Book Review: Fifteen Minutes of Summer (#3) by Heather Wardell

Summary: 
"As long as people keep talking about me, I'm happy." Former reality-TV contestant and current fashion designer/celebrity reporter Summer Meyer lives by those words. Since her time on the "Ragged Royalty" program Summer's been looking for her big break in either fashion or show biz, whichever will let her show her family of literal geniuses that she can still be a success without being smart.

Touched to be asked to help her ex-husband Kent and his crazily private fiancé Madeleine-Cora plan their nuptials, Summer throws herself into taking charge of everything and being the perfect bridesmaid and even making MC's bridal gown. At the same time, she's juggling her romance with show-mate Aaron and her growing friendship with Kent's brother Ron and the pressure from her celebrity-gossip-site boss who's demanding every intimate wedding detail Kent and MC would never want shared. 

If Summer shares those details with the world, she'll get the attention and approval she's always wanted, but she'll lose her friends and the people who matter most to her. Are her fifteen minutes of fame worth the privacy they'll cost? 

Release Date:June 4, 2015

Age Group: Adult

Source: Review copy from author

Reviewed By: Kelli

Review:
Fifteen Minutes of Summer is the third book in Heather Wardell's Seven Exes series.  I really love this series: what started out as light fiction quickly turned serious with tons of character development along the way.  I generally liked Summer in Seven Exes Are Eight Too Many (book one), but felt that she was hiding something behind her veneer of sexiness and her very outgoing nature.  

Summer ended up being my favorite character from the Seven Exes series.  She has so many layers to her personality and I enjoyed uncovering them as the book progressed.  Summer's parents and sister are extremely intelligent.  She can never keep up with the conversation when they are all together.  In turn, Summer is perpetually feeling like she is dumb.  Summer hides her low self-esteem behind her looks, clothes, and vibrant personality.  She can talk to anyone (and does!) and decides to play up her strengths instead of her (perceived) weaknesses.

But things quickly spiral out of control as Summer is pressured at work into sharing secrets about her friends.  Summer begins to lose control of the situation, yet is too embarrassed and afraid to ask for help.  Fifteen Minutes of Summer begins with Summer's worst dreams coming true.  Everything blows up in her face and she is left alone to pick up the pieces.  Summer goes from having a boyfriend and a group of supportive friends, to having no one.  (I promise I'm not spoiling anything because this is in the prologue!)  

The crux of the story is how will Summer make amends for her actions?  How can she atone for her mistakes?  What does one do when "I'm sorry" is nowhere near close to enough?  Those are the things Summer has to address in Fifteen Minutes of Summer.  After much heartache, Summer takes drastic measures to reconcile with her friends.  That particular scene was the absolute biggest surprise and most emotional part of the book.  I loved it.  Wardell took the story in a direction I could never have anticipated.  I finished this book with so much respect and admiration for Summer.

Heather Wardell's books are in a category all their own.  Her genre is women's fiction, yet these books are just so meaningful, easy to relate to, and moving that they stand out.  Fifteen Minutes of Summer is Heather's 17th novel.  If you are new to Heather Wardell, visit her website HERE to read her first book, Life, Love and a Polar Bear Tatoo, for free.