I enjoyed this book so much!! It really has a little of something for everyone. Strong female lead, family ties, a love interest, a career crisis, a mystery, and best of all, the beach!! Andrews does such a phenomenal job weaving it all together, I didn't want it to end. I'll be recommending this to all my friends who are looking for a beach read this summer!! Loved it!

I am a big fan of Mary Kay Andrews' books. You know you'll get a strong but flawed female lead who is competent and has grit. You know there will likely be some eccentric family lurking around and a well-drawn cast of characters whose stories are spun out in a most entertaining fashion.

Sarah Conley Hawkins left her small town upbringing to find success as an investigative journalist, not easy in a rapidly shrinking journalism market. Her older sister Grayson stays behind to run the family weekly newspaper.

But Conley's dream job evaporates so she heads home to figure out the rest of her life. Her grandmother, a steely Southern belle type, guilts her into temporarily helping her sister out. But who could have known what wild secrets and headlines could have popped up in this small Florida panhandle town?

Conley and her boyhood pal Skelly happen to be on the scene of a horrific rollover crash that they later find out killed a prominent local U.S. congressman. But the details don't quite make sense: what was he doing out at 3 a.m.? Why are two of his children omitted from his obituary? How in the world did this former small town lawyer amass enough money to buy fancy homes in Washington and in Florida?

Conley is on the job and her investigative intuition is on high alert. We get to ride along while she attempts to figure out the mysterious death, keep an eye on her aging grandmother, re-establish her relationship with her sister, and decide if her crazy career existence has room for a little romance.

Thanks to Net Galley and to the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Hello Summer is not your average beach read. It is the perfect mystery meets romance, that takes place in a rural beach community. Two opinionated, hard headed sisters working for the family newspaper. Conley is cultured living in a metropolitan area and travels back to her hometown after a job offer falls through. Grayson stayed in the area they grew up to take care of family and run the family business. Both sisters work together to determine why a local senator was killed in a one car accident on a deserted country road. Follow the twists and turns of this suspenseful must read and fall in love with the cast of characters. 4 stars.

Mary Kay Andrews is one of my favorite Southern authors and Hello, Summer does not disappoint. It continues a long line of great characters and stories from Andrews. Conley Hawkins left her family’s small town newspaper, The Silver Bay Beacon, years ago. Now a star reporter for a big-city paper, Conley has been a star reporter for the Atlanta Journal Constitution and is now taking a dream job in Washington, D.C. But as Conley's going away party is occurring, she discovers that her dream job is gone. She has no place to live, no job and no ties to Atlanta so she heads home to Silver Bay, Florida. She ends up living with her grandmother and her companion Winnie and working for her sister at the Beacon. Conley and her sister Grayson have never been close and so things are tense at the paper. Add to the family issues that the paper is bleeding money. Conley witnesses an accident that ends in the death of a local congressman—a beloved war hero with a questionable past. Conley, being the journalist that she is, continues to dig into the story and finds much more than she bargained for, including an old love made new again. The characters are just so great and the story is as well. Hello, Summer is a great read!

Hello Summer is a well written and entertaining book. Great plot and believable characters. You can always count on this author for a fantastic read. I received an arc from the publisher and this is my unbiased review.

Mary Kay Andrews wrote another fabulous book - an awesome summer read that kept me on my toes! Sarah "Conley" is a reporter for a newspaper in Atlanta who had left her job to move onto new and better things in Washington DC. Suddenly, her new position is no longer available and she is forced to move back to her hometown in the panhandle of Florida until she figures out where to go next. While in Florida, her grandma tries to persuade her to join the family newspaper, The Beacon, to help keep it afloat. Her first task as part of the Beacon team is to make the Hello, Summer column more enjoyable.

This story kept me on my toes and guessing the entire time. If you enjoy Mary Kay Andrew's other novels, this one will definitely not disappoint!

I received this Advanced Reader Copy through Net Galley. I would like to thank the author and publisher for offering this to me.

