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Ever since The Summer I Turned Pretty dropped on Prime Video and became the most popular teen drama everywhere, it has been going on for three seasons. A year later, Netflix retaliated with their own version of a teen love triangle romantic drama called My Life with the Walter Boys, and as far as coming-of-age shows go, the two have more in common than one could have thought.
Although the premise of both shows is different. One drops a city girl into the chaos of a Colorado ranch, while the other unspools lazy summers on the East Coast. Dig a little deeper, and you'll find that both series thrive on the same recipe of tangled love triangles, growing up, and the messy joy of figuring out where you belong. Here are five ways in which The Summer I Turned Pretty and My Life with the Walter Boys are similar in their atmosphere, plot, and how they make the audience feel.
Both The Summer I Turned Pretty and My Life with the Walter Boys are based on books
The Summer I Turned Pretty is based on Jenny Han's bestselling novel series of the same name. Released in 2009, the series had three books: The Summer I Turned Pretty, released in 2009; It's Not Summer Without You, released in 2010; and We’ll Always Have Summer, released in 2011. A decade later, they were picked up by Amazon to create a series, and the third season, based on the third book, is currently streaming on Prime Video.
Netflix's My Life with the Walter Boys is based on an eponymous novel by Ali Novak, which first came out in 2010 on Wattpad and was later released as a book. Unlike The Summer I Turned Pretty, all seasons of My Life with the Walter Boys are based on a single book, as it's a standalone publication.
Both shows revolve around love triangles with brothers
The very core of The Summer I Turned Pretty is the show's love triangle between Belly Conklin, Jeremiah, and Conrad Fisher. Conrad is her first love, but Belly ends up getting romantically involved with Jeremiah as well, eventually leading to their almost wedding. The show's primary focus is on the romantic storyline and the emotional and romantic tension between the two couples.
The same is the case with My Life with the Walter Boys. The show revolves around Jackie Howard, who has moved into a new place and meets the Walter family, who have ten sons and a daughter. Among them, Nicki is drawn to two brothers, Alex and Cole. The show revolves around their romantic subplots as viewers root for both boys.
Both shows focus on the grief of losing a parent/parents
In The Summer I Turned Pretty, Susannah Fisher's death is a very important driving force in the narration. Mother to Jeremiah and Conrad and best friends with Belly's mom, Laurel, Susannah goes in and out of flashbacks in the current episodes and flashbacks in the past episodes. Her death is one of the biggest reasons behind Conrad's change in behavior and is also the reason why Jeremiah gets to know of Conrad's feelings for Belly.
In My Life with the Walter Boys, Jackie moves to Silver Falls, Colorado, after the death of her parents and her sister. It's how she finds herself in the new place and becomes the primary plot point of her flashbacks, grief, and trauma. Like Conrad, she too finds it difficult to deal with her mother's grief, and like Susannah Fisher, Angelica Howard's death becomes a driving force in the narration.
Both shows focus on found families
If there’s one thing teen dramas do best, it’s reminding us that family isn’t always the people you’re born into; sometimes, it’s the ones who show up when everything falls apart. The Cousins Beach crew leans on each other, proving that grief doesn’t have to isolate; it can create new bonds. After Susannah, Laurel ends up becoming a motherly figure in the Fisher boys' lives. Similarly, when Susannah was alive, she also treated Belly as her own. Laurel and Susannah's friendship ties the gang together.
Over on My Life With the Walter Boys, Jackie walks into the story with her whole world shattered. Suddenly orphaned, she’s dropped into a house full of loud brothers, chaos, and messy love. It’s not easy; she’s an outsider at first, clashing with Walters’ unfiltered ways. But slowly, dinners, pranks, late-night talks, and shared heartbreak transform strangers into something sturdier than blood: a real family. Here, too, Angelica Howard and Katherine Walter's friendship ties the families together.
Both shows hit the same sweet spot: Loss doesn’t define you forever, but the people you let in after do. Whether it’s Cousins Beach or a Colorado ranch, the message is clear: healing happens when you stop running from grief and start letting others carry it with you.
Cousins Beach and Silver Falls are central characters in both stories
Teen dramas love to trap their characters in tight-knit, picture-perfect towns where everyone knows your business, and The Summer I Turned Pretty and My Life With the Walter Boys are no exception. Cousins Beach feels like the kind of place you never really leave behind. The boardwalks, beach bonfires, and cozy houses aren’t just pretty backdrops; they’re the stage where Belly falls in love, loses people she loves, and learns who she is. Summer isn’t just a season here; it’s a state of mind.
Meanwhile, My Life with the Walter Boys gives us the wide-open skies of Colorado. Jackie trades city life for ranch chores, football games, and starry nights that seem to stretch forever. The small-town vibes mean drama spreads fast, and privacy is basically nonexistent. Everyone’s eyes are on everyone else, which, of course, makes falling in love and dealing with grief all the messier.
Both shows use their settings to crank up the feelings. Beach sunsets make Belly’s heartbreak hit harder, while Colorado’s sprawling ranch life makes Jackie’s loneliness and eventual belonging that much more poignant. In the end, Cousins Beach and Silver Falls are emotional playgrounds where characters grow, stumble, and figure out who they want to be.
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The Summer I Turned Pretty is streaming on Prime Video.
My Life with The Walter Boys is streaming on Netflix.
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