A Summer of Stars by Liana Cincotti
Author: Liana Cincotti
Publisher: Forever (Grand Central Publishing)
Format: eARC
Genre: Contemporary Romance | Sports Romance | Fake Dating
Publication Date: August 11, 2026
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (4.5 rounded up)
Synopsis
Years ago, tennis star Luna Aldridge and Hollywood actor Kieran Alexander met at an event and felt an immediate attraction. Unfortunately, one misunderstanding was all it took to turn that spark into years of mutual dislike, gossip, and not-so-friendly comments.
Now Luna is dealing with the fallout from a messy breakup that has left the public firmly convinced she's the villain. Rather than expose the details of her private life, she stays quiet and lets the rumors continue.
Kieran has an image problem of his own. He's preparing to promote a major romantic movie, but his reputation for short-lived relationships isn't exactly convincing audiences that he's Hollywood's newest romantic leading man.
Their PR teams come up with the perfect solution: Luna and Kieran will fake a relationship for the summer. Between red carpets, tennis tournaments, cameras, and carefully staged romantic moments, however, pretending becomes increasingly complicated when neither of them is quite sure which feelings are still fake.
My Thoughts
Apparently, all it takes is one misunderstanding to turn instant attraction into years of mutual dislike, gossip, and petty comments.
And they say romance is dead... sheeshh. :D
I had SO much fun with the setup of A Summer of Stars. Luna and Kieran initially meet years before the main story, and there's an immediate spark between them. Unfortunately, a misunderstanding happens almost immediately afterward, and instead of anything developing between them, they end up seriously disliking each other.
Fast-forward a few years, and neither of them is having a particularly wonderful time in the court of public opinion.
Luna is dealing with the aftermath of a very messy breakup/divorce, and somehow she has been cast as the villain. She's an incredibly private person and refuses to drag the truth about her relationship through the media simply to repair her reputation, which unfortunately allows her ex to continue looking like a saint.
We'll call him Saint Satan. Seems appropriate.
Kieran, meanwhile, needs audiences to buy him as the romantic lead of his upcoming movie. The problem is that his real-life dating history isn't exactly screaming everlasting love. He's never had a particularly serious relationship and has developed a reputation for moving rather quickly from one woman to the next.
Naturally, their PR teams decide the obvious solution is to make these two people who can't stand each other fake date.
What could possibly go wrong?
The banter between Luna and Kieran was easily one of my favorite parts of the book. I especially loved watching all those supposedly performative moments gradually become harder to define. There are plenty of “I'm only doing this because we're supposed to look like a couple” situations that slowly turn into “Wait... did you actually do that for me?” Neither of them seems entirely certain when the line between fake and real begins disappearing, and that worked so well for me.
There was also plenty happening beyond the romance. We get Luna's tennis career, Kieran's movie promotion, PR madness, family drama, international travel, and of course Saint Satan deciding that perhaps he wants Luna back after all.
Sir. Your opportunity has expired. Please move along. Shoo, shoo.
The tennis aspect may not be a perfectly technical representation of professional tennis, and the author acknowledges taking some liberties with it, but honestly, I didn't care. I'm not reading a romance novel for tournament regulations. :D I loved having a professional tennis player as the FMC because it felt different from the sports romances I usually encounter, and traveling for Luna's career gave the story a fun international backdrop.
More than anything, though, Luna and Kieran worked for me as a couple. The chemistry was there, the banter was fun and I loved watching years of assumptions slowly fall apart as they finally got to know each other rather than the versions created by gossip, misunderstandings, and their public personas.
Final Thoughts
A Summer of Stars was fun, refreshing, romantic, and ridiculously easy to enjoy. Fake dating, celebrity PR drama, tennis, great banter, an irritating ex, and two people desperately trying to convince themselves that everything they're feeling is purely for the cameras?
Yeah. I ate it up.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (4.5 rounded up)
ARC Disclaimer
I received an advance reader copy of A Summer of Stars in exchange for an honest review. Receiving this copy did not influence my opinion of the book.
Thank you to NetGalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for the opportunity to read and review this ARC. All opinions are my own.
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