Unfortunately, I was very bored with this storyline. I did not care enough to find out the true identity of her father nor anything else about the story. It moved between timelines weirdly.

I clicked on a 'read now' widget for this one and shouldn't have a I am not interested in this title.

A mix of women's fiction, mystery and romance, both in the present and the past set the perfect story line for A SUMMER TO REMEMBER. Frankie's mother has recently died and she's clearing some boxes of her things when she finds pictures and letters that will lead her on an interesting quest to find the story behind the story. As Frankie makes her way to Cape Cod, the story will switch back to the years when her mother was young and worked for many of the celebrities that lived there. Frankie's story will eventually reach an understanding of her mother and the magic you can find in the length of one summer.

3.5 stars

What a stunning cover! I was immediately drawn into the story, with the old Hollywood references and intrigue of Frankie uncovering family secrets. I enjoyed the Cape Cod setting and loved how the main characters were connected to Mitch and Glory. However, the big secret was a bit drawn out, and when it was finally revealed I had lost a bit of interest. The ending was a tad too clean for me, as everything seemed to resolve much quicker than the build-up. Still, this was a well-written, engaging novel!

This was a moving debut novel. It’s was a mystery that had secrets and some romance. Definitely a summer read for anyone looking for a mix of genres. I’m looking forward to seeing what the author writes next.
Thanks St. Martin’s Press via NetGalley.

I cannot get into the book at this time. I will try again at a later date, I just find myself not paying attention and having to reread.

From the cover, A Summer to Remember looks like it will be the perfect beach read. It has a little more depth than I anticipated. There is romance and mystery plus some pretty great secrets. A great read!

Very enjoyable read! Love the setting and all the feels. I enjoyed the romance more than the search for her father. But overall good read!

*Thank you @stmartinspress for the copy in exchange for an honest review. Review not posted to Amazon/Goodreads because less than 4 stars or DNF.*

Frankie Simon is thirty years old and is grieving the loss of her mother. She never knew the identity of her father. She continues to run their Hollywood movie memorabilia store. A package arrives which includes a photo of her mother before she was born. She is with a famous movie star who left Hollywood to live in a small coastal New England town. Sealed letters written by his actress wife are also enclosed. Frankie heads to the Cape Cod town of Harpswitch, Massachusetts and its annual Stardust Summer Film Festival to learn about her mother’s past and possibly discover the identity of her father.

This book was very fun to read, It was set in then and now and was quite good!


Thank you for my advanced copy!

Very well written and heartwarming tale about a woman who is still raw from the loss of her Mom. Trying to keep life going, by managing the shop they built together, selling nothing less than Memories, she is taken on a journey that will allow the reader to experience joy, tears, mystery and some romance if you will!

Great read to take your mind of life and enjoy a little escape. Glad to have read my first story by this author!

3.5 Stars

A SUMMER TO REMEMBER blends elements of family drama, mystery, and romance into a bittersweet story. Frankie is grieving the loss of her mother while trying to keep their Hollywood memorabilia store afloat. She comes across a couple of sealed letters, and a photograph of her mother with a pair of married movie stars taken a year before Frankie's birth. Always curious about who her father was, Frankie heads across the country to Cape Cod where the photo was taken in hopes of finding clues to his identity.

I have mixed feelings about this book. I enjoyed the sense of place and the Hollywood nostalgia, and I was very curious about the family secrets surrounding Frankie's father. The romance was lovely — two lost souls coming together. However, the pacing was slow, and I found the big reveal rather frustrating. It was unnecessary to keep this particular thing a secret for 30 years. If you can get past that hurdle, A SUMMER TO REMEMBER makes a great beach read that will leave you craving margaritas and fried clams, and wanting to dust off those old VHS movies.

Frankie sells movie memorabilia on Hollywood Boulevard in the shop her mother started. Her mother, Maeve, has died recently and she is grieving. When she receives a mysterious package with a photograph of her late mother and old Hollywood famous movie stars, as well as sealed letters, she is hoping to find out who her father is. Her mother would never go to the East Coast, and Frankie wants to find out why. She finds the son of the actor in the photo and heads to Cape Cod, where the Stardust Film Festival is in full swing. Will Frankie find out what her mother's secrets are? Will she find her father? As Frankie finds out more about her mother, everything she believes is true about her life, unravels.

