'Every Year After': Carley Fortune's 'Every Summer After' Brings Barry's Bay to Life on Amazon Prime Video

On June 10th, we said goodbye to the off-campus for the summer and took a break at Barry’s Bay, in Canada. Amazon Prime Video’s adaptation of Carley Fortune’s debut novel, Every Summer After, premiered with 8 episodes, hinting that there was potential for more.

I was excited to see Barry’s Bay come to life on my screen. I fell in love with Carley Fortune and her debut novel “Every Summer After” when I found it 4 summers ago. I fell in love with Barry’s Bay, the way Fortune could craft a world so distant and yet let you feel like a part of it, and the friendship of Persephone Fraser, Sam, and Charlie Florek.

I had felt instantly drawn to it as someone who loved writing like Percy and grew up most of my life at the water like Charlie and Sam had. So, when I saw that Amazon Prime would pick it up and turn it into a series, I was smiling brightly. What could be better than seeing one of your favorite books, the story, and its characters come to life? I knew that my summer was saved.

Keep in mind that I’ll review this series with the knowledge I have from her debut novel and her fourth book, “One Golden Summer,” which tells the story of Charlie Florek.

Do not read this if:

• You don’t want any spoilers from the series

• If you haven’t watched it yet and don’t want to know anything about the book points I’ll make.

If you have read the books and watched the series, or don’t care to read any spoilers, then go ahead and read my take on it.

First Impressions

First of all, let’s talk about how precious Every Year After (the show) is.

It shows you the lake and the cottages. The longing. Percy, Sam, Charlie, and Sue. It brings you close to the Tavern and has you craving pierogi the second they are mentioned. The yellow boat, ‘the banana boat,’ takes the show as soon as it is displayed and makes you smile. The friendship bracelets and the promise on them are there. The three updates ritual is there as well. The flashbacks show younger versions of Percy, Sam, and Charlie, how they met, and the six summers after.

And the music definitely played a part, from the whimsical to the heart-wrenching and emotional. It has everything you need and want from Ariana Grande, Billie Eilish, Lana Del Rey, Maggie Rogers, Noah Kahan, Sombr, Echosmith, Harry Styles’ "Fine Line", Mumford & Sons, Phoebe Bridgers, Neon Trees, and Dolly Parton. The lyrics said what the characters wouldn’t say or couldn’t say. There is longing, pain, tension, and heartbreak. It takes you on a rollercoaster ride of emotions and holds with a drastic stop that has you catching your breath at the series finale. The series made sure not to give you a break. The characters are genuinely amazing. Matt Cornett, Sadie Soverall, and Michael Bradway were incredible in their roles of Sam, Percy, and Charlie. The series gives all of that.

Just like the book does.

BUT they do so in very different ways. I was so confused the second I hit play that I reached for my phone app to take notes and took my copy of the book to look it up afterward, because I couldn’t remember reading some of the moments in the book as they were displayed on my screen.

And I did my research on it.

ㅤ

The Changes

The first thing that struck me was that Percy had no bangs. It might be a small detail for some people, but it played such a crucial role in the book that it felt weird not to include it. (Or the fact that Sam has sandy hair in the book and not brown hair.)

The second thing came not long after, when Percy had a panic attack after that call from Charlie letting her know that Sue had passed away. A panic attack that was not in the book, as she didn’t have a panic attack since she saw Jennifer, her therapist, and had her ways to cope with her breathing. The only three panic attacks in the book were after she and Charlie had sex, when she overheard Sam, Jordie, and Finn talk about her and Sam at the tavern, with Charlie helping her, and the one after talking to Sam and telling him what she had done all these years back with his brother Charlie.

The role of Chantal was both heartwarming, as she is Percy’s best friend, but also overly displaced. In the book, she only appears by name when the girls text or call each other; otherwise, she is never part of the broader story.

In the book, the story and plot revolve mainly around the trio, with no one else.

In the series, she plays a major role, accompanying Percy to Barry’s Bay and getting her own storyline. Which, for one, is really great as she is a wonderful character, but it takes away the nervousness and somewhat anxious mood from the book when Percy travels alone to Barry’s Bay shortly before the funeral.

