Curvy Girl Summer by Danielle Allen | A Summer That Hit Different

Before I even start this review let me just say that Danielle Allen was in her BAG with this Curve Series! I have loved each of these books, especially the fact that Wesleigh Siobhan’s sexy ass voice was in my ear the whole time.

I am going to review all 3 books, but can we just talk about how Wesleigh’s voice is insane. Like how TF this lady sound sexy AF whether she’s narrating a female lead OR a male lead? I be over here like this lady voice be doin things to me lol but let’s get into it.

Now I heard a couple of people say they didn’t enjoy this one and I’m not gon’ lie, when I first downloaded the audiobook last year sometime, I heard maybe 10 or 15 mins and DNF. Between the reading groups I’m in and my Threads bookies I decided to give it a shot and read the series.

People tend to put big girls in a box. Expecting us to act a certain way, be timid, be ashamed of our bodies or ashamed to vocalize our wants and needs. My biggest gripe with Curvy Girl Summer was that Aaliyah, while bold in many ways, gave in to the demands and perceptions of those around her vs being exactly who she thinks she is.

Aaliyah was a force and I hate that it took so long for her to figure it out.

She was approaching thirty and still dealing with the loss of her sister who died at the same age five years prior. While she had done most of the work to heal, her family, her mother and uncle specifically, held her in her sister’s shadow. By thirty, her sister was a homeowner, married and expecting a child when she tragically lost her life.

Meanwhile Aaliyah was still navigating what she wanted her life to look like. She had a great career in IT, enjoyed nightlife, hanging with her besties, good food and good music. She was content, but she allowed others to get into her head. Her family had her convinced that if she didn’t lose weight and find a man soon, she’d die alone. Her mother even tried to set her up with the son of one of her friends.

She had planned this lavish overnight birthday celebration and to make herself feel better, and appease her family, she said she did in fact have a man and he would be there. The problem? She absolutely did not have a man. Now she knew who to call if she wanted to get off, but he definitely wasn’t boyfriend material.

Her besties Nina and Jasmyn always hyped her up which was honestly the highlight of the book. Their friendship felt like a real sisterhood and it was so refreshing. A coworker set her up on a blind date and she arranged to meet him at a bar called Onyx across the street from her apartment. The date never showed, and Aaliyah and the bartender Ahmad had some friendly back and forth banter.

The two had a great rapport and it was cute how they cracked jokes back and forth. Aaliyah noticed the wedding band on his hand and overheard him telling other patrons he was happily married, so she immediately friend zoned him. He got her to open up about her dating woes and convinced her to join a dating app. She agreed to have each date meet her at Onyx on Fridays so Ahmad could be there and give her feedback, not only on her but on the dates too.

Now I saw the connection between these two immediately, but it was crazy watching this play out. Date after date with not a single match. That all changed when their chemistry could no longer be denied. She started fantasizing about him no matter who she was with, and Ahmad could no longer hide how jealous he was seeing her with other men. Once she found out he wasn’t married and was wearing the ring to keep women off him at the bar, she felt betrayed and started to avoid him.

Ahmad wasn’t havin it tho! The night before her party, when he finally said “fuck it” and had his way with her in the office while she was on a whole date with someone else?? Chileeeee. The heat between these two was intense. That man said he was going to spell out his apology with his tongue and make her cum on it… I ain’t been right since!

Try as she might, she couldn’t escape the feelings she had for him. Even though she was mad and refused to go back to the bar because she knew he would be there. They had shared so much with each other and both were too stubborn to just say how they felt.

The night of her thirtieth, while her two besties showed up with their dates, she showed up alone and had made peace with that. Her birthday toast really solidified it. But things changed when Ahmad showed up at her afterparty just in time for her Cinderella moment. Mind you… she never gave that man her number and did not invite him. He remembered enough from their conversations to find her so she wouldn’t be alone.

Y’all this was the cutest book. They both got on my nerves with how stubborn they were, but I loved it.

And when I say the sex scenes between them were intense and Wesleigh Siobhan did her damn thing?? Talked her through it every time. Whew chile.