As with all Mary Kay Andrews books I enjoyed this book from beginning to end. I was quickly immersed in the story of Conley who had to move back in with her Grandmother in a sleepy Florida town after living in Atlanta. I always love the way MKA entwines different characters and their idiosyncrasies like Rowena the gossip column writer. A fun beach read that I couldn’t put down!

This was my first book that I had read from the author and I have to admit it took a while to get into. The beginning is very interesting but I thought things slowed down once that part splits off into her new life. If you are into small-town novels then I would definitely recommend this book. For me, I thought it was fairly predictable though enjoyable but certainly nothing unique.

I received an Advanced Reader Copy in exchange for an honest review. You can get your copy here: https://www.amazon.com/Hello-Summer-Mary-Kay-Andrews-ebook/dp/B07YJHZ74Z/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=hello+summer&qid=1588288401&s=digital-text&sr=1-1

MARY KAY ANDREWS!!!! AHHHHH!!! OK, I am fangirling HARD right now! I have to admit that even though this is only the 10th novel that I have read, but I am a HUGE fan! If this were Book Con, I may be first in line to meet her! I have loved every one of the ten novels that I have read by her! I am New York bred and raised, but I love me some Southern hospitality! I am so honored to have the opportunity to read this book prior to release!
We begin this book with Conley Hawkins at a farewell party at work with champagne and cake! I am not sure where she has worked previously, but I have NEVER had champagne at any of my farewell parties. I got a clock once that was engraved and a watch once, but NEVER champagne!!! This is what I am talking about-the difference between the North and the South-most of the time when you leave in NY, you are called into a conference room for your exit interview and someone escorts you to your desk to watch you clean things out to ensure that you only take your belongings.
As Conley is in the midst of her goodbye party, her sister sends her a text regarding the new publication that she is going to and they are suspending publications. Uh-I think Mary Kay Andrews kind of stole my life right here. In 2000, I moved to Long Island to go work for Arthur Anderson. As I had people around my desk having cake and wishing me goodbye, the headhunter called to tell me that due to investigations, AA cannot hire you at this time. WHAT??? Parallel situations-mine turned out slightly different, as I also was not an author, but ended up bartending. Survival mode!!! Conley decides to head to Florida, Silver Bay to be exact.
Sarah Conley to be exact is just looking to go and lick her wounds by going home, but her sister, Grayson ends up at breakfast maybe to rub salt in her wounds, maybe another reason. Grayson is the managing editor of The Silver Bay Beacon, the family newspaper and legacy. Conley is on her way to giving Skelly a ride home and stumbles upon some hot news! We are almost 15% into this book before the craziness begins and things get juicy. I am not one for spoilers, so I will just leave this here. DO NOT HESITATE to grab this book and read away! This book unfolds in an unpredictable way and it was nice to just sit back, kick up my feet and let the drama unfold! I had the opportunity to sit in the sun and read this so..HELLO, SUMMER!!!

I've read more than a few of Mary Kay Andrew's books and enjoyed them all. This one was no disappointment. Andrews seems to be skewing a bit more to the mystery side in her more recent books, and there were several mysteries to be unpacked in this one, all of them pretty interesting. The romance was fun, too. All in all, and enjoyable beach read from this dependable beach book author.

Thanks to NetGalley for providing an ARC copy for my review.

Mary Kay Andrews never fails to disappoint! This is another great read to add to her wonderful roster of titles. Family relationships, love, romance, intrigue all taking place in a small town. The characters are fully developed in real ways. Conley has packed up her life, left her job and broken up with her boyfriend for an incredible new job and experience. During her going away party she finds out that the job and new life adventure is gone. With no where to go she decides to head home to regroup and figure out what is next. To her G’mama who she loves and respects and her sister with whom she has quite the contentious relationship. They love each other, but have a truly difficult time getting along. Jealousy, frustration, competitiveness, etc all tend to get in their way. They are both in the “newspaper” business. Their family business is “The Beacon” , the local small paper G’mama owns and her sister runs. While there G’mama asked her to write for the paper. After witnessing a n accident involving a local congressman she starts digging. Her reporters heart and mind know there is something more sinister gong on. That’s it from me. Go get yourself a copy and join her while she investigates what happened and how deep it goes. Its a wonderful read. Great for the summer, during a pandemic or just if you need a wonderful book to sink your brain, teeth and heart into. You won’t regret it. I cannot wait for whatever comes next from her. Really a fun fabulous read. Enjoy!.

