What a wonderful book - perfect for a day of leisure at home. Jillian is duped by her sister to house sit for a friend. When she arrives, she finds out she is to cook and clean also for the work crew. She takes the time to breathe and re-evaluate her life and starts making some drastic changes. Changes that are necessary to undo the hurt from her deceased husband. The author paints a beautiful picture of the coast of Florida and the wonder to live there. There is a sequel coming out for this book next year. I am excited to read that one also.

***A Summer of Surprises by Judith Keim is a story about change and new beginnings. Jillian gets hoodwinked by her sister into cooking and cleaning for two men and a confused 8 year old. What she thought would be a vacation in Florida turns into a life changing event. While the author has many published books and an appreciation for the rules of grammar, this reader wasn’t driven to complete the book in one sitting. The premise and the message about freeing oneself from the negativity of others and finding new paths is significant, but cardboard characters and stilted dialogue actually made for a somewhat boring read. I voluntarily reviewed an advance copy of this book from NetGalley.

Jill Conroy was asked by her sister Cristal to house sit at a Florida cottage over the summer.  Jill soon realized she was also sharing the cottage with the maintenance crew, Greg and Brody, and Brody’s eight year old daughter, Kacy.  Instead of spending the summer relaxing by herself, Jill found herself cooking for the crew, helping out with Kacy, and ultimately working at a nearby summer camp.  The book followed Jill throughout the summer, as we learned about her abusive ex husband, her complicated relationship with her mom and sister, and the new friendships she formed with Brody, Kacy and members of the summer camp. 

I loved the growth Jill experienced throughout the summer, the relationship development with Kacy and Brody, and learning more about how Jill's life was shaped by her interactions with her mom and sister.


I wish the author had gone more in-depth with the relationships between Jill and her family (her mom, sister, and ex-husband). We learn more about the dynamics at the end, but the narrative with Jill’s ex-husband was lacking.

Overall A Summer of Surprises was a quick, light beach read.


Thank you NetGalley and Wild Quail Publishing for the ARC of A Summer of Surprises.

I received an ARC from Judith Keim and NetGalley for an honest review. I enjoyed this book, it was a love story but not the typical love story. It was about learning to love yourself, your family with all their flaws, as well as a love story between two people who had been hurt by their former spouses. I loved the way Summer of Surprises was developed. It's a hopeful book, great for when times are messy.

Summer of Surprises begins with Jill Conroy's sister, Cristal, offering her the opportunity to stay at a beach cottage while Cristal travels to Europe with her friend, Hope. After dealing the death of her emotionally abusive husband, Jill knows that she is in a rut and could use a fresh start, but her dreams of a relaxing vacation are shattered when she realizes that Cristal set her up to cook and clean for the cottage's work crew, Greg and Brody. As the summer progresses, Jill begins to form many meaningful relationships within the community, all while making the changes to her life necessary for her to find herself again.

It truly was lovely to witness Jill's transformation into a confident woman, and I loved the way that the women at the camp worked together. My favorite relationship was between Jill and Kacy, Brody's troubled eight-year-old daughter, as Jill provided the reassurance and support that allowed Kacy to blossom and grow. However, I always struggle with over-the-top, awful characters, and this book started off with two of them in the first chapter (Jill's mother and sister). To credit Keim, she explained the root causes of their respective actions near the end of the book, but I would have liked to have spent more time witnessing their familial interactions as they worked toward resolution, especially since it was was one of the main reasons for Jill's lack of self-confidence. I felt that Keim utilized a lot of outdated language, such as describing Jill's career as an educator as "teaching school" or calling a larger woman "big-boned". Unfortunately, the writing style didn't work for me, and I felt that the book was filled with short, simple sentences that failed to meet the "show, don't tell" directive.

My review contradicts all of the other reviews posted both on Goodreads and NetGalley, and I realize that I may not have been an appropriate audience for Summer of Surprises. Had I picked this up from the library, it would have simply fallen into my "Did Not Finish" category without a review. While this book didn't work for me, I can absolutely understand why anyone looking for a calm and breezy read would enjoy this.

Jillian Conroy is talking to her sister Cristal on the phone. her friend owns a cottage in Florida and needs someone to live there for summer but there's a catch. Jill is on summer break from teaching and in no rush to date. I liked Jill's interaction with Kacy.Kacy is one of the cottages handymens daughter.he is helping the other handyman who has a project and a company.brody is also a school psychologist. His wife left him for a doctor

Jill’s sister Cristal asks her to move into her friends cottage for the summer and oversee the work being done there. What Cristal doesn’t say is that Jill will be cooking and cleaning for the men plus a difficult eight year old.

That summer opportunities present themselves to Jill enabling her to think clearly about her future. Both she and the little girl become more confident during their time at Seashell Cottage. There are new starts for more than one character in the book and a couple of romances thrown in

It’s a great summer read full of kindness, friendship and a chance to discover what’s important in life

We meet Jill who has always been known as the smart one. Her sister invites her to Florida for the summer and come to find out she was asked so that she could do all the work. Jill has gotten to the point that she needs more, what is it that she wants for her life. Jill whole life is about to change and for the better, she is not as plain as she thinks, she will not be a door mat anymore, it is time for her to live.