Another character who got a massive new storyline and place in the world of Barry’s Bay is Delilah. Percy’s friend during her teenage years until their fallout, when she named her after a misunderstanding and never spoke to her again, as described in the book. In the series, she lives in Barry’s Bay and walks around as if she owns said place. She seemed cold and, to some extent, became the mean girl, even though that was not who Delilah was in the book at all. Her added story arc with Charlie and their hookups were also new, as they were never mentioned in the books. In the book, she had fancied him growing up until meeting her boyfriend Patel, whom she had dated on and off throughout the novel.

Jordie, Sam’s best friend, also received his own story arc. And a bigger part in it. He is now the motel owner and one of the main characters. The weird thing that made me cringe while watching it was when Percy met Jordie at the party a few summers ago, and he said he knew about her. Excitedly, she glanced up at Sam, smiling that he had talked about her until Jordie claimed that she was famous for eating a huge amount of pierogi. Her smile fell instantly. Sam’s eyes jumped around like ping pong balls from Jordie to Percy, but other than that, nothing was said. And that was not it.

In the book, Percy gets to know Sam’s friends after Christmas in the Florek’s basement while they play a video game. “You’re bracelet girl!” Jordie had exclaimed then. A scene that made me smile.

It was nice to have him in the show and to have him as Sam’s closest confidant. However, I do think it messed with the closeness of Sam’s and Charlie’s relationship a bit.

I love these characters, but some of their storylines detracted from the real connection between Percy, Sam, and Charlie, as they got less screen time and therefore less time to shine in their own wonderful ways. But the storylines of their friends added tension, a new dynamic to the series, and excitement for what’s to come in the following seasons.

A person in this series was definitely missing, and it was Julien. In the book, he played a huge part in the Tavern and the trio growing up, and he helped Sue handle the Tavern throughout. Having him not in the series at all felt weird. I would have loved to see him with the Florek’s brothers, in flashbacks, at events, and with Sue.

I missed the three kids who lived in Percy’s cottage now. It would have given such a nostalgic feeling when the trio would watch them play around like they used to, as described in the book. It would have added such a sweet note.

ㅤㅤ

Changing of the Plot and Storyline

Those might still be minor details that changed according to the book, but they were crucial points that made it the book I loved. However, there were also major changes to the plot that don’t have anything to do with the book:

Mentioning the Tavern. The series veered from the book, adding more drama, anxiety, and pain than was necessary.

Suddenly, there were talks about Sue’s will, the Tavern being rightfully Percy’s, her ultimately taking over the Tavern with Delilah, and Sam and Charlie basically ‘hating’ on Percy, which twisted the entire dynamic of the trio. I was confused about why Sam was so hot and cold with Percy, and I put it down to the loss he experienced and the knowing-off of Percy and Charlie’s past all those years back. BUT turns out Sam did not know that Charlie and Percy had sex with each other all these years back. It was a tough pill to swallow when they first appeared on screen, and you could feel the anxious and angered tension between them all somehow. Sam, who had broken up with Percy in the series, came home early. Percy ghosted him after all these years, while she grappled with all her emotions.

In the book, Sam emails Percy, saying he needs space and that he can only talk to her once a week so he can focus on his future.

 

The Little Details That Matter

In the book, the trip to Barry’s Bay happened quickly, and she arrived shortly before the funeral, unlike in the show, which had her arriving a week before. Time was very different.

No, freckles talk. At all. In the book, they were frequently discussed.

Percy runs into Sam on multiple occasions before the Tavern moment and dodges him every second. While in the book, she spends the entire day with him. From the Tavern, "You came home"- moment, to an ice cream date, to drinks at the Tavern, to meeting his girlfriend, Taylor.

Taylor is a lawyer and not a doctor. They had met at a bar rather than during their studies, as in the books.

Sam broke up with Taylor at the end of a day he had spent with Percy, after they dropped her off at the motel.

There was a ring in both the book and the series. However, in the series, Sam plans to propose to Taylor, whereas in the book, he proposed to Percy years ago.

Young Charlie, who didn’t kiss Young Percy at the Truth or Dare, only hit at it in the series.

Sam, who told Percy about applying for the internship, but didn’t do it in the books.

Percy was running in Converse, and Sam was pointing out her bad decision about shoes as he sent her what to wear for the day, along with a carefully crafted running plan, while Book Percy did buy new Nikes to run with him.

