shrinks, from the sound of it. It busted and poked fun at a lot of the navel-gazing therapy stereotypes. At the same time, Audre had moments of true childishness which made her a credible and endearing character. In short, an atypical daughter character who kept surprising and delighting me!

Cece: I found Cece's borderline cynicism and pragmatic personality refreshing. If this book had any major flaw, it might be the over-the-top romantic nature of the Eva-Shane dynamic. Salty Cece was a welcome counter-balance to this hyper-romanticism. I appreciated that while she was apparently happy and content in her own marriage, her romantic relationship with her husband, Ken, was more ordinary and "normal" than the celestial fire between Eva and Shane - good, and good enough, but not unattainably, hyperbolically romantic.

Eva: Protagonist Eva was the character who grew on me the most. I'm pretty hyper-healthy, and although I've dealt with my own "invisible" health issues in the past, Eva's crippling migraine problem was new for me. Her disability was described in a way that made me have compassion for her without making her seem pitiful or annoyingly needy. In addition, as a writer myself, I also enjoyed hearing about the often ludicrous ins and outs of the writing world. When it came to her writing, Eva's saving grace was that she didn't take herself too seriously. I appreciated the arc of her creative development and how she ultimately abandoned her crowd-pleasing fantasy writing to write about what matters to her.

Aside from these main characters, there were many other engaging and enjoyable minor characters who made the book very fun and lively - the literary equivalent of the best sort of people-watching. And as a native New Yorker, I loved all the Brooklyn details. The happy ending was happy, and even better, it didn't come too quickly. The delayed gratification made it that much sweeter.

All told, it's clear that UVA alums write fabulous books! Thank you, Tia Williams, for entertaining me, educating me, making me laugh, and opening my heart to the world just a little bit more.

This book was such a delight. It's rare to see a book that not only has a creative and perfectly woven plot but is ALSO well written. The dialogue is perfection. The characters stay with you. This is truly an original love story. I'm still giggling about the first line "In the year of our Lord 2019. . . " I immediately ordered another of her books as soon as I finished Seven Days. I'll be a lifelong fan of this writer for sure. I read 3 or 4 books a week and this one blew me away.

Oh my gosh. I couldn’t put this book down. I did not want it to end. I cried, I smiled, I cried, I smiled. I was breathless many times. Eva and Shane are perfect for each other. They found each other when they needed each other most and to see how their story ended but then started over again. Aaahhhhhh. Audre is a character and I love her dearly. Eva did an amazing job especially after not having a mother figure like herself in her life. I believe that is the true testament of giving your kids what you don’t have. She did that parenting ishhhh. Lastly, the way Eva forgave her mom. Ugh. This story is just so much. I am in love with Tia Williams. I pray this becomes a movie. I will be reading this book a million and one times just to revisit the parts I loved (the whole book)

Okay honestly this book was beautiful. Beautifully written, and beautifully told. Such an amazing 2nd chance romance. This is my first Tia Williams book and it won’t be my last. Fifteen years of loving someone, you didn’t know if they were dead or alive, but your heart aches for them. Crazy love.

Eva and Shane’s love was kind of a forbidden unhealthy love story between teens who fell in love with each other and drugs. Now sober and reunited, they navigate how to love each other in a fresh way while healing from their past. Ugh I just wish the book was longer, I want to see what happens after they say yes to forever.

07.21.24 24% progress, 999 Ka-Trillion percent enamored. That part. I am excessively COMPELLED to write this INITIAL review at this point. I love Gen* & Shane; they feel so familiar as if they're composites of everyone I've known thus far in life. I ALREADY have it in queue to re-read. 2s.

7.23.24 - There are too many words and NONE of them seem ADEQUATE/ENOUGH to convey what I'd love to say about this book, Seven Days in June.

*Stickler for names, shortened over misspelling.

I have seen this book recommended all over BookTok and I finally gave in. This book did not disappoint!

I love the community that Eva had within her group of women that seemed to support her and network for her as she was growing into herself. Cece was a mess (In a good way though) and Audre was my favorite! I love how she had no problem saying what was on her mind and changed her outfits for her feelings (so dramatic, like me). It made me smile that instead of shutting Audre down, Eva allowed her to express herself and be herself.