I always enjoy a Mary Kay Andrews story! Her heroines are intelligent and brave southern women. Conley Hawkins is no different. She finds herself returning home after a new job falls through. The dynamics between Conley and her sister are tense. When she stumbles on a new story everything changes as she seeks the truth. The mystery that unfolds as she investigates her story kept me turning the pages. The quirky antics of the hometown crowd were enjoyable. At times I felt the pacing a bit slow, but the story kept me wanting to know what was going to happen and who was the true villain.
Thank you to NetGalley and the author for the advance Reader Copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

After quitting her job as a award winning Journalist at the Atlanta Journal for a DC based digital publication, our heroine Conley learns that it has gone bankrupt. She has already given up her apartment in Atlanta and has lost a sizeable down payment for her new place in D.C. She is jobless and broke. Her only option is to return home to the small town in the Florida Panhandle where she grew up.

Her family owns and runs the weekly paper there called The Silver Bay Beacon. Her sister reluctantly hires her and Conley starts to do what she has always done, “turning over rocks and finding out what crawls out”.

What crawls out is a story with many, many layers that is interesting to watch unfold! Conley ends up knee deep in an investigation. I have to admit I did not like this character at first. I found her to be very self involved and lazy. She thought that working at her family's paper was beneath her and she always got others to do her leg work. But as the investigation continues, Conley starts to grow as a person.

Of course, she solves the mystery and is offered several jobs in big markets but she turns them all down! She has learned that what is most important is family and she will stay with them by her side and make her families small town newspaper grow too!

Sarah Conley Hawkins (call her Conley)is from a small town in the Florida Panhandle. She is an award winning reporter on an Atlanta newspaper. She has just been hired as a large step up from the paper to a Washington DC position.

Then things go very wrong. No prestigious new job and she has no apartment (she dumped her live-in boyfriend).

The only thing left is to go home to her grandmother’s house and send out feelers for a new job.

She hates her home town, she dislikes everything and almost everybody there. It is far beneath her. Her sister is the editor of the family’s weekly paper, Conley sneers at both her sister and the paper.

In fact, Conley sneers at everyone except her Grandmother. She has little respect for people other than herself. But, even though her Grandmother’s health is precarious, Conley cannot pay much attention to her or her health.

As you may have gathered, I am not a fan of Conley.

When a home town hero dies in a one car accident, Conley is urged to write the story for the family paper. The man had been the long term U S Congressman for the area. His history is closely tied to the town. Because the accident happened nearly in front of her, she agrees to write the article for the weekly paper for her Grandmother.

Then she does what she always does, “turning over rocks and finding out what crawls out”.

I am well aware of the responsibility of a good reporter. I admired Conley’s ability to put facts together. But, doing research, there are things which she could have done to find property values and histories of sales. She had to ask someone else to do it. And then, there are ways to ask questions which do not automatically make whoever you are interviewing your enemy.

Most of all, I had issues with her abrasive and cavalier treatment of people who cared for her. She was cold and inconsiderate. Using people for her own purposes seemed to be her natural way to have relationships.

I was nearly finished with the book before Conley began to act as though there were anyone in her world other than herself. It took me a very long time to begin to like her even a little.

I love Ms Andrews’ writing. In fact, I have nearly every one of her books on my keeper shelves.

In order for me to love a book, I have to love the lead characters. In this book, I loved most of the characters in the story. Grayson, Conley’s sister, is a woman who obviously has burdens. Lorraine, Conley’s grandmother, is a smart cookie who loves Conley to the moon and back. Sean Kelly, Conley’s best friend from her childhood is a man who is kind, intelligent and funny. He also has given his life to caring for his ill mother.

In fact, most of the secondary characters are exactly who I would expect to find in a Mary Kay Andrews’ book. They are good people who you know would make good friends.

This book is well written. Ms Andrews is a master and I am a HUGE fan.

This book is not one of my favorites.

I received this book from the publisher through NetGalley. I am writing this review voluntarily. All opinions are completely my own.

This was a fantastic book. All the characters are likable and enjoyable to follow. The storyline line is fascinating and compelling. It was entertaining to watch as the main character’s career and life goals changed and she found the quiet life in her home town more inviting than big city life. I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley and St Martin’s Press. All opinions expressed are my own.

Nothing starts off summer better than my toes in the sand with a Mary Kay Andrews novel in my hand! Readers are headed for a bumpy ride with Conley and company through the death of a high profile local and its aftershocks rippling through a small Florida town on the Panhandle. I loved the dynamics within Conley's family as well as out and about in her home town, after a return to Silver Bay from Atlanta, as she investigates the story for her family's newspaper. The characters are likable and relatable, relationships between characters were developed, and the story-line was full of surprises - Andrews never disappoints! Plus... the epilogue!! Thanks so much to #NetGalley for the opportunity to preview #HelloSummer by @mkayandrews - I love-love-loved it!

Once again, favorite author, Mary Kay Andrews, has given us a new story with characters who become like family! "Hello Summer" is a delight and endearing read. Conley Hawkins left her small childhood town and family owned newspaper for a journalistic career in Atlanta. Unexpected cutback at the large newspaper cause her to return home "temporarily" and joining her sister at The Beacon" . She becomes witness to a fiery car crash and in turn the town secrets unfold . Meet her sister, Grayso; Lorraine, Grandmother and family matriarch, and other townspeople. Enjoy the Southern hospitality. A summer read with publication set for May 2020.

I didn't want the book to end, I wanted to stay in Silver Bay and see what happens next. It's that good! Read the cover for details on the story. characters are realistic,several events happening at once,just like life! Combines mystery, romance, family, career and more. Twists and turns you won't see coming. Great beach or anytime read.
I received this book as a complimentary copy and under no obligation to provide an unbiased review. The opinions expressed are my own.
Thanks to the author,publisher,and NetGalley for the advanced copy.

Hello, Summer is more than your average beach read. While it has romance, it also has a murder to be solved and a safe of intrigue.

This book is a quick and engaging page turner that will delight old and new Mary Kay Andrews fans alike.

Many thanks to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an unbiased review.

Mary Kay Andrews has done it again! Hello, Summer is a page-turning mystery topped off with a little beach town romance!

I love a "coming home" romance & this book delivered! However, "Hello, Summer" is NOT your every day "summer beach read". Mary Kay Andrews mixed it up with some suspense/mystery included with the romance and I really enjoyed it! The characters & their relationships were complex and I enjoyed watching them evolve.

Conley Hawkins finds herself back home in Silver Bay after she resigns her job at the AJC for a job in DC. When the job in DC dematerializes, she heads to a Silver Bay until she figures out her next move. What she finds is her family newspaper in danger of closing, unresolved feelings for the boy next door, family drama, personal endangerment and a political scandal that is also a death investigation.

Mary Kay Andrews hits a home run with Hello, Summer. The characters are well developed and interesting. It is easy to get caught up with Conley as she navigates small town life that is anything but sleepy. Once I got to the second half of the novel, there was no putting it down until I finished it.

Thank you to Mary Kay Andrews, St. Martin’s Press, and NetGalley for the electronic ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I thought Hello Summer would be a light, summer romance, but with death, corruption, family tragedies and regrets mixed into the story of girl falls in live with the boy next door, it was a lot more interesting.

Conley Hawkins returns to the small Florida town she grew up in having lost her job and finds herself reluctantly working for the family newspaper. Despite the many cliches, the story kept me hooked as Conley investigated political scandals and family feuds.

Hello, Summer
by Mary Kay Andrews
St. Martin's Press
You Like Them
Women's Fiction
Pub Date 05 May 2020 | Archive Date 05 May 2020

One of the best reads of 2020. Great, light hearted read to fill your days. Thanks to Net Galley and St. Martin's press for providing this ARC. Will recommend to friends and patrons at our library.

Thank you so much to St. Martin’s Press for the eARC of Hello, Summer! I really enjoyed this story of a young journalist who has to move home to her small Florida town and starts working (under duress) with her older sister at their family paper. Conley comes across the scene of an accident that sets her reporting on local intrigue.
Conley is a scrappy, headstrong heroine, but she was easy to root for. I really loved her G’mama - the matriarch of the family who doesn’t take any sass. This was a great story to transport me out of my living room during this period of social isolation.