In the book, Charlie actually suggested to Percy that she take up swimming, since she liked it more than running. Ultimately, asking her if he should teach her, as she wanted to make it through to the other side.

In the series, Percy comes up with the idea on the dock, and Sam tells her that he will train her. In the book, he deals with anxiety and panic and had nightmares a week before worrying she could drown, so he made sure to get stronger himself to be able to help her out. When they are 30, Percy attempts to swim across the lake without training and gets a cramp in her foot and toe. Doctor Sam is at her side, taking care of her.

Percy makes Sam jealous at the campfire by kissing the blonde guy who gave her the new beer, which was not part of the book. And the dropping of guys kissing and hooking up all the time was weird as, book Percy had only Sebastian, who had dumped her when the book begins, Charlie, who had taken her first kiss, Deliliah’s Cousin Mason, who had been her "not-boyfriend - boyfriend" over the summers, Sam, the Charlie moment, and ultimately Sam again.

In the book, Sam knew about Mason from the beginning.

Percy did drive to Barry’s Bay even on weekends as soon as she got her driver’s license. In the series, she didn’t, as she lived in Seattle and would have traveled from country to country.

The hookup in the truck happens before the funeral in the book and in the series’s last episode.

The sleeping over at Sam’s took place after the thunderstorm became too much for Percy, as she had watched ‘The Blair Witch Project’ on her own. Sam told Charlie the next day that he had never had Percy over like this (as more than a best friend), since she was Percy. In the book, she slept at his as well, but they had their first kiss that night, too. Sue wakes Sam the next day and gives them the talk when seeing them enter the kitchen.

Percy calls her dad to talk about her problems, which never happened in the book. This, however, was good for Series Percy to get back into writing and be inspired.

In the series, she lives in Seattle, and not in Toronto. She works as an obituary writer and helps Sam write his funeral speech. And not as an editor at Shelter Magazine.

In the book, Percy’s parents are putting the cottage up for sale because they need money for renovations to their house in Toronto, and not because Percy harmed herself after Sam broke up with her and then hooked up with Charlie.

The yellow boat was introduced very late. Even though it is very early in the books.

Percy and Charlie are remodeling the yellow boat over the summer as a means of taking Percy’s mind off Sam, as he is away for his internship. In the book, Charlie cheered Percy up by getting her back into swimming, talking about her writing, going to the Tavern, and ultimately taking her out to see an open-air cinema screening of an old horror movie. These moments proved the close, tight friendship Charlie and Percy had and their understanding of each other. They had never been mean to each other, and if they had, they would have apologized instantly.

The pivotal changes made their dynamic feel off at times. The flashbacks had their moments and chemistry, but their adult versions not so much …

It hurt the core and close relationships, and they suffered a bit as a result in the series. Charlie and Sam's relationship suffered. And the relationship between Charlie and Percy suffered, as they have always been friends and close in the book.

Also, Delilah states in the series that she has never swum in the lake, despite being there over the summers growing up. In the book, she has been swimming in the lake multiple times, and has even jumped off cliffs with Charlie more than once.  

 

The Heart of the Series

And even after everything I have just pointed out and depicted, I still think that Every Year After is incredible and so precious. I think that is the strange thing about adaptations. The stories we love become places we belong to, and when they change, we notice every missing detail. We grieve what was left behind, even as we fall in love with what was created.

It has the core and heart of the book and goes beyond it. I, however, would not describe it as a book adaptation, but rather as inspired by the book.

I love how Percy helps at the Tavern and takes over. She mentions that Sue secretly never liked eating pierogi because she had too many as a kid, but did make them for everyone else, and ultimately made breakfast food for the wake, since it was Sue's favorite to eat at any time of day.

The sweet moments between Percy and Sue in flashbacks were so pure, sweet, and everything needed. It felt as if Sue was there, even though she obviously wasn’t. It gave the story warmth and showed the audience what kind of woman and mother Sue was, without overdoing it. It was easy to fall in love with her. It was easy to see why she was such an integral part of Barry’s Bay.

The light, the music, and the camera angles were absolutely incredible. It completed the series storyline so well.

I loved the number of flashbacks that gave insights into their earlier meetings and summers, but I did have trouble, towards the end, distinguishing between flashbacks and the present.

