When they were just shy of eighteen years old, Eva Mercy and Shane Hall spent one intense and life-altering week together. Fifteen years later, Eva is a best-selling erotica writer living in Brooklyn with her pre-teen daughter. Shane is the reclusive darling of the literary circuit, whose award-winning books are beloved by all. They have not spoken once in all those years. But Shane unexpectedly shows up at a panel on Black literature where Eva is a panelist, and the two cannot deny that their connection still remains. Over the next week they try to figure out if who they are as adults still work together as well as who they were as kids, and whether they can resolve the issues that drove them apart in the first place.
I have mixed feelings about Seven Days in June. I understand why so many people love it – it’s intense, sexy, moving, and often very funny. I was definitely drawn in by the characters and the story and invested in their happily-ever-after. But the book also had some issues, in my opinion. Eva’s mom was almost cartoonishly awful, and yet never actually faces any consequences for her actions. Eva and Shane’s original relationship didn’t seem like a whirlwind romance, but rather a bender that spawned an intense co-dependence and trauma bond. Some of the character development felt very rushed, especially with Shane’s mentee back in Concord. And Eva and Shane didn’t really resolve their issues or their trauma by the end, despite vowing that’s what they both needed to do. I don’t know. It was an enjoyable read, and very sexy, and I do get why people rate it so highly. I ended it feeling pretty frustrated with the both of them, even while I wanted them to end up together. Maybe that’s just me.