Why every millennial woman you know is suddenly watching The Summer I Turned Pretty

It’s worth pointing out, too, that Han’s books were first published in 2009, 2010 and 2011—so, when a lot of millennials were teenagers. “It reminds me of being that age and all of the comfort teenage shows and rom-coms I loved,” adds Holly. “With the current state of the world, maybe a lot of us want to feel like we’re 16 again.”

Its mammoth success could also be partly attributed to the fact that episodes are released weekly rather than all at once—a rare but clever tactic that both builds anticipation and harks back to how shows operated when we were younger. “Back then, we had to wait weeks to find out what was going to happen in our favourite programmes,” says Jenna, 40. “And in the meantime, we’re having conversations with people, seeing reactions online and experiencing delayed gratification rather than binging in a day. Watching new episodes becomes an occasion.”

Then there’s the soundtrack, which has thus far featured no less than 20 Taylor Swift songs across the three seasons, not to mention tracks by Billie Eilish, Olivia Rodrigo, Phoebe Bridgers and Gracie Abrams. All of this ensures that sonically, the series taps into a wider sad girl musical universe that is characterised by the same themes and feelings as the show: longing, heartache and seductive melancholia. Fans are even speculating that Swift may drop the first single from her upcoming album, The Life of a Showgirl, in the series finale—which seems deranged, but weirder things have happened.

And, finally, let’s revisit Conrad. Sweet, gentle and emotionally engaged Conrad. A man so artfully crafted through the female lens that part of the addictive agony of watching The Summer I Turned Pretty is knowing that he does not exist while hoping that he might. His aesthetic—all loose collared shirts, dad jeans and gym trainers—is also very ’90s romcom-coded and directly opposes that of his brother’s, which is more polo shirts and cargo pants, giving an “I spend my weekends drinking whiskey and playing golf with the lads” kind of vibe. “The singletons among our generation are so fed up with men in the real world at this point,” says Holly, “but boy does Jenny Han know how to write a man we all want.”