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The Summer I Turned Pretty wrapped up its third season with a finale that went in another direction compared to Jenny Han’s last book in the trilogy, We’ll Always Have Summer. Belly and Conrad still end up together, but the way the show got there feels different, with new places added in and side characters getting more space to finish their own stories.
That gap between the book and the series of The Summer I Turned Pretty quickly turned into one of the main talking points once the episode aired. For those who had already read the ending, the screen version felt like walking a different path. And for people who only knew the show, the story closed with a few extra turns and a different spotlight. The destination was the same couple, but the road getting there looked and felt distinct.
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The Summer I Turned Pretty in the book
In the novel, Belly and Conrad are apart for a period and reconnect through letters. The narrative moves forward to Belly’s graduation, when they meet again. The epilogue shows their wedding and the symbolic image of them entering the ocean together after the ceremony. The book concludes with this moment as the closure of the story.
What the show added
The television version introduced Belly’s time in Paris, which is not part of the books. It is there that Conrad arrives unexpectedly at her door. From that moment, the finale shows a dinner with her new friends, conversations about letters, memories of painful events, and scenes that revisit their shared history.
The choice changes the path to reconciliation. Belly and Conrad dance by the Seine, talk about the past, and acknowledge what each one carried. Later, after a conflict, Conrad leaves her apartment, and Belly runs through the station to find him on a train to Brussels. The sequence, marked by the infinity necklace, takes the place of the wedding scene from the book as the turning point of their reunion.
How the finale closed
The episode does not include the wedding ceremony. Instead, after the train station scene, the ending shows Belly and Conrad together at Cousins Beach. This changed the visual conclusion of the story while still confirming that the couple is united. The closing images also include photographs of them spending Christmas in Paris, suggesting the continuation of their relationship after the reunion.
Book and adaptation compared
The differences can be described directly:
In the book, the reunion takes place after college. In the series, it happens earlier in Paris.
In the book, the epilogue brings the wedding and the ocean scene. In the series, the final image is their return to the Cousins Beach House without a ceremony.
Paris is absent from the novel, while it becomes central in the show.
Supporting characters have more defined arcs in the series than in the book.
Supporting characters
Jeremiah has an expanded role in the television version. After appearing in a video posted by Taylor, he starts cooking for influencers and organizes a dinner that earns positive reactions, including from his father.
Steven and Taylor also receive a more detailed resolution. They secure funding for their game project and decide to move to San Francisco. The development creates a moment of tension when Taylor learns the news in an unexpected way, but they resolve the situation with a conversation that confirms their decision to stay together.
The adults also have their conclusions. Adam reveals that Kayleigh has left him, and Laurel and John are no longer together. These endings run in parallel with Belly and Conrad’s storyline.
Timeline
After three seasons, The Summer I Turned Pretty came to a close on TV. The last chapter, called At Last, arrived in September 2025 and made clear how far it drifted from the book’s ending. Jenny Han had wrapped up the trilogy long ago with We’ll Always Have Summer, but the series decided to take another road, reshaping the way Belly and Conrad found their way back to each other.
Final notes
The contrast between the two versions is clear. The book closes with marriage and the ocean. The series shows Paris, the train station, and a return to Cousins Beach. Both endings confirm the same couple, but the journey and the images that remain are different.
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