Today we are excited to share a guest post from author Jessica M. Felleman (LAST KISS OF SUMMER).
Read on for more about the author, the book, and what she has to say!
Meet the Author: Jessica M. Felleman
Jessica M. Felleman is a writer and literary agent from Massachusetts. She received her BA in English from Syracuse University and her MFA in Writing from CalArts. She lives on Cape Cod with her cranky tabby cat and can often be found at the beach looking for rocks. Last Kiss of Summer is her debut novel.
About the Book: LAST KISS OF SUMMER
A beautiful, heartbreaking love story about two teens who find their way back to each other through a second chance romance.
When Sera Watkins and her family arrive at their summer house on Cape Cod, she has one goal in mind: protect her heart from the boy who broke it, her next-door neighbor, Luke Tisdale. The problem is, Luke still has a piece of her heart—literally. When Sera received a new heart as a baby, the healthy valves of her old heart were given to Luke. Forever bonded, Luke and Sera grew up together spending sun-soaked days swimming at their secret beach and painting at art camp.
Then, two summers ago, their friendship almost turned into something more. Key word: almost. Because one fateful night, everything changed. Sera’s health took a turn for the worse. A family secret sent Luke spiraling. And they weren’t there for each other when it mattered the most.
Now Sera is ready for a fresh start, which means no more pining over the boy next door. But Luke has grown up a lot since she last saw him, and the chemistry she felt two summers ago? It’s still there. Sera isn’t sure she’s brave enough to risk it all again, but when she gets some difficult news, she realizes there’s no time to waste. Maybe it’s finally Luke and Sera’s moment, their chance to enjoy the sweet kiss of summer together—before it’s too late.
~ Guest Post ~
The first time I remember reading a book that made me cry, was reading Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls around when I was ten or eleven. I come from a family of easy criers; I tear up at sports interviews, emotional commercials, and the end of Lindsey Lohan’s The Parent Trap (yes, every time). But I’m not great at letting myself cry over the bigger, harder things, so the gut-wrenching ugly tears I cried over Where the Red Fern Grows felt new. At the time, I hadn’t experienced a loss in my life that matched what I felt reading about Billy and his dogs, but when I did, I was so grateful to have the memory of that book in my mind to remind me that grief isn’t the end all be all. I felt totally wrecked by that book, but I was still okay after. Since then, I’ve read plenty more books that have me emptying my tear ducts (Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson and The Fault in Our Stars by John Green stand out – as does Extremely Loud and Incredible Close by Jonathan Safran Foer, which I read my junior year of college on a bus within the first days of my study abroad program, and thus was introduced to my classmates as “that girl weeping on the bus”). After years of reading stories that make me sob, I’ve noticed something that happens after. Yes, I feel devastated, but I also always feel renewed. It’s like I’ve fought through the tears and somehow came out strengthened. And so, I’ve come around to the belief that crying is good for you actually and there’s nothing like a good book to help you get there.
This balance of heartbreaking and hopeful is what I was aiming for when I was writing LAST KISS OF SUMMER. I knew where the story was going, I knew my characters Sera and Luke would be facing tough health situations, frustrating miscommunications, and grief, but I also knew how they managed to live through those things was the bigger part of the story. They weren’t just the bad or difficult things in their lives, none of us are, even if in the moment, it might feel like it. So as I wrote, I let Sera and Luke be themselves, and in doing so, they showed me the joy in their own lives despite any heartbreak.
Sera has her love of painting, her students, her best friend Maddy and a family that, though maybe a little overprotective, still makes her laugh. Luke in turn has his wild little brothers, baseball and his teammates, and his love for graphic design and his hometown. And of course, they have each other. They are that person who understands them better than anyone else despite any rift between them. They are each other’s fiercest supporter, able to call each other out and push each other to pursue their biggest dreams even if – especially if – those dreams might defy the hand they’ve been dealt by the universe. Writing their story often had me in tears one minute and swooning the next, and I wouldn’t have had it any other way.
I want to read and write stories that wring out people’s hearts so there’s space for joy. I hope that the next time you read something that has you holding back tears, you let the tears be free. I swear, you’ll feel better afterwards. – Jess
Title: LAST KISS OF SUMMER
Author: Jessica M. Felleman
Release Date: April 28, 2026
Publisher: Putnam
Genre: Contemporary Young Adult
Age Range: 16+