This story is exactly what I am looking for in a summer, poolside read. Most of this story is set in Harpswich, a small Cape Cod Town. The story is told in flashbacks, mixed with the present and Frankie's search. She finds Louise and Russell, best friends to Glory Cartwright and Mitch Beckett, the stars in the photo, as well as Gabe Beckett, their son. As she gets to know these people, secrets are revealed as to what Maeve was doing in Harpswich, and why she never returned. I really liked all the characters in this story. They all had issues and baggage caused by decades old secrets. I liked the mystery, the friendship and the romance. I also liked the Hollywood touches, the memorabilia and where it came from. It was interesting to learn about the various connections people have to certain things, it made it very relatable. As we learn more about what happened when Maeve worked for Glory, I felt so sad for all of them. Russell had kept some major secrets over the years and this caused him many problems in his relationships, so it was nice to finally see him let them go. This is a story about family, specifically found family, learning about your past, secrets, and second chances. This is a story that evoked many emotions in me, but it ended on a positive note and was a wonderful poolside read.

“Your first movie is like your first kiss. You never forget it. Even if it’s horrible. Especially if it’s horrible.”

This summer read packs a punch. Light and airy yet serious and romantic. The beginning of book we are introduced to several characters, including Frankie, the MC. Her love of movie memorabilia comes from her since passed mother, Maeve. The two of them kept every ticket stub to every movie they went to by the cash register at their shop. When Frankie learns of a letter her mother had left for Gabe, she decides to head to the Stardust Film Festival. She’s also hoping to m find her biological father that she knows nothing about. As the story unfolds -secrets are exposed, friendships are built, love is strengthened, and the true meaning of ‘found family’ is exposed. I thoroughly enjoyed this intricate story!

TW: Suicide & Cancer.

A very enjoyable story. I liked the romance plot more than Frankie's search for her dad, but overall I did enjoy the novel altogether as a whole. Would definitely recommend this book for fans of old Hollywood! 3.5 stars.

I was a bit more invested in the love story than Frankie’s search for her father, but I enjoyed this book!

Perfect summer story!

Description
Erika Montgomery's A Summer to Remember is "an unforgettable tale of love, loss and finding your place that glitters as brightly as the golden age of Hollywood."--Kristy Woodson Harvey, USA Today Bestselling author of Feels Like Falling

Best Debut Novels of Spring and Summer *Library Journal * Fresh Fiction * Booktrib

For thirty-year-old Frankie Simon, selling movie memorabilia in the shop she opened with her late mother on Hollywood Boulevard is more than just her livelihood—it’s an enduring connection to the only family she has ever known. But when a mysterious package arrives containing a photograph of her mother and famous movie stars Glory Cartwright and her husband at a coastal film festival the year before Frankie’s birth, her life begins to unravel in ways unimaginable.

What begins is a journey along a path revealing buried family secrets, betrayals between lovers, bonds between friends. And for Frankie, as the past unlocks the present, the chance to learn that memories define who we are, and that they can show us the meaning of home and the magic of true love.

Experience the salty breeze of a Cape Cod summer as it sweeps through this sparkling, romantic, and timeless debut novel tinged with a love of old Hollywood.

A Summer to Remember by Erika Montgomery

This was such an absorbing story and the perfect beach read that i got lost in!

It’s a heavier read but somehow still manages to have a lighthearted feel as these characters and their uncertainties unwind. This story became so much more than simply discovering the truth behind her father. The twists and character development were on point.

I highly recommend this book!

Thanks to Netgalley and publisher for allowing me to read this.

Loved reading this book and author. I highly recommend her and her books. Happy reading and enjoy her books and series

Thirty year old Frankie is operating her late mother's Hollywood movie memorabilia shop. It has only been the two of them her whole life and she is still grieving her loss. Frankie has never known who her father is. When letters and an old photo of what appears to be a famous movie couple surface in her mother's belongings, Frankie is drawn to go find out how her mother knew them and who her father might possibly be.


Overall, A Summer to Remember is a heartfelt, sentimental, escapist debut by Montgomery that was so much more than I ever expected, and I look forward to reading whatever lovely story she manages to come up with next

A Summer to Remember was romantic story with love, loss, friendship, and family secrets that had me hooked from the beginning. Erika Montgomery's debut novel spotlighted old Hollywood and the issues and joys of the famous in a beautiful way. Frankie Simon worked in her late mother's movie memorabilia store in Hollywood when she discovered that her mother had a young adult life that she didn't know about. When Frankie dug up some very old letters and a photograph of her, Glory Cartwright and her husband, she searches for answers in Cape Code. Frankie finds what she is looking for a more.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for allowing me to read A Summer to Remember for an honest review.