The Summer Place, by Jennifer Weiner

Put this on your summer reading list for an easy beach read.

Told through the lens of the various main characters (including the point of view of the house!), each chapter flows from the present to the past, helping us understand how they got to the place they find themselves. The plot twists are a bit extreme and far-fetched. I mean, even one of the "coincidences" would have been hard to. believe but the perfect storm of disruption reminded me of the soap operas I watched back in the day. That said, Weiner's writing is strong enough to hold it together and suspend belief enough to keep the pages turning. I found myself rooting for each of them, wanting them to make good choices, disappointed when they didn't, excited for the small victories.

The family is, for the most part, likable - ordinary decent people holding their family together the best they can. Supporting each other through tragedy and through celebrations. It's their secrets that end up causing the biggest conflicts and I kept hoping for a big family therapy session. Geesh some of the secrets were uncomfortable but certainly not the end of the world (though of course others were huge betrayals of trust). I loved the family matriarch (Ronnie, Veronica, Safta) but found her daughter (Sarah) who is presented as a sympathetic character, to be overprivileged and self-indulgent though she is somewhat redeemed by the end.

Weiner does a good job incorporating details that hold together the current realities of (post?) pandemic life.
I happened to have spent much of the pandemic in Park Slope and smiled at some of the familiar places like Prospect Park and customs (like the Buy Nothing Group that Eli joins) and the dog. At first, I found the details of this period of time annoying but so much has defined and shaped us over these two years and some of that is reflected in the annoying details of mask-wearing and the impact of quarantine. And certainly the lock-down brought to light bigger questions of life choices as we faced our mortality and examined our priorities.

As someone with a deep appreciation and respect for blended families, I wish that the focus on "step" was a little less prominent. Family is family and constantly pointing it out felt like maybe the stepkids aren't as integrated into their heart as the parents want to believe. Oh and does Connor's grandfather ever actually die?! Both Connor and Ruby have a parent who leaves them but the abandonment issues didn't really seem to be dealt with - how is/will the next generation be impacted because of the family secrets and dynamics?

But maybe the point of the book is that no family is perfect and learning how to live and love better is a constant process.


emotional funny hopeful lighthearted medium-paced
Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75 stars

So this is my first Jennifer Weiner book, and I really enjoyed it. the main character is Sarah, who is wedding planning for her stepdaughter during the pandemic. Sarah has been Ruby's stepmother since she was a child. Ruby's relationship with her boyfriend that she met during the pandemic Gabe, has moved very quickly because of Covid. They decide they want to get married on Cape Cod in only a few months at the home owned by Sarah's mother, Ronnie. Meanwhile, Ronnie plans to sell the family beach front home but has not told anybody as of yet. As wedding planning gets deeper and deeper, so much family drama is revealed. Sarah's husband, Eli, has been weird and distant from her. Sarah's old boyfriend reappears in her life, Ronnie revisits her past relationship and Sarah's twin brother, Sam, explores his sexuality after a tragic loss. There is a lot going on in this story and the end is shocking! You must read this to find out the rest.

The Levy-Feinberg family is coming out of the pandemic preparing for a wedding on Cape Cod, but each member of the family seems to have a secret they are waiting to deal with "after the wedding". This was a wonderful family saga, and it was told by alternating the focus of each chapter from one character to another. For once, this device didn't make the novel feel choppy - each character was fully fleshed out with their own problems and concerns, and I found myself eager to keep reading more. Although there were one or two twists that seemed a bit contrived (characters' lives intertwining in unexpected ways), I really enjoyed this novel and would highly recommend it.

In The Summer Place, Jennifer Weiner makes her triumphant return to "queen of the summer beach reads." Her last book, That Summer, though excellent, was much darker and serious in tone, due to the sexual assault and aftermath detailed in the novel. Here, Weiner acknowledges how the seriousness of the Covid-19 pandemic has made us long for lightest fare and she delivers in her latest installment.

Ronnie Levy-Weinberg loves her home on Cape Cod and only wishes that her family, her adult twins, Sam and Sarah and their children would visit her there more often. When her beloved step-granddaughter Ruby announces her intentions to get married to her "pandemic" boyfriend Gabe on Cape Cod, Ronnie is hopeful that Ruby's wedding will bring everyone in the family together one last time before she intends to sell her beloved home.

Meanwhile her children are struggling through their own personal issues. Her son Sam is coping with single fatherhood as he deals with the untimely death of his wife Julie. He's also startled to come to terms with new revelations about his sexual identity and is looking forward to further exploration on Cape Cod. His sister Sarah is insistent that her husband Eli is having an affair as he's been remote and distant from her since the pandemic began. When she runs into her first love, Owen, Sarah's feelings for this unresolved relationship re-ignite.

As everyone descends on Cape Cod for Ruby's wedding, including Ruby's estranged mother Annette, Eli's playboy brother Ari, and Gabe's quiet and secretive mother Rosa, secrets will be revealed and revelations will reverbate through all gathered. Life will never quite be the same.

Weiner creates a family drama with some twists worthy of a telenovela. Multiple narrators keep the plot moving and help draw us into the dysfunctional family circle. It's relatable and refreshing and its awesome to see Jennifer Weiner in her element.

*Also look for a cool cameo from a character from That Summer!

The Summer Place is the perfect Summer read! I was not expecting the depth of not one, but multiple characters. Each chapter focused on a different family member and their own personal struggles. What a lesson this book teaches....everyone is dealing with their own personal challenges. We are not all that different from each other. I throughly enjoyed every page!

Does everyone have a secret? Something they have never, ever told anyone? Has just about everyone had an affair? In The Summer Place, it seems like it.