I have not read any books from this author before and found myself calmly engrossed in the story of Jill a teacher who is asked to look after SeaShell Cottage in Florida by her sister who is off travelling with her friend. Jill takes the opportunity to head to Florida for a bit of relaxation on the beach and allow herself to enjoy a peaceful summer. The only thing that Jill knows is that there will be work done on the house and when she arrives in Florida she meets the handyman and he has recruited a family member who has come to help bringing along his 8 year old daughter.
For Jill this was not what she expected as it turns out they think she is there to cook and clean for them which she agrees to do.
Jill launches herself into her summer, picking up work at a local summer camp for children and from there the opportunities open up for Jill.
As the story unravels, Jill has back story which explains some of the choices she makes but the journey of self-discovery for Jill and her learning to make the best of the opportunities which come her way makes the title of the book very meaningful.
A romance element is in there, threading its way through the book but there are family relationships to be nurtured and opportunities to be taken by more than just the main character.
This is the first book I have read by this author and I look forward to reading more.
I gave this book 3 stars - I liked the setting and the main character and the journey that she went on. I would recommend this book if you like a light summer read which gives you a feeling of warmth and calm.
I will look for other books by this author.

A great, fast paced summer read. Intriguing storyline, unique mix of characters, and plenty of descriptive and insightful real world references. You will fall in love with Seashell Cottage and all of the long walks on the beach. It is one of those, you can’t put down type of books. Staying up late to read because chapter after chapter draws you that much further in. Thank you for allowing me to read this great fun summertime book. Enjoy!

Thank you to NetGalley, Wild Quail Publishing and Judith Keim for the ARC of A Summer of Surprises In exchange I am giving my personal and honest review.

Jill was asked by her sister Cristal to housesit in Florida for her for the summer. Jill is a kindergarten teacher, and this was a perfect way to spend her summer off.
She was told Seashell Cottage was having a bit of repairs done on it. Little did she know that the repairs being done would be a turning point in her life.

Summer of Surprises is perfect name for the book because that is what her summer is filled with. This is a time of self-discovery for Jill and her sister.

This is the first book I have read by this author and I look forward to reading more.

A Summer of Surprised
by Judith Keim

Thank you to Net Galley for the ARC of this book. It was not an author I was familiar with but I found a new
favorite. I found this book to be like a breath of fresh air. I really like thrillers and mysteries and this was really a nice change.
I will recommend this to our patrons.

A Summer of Surprises by Judith Keim is so much more then the description offered. Yes Jillian Conroy is tricked by her sister. She does wind up in Florida cooking and cleaning for two handy men. There is also sub stories about the child of the one gentleman. Their is a need to heal for many of the characters including the main character. This is just the tip of the iceberg as to what is going on within this story.

One of the story lines that I particularly enjoyed was the reinvention of ones self. It was a feel good take charge this is who I want to be feeling, Several characters are dealing with changes in their life paths. An off shoot of this is the self healing that comes when you take control of your destiny. When these changes begin to take hold the characters grow. They grow in confidence and maturity.

A lovely outcome of the self discovery that is persistent through out the story is the mending of family ties. Families often wound us with not only their actions but their words. Jillian as well as the young girl, Kacy, spending the summer with her father who is helping with the repairs to the cottage both know this first hand. As Jillian and Kacy become closer she realizes they both suffer from the manner in which their Mothers treat them. She will use not only her life experiences but her skills as an elementary school teacher to help Kacy see her potential.

Jillian wors part time at a summer camp. A camp who works on teaching the children that bullying is wrong as well as the skills to cope with being bullied. Their is a small subplot of installing healthy life styles in the young.

Mostly however this is a love story.. The love between family members. The love of friends, coworkers and adult relationships. There is new love and older love relationships within the story.. The author even has a couple who are finding second love.

The character development was excellent. I felt I knew these people my whole life. The story development was very well thought out I was drawn I from the beginning. It was a quick easy read.. I can not recommend this book enough. It will be a perfect summer read. It is also a perfect read for these unknown times. It is a feel good story that hits all the right notes. Enjoy!

I received an ARC from Judith Keim and NetGalley for an honest review. Once Jill went to Florida for the summer, she began to change. She seemed to have more confidence, decided she wanted a fresh start and started realizing what she wanted. We meet many wonderful people, each one adding something to her life. It was a summer of surprises but Judith added what I thought of little pieces of tidbits that just added to the story. It fascinated me how the owners of the camp ran it. They could get the girls to do things, make healthy, better decisions by the way they went about it.
With all that is going on in the world today, this book was a breath of fresh air, that showed positive ways to get something accomplished, that Jill made a lot of changes but knew it was right for her and that is why people should read this book. During this difficult time, if offers sunshine, sandy beach, sandcastles, relationships, and a glimpse of although a different life a life full of goodness.