Mary Alice Monroe has been one of my favorite authors for a number of years! Her books are full of interesting characters and settings. I wasn't sure I was interested in reading this particular book. I am not a horse person. I've never even ridden one! But my mind was set at ease when I began reading. This is a great read, full of interesting characters. The horses only enhance the story.

Thank you to NetGalley and Gallery, Pocket Books for the opportunity to read and review this book.

A great summer read while on spring break or summer vacation. I learned a lot about horses and found it very interesting. I enjoyed the story and destination as well.

Mary Alice Monroe is my go to Southern writer every summer. I live for her view of the beach, sea life and Southern family drama. It allows me a vacation when I can’t take one.

The Summer Guests is a different summer southern read. The focus is on how a hurricane displaces more than people. Families have to find shelter for their pets from million dollar horses to the tiniest puppy. Living so far from the ocean, these are concerns I do not think about when listening to the news. Monroe does an exceptional job of letting one know about this issue.

Fans of southern fiction need to add this to their “must read” list for the summer. You will not be disappointed.

I received a complimentary copy from Gallery Books through NetGalley. Any and all opinions expressed in the above review are entirely my own.

I received an early version of this through Netgalley to review. Mary Alice Monroe is one of my favorite writers and she doesn't fail to deliver again. She usually sets her books at the beach but in Summer Guests she uses the North Carolina mountains as well. There is a hurricane brewing and the characters must close houses and move horses to protect them. An interesting group of old and new characters converge at the home of Grace and Charles Phillips. As with most of Monroe's books, there are numerous relationship issues happening, including Mother - Daughter ones, a love relati0nship and many others. Monroe combines the stories together and in the process weaves them into a great read. Summer Guests is a great summer read!

I have read a few Mary Alice Monroe books, but it had been a little while. I read the blurb and having been just a week ahead of a hurricane in South Carolina last year and a sister-in-law who had to escape her home in Murrell's Inlet, I thought the subject was so timely and interesting. I loved this book. The story held my interest fro. the first page to the last. The characters are well developed. Loved the settings and the descriptions. I will be reading Ms Monroes books more regularly now. Thank you netgalley for the ebook arc of this book, the review is my sole opinion

This was a compelling story that I could not put down. Mary Alice Monroe is one of my favorite authors and I was thrilled to receive this for review. Her books are perfection . Thank you to the publisher and to Net Galley for your generous gift of this wonderful book. I have been very ill thus my review is a bit behind. My opinion is my own, , This is the "definitive" summer read !

I love the author's way of incorporating charcters with the landscape of the low country. This is a bit of a departure for her from the coastal settings. A hurricane is bearing down on the coast and a group of people gather inland at a horse farm in the mountains of North Carolina to ride out the storm safely as they are all friends of the owners all connected by horses, showing horses and or the horse businesses they own. I love any book that includes horses and this was a wonderful story for horse lovers. The author has such a loving way of incorporating animals into her books . I adore the horse and their part in the book. Their safety and rescue during the storm is captured with all the real life drama of a large animal rescue.

As the group gathers they are found to all be varied personalities and some are at odds. They are a competitive group and all stressed about the storm. It is a story of their experience, of horse rescue and of businesses acquaintances drawn together by chance who become friends. its the best of Southern hospitality and Southern charm. It is a endearing experience for them and life altering.

I loved this book. The author remains one of my all time favorite authors and this book is perfection. I highly recommend this book.

The Summer Guests is a beach read/chick lit book centering about an impending storm and a cast of characters who are trying to ride out the storm in safety, along with their animals. I've read all of Mary Alice Monroe's previous books and loved them; however, this one just didn't keep my interest. There were too many characters to keep track of, and lots of talk about horses, which didn't appeal to me. I would definitely read more of her work, but this book was a disappointment for me. Thanks to NetGalley for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

I can't believe this is another first for me this summer. I have never read a book by Mary Alice Monroe. Twice this summer I have read books by #1 best selling authors and can't figure out how I have never read one of their books before this summer.

I connected so much with The Summer Guests, but not because I know anything about horses. I lived in on the east coast of Florida for nine years and I have family that lives in the mountains of North Carolina! Mary Alice Monroe does an amazing job capturing what it is like to have to evacuate due to a hurricane as well as the mountains of North Carolina in a storm (no internet for sure!).

All the guests at the farm of the Phillips' are unique individuals whose paths had not crossed. They all have a few things in common. They are fleeing the hurricane, love animals and willing to help any way they can with all the rescued animals.

Good characters and good individual stories that all come together at the farm. Enjoyable!

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So, I was anticipating this one IMMENSELY, but once I got started, it was actually REALLY HARD for me to read. I think it falls under the "too much too soon" category, as in the subject matter deals with things a bit too close to home, i.e. a major hurricane barreling at the Florida coast and beyond with the power to destroy lives, dreams, and forevers.

I can honestly say (from unfortunate first hand experience) that she did capture the moments leading up to its landfall remarkably well. The awareness but only on the peripheral when a storm is first spotted in the Atlantic. The concern as it takes whatever track it decides to take and drives us all mad as we try to guess just where it's heading for. The planning as more definitive landfall targets are announced. The actions taken to prepare homes, and family (hoofed, pawed, and all) for "fight or flight". The chaos as things change, whether in the storm's track or in our safety plans, as we prepare for the worst. The unexpected challenges faced when whatever game plan you decided on is put into play....if staying, battening down the hatches and praying for all you're worth; if leaving, traffic (goodness the traffic!), gas shortages, and lodging nightmares. Sound too unfortunate to be true? Nope...lived through it, as did may others, and the reality is scary enough to leave its mark.

As for our cast of characters here...the majority made their way out of state, destination North Carolina, and the storms they weather are not all weather related. Yes, the rains come, the wind stirs, and things get out of sorts as they all accept their current circumstances and keep their fingers crossed it all sorts itself out soon, while taking great care of their four-legged equine companions...but the real "storm" here is in the connections between them all. Those that start as friends, lovers, or mere acquaintances, all have new brandings for their "relationships" by the end of their stay. Grace and Charles find their way back to each other, learning to trust fully once again. Moira discovers that she can be herself while still giving of herself in a relationship, though taking time to follow her own passions is a must. Gerta and Elise find their way back to themselves, a longer road than you might think too, and in that rediscovery make their own ways in the world in rather surprising ways...and with surprising people. Hannah and Javier Angel de la Cruz realize what is truly important to them, and make the changes needed to follow their dreams come what may. Cara and David find that what they were always searching for was right in front of them, and that when love is found it should not be let go.

All in all, I got caught up in all the connections forged through proximity and the carryover after the storm passed. Though it was not exactly what I expected, and the storm's changes unanticipated, it was enjoyable nonetheless. My only hang up was when Moira said something about "...and the residents who had decided, foolishly, to stay and ignore evacuation orders"...not all the decisions made in those situations are so black and white. Some don't have anywhere to go, extended family or friends to stay with, a place to take their pets, or the extra money to even fund it. Some live day to day, week to week, not by choice, but by circumstance. It may be that it was simply too soon after our own event and I was extra sensitive...or not...but in either case, there's always more than one side to whatever story we think we see.

In the midst of hurricane season, those living along the cost understand the uncertainty and unpredictability the weather can bring. When the warnings come out, those who evacuate are not only forced to find shelter for themselves but for their animals as well. This is no easy feat for those people who have horse farms. This is exactly the case for the characters in The Summer Guests. Packing up their lives and the items that they hold most precious and heading north to the farm of their friends Charles and Grace Phillips in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina.
In this story we meet an eclectic group of individuals, all brought together by their love for horses, and their need to escape the brutal Category 5 hurricane that is taking aim at the East Coast. Seeking refuge is Moira, the Phillips’ daughter who is running away from more than a hurricane, and toward an even bigger adventure. Moira brings along a slew of rescue dogs that are needing to be rehomed. Famed equestrian Javier Angel de la Cruz and former model-turned-makeup mogul Hannah McLain bring Angel’s prize horse Butterhead to protect the horse and themselves from the uncertain weather. Former Olympic hopeful, now famed horse breeder, Gerta Klug and her tumultuous daughter Elise also join the group with their prized horse Whirlwind. In a desperate attempt to save her condo, Cara Rutledge must flee toward the hurricane and all the fear and anxiety that brings.
The storm has brought them each together, and their lives will be intertwined forever. While the hurricane wreaks havoc on the coast, the week together changes all of their lives.
My Thoughts?
Overall, I really enjoyed this book. The many storylines kept me entertained and I found myself loving some characters and hating others. Despite living in Kentucky my entire life, I do not know a lot about horses. This book helped to teach me a lot about their behaviors and the care required of them. My favorite character was a tossup between Moira and Grace Phillips. Perhaps it was the close, mother-daughter relationship they shared that I really enjoyed. My least favorite character was Javier Angel de la Cruz. I feel like he was a meddler who inserted himself and his desires into situations and choices that he didn’t need to be in.
I received an advanced electronic copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion. It has in no way impacted my review.

Mary Alice Monroe is one of my favorite summer authors. Set on a farm in North Carolina a group assembles with Grace and Charles, the owners, to escape a hurricane coming up the coast. It's late August and as the guests arrive the anxiety and worry build and grow. Daughter Moria arrives with a carload of rescue dogs, neighbor Cara arrives with a few precious belongings and Javier Angel de la Cruz, makeup artist Hannah McLain, horse breeder Gerda Klug and her daughter Elise round out the assembly. No one really knows anyone except Grace and Charles. As they interact and learn about each other, they all discover they have some issues to deal with. Another good read from Ms. Monroe. I received a copy of this ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Once again, May Alice Monroe takes you into the low country. However, this time she adds the refuge of an inland farm and the adventure of the equestrian world.
I am not a fan of horses or farms; but she made it come alive and very intriguing to me. I fell in love with Grace and Charles and their love for each other and their friends. I love how Grace loves to host and entertain in the light of a glooming hurricane.
I did find however, the flippant switching partners of her friends or straying from their relationship not enjoyable to read. I wish she would have put as much care into the “character” of these characters as she did the animal world.
I love the story of Cara and I wish that would have been a little more dominant or had tied in with Grace’s story more. It felt a little like an after thought trying to link the two. This would have been better to separate the two into two stories.

