Problematic Summer Romance

Maya and Conor’s romantic arc in Problematic Summer Romance explores the factors that define age and how these factors influence relationships. At the corps of this exploration is physical age and the literal 15 years between the two characters. However, as the story progresses, it becomes clear these 15 years are only the surface of Maya and Conor’s age gap and that other factors, including lived experiences, trauma, and background, play a large role in how far apart in age the two actually feel. 

When she went to live with Eli as a child, Maya thought Conor seemed ancient. However, when Maya sees Conor for the first time during the flashback chapters, several years have passed, and she realizes that “now that I am an adult, too, Conor Harkness just feels like a peer” (87). This quote signals a rebalancing of power—Maya no longer sees Conor as distant or untouchable, but as someone operating on the same emotional plane. Dealing with the trauma of her parents’ deaths and the poor choices she made as a result of that trauma have given Maya an adult-level understanding of the world. 

In contrast, Conor’s emotional development has been shaped by insulation: His wealth has shielded him from survival-based decisions, complicating the very concept of “maturity.” Thus, when Conor comes to Scotland to help her, the two are able to connect as if the 15-year age gap doesn’t exist. Conor’s understanding of the situation and Maya’s self-sufficiency allow them to interact as equals. The novel uses this recalibration of age to interrogate how trauma accelerates emotional growth and how privilege can, at times, stunt it.

While these factors allow Maya to immediately recognize that she and Conor are both adults who can make their own choices, Conor struggles to fully think of Maya as an adult because of how age gaps have played a role in his past. Growing up, Conor’s rich father kept his children at an emotional distance and parented by throwing money at situations to fix them. In addition, Conor’s mother was younger than his father, and Conor wound up feeling like the force protecting her from his father’s cold detachment. This dynamic shaped Conor’s foundational beliefs: that age differences often conceal manipulation, and that affection can be weaponized.

When Conor’s mother died and his father seduced Tamryn, Conor internalized age gaps as problematic because he only ever saw them in the context of his father taking advantage of younger partners. Thus, while Maya sees nothing wrong with two consenting adults being together despite their ages, Conor fears his age and wealth will create an unhealthy power imbalance that will ultimately harm Maya. His repeated insistence on Maya’s youth reads less as a judgment of her and more as a projection of his own inherited guilt. After seeing the damage his father did, Conor refuses to do the same, and this choice informs the main barrier between he and Maya’s romance. 

Conor’s internal journey consists of realizing he is not his father and that he is not forcing undue influence on Maya. When he finally realizes that Maya has navigated situations and made her own choices—including choosing him—Conor is able to let go of his father’s negative influence to pursue a relationship with Maya. As seen in the final chapters, Conor still has work to do in terms of trusting the relationship, but he is willing to try because he understands that age is determined by more than years. Conor’s refusal to orgasm during sex becomes a symbolic act and his way of denying himself any perceived upper hand in their dynamic. This embodied form of control reflects his deep discomfort with pleasure as power, which he must unlearn to move toward intimacy based on equality.