Price: $9.87
(as of Aug 07, 2025 08:38:45 UTC – Details)
THE #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER! ∙ A radiant escape to the lake from #1 New York Times bestselling author of Every Summer After and This Summer Will Be Different
As featured in The New York Times ∙ People ∙ Good Morning America ∙ The Washington Post ∙ Cosmopolitan ∙ TODAY ∙ USA Today ∙ Harper’s Bazaar ∙ Glamour ∙ E! News ∙ Buzzfeed ∙ ELLE ∙ Us Weekly ∙ The New York Post ∙ FIRST for Women ∙ Woman’s World ∙ Katie Couric Media ∙ SheReads ∙ and more!
I never anticipated Charlie Florek.
Good things happen at the lake. That’s what Alice’s grandmother says, and it’s true. Alice spent just one summer there at a cottage with Nan when she was seventeen—it’s where she took that photo, the one of three grinning teenagers in a yellow speedboat, the image that changed her life.
Now Alice lives behind a lens. As a photographer, she’s most comfortable on the sidelines, letting other people shine. Lately though, she’s been itching for something more, and when Nan falls and breaks her hip, Alice comes up with a plan for them both: another summer in that magical place, Barry’s Bay. But as soon as they settle in, their peace is disrupted by the roar of a familiar yellow boat, and the man driving it.
Charlie Florek was nineteen when Alice took his photo from afar. Now he’s all grown up—a shameless flirt, who manages to make Nan laugh and Alice long to be seventeen again, when life was simpler, when taking pictures was just for fun. Sun-slanted days and warm nights out on the lake with Charlie are a balm for Alice’s soul, but when she looks up and sees his piercing green gaze directly on her, she begins to worry for her heart.
Because Alice sees people—that’s why she is so good at what she does—but she’s never met someone who looks and sees her right back.
From the Publisher
Publisher : Berkley
Publication date : May 6, 2025
Language : English
Print length : 400 pages
ISBN-10 : 0593638913
ISBN-13 : 978-0593638910
Item Weight : 10.9 ounces
Dimensions : 5.48 x 0.85 x 8.2 inches
Best Sellers Rank: #24 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #1 in Coming of Age Fiction (Books) #2 in Contemporary Women Fiction #25 in Contemporary Romance (Books)
Customer Reviews: 4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 32,979 ratings var dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction; P.when(‘A’, ‘ready’).execute(function(A) { if (dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction !== true) { dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction = true; A.declarative( ‘acrLink-click-metrics’, ‘click’, { “allowLinkDefault”: true }, function (event) { if (window.ue) { ue.count(“acrLinkClickCount”, (ue.count(“acrLinkClickCount”) || 0) + 1); } } ); } }); P.when(‘A’, ‘cf’).execute(function(A) { A.declarative(‘acrStarsLink-click-metrics’, ‘click’, { “allowLinkDefault” : true }, function(event){ if(window.ue) { ue.count(“acrStarsLinkWithPopoverClickCount”, (ue.count(“acrStarsLinkWithPopoverClickCount”) || 0) + 1); } }); });
Customers say
Customers find this book to be a delightful summer read with a compelling love story that draws readers in. They appreciate the well-defined characters, particularly the banter between the main characters, and enjoy the witty dialogue that makes them giggle. Customers praise the writing quality, with one noting how vividly the setting is described, and appreciate its quick pace and easy readability. They describe the book as lovely and sweet, with one customer highlighting the idyllic summer at a lake setting.
Keena –
Carley’s best book yet!
Thank you to @prhaudio for this #gifted audiobook. #prhaudioinfluencerSTARSHello Charlie Florek and hello to a FIVE STAR read! There really aren’t enough words in any language to express how I much I loved this book, but alas, I am going try. ❤️ I did a dual listening/reading experience, it was perfect!One Golden Summer takes us back to Barry’s Bay with the most captivating and delicious descriptions of summer. Charlie Florek is the playboy big brother with the heart-breaker rep from Every Summer After, and Alice, our new heroine, is a quiet and artistic photographer who finds herself back at the lake for the summer. When these two meet, it is instant fireworks!Being back in Barry’s Bay was exactly what my heart needed. While this isn’t necessarily described as a sequel to Every Summer After, it sure felt like it, with multiple appearances from Percy, Sam, and other favorite characters. I truly felt transported to the lake and wished I could stay there forever.I loved Alice’s transformation and Charlie’s ability to bring out the best in her. Charlie reminds me so much of my husband… a wild boy who doesn’t think he’s worthy of love but has a heart full of it to give… and he’s so sweet to Grandma Nan too! I couldn’t get enough!I fell in love with my husband over a summer (we call it The Summer of Love), and my own grandmother played a large part in our story. I also feel like Alice and Charlie saw each other like no one else could, and I relate.You will LOVE this story if you love summer vibes, finding yourself, friends to lovers, sibling dynamics, and major nostalgia.SPICEHoly butterflies! This story made my tummy jump over and over. Gosh I wanted Alice and Charlie to figure it all out! And they do… 🔥! There are several open door scenes, but the writing is classy and satisfying all at the same time.HAPPY ENDINGYes! Finally!! Whew. I wasn’t sure we were going to get there, but it was perfect. Loved Sam and Percy’s roles in completing this story. Loved that Charlie found his happy!FINAL THOUGHTSI would HIGHLY recommend you read Every Summer After before jumping into One Golden Summer. Your reading experience will be greatly improved if you understand Charlie’s history. This story explains the decisions he made in ESA in a way that my heart really needed!The Queen of Beach Reads has returned… thank you Carley for this gem!
