I’d intended to read this book on the beach in Florida but the universe had other plans. I’m happy to say this book is the perfect escape during these days of quarantine. I love how it started with Conley’s going away party in Atlanta – only to find out the job she was going to Washington D.C. for has disappeared before she had a chance to head north. Her only choice is to head home to the small Florida town where she grew up. Her grandmother lets Conley know that she is expected to pitch in and help her sister at the struggling weekly newspaper owned by her family. Hello, Summer is filled with family dynamics, quirky characters, a juicy political story for Conley to chase, and a flame from her past. Which is to say it's my kind of book. A perfect beach read, quarantine read, or wherever read. I really enjoyed it and recommend to fans of Mary Kay Andrews.

Mary Kay Andrews is one of my favorite authors so I was very excited to read her newest book and it did not disappoint! I highly recommend "Hello, Summer." It is full of suspense, mystery, and romance. I really enjoyed the characters and small town feel and it kept me hanging until the very end. It's a great summer beach read!

This book is a great beach read - now if only the beaches were open for me to visit. I obtained this book as the perfect spring break read while I accompanied my children to the beach, but the Coronavirus had us cancel our trip so I read it from my back deck instead. :)

Conley Hawkins is the younger daughter of a family that owns a print newspaper in a small town on the gulf coast in Florida. Her older sister, Grayson, is an educated lawyer, but instead chose to remain in her small town and run the family newspaper. Conley has worked for big city newspapers - most recently in Atlanta, but the book starts off with her "goodbye party" at the Atlanta Journal Constitution because she was moving to work for a paper in DC, a definite step up from where she had been. But during her party, she finds out the DC paper has gone belly up and her job is gone. And they have already hired her replacement at the AJC. So she is jobless. And homeless. This makes her decide to move back home to the gulf coast just while she is searching for permanent jobs. But it's print journalism - is anyone hiring anymore?

Once she gets to the gulf coast, Conley finds all sorts of excitement waiting on her - her older sister who feels jealous of Conley's success and her ability to escape her hometown; her former childhood best friend and "boy next door" who has recently gotten divorced; a lifelong politician who suddenly dies in a mysterious one car vehicle accident; various members of the politician's family that seem shady and have motive for his death; not to mention a stalker that nearly kidnaps and murders her one evening. Throughout it all, Conley never stopped reporting the news - after all, that's what she does. But is this small town ready for her style of reporting? The type where she isn't afraid to ask questions and report the truth - whether or not it is the "southernly" thing to do.

This was an enjoyable read. I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. The opinions above are mine and are unbiased.

Thank you to @NetGalley and @StMartinsPress for a digital ARC of Hello, Summer by Mary Kay Andrews.

Conley has big ambitions in the print reporter field but her big move gets squashed when she is on her way to a new job. Conley ends up back home in a little town and is strongly persuaded to work at the family newspaper, The Silver Bay Beacon. What follows is family drama and secrets revealed as a large news story hits the tiny town.

There were several places of redundancy when the “news” was retold in the story. This affected the flow of the story for me.

Mary Kay Andrews continues to write the perfect summer beach read. Hello, Summer does not disappoint. There is a little bit of mystery (well a lot of mystery), some family drama, and a sweet love story. A huge thank you to St. Martin's Press, Goodreads, and Netgalley for both the print and digital copies of this book. I loved this one and will be sharing it with all the ladies in my book clubs!

Yet again Mary Kay Andrews has hit it out of the park!! Life gone bad for Conley only helps lead her home and reunite her with her family. In the meantime of trying to make head or tails of her life she lands smack dab I. The middle of a local mystery that seemingly she is the only one in trying to report the truth. Meanwhile he family is struggling to keep the family newspaper afloat and this mystery might just be the ticket to save the day while also helping her put her life back together , find love and reunite the entire family. Find out how Hello Summer turns the life around for all those she loves so dearly.

Welcome to Silver Bay where the picturesque community is shrouded by a fiery accident. Big-city reporter, Sarah Conley returns to the shore to lick her wounds after a job offer was rescinded. At the pinnacle of her career this setback sets Conley reeling.

Donning her reporter's hat, she uncovers skeletons in the honorable congressman's closet. Will her sleuthing leave locals 'scorching' or unlock a wave of secrets?

