Summer I Turned Pretty Recap: Series Diverts from the Book with Belly’s Paris Adventure

The Summer I Turned Pretty has completely moved away from the events of Jenny Han‘s book series to conclude Belly, Conrad, and Jeremiah’s love triangle in a fresh manner.

In the episode that aired on Wednesday, September 3, Jeremiah’s (Gavin Casalegno) choice not to marry Belly (Lola Tung) impacts everyone around them. While she rushes to catch a plane—without first talking to Conrad (Chris Briney)—Jeremiah spends the entire episode in a state of drunkenness or anger, lashing out at everyone.

Initially, Jeremiah directs his frustration at Laurel (Jackie Chung) and blames Conrad before finally addressing Belly (more on that later). The day after his cancelled wedding proves challenging for Jeremiah, culminating in a heartfelt moment with his father as he gears up for a new chapter without Belly.

On Belly’s side, she embarks on her Emily in Paris-inspired journey, facing more hurdles than she anticipated. She discovers she doesn’t have a spot in the study abroad program as she had initially believed, leading her to consider returning home. Just as she’s about to book a flight back to the U.S., her backpack gets stolen, prompting an unexpected side adventure through Paris.

Belly eventually tracks down her belongings at a rave, where she makes new friends, confronts the guy who stole her backpack, and realizes she must stay to find herself. Once again, The Summer I Turned Pretty has Us suspending disbelief, as Belly’s primary concern at the beginning of the episode was lacking a visa—a problem that remains unresolved even as she chooses to extend her stay in Europe for an indefinite time.

Meanwhile, back in the U.S., Steven (Sean Kaufman) and Taylor (Rain Spencer) rekindle their romance just before the series finale. Conrad also faces what may have been one of the most challenging days of his life, as nearly everyone holds him responsible for the wedding’s cancellation. Jenny Han depicted the eldest Fisher brother rushing around with clean clothes and red Gatorade for Jeremiah—only to be met with mockery and blame—leading him to rethink his choice to stay in Boston instead of heading back to California.

The Summer I Turned Pretty now has just two episodes remaining before the series concludes. While the initial two seasons (and most of the third) followed Han’s YA book series, the final episodes are taking a distinct departure from the source material. Fans of We’ll Always Have Summer Know will recall that the third book wrapped up with Belly not marrying Jeremiah, followed by an epilogue detailing her post-college life, which ultimately led to her marrying Conrad years later.

Both Han and the show’s cast have suggested that anything is possible as The Summer I Turned Pretty approaches its finale. The one consistent element viewers can expect is the captivating Taylor Swift music, with last Wednesday’s episode featuring “You’re on Your Own Kid” and “How Did It End?”

The Summer I Turned Pretty is available to stream on Prime Video every Wednesday.