Burnout Summer by Jenna Ramirez
My thoughts on Burnout Summer by Jenna Ramirez, a quarter life crisis romance set at the beach. New for 2026!
Burnout Summer by Jenna Ramirez
In my opinion, it’s always the season to read books set at the beach!
Burnout Summer is a new adult romance about Camilla (“Cam” or “Millie” depending on which of her friends are calling her…)
This book dealt with some quarter life crisis issues that readers in their twenties will find very relatable!
In college, Cam thought she had it all figured out.
She had a tight friend group, a great boyfriend, and plans for a fabulous career. But slowly it fell apart: she and her boyfriend Cory broke up, her friend group scattered after college, and she lost her job.
Forlorn and downtrodden, Cam takes her friend Danny up on his offer to stay in his spare room in Elswick, Rhode Island.
What the book does after that is a bit genius. Being at the beach always brings out all my introspection, and the same thing happens to Cam: she falls deeper into her crisis.
Her ex is engaged and Danny, the friend group “burnout” who bummed around traveling after graduation instead of getting a corporate job, now seems to have it all together. He’s managing Beau’s, a restaurant he inherited when his uncle died.
Part of Cam’s character journey is figuring out her next steps, and I guess part of that journey is getting un-brainwashed from the corporate industrial complex. The book spends quite a bit of time on Cam’s huge student loan debt, which IS an issue that many young Millennials can relate to.
The romance was sweet but also pretty spicy, including a “self-love” scene turned comic and some racy bedroom scenes.
Burnout Summer had:
- A quarter life crisis theme
- A charming small town Rhode Island setting
- An “adulting sucks” theme that many Millennial and Gen Z readers will really relate to!
- Spicy open door romance
- Publication date: May 12 2026 by St Martins Books. Thanks so much to them for the advance review copy.
This book is Perfect For:
- Younger romance readers (and older readers who want some of the Zellennial perspective)
- Readers who like romance books with an issue driven feel.
My Master Post on New Summer Romance Books for 2026 has all the top summer romance books you need to know about. Be sure to check it out and download my ultimate Summer Romance Reading Guide!
I also have two summer quizzes for you to take, my Find Your Perfect Summer Trope Quiz and my Choose Your Summer Romance Adventure Quiz. Take them both and get book recommendations based on your answers!
- My Master Summer Romance 2026 Post – all the summer books in one place!
- My Find Your Summer Adventure quiz!
- Grab My Summer Romance Reading Guide with a checklist of ALL the summer romances I could find, plus a bingo card, a coloring reading tracker and more!