Thank you to #NetGalley and the publisher for the early read in exchange for an honest review. Mary Kay Andrews blends a summery setting with an intriguing mystery. Conley and Grayson's sibling rivalry, Rep. Symmes Robinette's questionable death and Conley's quest to find her footing keeps readers engaged. I found myself paging through the novel to discover the truth. Recent events illustrate that life isn't always a beach but #HelloSummer is a 'shore' way to escape the lockdown.

Summer has so many amazing things to look forward to — warm weather, food on the grill, time outdoors, and new beach reads. For me, the best beach reads are set in sunny locales with family drama, a little romance, and a dash of mystery. There is no beach read author I love more than Mary Kay Andrews. Her books always feature a spunky and flawed lead character, a fast paced plot, southern charm, and of course, a coastal setting,

Mary Kay Andrew’s newest title, Hello Summer, does not disappoint. Having grown up in the shadow of her family’s 4th generation small town newspaper, journalism runs in Conley’s blood. Conley is extremely focused on her career, advancing to bigger newspapers as she goes, including a new job in Washington D.C. Everything is going great until her going away part, when she learns her new job has disappeared. With no other options, Conley heads home to Silver Bay, a small town on the Florida panhandle coast, to work at the family’s struggling paper.

When Conley reluctantly returns home, she immediately becomes wrapped up with the people she has been distancing herself from — her unhappy older sister, her loving yet quirky grandmother, and an old childhood crush. Too add to the drama, Conley witnesses a suspicious fatal accident that ends the life of a local congressman. The accident sets off a chain reaction that turns the small town into the hot news spot of the summer, putting Conley right in the center of the action.

Admittedly, I struggled to like Conley at first. Her intense focus on her career and guarded personality made it hard to like her and understand her motives. As the story progresses, we get to see Conley open up, drop her guard, and turn into an enjoyable, feisty heroine. Mary Kay Andrews, delivers a strong cast of flawed characters and small town drama, all wrapped up in a gripping beach mystery.

I’m always a fan of Mary Kay Andrew’s books and eagerly await her new release each year. I’ve especially enjoyed the mystery aspect she has added to her most recent works. This year I was lucky enough to receive an ARC of her new book, Hello Summer.

The novel centers around a female journalist named Conley who finding herself between jobs, returns to her hometown in Florida. Without an income and with no jobs on the horizon, she reluctantly agrees to work at her family’s newspaper. The catch? Her only sister (who Conley does not have the best relationship with) is currently running the paper and it is majorly struggling.

Within days of her arrival in town, a beloved senator dies in a mysterious car crash and Conley stumbles on the story of a lifetime. As she works to find the truth behind the accident, Conley finds herself the target of some people who are not too happy with her investigation.

What I liked: I loved the character development in the story, which is typical of a MKA book. (Warning: her books are typically long, but the length allows you to get to know the characters on a much deeper level). I enjoyed the investigative story weaved throughout the book. It made me feel like I was a part of the action as the story unfolded. The relationship between Conley and Skelly (her childhood neighbor) was one of my favorite things about the book. I also enjoyed the cute antidotes about life in a small southern town and the older characters’ personalities. The last chapter was a nice ending to the story. It allowed the reader to jump forward in time to see how all the characters lives changed in the year following the senator’s death.

What I didn’t like: Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed the book. The only thing I found disappointing was that even though the majority of the story revolved around investigating the senator’s car crash and the events leading up to it, major questions about it were never answered. Who were the people the neighbor heard that night arguing? Was Conley’s guess about what happened actually true or just speculation? I felt like there were details that were mentioned throughout the investigation that were never addressed at the conclusion of the story. I even feel like there could be a sequel where Conley investigates the events that took place in Winnie’s (her grandmother’s housekeeper’s) hometown with the railroad company and the abandoned chemicals. Some people will probably say that there are too many characters and subplots in the story, but honestly that’s a MKA trademark and part of the reason why I love her books.

Overall, it was another solid read by Mary Kay Andrews. I loved the characters and the investigation regarding the senator’s death. There were some surprises and some obvious twists, but definitely a book I was sad to see end. Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an ARC of this book!