Dana Bernard –
Refreshing Summer Rom Com
This book was chosen as a book club read. I have never read a Carley Fortune book before this one but I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised by her writing style. I thoroughly enjoyed this book.Alice and Charlie are truly end game. I enjoyed their banter from the first phone conversation. It was cute and gave you time to watch their chemistry and personalities evolve together. I also loved how Alice is written—she thinks she is this shy woman who doesn’t know how to speak up for herself but she’s actually very strong willed and knows who she is. Charlie just gives her more confidence in herself. Her relationships with her family are also fun and heartwarming.This is definitely a slow-burn book but it does have a little spice about halfway in. It’s also important to note that this book is about a 33 year old woman and a 35 year old man. So it was refreshing to read about adults. This can be read as a standalone but Charlie’s brother Sam, his story is another book that can be read before this called “Every Summer After”.
Kevyn Garcia –
Captivating Summer Romance That Will Stay With You
One Golden Summer creates an enchanting escape where love conquers life’s toughest challenges. Carly Fortune has crafted another winner with Charlie Florek – a character so compelling he’ll set impossibly high standards for future book boyfriends.This novel masterfully balances heartbreak and hope, creating that bittersweet reading experience where even the painful moments feel beautifully crafted. It’s the perfect summer read for anyone seeking emotional depth alongside romantic escapism.While it stands alone perfectly, readers familiar with Fortune’s “Every Summer After” will appreciate the shared setting and character connections that add extra richness to the story. The lakeside backdrop provides a gorgeous, nostalgic atmosphere throughout both books.Fortune continues to demonstrate her talent for creating immersive romantic fiction that lingers long after the final page. Her writing style draws you in completely, making it impossible to put down.Book arrived in excellent condition. Highly recommend for fans of contemporary romance seeking their next emotional journey.
Joni Hibdon –
Magnificent and Moving
I love how Carley deliberately and slowly reveals every element of the characters, the scenery, the water, the friendship, the tensions, and the love. I found this book magnificent because I felt I was there, inside the book, watching everything. It was moving for me as I felt the emotions, laughed at Charlie’s jokes and teasing. Cheered when Alice found her voice, purpose, and boundaries. Laughed out loud with Nan’s observations and statements. I loved the entire book and all of the characters.Carley, I’ve read all of your books. I am happy you’ve chosen to share your creative talents and Barry Bay stories with all of us. I’m already looking forward to your next book.
Becca (Pretty Little Memoirs) –
Alice uses her camera to hide behind, and always has. It’s easier, she says, to be behind the lens than ahead of it. When she was seventeen, she spent the summer at her grandmother’s friend’s cottage on Barry’s Bay, and took a photograph of three teenagers on a yellow boat that changed her life forever. It was, and still remains, the photo she is most proud of. But now photography is a job, a task, and she’s frustrated. So when her grandmother, known as Nan, is feeling down after breaking her hip and is requiring help for a few weeks, Alice has an idea to escape to that same cottage, which has been sitting empty. She throws herself into making someone else happy, just as she always has, the quietly compliant sibling she’s always been, to create a magical summer for the both of them to reignite a spark for life in the place she loves.What Alice doesn’t anticipate is Charlie Florek. Flirty, smiley, hot Charlie Florek. She recognises him from the moment she spots him on that same yellow boat from the summer she was seventeen, the one when she wished she knew those three teenagers on the boat, the ones that lived across the lake. Charlie, who’s been taking care of the empty house, sweeps in to safety-proof the cottage and, in the process, makes Nan smile and look spritely for the first time in ages. He quickly becomes a familiar face for Alice, stealing her away to knock some things off her summer bucket list, making her feel alive for the first time in ages. He sees her in the way she sees people, piercingly and deeply. There is obvious chemistry between the two of them, dark room encounters and summer night sleepovers, but Charlie is holding back. Alice is falling quickly, and though she feels caught in the freefall without certainty he feels the same, she sees it in snapshots of their summer together, a feeling captured that he cannot follow through. But when the summer draws to an end and Alice is face-to-face with the reason Charlie held back, she can’t believe she missed the signs—and knows it’s not too late to bring back their golden spark.Overall, One Golden Summer was dreamy, romantic and hauntingly emotional to the core. Carley has this way of weaving golden threads of the very being of summer through her books, and making the reader feel as though they’re walking hand-in-hand with the characters throughout. Alice felt like my friend. My heart ached when hers did, it healed and broke when hers did. Charlie . . . they could never have made me hate you. After Every Summer After, I knew I wanted to know more about him. His big heart and wild ways. As we peeled back the layers on his backstory beside Alice, there was so much hurt on his shoulders from losing his parents and mistakes he had made, and though he didn’t need redemption, this story just made me love him even more. The connection between Alice and Charlie might just be my favourite from Carley. It’s ethereal, the way, in so little words, Carley conveyed this powerful, larger-than-life love between them. I finished this story on holiday by the beach, in my own cottage, and turned the last page with tears in my eyes and a full heart. I can’t recommend it enough. (And will never shut up about it.) Five golden stars.P.S. Getting to see Percy and Sam so much (and even a nod to Meet Me At The Lake!!) was so, so sweet and nostalgic.
Kirsten –
Beste boek van Carley Fortune, een must read!
Pablo Antonio Blázquez –
Increible
Anna –
Amazing!! Charlie is such a beautiful character
Katja –
I don’t read such books. I prefer queer stories, fantasy… But I was looking for a summer story as I came across this book. Liked the lake setting and so I decided to give it a chance. And loved it. All of it. The story. The charakters. The chemestry between them. The atmosphere… It made me laugh and cry and became my summer story. Would read it all over again.