I loved seeing Percy dance at the wake with none other than author Carley Fortune herself. It made the moment even more special and emotional. At first, I thought I had imagined it, so I rewound the scene and smiled when I realized it was real. How amazing must it feel to dance with a character you once created in your own mind? It must have been a true full-circle moment, especially since Percy was also the protagonist of her debut novel.

I love that Percy finds her old writings, keeps writing, publishes them, and ends up with a book. I loved seeing Sam in the hospital, reading Percy’s words, smiling like the proud best friend and number-one reader of her writing that he is.

I loved how Percy’s and Sam’s first interaction entailed the iconic “You came home.” And ultimately twisted at the end, with Sam entering Percy’s Tavern, the roles switched.

“Percy?”

Percy turned around and smiled at Sam. “You came home.”

"Fine Line" by Harry Styles made this moment even more special and brought it full circle.

I loved the ‘One Golden Summer’ crumbs. The photography of the yellow boat with Percy, Sam, and Charlie in his boss’s office? That moment, that scene, meant everything, as it meant Alice Everly was close to them in a nearby cottage while taking this photograph of the three friends, which had started her photography career. However, for all the ‘One Golden Summer’ readers, you know that moment could turn dark and deep in an instant. As soon as I saw the light dim, I knew it was happening.

Gone is the yellow lightning, the upbeat and loving feelings of Percy and Sam’s reunion. The song turns melancholy and overwhelming. It’s quiet but persistent as Charlie walks out of his office and takes a look at the photography in his boss’s office again. Moments pass; his vision blurs. Faint water sounds and laughter can be heard from the day captured in the photograph. Past feelings, thoughts, and mistakes haunted him, overwhelming him, and then a clutch to the arm. The music gets daunting, memories are pressing further, a shaky inhale of breath, one touch to the collar of his shirt, then the fatal grip to his heart, and he sinks to the floor. And to top it all?

Episode 8 ends, and with it the first season of Every Year After. I had goosebumps. This moment had me at the edge of my seat.

Michael Bradway devoured the role of Charlie Florek.

I loved the way Charlie’s caring and supportive side showed through despite everything. Easily smiling. It reminded me so much of this quote from the book:

His eyes still dance like spring leaves in the sunlight, and he wears his smile easily, but he’s lost the lightness he had when we were younger. He seems sad and maybe a bit on edge, which I guess makes sense given the circumstances. (p.172)

I liked the longing, the tension, the YEARNING, and how Matt Cornett and Sadie Soverall devoured Percy and Sam. It was a back-and-forth- a tug of war between love and confusion. I love how Sadie gave Percy her wit and jokes. The overthinking and internal battles were at their peak.

Also, Sam destroying the bench he and Percy used to sit on because it had Charlie's name carved into its wood? And only destroying it where his name was displayed? I knew it must have meant something deeper. As someone who believes that nothing an author or a showrunner mentions or shows is just there, I feel like that was a subtle hint at the show’s cliffhanger and, ultimately, the heart of his own storyline.

Many small details hinted at it. The distance he had from the others, the caring and soft self he had for Sam, and the troubling mind he obviously had after holding that secret for YEARS to himself. His character and the pain he underwent pulled at my heartstrings.

BUT he was not book Charlie. Book Charlie confided in Sam instantly. Book Charlie was playful and flirty, but he was the best brother to Sam and a really good friend to Percy.

ㅤ 

Final Thoughts and Looking Toward Season Two

I can understand both sides. Some people who have read the book and seen the show said they liked the book more and that the show didn’t do it justice. People who didn’t like the book but liked the show, and people who liked the show and now want to read the book. I get it all.

I, for myself, am happy I read the book before I watched the series. Despite every missing piece I said was missing, the book gave me insights into the characters who had been with me for so long and weren’t mentioned in the 8 episodes. It helped me understand Sam and Percy and why they did what they did when it mattered. It gave me insights into Sam’s turmoil, his thoughts and feelings, Sue’s words nagging in the back of his head, taking Percy for granted, and ultimately, Sam reading Percy’s stories at the end gave me the Sam I have known. The Sam who had always rooted for his best friend and was there for her despite everything.

As the second season is coming and not everything from the book has been discussed yet, I’m interested to see where it leads us. Because one thing I know is, as Alice Everly’s grandma always said,

[...] Good things happen at the lake.

One thing is sure, I’ll be at the lake every summer after this.

GET A GLIMPSE INTO THE SERIES HERE: