I surely wish THE SUMMER I TURNED PRETTY had been around when I was 14 or 15 years old, instead of the too-old-for-me romance novels I ended up hiding in my bedroom at the time. I imagine that my young teenage self would have fallen head over heels for this one. 
 The story itself isn't terribly complex... Belly is a 15 year old girl who spends each and every summer at her mom's best friend's beach house. Of course, Susannah has two sons around Belly's age -- Jeremiah, the younger, more gentle son... and Conrad, the darker, more handsome, more aloof boy. 
 Of course, Conrad is the one who has been the object of Belly's desire for as long as she can possibly remember. 
 For Belly, life exists only in those summers. Everything before June and after August is just a countdown to when her real life will begin at the beach house again. 
 Now that she's only weeks away from her 16th birthday, Belly is realizing that the boys are seeing her a little differently now. She's more grown up now --- she's "blossomed," as Suzanne would say --- so maybe it's finally time Conrad can see her as more than his mom's best's friend's little daughter? 
 Except, the perfect summer is hiding dark secrets, and Belly soon realizes that this may be the last magical summer she will ever spend at the beach house. This may be her last chance to change the direction of her life forever. 
 While this was a light, fun beach read (I literally read the entire book in a single sitting), I think there was a little more to the story here than just the romantic aspect. And, these little things are what really made the book just that much more enjoyable for me in the end. 
 Sure, Belly is a fickle almost-16-year-old young woman who can't seem to get past her insecurities or decide what she actually wants out of her life... but isn't that pretty accurate for that age? I could definitely see myself in Belly (at least, my 15 year old self) which is one of many reasons I think I would have adored this book had it been around when I was about that age. 
 I enjoyed the way that story alternated in short chapters between the present and past summers in such a way that flowed so easily and kept the story progressing. It seems that many books featuring such predominant flashbacks end up feeling choppy... and, THE SUMMER I TURNED PRETTY definitely never felt choppy to me at all. 
 The "secret" in the end, while heart-breaking, isn't terribly unexpected. Even so, I think it was the element that really brought this book together. And, I'm glad the story's not over yet! I still have ITS NOT SUMMER WITHOUT YOU to go, as well as WE'LL ALWAYS HAVE SUMMER, out April 2011.