Cover Image: The Second Home

The Second Home

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Member Reviews

I received an advanced digital copy of this novel from the author, St. Martin's Press and NetGalley.com. Thanks to all for the opportunity to read and review, The opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Ms. Clancy's novel is a juxtaposition of family, personalities and human relations. No one is as perfect as they seem on the surface and the main characters of the story remember things slightly different, but are all true in their own way. Emotional and beautifully written, characters feel all too real.

4 out of 5 stars. Recommended reading.

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Thank you to the author Christina Clancy and publisher St. Martins Press and NetGalley for providing an ARC in exchange for my candid review.

I enjoyed this book. It is a teen age love gone sideways book. It is about a young man that is adopted into a family who spends their summers in a well-loved historic cabin on Cape Cod. It takes place in the present where they are adults and in the past during their teenage years. It is a story about family and each individuals different place in it. It was well written and compelling.

A am giving it a 4 as it is well written, but not really my bag.

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The Second Home is a story told from three different perspectives; Anne, Poppy and Micheal. Part one is full of the kids making memories at the Cape house. Michael is 16 when the Gordon's take him in. Constantly preparing for the worst, Michael expects them to give up on him, so he's always trying his best and feel the need to prove himself. Things are going great living with the Gordon's until a misunderstood changes it all. Anne, trustworthy and responsible, is the one you can always count on. Sowhen a babysitting job opens up one summer while at the cape house, Anne takes it. The family is nice; they like Anne and she likes them. Everything is going smoothly until one night when everything changed. Poppy is tired of feeling left out; the one that's forgotten about. Her parents always busy with Michael, Anne with her new babysitting job, Poppy finds solice in a group of locals and a new hobby. Drifting from her family and into her own self Poppy is by all means a free spirit.
Now years later, estranged and halfway across the world, tragedy strikes the Gordon kids. Will they come together to make a huge decision about the Cape house, their second home.My heart ached through this entire book. Ached for Michael just wanting to belong somewhere and be part of a family. Ached for Poppy who just wanted to be thought of, be involved. Gosh I felt this! And for Anne, my goodness that sweet girl is a warrior. Read The Second Home and you'll see why. (On sale June 2020)I'm so sad this book is over. I went into it blind, wasn't quite sure what it was about but I was intrigued by the cover and was just curious. I ended up loving it. Some tough and heavy topics are mentioned but so worth the read. This book was beautifully written and packed with emotion. Christina Clancy had me hooked from the first chapter.

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This is a story about family, not just your family you are born into. This is about a hard working family from the Midwest that enjoy the summer at their second home on the Cape. Lots of things happen over the summers there.
This is the journey of facing your childhood memories and choices and seeing them with adult eyes.
After their parents death, Ann wants to sell the house while Poppy and Michael do not. Each have to come to terms with their past.
Will they fight over the cape cod house? Will it get sold to a developer and torn down? Will their family find a way back together?

I enjoyed this story. Thank you Netgalley for complimentary copy. Thoughts and opinions are my own.

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I loved this book. This is the first title from this author I have read. The characters are amazing and the story line is awesome. Added several more of her books to my TBR list.

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The Second Home appears to be a great story, but the writing style didn't work for me. Thus, this one is a DNF for me.

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I thoroughly enjoyed this beautifully crafted tale about family dynamics and the meaning of “home”. The characters are well developed and interesting. The book is well written, fast paced and a pleasure to read. I’m looking forward to more from this author. I received a free copy of this book and chose to make a voluntary, unbiased review.

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Thanks to Netgalley for an ARC of this book.

This book follows three siblings--Ann, Poppy, and Michael--as they return to their childhood summer home after the death of their parents. Decisions have to be made about whether to keep or sell the house, and old memories of one particular summer boil to the surface as they return to the cottage. I thought this was a good "beach read" type book, with plenty to discuss for book clubs.

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This story combines two of my favorite things: stories about siblings and books that take place in New England. Plus, the cover on this one is so pretty. So much of the relationships in this family were relatable and I found myself rooting for all of the characters for different reasons. This was an emotional and heartfelt read about family, childhood, and what makes a home.

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This was an enjoyable read. I found the characters well drawn, and the story was compelling. Recommended!

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Thank you Netgalley, St. Martin's Press and Christina Clancy for an arc of The Second Home in exchange for an honest review.

The Second Home was a little bit of a wild ride! There are characters I despised (and yelled at!) This was a fascinating family drama examining the relationship between Ann, Poppy, and their adopted brother Michael. It alternated between the past when they were teenagers and the present after the death of their parents.

The Second Home should definitely come with trigger warnings for sexual assault and parental death. I didn't realize how heavy parts of this would be, but it was still captivating and drew me into their lives.

3.5 stars rounded up to 4

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I enjoyed this family drama -it started a bit slow and I almost gave up on it but am so glad i kept with it as this turned out to be a really good book. Told from the perspectives of all three Gordon siblings, the story gave a the reader a look into each character's point of view. The characters were very well developed as we follow them throughout the story.

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After reading "Shoulder Season" I couldn't wait to read this book and Christina Clancy did not disappoint! This book is an endearing story of family and the characters are well developed. Great book!!!

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A wonderful family drama set on the beautiful cape cod. This story is about the Gordon family and how one summer changes their lives forever. This did not read like a debut novel. It was perfectly executed. The writing was fantastic. Highly recommend for those who love a good family drama.

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I found it really hard to get into this book. I found it hard to relate to the characters. This book did have potential.

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Perfect read for all the extra time in social distancing. Family drama.... intrigue. What more could you want. I think this is a great long weekend read.

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I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Once again, I’m thankful to NetGalley - otherwise I’m not sure I would have ever picked up this book. This book took me by surprise - I was expecting a very character driven drama, and it was so much more than that. I was very engrossed by the plot. The characters are wonderfully written. They are certainly flawed - I did read a review complaining that they were unlikable, but it didn’t bother me at all.

There were points when I found myself guessing what would happen or thinking that circumstances were too convenient to be realistic, but by the end things had shifted enough to not be so cookie cutter clean. My only gripe is that there is a part of the ending intentionally left vague that I would have loved to have seen fleshed out. A surprising 5 stars for me - I love an underhyped book

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I enjoyed the story. I was heartbroken when a rape occurred but amazed at the resilience of the character. I loved the family dynamics and I'm so glad that it had a happy ending.

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I’ve heard such good things about this book, and was so excited to read it. Unfortunately, it fell short for me. I grew up going to cape cod every summer, and was so excited to read a book set there. The book was about a family and their cottage on cape cod, but it was not a cozy beach read. I felt like the family was a little too dramatic and outrageous for me. I know a ton of other people loved this book, I would recommend still checking it out.

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Great summer read! A book about the messiness of real life. It doesn't need the "crazy drama" found on tv or in the movies as real life contains enough heartache and beauty; the good times and the bad. Much of what is happening here in the book may already familiar to many readers, loss of parents and the questions and disagreements regarding inheritance that arise. Of course there is more to the story but I don't want to give too much away.

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