The Summer of Jordi Pérez (And the Best Burger in Los Ángeles)
Author: Amy Spalding
Genre: Young Adult Contemporary
Publisher: Sky Pony Press
Published: April 3, 2018
Pages: 284
My Rating: ★★★

Seventeen, fashion-obsessed, and gay, Abby Ives has always been content playing the sidekick in other people's lives. While her friends and sister have plunged headfirst into the world of dating and romances, Abby has stayed focused on her plus-size style blog and her dreams of taking the fashion industry by storm. When she lands a prized internship at her favorite local boutique, she’s thrilled to take her first step into her dream career. She doesn't expect to fall for her fellow intern, Jordi Pérez. Abby knows it's a big no-no to fall for a colleague. She also knows that Jordi documents her whole life in photographs, while Abby would prefer to stay behind the scenes. Then again, nothing is going as expected this summer. She's competing against the girl she's kissing to win a paid job at the boutique. She's somehow managed to befriend Jax, a lacrosse-playing bro type who needs help in a project that involves eating burgers across L.A.'s eastside. Suddenly, she doesn't feel like a sidekick. Is it possible Abby's finally in her own story? But when Jordi's photography puts Abby in the spotlight, it feels like a betrayal, rather than a starring role. Can Abby find a way to reconcile her positive yet private sense of self with the image that other people have of her? Is this just Abby’s summer of fashion? Or will it truly be The Summer of Jordi Pérez (and the Best Burger in Los Ángeles)?
Two young girls fall in love at their summer internship. 
Abby is a plus-sized fashion blogger who meets her love interest Jordi at a summer internship. She immediately falls for her. This book is all about falling in love for the first time. I love books that incorporate blogging. This novel gave me very high hopes. Sadly, it did not live up to the hype for me. 

At times the novel was way too dramatic for my taste. The characters are whiny and very childish. They almost did not even seem like teenagers to me. All of them were very immature. Abby, the main character acted as if she was a toddler and whined a lot during the story. There were many times that I rolled my eyes at her while reading. It became very cringe-worthy to me. Even though this is a short book it dragged on like crazy! Abby overreacts to many things. Everything in this book is predictable. Even the ending. 

The book was by no means terrible but it was not anything memorable either. The premise was pretty dang average. It's a typical story about falling in love for the first time. The only difference is that it's about two lesbians. I was hoping for major diversity with this book. My hopes were kind of shattered. 

Overall, there were many parts that made me very bored. I did not get the whole burger aspect of the book. How it was even relevant to the story. It was completely random and I feel like the author could have left that part out. I applaud the fat queer representation. However, that's all the novel really had going for it at times. 

My favorite character in the book was Jax. He supports Abby into telling Jordi her true feelings. He was the comic relief I needed out of this story. Without him, the book would have gotten a much lower rating from me. Abby did not have any growth as a character throughout the entire book which really bugged me. This book was just very average to me and the plot was underdeveloped. All in all, it was a pretty flat plotline. 
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Amy Spalding grew up in St. Louis, but now lives in the better weather of Los Angeles. She has a B.A. in Advertising & Marketing Communications from Webster University, and an M.A. in Media Studies from The New School. Amy studied longform improv at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre. By day, she manages the digital media team for an indie film advertising agency. By later day and night, Amy writes, performs, and pets as many cats as she can.