When a new Mary Kay Andrews title comes out, you snap it up and settle in for a good, entertaining read that sets the tone for the rest of the new beach reads of summer. So HELLO, SUMMER jumped to the top of my TBR pile. All of the classic Andrews titles' markers are here. The main character has shaken off the small town dust for the big city job. Due to circumstances beyond her control, finds herself right back where she started. Except now she is working the family paper under the watchful eye of her sister, who is definitely not impressed with her big city experience. It looks to be a long, boring summer until a senator is killed in a local car accident. As she investigates the accident for her paper, the story kicks boring right out of the box.
An excellent read for anyone looking for an original story line that has enough twists, turns and interesting characters to keep you picking your book up for just a couple more minutes that turn into 50 pages and an hour later. Another great book from Andrews is what we expected and just what we got.

This book was great, I really loved it. As a journalist, I loved the descriptions of small town newspaper life, as it was brilliantly evocative, and I thought the characters were really well drawn, too. The added mystery of what had happened to the central character also threaded through the book and kept me guessing right up until the end. I read this book at the start of lockdown here in the UK, when things were stressful, and this book really, really helped take my mind off everything. A great read!

Conley is ready to leave her current job for a new position at a big-city newspaper. She has packed everything she owns for the trek north and is at her farewell party when she learns that the new job has fallen through. Since she's burned her bridges in Atlanta, she decides to go home to the small town she grew up in, while she figures out what to do next. While working for the tiny newspaper that has been in her family for ages, she witnesses an accident involving a local politician. As she works on the story, she uncovers secrets that some in town would rather not see the light of day.

When a new Mary Kay Andrews books comes out, that's a sure sign that summer is just around the corner, and I always look forward to a 'fluff' book, but fluff with substance. This book is no exception, and it was just what I needed with everything going on in the world at this moment. It gave me a chance to escape, a chance to get to know a town and characters that aren't always what they seem, and even a bit of mystery to go along with the romance and family issues. I look forward to reading Ms. Andrews' next book!

What a great book! I thought this is a wonderful summer beach read; a little romance, a little mystery and a good story. This is a a perfect book to read during this stressful time of "staying home." It takes your mind away from from all the news and what's going on in the world. It's always nice to read a story with a happy ending. Thanks to Netgalley for this ARC.

Mary Kay Andrews has another winner with Hello, Sumner. Set in Sunset Bay, Florida, this book has it all-mysterious death, family drama, romance and the quirky southern characters Ms. Andrews is known for. For me, this book revealed itself slowly, but was never dull. I enjoyed all the facets of the book, some more than others, Overall, a great beach read and for those of us who love Mary Kay Andrews a solid story.

Thank you to #Netgalley and the publisher for the advanced e-copy!

I have very mixed feelings about this book. I liked the fact that it was a twist on her normal beach reads but it dragged a bit for me. Although it included summer feels and a romance with a touch of mystery, there were a lot characters and back stories that felt a bit unnecessary. I would get into the story just to be pulled out of it because of the info dumping.

This was not my favorite of Mary Kay Andrews beach stories and I felt a bit disappointed. However, maybe I wasn’t in the right mood for it. If you are looking for a mystery, summer read with a bit of family drama, I recommend that you try this one out.

Hello, Summer by Mary Kay Andrews is women’s fiction with family drama, mystery, romance and the beach, too. Silver Bay, FL may seem like a small town where nothing ever happens but this summer it is hotter than the summer sun when Conley comes homes and does her big city investigating.

The title alone made me want to read this book since spring has been a challenging season for almost everyone. I am ready for a complex story involving a few people as compared to the world-wide one we are all living. So a well written compelling beach story is just what the doctor ordered. Hello, Summer by Mary Kay Andrews is all that and more.

An ARC of the book was given to me by the publisher through Net Galley which I voluntarily chose to read and reviewed. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

The characters in Hello, Summer are so vivid that they feel like people I want to know. Mary Kay Andrews has written an exceptional book that gives the reader a little bit of everything - mystery, love, romance, family.

Another summer whodunnit by Mary Kay Andrews for us to find out who killed someone even us would have if we had had the chance.

Conley has lost her job and goes home to her grandmother and estranged sister until she finds out what to do. There, she has to work for her family's local newspaper and she barely has time to underestimate the work when a big case falls on her lap. A congressman dies in a shady car accident, and the more she investigates, the juicier the story becomes. This could even be her ticket out.

