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Summer Darlings

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Member Reviews

I received this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. A young girl from Brooklyn finds herself working for a rich couple on Martha's Vineyard for the summer. Set in the 1960s, she thinks it is all about riches and glam, but she soon learns deep secrets. Very enjoyable.

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This is a light historical fictional debut written about the early 1960’s. The author does a great job transporting you to Martha’s Vineyard and experiencing the lifestyle of the wealthy. Heddy, the nanny of two young children, lands the job and cannot return to college in the fall. While falling in love with the wealth and privilege she realizes that all is not perfect in their world. Recommended for a fun beach read. #SummerDarlings #BrookeLeaFoster #NetGalley

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Summer Darlings by Brooke Lea Foster is an excellent historical fiction that definitely transports the reader to a different generation. This story takes us to the early 1960s. It is summertime on the New England coast and the the promise of a relaxing few months of sun and sand give promise to young undergraduate Heddy as she makes her way from her first year at Wellesley to a nanny for a privileged family for the summer. Heddy is from Brooklyn and has had to work hard for what she has, has only been given the opportunity to go to school because of a scholarship (that now has been potentially revoked), and now gets to experience what she thinks is the land of the amazing, glitz, glamour, and perfection. As she enters this alternate universe, she find that all this shininess actually tarnishes with time. She finds that things are not as they seem, and that every person has their imperfections and problems in life.

This is a coming of age story, a learn-as-you grow story, and we get to see Heddy learn and mature as she infiltrates this privileged community. I like Heddy. She is smart, flawed, but strong, and learns a lot.

This is one of my favorite periods to read about. I love the 1940s-early 1960s and to top it off, I love anything remotely Kennedy. This book definitely gives off that Martha’s Vineyard/Cape Cod vibe.

This is a great read from a very talented author. I expect great things to come.

5/5 stars

Thank you NetGalley and Gallery Books for this ARC and in return I am submitting my unbiased and voluntary review and opinion.

I am posting this review to my GR and Bookbub accounts immediately and will post it to my Amazon and B&N accounts upon publication.

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Set in the 1960's, in Martha's Vineyard, a nanny, Heddy Winsome comes to the island to work. She is Irish and from a background vastly different than what she discovers on the Vineyard. Her eyes are opened to wealth and privilege, something she is not accustomed to. She is also introduced to love.

I really enjoyed both the setting and time period in which this book was set. I found it to be unique for a historical fiction title. Something that is not ordinarily written about. The 1960's is a very interesting time period, filled with rich history and culture. It's also not a time period that is written about frequently in historical fiction.

I loved Heddy. She was a resilient and headstrong character who was a delight to read about. A highly recommended title!

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This book is my favorite kind of historical fiction: enthralling, heartfelt and full of surprises.

Foster did such a great job fleshing out each character with hopes, ambitions and serious flaws that I wasn't sure who to root for... or who to trust. Seeing the Vineyard's residents through Heddy's optimistic and idealistic eyes was especially interesting because as soon as the rose-colored glasses come off and she starts to see people for who they really are, so does the reader. Spoiler: no one is as nice or perfect as they first appear.

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Summer Darlings is a story about a working class girl nannying for a wealthy family on Martha's Vineyard during the summer of '62.
That being said, I can't believe the amount of historical and factual errors, not to mention the language used. For instance the first error is less than 7% in the book when Heddy use liquid soap to wash her hands in Ash's bathroom. Bathrooms had bar soap in '62.
Another glaring error is the new 62' Thunderbird that Heddy's boss is jealous of, the air conditioning is mentioned many times as a "new," feature, T Bird's came standard with air conditioning starting in '58.

If these inconsistencies are corrected it will be a great summer read, but as is, there are too many errors to enjoy the story.