But the heart of this story was about two young trouble teens who connected with each other through their trauma. They were both dealing with their own issues and they had an amazing week together before they started writing about each other in their books. I’m glad that they were able to reconnect with each other 15 years later and in the week, they realize that they still had the strong connection that they once had when they were kids. I think the decision to not be together was so selfless and mature. They could have easily let their feelings overtake them and dove head first again not learning from their past mistakes. The clarity that Eva had right before she won the award came right on time. You don’t want the tragic love where it’s this whirlwind romance where you’re swept off your feet and left breathless, but is ultimately unstable. You don’t always want to be on the edge of your seat, wondering whether the other person is going to come through on their promise or if they are going to run and hide behind their excuses of trauma.

This was a more complex and compelling second chance at love story.

Eva and Shane’s teenage romance was a whirlwind that ended tragically. 15 years later, the pair of broken teenagers have blossomed into successful, published authors, each of them using their writing to channel their feelings about what happened between them. Having not spoken since the day it all ended, Eva and Shane find themselves together at a literary event. Both of them have changed dramatically in their time apart, and they settle instantly into the easy chemistry that they once shared. They both feel the tug of fate pulling them towards one another, but can time ever really erase the scars of their shared trauma?

I truly didn’t expect to become so emotionally attached to these characters so quickly. Eva and Shane were troubled teenagers, both shattered by the circumstances of their lives. When it seemed as though no one would ever understand them, they found each other, and their connection was instantaneous and soul completing.

The love shared between Eva and Shane was effortless, and painful, and complete, and toxic, and beautiful, and real, and perfect. And while it’s obvious to the reader within seconds of knowing them that these two people need to be together, the universe seems to have other plans for them. Watching the story of these two fictional people play out across the pages of this book took me to levels of emotion I don’t even feel about actual living humans.

Seven Days in June will rip your heart out, step on it, break it to pieces, and then quietly hand you some tape to put it all back together again. It was at times tragic and other times quirky and funny, and I loved every moment of it.

This book was like eating a good meal and saving the best bite for last, only for that bite to turn out meh and sour the whole experience.

Wonderful writing. Great premise, setup and execution. I loved all the characters. Audre is one of the best written kids out there imo, and I really loved the mother-daughter relationship(s) depicted. Everything was so layered, messy, emotional, I truly felt this book altering my brain chemistry and I had so much fun out the gate but past a certain point, I started getting more and more disappointed.

Every so often I see people on the internet say they skip prologues and epilogues and I couldn't stop thinking about just how much they'd miss from the epilogue of this book, and frankly I was jealous. The format and content of the texting, the time jumps, the dinner?? I wasn't really convinced by the breakup and the subsequent communication between Shane and Eva was just so unsatisfying I'm having a hard time deciding on the rating.

All in all I did enjoy this book a lot, I just wish it got wrapped up a bit differently.

While it took more than a few chapters for me to really get into this, I have to say that the writing was nicely done and the overall story was good.

While I wish the story would've given more on Shane Hall, his background, some more of his struggles, maybe how he ended up where he did (in this abandoned home of a soon to be married woman's family) in high school, or more on his foster family (the one he lost so dramatically), or just anything to give more insight on him. I liked Shane and thought he was the more interesting character, not Eva aka Genevieve.

Eva Mercy (Genevieve Mercier) and her daughters relationship was delightful. I liked how she wanted to be close to her daughter, and was, yet she was still indeed her mother, too. Quite the dynamic of a relationship.

I loved how the author brought us into the literary world. Being that Shane and Eva were both authors, I liked that we got a glimpse of that world from both of their POV.

I didn't quite get the relationship of Shane and Eva at first, and kind of felt it was very unhealthy and very dangerous, especially in their youth. Although her mother was cruel about it, I'm kind of glad she got Eva, or let her rather, get the expert help she needed. I don't like that she sent Shane off; he needed the most help, yet she didn't know that. As adults, I thought they'd fall into those same unhealthy habits, yet the pull they had for one another and the growth they both individually had done, helped partially in not letting them be destructive towards one another. It was somewhat enduring and sweet.

This story was educational and quite funny. I liked it. Good read.