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Belly Conklin’s story continues in The Summer I Turned Pretty season 3 as she navigates her relationships with Conrad and Jeremiah Fisher. Following Jeremiah’s spring break infidelity, she faces an engagement while managing lingering feelings for Conrad.
The series also advances her academic timeline, showing her finishing her junior year at Finch, alongside the ongoing dynamics between Steven Conklin and Taylor Jewel.
Season 3 dedicates three episodes to Belly’s time in Paris, expanding on the brief references in the novels. After giving up her study abroad placement, she travels to France, takes online courses, works part-time, and forms new friendships.
The adaptation portrays her independent experiences abroad as a key period in her personal growth and transition to adulthood. Here is a list of the 10 major changes The Summer I Turned Pretty season 3 makes to Jenny Han’s book.
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Disclaimer: The following list is ranked in no particular order, and the opinions expressed belong solely to the author.
10 major changes The Summer I Turned Pretty season 3 makes to Jenny Han’s book
1) Tribute to Peter Kavinsky and Lara Jean Covey
Jenny Han’s To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before, the inaugural installment of her celebrated trilogy and later adapted for Netflix, was released three years after We’ll Always Have Summer, yet it subtly acknowledged its predecessor through some Easter eggs.
Among these, Belly’s dorm room featured a photograph of herself and Jeremiah costumed as Peter Kavinsky and Lara Jean Covey. Additionally, the novel’s sequel, P.S. I Still Love You, appeared as a playful nod within a crossword puzzle that Conrad Fisher (Chris Briney) completed with Belly during the Christmas season.
2) Steven’s accident sparks Belly and Jeremiah’s engagement
In the novel, Belly agrees to marry Jeremiah following his spring break infidelity, in a relationship marked by codependency. Her choice also convinces her that she does not love Conrad, a theme shown in the television adaptation.
In the series, Jeremiah’s infidelity prompts the proposal, while Steven’s car accident reminds Belly of life’s brevity, affecting her decisions and relationships.
At the same time, accepting Jeremiah’s proposal shows her ongoing effort to suppress lingering feelings for Conrad. This struggle with her emotions and actions points to a central theme from the novels and illustrates how Belly handles love and personal growth.
3) The evolution of Steven and Taylor’s relationship
While the books do not explore the relationship between Taylor Jewel and Steven Conklin, the series develops their tumultuous romance as a secondary storyline. Despite dating others, the two maintain a clandestine affair since their reunion in Manhattan over spring break, the same week Jeremiah was unfaithful to Belly.
During a pivotal moment, Steven reveals that he ended his relationship with Mia to try to rekindle his romance with Taylor. Shortly after, he is involved in a severe U-turn collision, resulting in a medically induced coma. He eventually fully recovers, but their relationship remains strained at this stage of the season.
4) Conrad’s journey toward self-reflection
Despite Taylor dating frat member Davis and Steven seeing Mia, the two had a clandestine affair since their reunion in Manhattan over spring break, the same week Jeremiah was unfaithful to Belly.
By season 3, the Stanford University student is depicted consulting with a therapist prior to his return to Cousins Beach for a dedication held in Susannah’s honor.
During the session, Conrad and his doctor discuss his apprehensions about attending the event, though the conversation does not touch on his romantic entanglements. His presence at the dedication, nonetheless, marks a significant step forward.
5) Laurel and John revisit their complicated romance
In the novel, Belly’s parents, Laurel and John, have a strictly coparenting relationship.
In the television adaptation, their dynamic is more complicated in season three, as a spontaneous sexual encounter following a literary conference strains their relationship. Their actions are further affected by guilt after missing Belly’s urgent calls following Steven’s car accident.
Over the season, Laurel and John face several disagreements, including John’s absence from Susannah’s garden memorial, before gradually spending more time together. Their evolving connection is shown when Belly misses Thanksgiving and learns via FaceTime that her parents are celebrating the holiday together.
6) Belly realizes Conrad’s role in her family matters
In the novel, Taylor reveals that Conrad played a key role in persuading Laurel to attend Belly’s wedding celebrations. The television series, however, shows Belly independently recognizing Conrad’s involvement, which heightens her emotional turmoil during the dance floor scenes.
At her bachelorette party, after consuming an edible, she experiences a flood of memories, replaying intimate moments between herself and Conrad while the song We Can’t Be Friends plays, showing her conflicted feelings.
7) Belly’s transformative year in Paris
In the TV adaptation of The Summer I Turned Pretty, Belly misses the opportunity to study abroad in Paris because of Jeremiah. After their wedding is canceled, she spends a year in France, taking online courses, forming new friendships, and having a brief romance with a man named Benito.
While the novels only briefly reference her time abroad in Spain, the series devotes three episodes to her experiences in France. Jenny Han noted that expanding this storyline was important for Belly’s development, emphasizing that living independently in a foreign city is a crucial part of her growth.
8) Lucinda’s struggling business
In the novels, Taylor’s mother, Lucinda, receives minimal attention. The series, however, depicts her financial struggles as a key factor affecting Taylor and Steven’s intermittent relationship. After contacting Belly’s older brother to help reunite with Taylor, he discovered her hair salon was facing serious losses.
Although Taylor had ended her relationship with Steven and declined his help, she worked with her mother to reduce expenses and manage the salon’s debt. This storyline also explains her reluctance to rely on others, including Steven, for emotional or practical support.
9) Adam Fisher’s secretary intervenes in wedding plans
The series introduces a controversial subplot in which Kayleigh serves as Adam Fisher’s secretary while simultaneously engaging in an affair with him during Susannah’s chemotherapy treatment.
In contrast, the novels depict Jeremiah and Conrad’s father with a secretary, Denise Colletti, who is responsible for managing wedding arrangements; their relationship remains entirely professional.
10) Belly’s Paris study abroad plans upended
In the series The Summer I Turned Pretty, Belly discovers that she has been removed from the waitlist for a study abroad program in Paris the following semester, preventing her from sharing a room with Anika that fall, prior to Jeremiah’s proposal.
In contrast, Belly adjusts her boarding plans in the novel due to her unexpected engagement. Anika responds with understanding, assuring her in a text message that she is not upset and will figure something out.
Interested viewers can watch all three seasons of The Summer I Turned Pretty on Amazon Prime Video.