I really enjoy Ms. Andrews's books, how it's not that much much of a thriller and not that much of a romance, and lately you even have good doses of (good) family drama. It's become one of the things I look forward when summer approaches. This one follows those tracks, with familiar elements from her latest books if you've read any, but that will probably lead you to wrong guesses (it led me, at lease). It's not that the key to the mystery was that unpredictable, but that she totally fooled me.

But then we come to the flaws that made this read the less perfect among her recent works. The book is long, very long, unnecessarily... yeah, you got it. For example, good job writing down all those articles so we could feel more of Conley, but they were just repetitions of what we had already seen; I would had kept them out. There were passages that got too wordy, and surely there were characters that had no reason to even exist. Why talk so much about her mom? Why create Buddy Bright?

The romance was also bland. I don't remember feeling this dissatisfied with a romance by this writer before. Of course, because she's done it before, I kept suspecting her romantic interest and this didn't help, but I was suspecting most of the characters and it didn't get in the way of me enjoying them. I didn't feel enough sparks, just that. It would be okay for a pure-bred thriller, but Ms. Andrews's proposal goes much beyond. So I was disappointed.

The parts about journalism, while I'm not in the area, felt exciting, on the other hand. I also loved the characters working for her newspaper, The Beacon. I also enjoyed a lot her grandmother and Winnie. These parts were very charming. And, as mentioned, I couldn't predict the ending, though I acknowledge that maybe I could have had I not overthought it.

This book rated average. It's long, but with good elements to make it up. The mystery part wasn't that intriguing but it was enough to keep me curious, too. It's great for readers that like a more tempered, less upbeat thriller and a good read for the summer for those who already follow the writer, like me.

This one just wasn't for me. I read to about 20% and I wasn't excited about it. I'm in the minority here though, and those that usually like MKA books should still give it a try! I was excited to read it because of the beach setting and journalism vibes but I just didn't connect with it. I think I was expcecting a more traditional "beach read" type of book. I sincerely appreciate the chance to read and review.

Thoroughly enjoyed this latest book by Mary Kay Andrews. This is a fun read and a perfect escape from the real world. I loved the plot and the way the characters developed. When Conley is forced to leave Atlanta and move back to a small town, the wheels are put in motion for an intriguing mystery to come to light. As Conley begins to uncover the details around a local Congressman’s death, she turns things upside down in her personal and professional life. This well written and well paced book needs to be on your summer reading list.

As a person that makes sure she reads every book MKA writes I was so happy to get a copy from NetGalley before it was released. Conley, just lost her new job before it even started in DC. So she goes home to regroup as a news reporter. Her family just happens to own a newspaper in the small town she grew up in. Even though this is not where she wants to be a tragic accident happens that causes her to put all of her reporting skills to the test. This is a great book for the summer or for right now when the world seems to be on edge. I love MKA writing that what can seem on first glance as a "fluffy, summer read" can turn into a book about love, loss and family ties. You won't regret picking up Hello, Summer!

Enjoyable beach, pool, or bathtub read. Small-town girl turned star big-city reporter returns to her roots when her shot at an exciting Washington, D.C., job falls through. Familiar MKA themes of facing your past, resolving family conflicts, and finding what you seek closest to home.

The book crackles in the scenes of newsgathering and writing on deadline. The descriptions of home-cooked, often home-grown food are incredibly appetizing and reflect the characters and the setting, from the shrimp remoulade at the beach house to the handmade cherry coke at the soda fountain. The author paints beautiful sunsets -- always different, always compelling.

The book is thick with plots and subplots, which caused the book to sag a little for me. They also seemed to divert from the plotline that I found most compelling..

I’m a big Mary Kay Andrews fan so I was excited to read this! At times, it felt like this was two separate stories. While it did all tie together in the end, some parts could’ve been left out. However, it was a good read!

Hello, Summer - the perfect beach read! This somehow is the first book I've ready by Mary Kay Andrews, and I will have to go look for more. Hello, Summer combines small southern town charm and big city ambition with an engaging story of a small town newspaper investigating the death of a local politician. The characters are warm and vivid, and there's just enough romance to make it fun. This is a fun, light, but somewhat suspenseful read, with enough depth that kept me wanting to read just one more chapter. Highly recommend as a great summer read - I thoroughly enjoyed the whole thing. Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the e-arc - 4.5 stars!