I did enjoy this book, however it is not may favorite that she has written. The ending felt rushed, trying to bring so many story lines to closure.

This is my first book by this author but definitely not the last. We are invited into the fold as a hurricane is barreling towards the coast of Florida/Georgia/South Carolina and the Phillips let their daughter invite her friends with their horses to shelter at their farm. They bring their horses, their dogs, and all their personal problems and wow do they have some problems. There is a lot going on and it is a hoot. A week with all these people together can bring on more troubles than a hurricane but can also lead to inflection and reflection and this was just an all round good read! I deem this a great summer read and perfect vacation read.

**Received this ARC for review from the publisher via NetGalley**

A hurricane is barreling towards the east coast of the US. Lifelong friends evacuate to the safety of the NC mountain home of Charles and Grace Phillips, bringing their valuable horses with them. This diverse group seeking a safe haven include, world renowned equestrians, both past and present, rescue dogs, rescue horses, best friends, lovers and strangers, young and old. As the literal hurricane’s outer bands reach the mountains, the figurative hurricanes are swirling around as well. Mary Alice Monroe shows, through her writing, that life questions are not reserved just for the young. Once again , Mary Alice Monroe has penned a novel that will keep the reader interested and yearning for more.

Timely release of hurricane centered book and the effects on those who choose to flea to the relative safety of Tryon, NC. Love, friendship and a passion for the equestrian world throw this group of individuals together in this beautiful setting.
Mary Alice’s characters leap from the page as we grow to know each of them intimately. Cara Rutledge and her family (from the Beach House series) join many new characters in this tightly woven plot. Their love for their animals weather canine or horse compel them to protect their world.
Tensions arise as strong men and passionate women prepare for the category 4 hurricane. Another wonderful read from Mary Alice!

Being from Indiana we are right in the middle of tornado country where you basically just cross your fingers or pray tornadoes don’t pop up or if they do they don’t do too much damage. Hurricanes aren’t something that happens where I am however I have had a couple of close vacation calls with Sandy and Matthew down in Florida so I couldn’t help but be curious when a storm is at the heart of this story.

The Summer Guests by Mary Alice Monroe is a women’s fiction or chick lit read that focuses on several characters who need to escape the path of an oncoming hurricane. But, not only do these people need shelter for the storm they also need a place to transport their animals where they will be safe so Grace and Charles Phillips who live in North Carolina have opened up their farm to these friends and strangers alike along with their horses.

This novel actually started out rather strong in my opinion with some great tension from the impending hurricane and slowly starting to introduce the various characters involved. However, the further and further I got into the story the more danger there suddenly was of it completely losing hold of my attention. I guess I expected more from the storm than there was but honestly I think there just may have been a few too many characters to keep track of when the second half turned toward more personal drama. Maybe it was me but more depth put into a few choice characters with life alternating decisions would I believe make it much more engaging than trying to spread out so much between so many. By the end I just felt this one was so-so or just OK.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

Horses and hurricanes! How could I not request this novel...living a few miles from Wellington, Florida in the middle of horse country, I couldn't resist! Now it's June and Floridians are getting antsy (at least I am) as all the weather forecaster's give us daily accounts of what's happening around us. So soon enough we'll be listening to the weather reports with a different POV.

Mary Alice Monroe never disappoints and she certainly didn't here. Taking in a bunch of people to her home as another horrific hurricane is about to sweep through the coast of Florida, I loved the diverse characters. I may be a bit prejudiced due to the topic, but I am also a big fan of Ms. Monroe. So, if you're living in Florida during hurricane season and going through one, read the book by candle light, it will keep you more than occupied. If you're not in a hurricane zone, read the book, it's very enjoyable and be thankful you live where you do!

My thanks to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Though I’m a fan of this author, this book just did not resonate with me. I felt there was too much information about horses and not enough about the characters and their stories. I tried so hard to get into this, I enjoyed the beginning they had a mandatory evacuation and had to head to the mountains in NC. After that, I found myself breezing through the pages, I was looking for more of a beach read then all about horses.

This was such a lovely read, it was an interesting read!I enjoyed learning about the horses.Grace and Charles Phillips have a huge horse farm and when they recognize a huge, potentially devastating hurricane is on the way, they invite several people to their farm with their horses to help keep them safe from the hurricane.

Some of them already know each other and others they meet for the first time.It was entertain and interesting reading about them and getting new information.There are lots of characters in this read but each are unique.

I usually read this type of books and I find it refreshing!It's a wonderful summer read!

MAM has done it again! With every book, I love her writing more. The story of Grace and Charles Phillips inviting their closest friends to stay with them in the NC mountains during the coming hurricane Noelle is wonderful! Not only do they shelter their closest friends but also rescue dogs and their friends' horses and personal baggage. Each person comes with their own baggage and with the storm coming, tensions rise. As the storm comes to a head many resolutions are made and the guests prepare for departure. This story takes us from Florida evacuations to seeing Cara and her fiancé and how their relationship turn out, to the NC mountains where the group rides out the storm.