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*** out of 5 *s
#SummerDarlings by #BrookeLeaFoster
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#ARC received from @netgalley.
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This debut is a perfect little #beachread and I highly recommend snapping it up when it publishes in May! That said, though, I did find it jarring in places. My mind kept tripping over idiosyncrasies that stood out pretty glaringly. Inserted throughout this book set in 1962 were speech patterns and word usages straight from today.
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Heddy is a scholarship student at Wellesley who gets offered the job of a lifetime. A budding screenwriter, she becomes a live-in nanny for a wealthy couple on Martha's Vineyard. She becomes quickly and, in my opinion, naively swept up in their world. She comes to realize that all that glitters is not gold.
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I do recommend this book, as I said, but to be honest it just wasn't quite for me.
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#readersofinstagram #bookstagram #bookstagrammer #ARC #beachread #maynewreleases #debutnovel #marthasvineyard #1962 #1960s

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I always love stories about Martha's Vineyard. I hope to visit there this summer. The story really showed that even though people may have loads of money,they still have the same problems as the rest of us. Money certainly doesn't change the person inside. I hope the author rights more novels. I love her style of writing.

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I've always been fascinated by the era of the 1960"s and all the beautiful people who inhabited it, especially those of the wealthy. My mother was a young woman during this time and although we were not a wealthy family, I can still see her in her cigarette pants, linen shifts, blinding white Keds sneakers and her cat-eye glasses! Cigarette in hand!
The author's vivid descriptions of the island, ocean, white clapboard cottages, beach parties and cocktail hours had me feeling the sun on my face, the wind at my back and the smell of brine in the air! The well developed characters had me intrigued and the clip of the dialogue kept me interested in turning the pages to see if young Heddy would decide that all these beautiful people truly had perfect and enviable lives.

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Loved this fun book! The perfect summer beach read. Light hearted and keeps you turning the page until the end. Definitely recommend!

Thank you to netgalley for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

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Summer Darlings is a captivating read! Historical perceptions of Jackie Kennedy and Marilyn Monroe and their wealthy, lavish lifestyles are portrayed through the characters the heroine encounters. As a poor college student who learned how the “wealthy” class lives while on scholarship at a prestigious college, she is thrilled to be recommended and accepted to be a live-in nanny to two young children in this wealthy group for the summer. Through her eyes, readers are carried through the excitement and hope to be a part of the upper class she feels as she steps into this new summer life as a nanny. Her perceptions are wonderfully portrayed through her emotional assessments of each character. As reality cracks the beautiful facade that money and the pretty material things it buys, the main character interacts with many different people. She examines her own life as she observes the dynamics among her employers, their children, the housekeeper, a movie star, and two young men. In the midst of days at the beach and fancy “by invitation only”parties, she remains grounded through phone calls with her single mother who, though working two jobs and still having difficulty making ends meet, reminds her daughter of college, a job and a suitable young man waiting for her at home. The yearnings of a young adult for more is realistically developed. The additions of a rivalry and a mystery along with the main character’s growing attachment to the two children in her care are skillfully woven into the threads of a very satisfying resolution. Definitely a great beach read with surprising twists!

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Wellesley student Heddy Winsome becomes the nanny for the Williams family and spends the Summer of ‘62 on Martha’s Vineyard. Unlike her college friends, Heddy desperately needs the money. In order to keep the job, and potentially land herself a respectable suitor, she must navigate the world of her wealthy employers and the chasm between her social class and theirs. Heddy witnesses the contrast between the Williams’ public and private lives, and learns the secrets of the people who inhabit the insular community. Is she using others, or being used? Will she come out on the other end unscathed?

While reading this novel, I felt like I parachuted into Heddy’s life at the precise moment she lands at Martha’s Vineyard, surrounded by the people, the sights, the smells, the sensations of life on the island. The vivid descriptions, well-developed characters, and pointed dialog keep the plot moving. The summer of 1962 goes by in the blink of an eye. A satisfying read.

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I am reading a lot due to the threat of the coronvirus. This seemed to be a light beachy read that would let me escape. I enjoyed reading about the time period and location, sixties, Kennedy's etc. I think that this will probably catch on in the summer as people want to have a beach read.

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Get ready for this May release; I couldn’t put it down! You’ll definitely want this one by the pool. Just remember to reapply sunscreen because you’re going to get sucked into the drama of Martha’s Vineyard and could end up getting burned like Heddy.

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