"Hello, Summer" by the acclaimed author Mary Kay Andrews follows the life of Conley Hawkins. After quitting her job and heading to what *should* be an exciting new job, Conley is hit with bad news and has to move back home with her family. I enjoyed reading about the sweet relationship between Conley and her grandmother, as well as the prickly-but-growing relationship between Conley and her sister. Along the way, there is murder, intrigue, and even romance! If you're a fan of Mary Kay Andrews' work, you will enjoy this book!

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

An amazing new book from Mary Kay Andrews. The twists and turns for this young reporter are different and fun and her ability to get to the actual story is great. I liked all the side stories and how it all came together for the Beacon.

I really look forward to reading Mary Kay Andrews and was super excited when I was approved to read this latest summer read. However, it fell short for me in that I just could not connect to the storyline or the characters. I finally stopped 17% of the way through it when I realized I wasn’t enjoying it. I’ll definitely keep reading her books as I believe this is just a one off for me.

Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin’s press for and advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC!! I love MKA books and this was her classic style. It’s such a fun read... from Conley’s character to the storyline about print journalism to a small town beach setting, it’s a fun summer read from a well loved author. Highly recommend!

Wow! Mary Kay Andrews did it again. I got an early version of this through Netgalley to review. This is my honest opinion. I loved the story. It was a little different from her other books I’ve read, but the beach is still heavily intrenched in the story. It took me awhile to get into the story at first, but once I did, it was great. Sarah Conley Hawkins just lost her new job with a Washington D. C. digital paper. So she comes home to Silver Bay, Florida to regroup. She ends up doing some writing for her family’s paper, Silver Bay Beacon. She starts out editing Rowena’s gossip column called ‘Hello, Summer’. They are an absolute hoot to read. Then it gets really interesting to see how she investigates the death of a prominent local congressman after she comes up on the accident. The more she gets into it the more she angers his family, friends and neighbors of the town along with death threats. In the midst of all this, she mends things with her sister, has a new love interest with an old neighbor and decides to stay. Well done!

Hello, Summer should be in every woman's beach bag this summer! Gosh, I have been a huge fan of Mary Kay Andrews books for YEARS. She writes so many different tales, each one as intriguing as the last. This one is actually one of my new favorites of hers and I highly recommend it to all readers!

In Hello Summer, Mary Kay Andrews main character, Sarah Conley Hawkins, loses her prospective job and so returns home to the small town in Florida where her family owns the local paper. Temporarily, she says. But then she helps out on the family paper and rekindles an old love affair....will she stay or will she go.

A relaxing beach read.

Bravo! I’ve been reading MaryKay Andrews every summer she publishes a book. With this one, she amazes me with her imagination! Small, Southern town with a cast of characters you feel you could sit down and share some sweet tea!
Conley Hawkins finds herself out of a job as a journalist and no home. She decided to head from Atlanta down to the Florida panhandle and her hometown of Silver Bay. Her grandmother still lives in the house where she grew up. Her family owns the local newspaper and her sister is managing it. While sleepy Silver Bay seems like nothing big ever happens, that all changes with the tragic death of the local congressman. Conley takes off investigating and there are more twists and turns in the story that keeps you in your toes! Sibling rivalry, dysfunctional family, politics, spice and plenty of drama help make this a fabulous summer read!

Mary Kay Andrews is by far one of my favorite authors, and she did not disappoint with her new release coming out in May. Hello, Summer is a little romance mixed with a little mystery. I love how Ms. Andrews wrapped up the book in the end, which doesn’t leave the reader guessing about the characters.

Hello Summer is a great read. Reading an MKA book is the hallmark beginning of summer for me. One of the best parts of this novel are the picturesque sunsets she paints. Conley loses her dream job and is forced to return to her hometown and the sagging family newspaper, she reconnects with her sister, grandmother, and Skelly, the boy next door. She unearths a story that turns into big news quickly. I liked how everything's turned out. My favorite characters were Skelly, Winnie, and Rowena. Anderson's description of Rowena's outfit and hair for the funeral scene is unforgettable. Make sure to read this book.

I've read all of Mary Kay Andrews' books, and I look forward to her books coming out every year. This book was another winner for the author and a fun and entertaining read with flawed characters and a nice redemption arc.
It's a great beach read and I thoroughly enjoyed it!

5 stars.

Thanks to St. Martin's Books and Netgalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.