Stay Sweet

By: Siobhan Vivian

Narrated by: Bailey Carr

Length: 10 hrs and 4 mins

Publisher's summary

From the author of The Last Boy and Girl in the World and The List comes a bold and sweet summer listen about first love, feminism, and ice cream.

Summer in Sand Lake isn't complete without a trip to Meade Creamery - the local ice cream stand founded in 1944 by Molly Meade, who started making ice cream to cheer up her lovesick girlfriends while all the boys were away at war. Since then, the stand has been owned and managed exclusively by local girls, who inevitably become the best of friends.

Seventeen-year-old Amelia and her best friend, Cate, have worked at the stand every summer for the past three years, and Amelia is "Head Girl" at the stand this summer. When Molly passes away before Amelia even has her first day in charge, Amelia isn't sure that the stand can go on. That is, until Molly's grandnephew Grady arrives and asks Amelia to stay on to help continue the business...but Grady's got some changes in mind.

©2018 Siobhan Vivian (P)2018 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Fantastic!

Beautiful story - the perfect summer read for young adults or not-so-young adults like me. Wonderfully narrated!

good story

this book was surprisingly bette than I expected. it's a good story and I love how it weaves from the 40s to present day. i loved Amelia and Molly and Grady but thrown off by how the narrator made kate so snarky.. I just don't think Amelia would be friends with someone who spoke to her with that tone 90% of the time. I think it could have been more subtle and more balanced with her genuinely being a decent person.

I love this book

this is my third time reading this book & I always forget how much I love Grady & would love to have him as my boyfriend lol.

Lite fun read/listen

I'm not into drama queens, but I am into ice cream. This was a triple decker cone 4 me. There were issues to be sorta out, but goes to show...communication is key & ice cream always smooths things over.

Lingers like the last bite of a sweet treat.

I love this book so much. The language, relationships, dynamics, female secret business powerhouses, and self discovery. I really liked watching the development of the characters in the same work environment, it showed how each character was unique, yet tied to the same beloved place. The juxtaposition with Amelia and Molly in their lives. The dynamic in the stand and the girls was perfect. Cate and the pin were the cherry on top for me.
I don't like how many modern YANA romances are tied up with a happy ending, I want a little more hopeful realism than sugary sweet glitter that curdles. This is a great example of how there are so many more important relationships than just a guy. There are so many ways to forge a path for yourself and still stay sweet.

Sweet Listen

This was such a sweet listen. I wanted something happy to put me in a good mood and this was it. The narration was good too.

Slow start

Worth the read but you have to get past the beginning. Takes place in two different time settings so it will jump back and forth with no warning. Wish I knew that in the beginning so I wasn’t so confused.

Good summer story

The story was fun, not as epic as could have been possible, but definitely worth a credit. Love the dynamics of the characters; it was a bit predictable, but overall a good book. The narrator isn't bad and has good vocal distinctions for the characters, but has a weird puff/sigh thing after sentences, especially sentences spoken by the two main female characters. It's a little annoying, but isn't constant and she is a good reader nonetheless. This book isn't earth-shattering, but it ended well and was a fun setting.

Absolutely delightful tale! 🍦

I don’t even know where to begin. This is my first introduction to this author but I was drawn to this title bc of Bailey Carr and my love for her other audiobooks. I was not disappointed! I don’t often come across audiobooks I would listen to again but this is my new summer tradition. I loved this story as a grown woman so I can only imagine how much teens would enjoy it. My one criticism is the present tense tone of the narration. That really annoyed me at first but that is just my personal preference and I got used to it fast. I think this book was the perfect length and even though there was a lot going on, it was very concise. The book focuses on Amelia’s relationships with three different ppl: Molly, Kate and Grady. So well done!

(spoilers) I was hooked immediately by the juxtaposition of Molly and Amelia. I also love flashbacks and history so this was perfect for me. I see that some readers did not like the twist at the end but I felt like there was enough groundwork lain for it that it wasn’t a random decision to mislead the reader.

I enjoyed Amelia and Kate’s friendship though I def spotted the flaws from the beginning. Kate got on my nerves a lot throughout the story but she is the perfect depiction of a beautiful, careless 17 year old girl. Ultimately, we know her intentions toward Amelia come from a good place even though she often expresses her feelings with aggressive, overreactive behavior. Again, the perfect portrait of a teen. Most writers who write about teens make the mistake of making them act and sound like 40 year olds.

I adored the romance between Amelia and Grady, their meet cute was so original and clever. I am not even a huge fan of icecream but this book got me engrossed in its process. And of course, the themes of this book are much more layered than just the ice cream itself. To Molly, it started as a coping skill and a way to cheer up her lonely friends but it ultimately came to symbolize her freedom. I think she would have been very happy that Grady gained his own freedom by selling off the land and that Amelia found confidence in continuing on her legacy in her own way. It is really just outstanding!

I loved every snippet from Molly’s diary and I love how Amelia kept that secret, just as Molly kept her own. I def pitied Molly throughout the book just like the rest of the town did. It was so beautiful and brave that she chose to use her wedding money to help the farm with her ice cream while her brothers were at war. It seemed like a good decision since we know she never gets to marry Wayne, but she figures that even if he does return safely, they will still get married without a big wedding.

I was shocked and on the edge of my seat when it was revealed that Grady did not have the secret recipes either. I loved the two of them working together to try to save the stand for different reasons. Grady’s late mother was an excellent addition and all the plots fit together and flowed into each other so perfectly. I was freaking out when they realized that she had them as a wedding gift from Molly and I was so proud of Amelia for replicating them. She truly went above and beyond as the head girl!

I was able to relate to Grady a lot as well. I know how it feels to be completely under someone’s financial control and how helpless that can seem. It was a shame he could not improve his relationship with his father in the end but I guess that was the point. His only option was to break free and he did so with Molly’s help. The father likely did not care about the stand bc of it’s lackluster business performance, but also bc it reminded him too much of his first wife. Like Kate, his feelings are valid but his behavior is not.

I was ecstatic when they discovered the secret ingredient to the home sweet home flavor. It was amazing how s

This book has everything! Romance, friendship, humor, mystery and how to cope when life goes awry. It is def not just about ice cream!

Best friend is awful

Story overall was cute. A fun summer read. But the romance was meh and the best friend was the absolute worst I think I’ve ever read. Amelia was too accommodating, always thinking she’s done wrong when she did nothing but try to fix things and save what she truly loved - the stand.

End was okay. Too long overall, considering not a lot happens.