After the pandemic eases, Ruby, a 22-year old headstrong young woman announces to her family that she and her boyfriend Gabe are getting married--in 3 months. At her step-grandmothers house in Cape Cod. While Sarah, the stepmother is shocked, she is not surprised. Just surprised that Roby would tell her mother first.

We then go into everyone's previous life. Eli is with Annette, Ruby's mom. Annette is not happy when they stop traveling and she is pregnant. She ends up leaving while Ruby is still a baby. Eli raises Ruby the best way he can, and then he meets Sarah. Sarah is a twin who hoped to become a musician. She and Eli have two children of their own, Dexter and Miles, and Ruby is in their life, because no one has seen or heard from Annette. However, when COVID hits, Eli is distant, Sarah is restless, and life goes on. Not without a few hiccups.

Sam is Sarah's twin, and while he lives in California, something is missing. He talks to his sister and mother frequently, but there is just something.

Meanwhile, Eli is not having an affair or anything, he's just trying to figure out if something that happened a long time ago could be rearing its ugly head and how to deal with it. While protecting (or ignoring?) his family.

As the backstory continues, it seems everyone has had at least one illicit affair! Unfortunately, at one point I almost needed a scorecard! Because everyone's circle intersects again.

I generally LOVE to read a Jennifer Weiner novel. I love intricate family stories. But there was something missing in The Summer Place. I wanted to keep reading this one to get to the good, happy place at the end. To get to The Summer Place. But we never quite got there. We were just at the sort-of-happy place. in Cape Cod. And while some questions were answered, too many weren't.

Jennifer Weiner never disappoints! I can never get enough of the settings in Cape Cod. I have never been and it seems like such a fascinating and mysterious place. I really loved all of the alternating perspectives in this book and how all the stories eventually wound together. The character creation and development is truly outstanding. This was quite the intriguing family story. Thank you to Netgalley and Atria Books for the ARC.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this ARC.
I loved the story. The characters were believable and lovable. I loved how each had their own story, how their stories kept you thinking.. Wow!, Oh Boy! This is gonna be interesting!
Would definately recommend this book.

This was a very busy book with a lot happening to and involving many characters. At the core, it involved preparations for a wedding for an unlikely couple wh quarantined together over COVID. Personally, it was, at times, difficult to follow, and equally difficult to care about the many flawed family members, each carrying his/her plethora of secrets. In the end, I'm glad I did not pay for this one. Thank you to NetGalley for the preview copy.

I say this after every Jennifer Weiner book I read: This is her best yet! Such a timely family drama (with humor) taking place at the end of Covid, with flashbacks for character information. I couldn’t put it down, needing to find out what’s next or what bombshell is coming. I highly recommend this funny, heartwarming, tear jerking story. Put it on your TBR!

I am a huge Jennifer Weiner fan, and this book did not disappoint! We follow a family as they reunite in Cape Cod for a wedding. I love the different perspectives. The reader gets to dive into each character's life and follow as their secrets begin to unfold.

I so loved this book. If it’s summer it’s time to read Jennifer Weiner

A true storyteller and this book did not disappoint!

Thanks to the publisher, Atria Books, and NetGalley for the chance to read the latest book by Jennifer Weiner as an ARC. I was excited to start this but soon found it dragging. There are so many characters and so many storylines to follow. There are graphic sex scenes, both heterosexual and homosexual, just a warning. I, like other reviewers, felt that this book jumped around a lot and was hard to follow all the storylines. Too much COVID as part of the story too. I understand authors wanting to keep their stories relevant to the times, but it seems like every story I pick up lately has the pandemic as part of the storyline. Anyway, it was a good story, and I kept reading to see how it all played out. But not my favorite recent read, by far.

The first thing you need to know about The Summer Place is that it's meant to evoke A Midsummer Night's Dream. If I had realized that before reading it, I would have been more tolerant of all the coincidence, secrecy, and 1980s sit-com-style misunderstandings. I was prepared to complain about the overwhelming coincidence of Eli and Rosa, but I'm over it now. :) You will be too, if you know what you're in for on page 1.

I love Jennifer Weiner. I've read everything she's ever written, for better and worse, and this one is on the better end. It may even be my favorite of hers ever, and that's saying something. After a bit of a slow start, we find out that Eli, Sarah, and their daughter, Ruby, all have things to hide and things they've left unsaid. Sarah's brother, Sam, their mom, Ronnie, and many other characters all have their secrets, too, and all those secrets end up overlapping in ways that are both heartbreaking and humorous. In typical unlikely Shakespearean comedy fashion, all ends well, but not until we've endured some major misunderstandings and mistakes from everyone concerned.

I didn't love these characters, at least not in the way I've loved Weiner's characters in other books. They're all flawed, some are less likable than others, and they all make REALLY stupid decisions. But there was something about them that made me root for them, and be happy for them when everything ended up okay. Sort of like people I know in real life, I guess. You also have to really like character-driven books to enjoy this one -- it's all about back story and flashbacks.

One weird character choice that didn't work for me: the house itself. The "summer place" in question gets its own limited point of view, and it's weird and off-putting. I didn't mind it in the prologue, but when it showed up again later, I was annoyed. Not a big deal, though -- just a minor thing I found buggy.

A character I did love? Cape Cod itself. This is, I believe, Weiner's third book in a row set on the Cape, and although I've never been there, it sounds like a magical place. I've loved the way it plays such an important role in her books.

The ending is a bit rushed, and there's one loose end that never gets tied up. Not sure how I felt about that, to be honest. But ultimately all's well that ends well, and Shakespeare would be happy about that.

Thanks to NetGalley and to the publisher for allowing me this sneak peek in exchange for my opinion.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ ½
Genre: Contemporary

It is difficult to give a short synopsis for this book because a lot is going on there. The official synopsis makes you feel that Sarah is the main character and that the others are supportive characters. This is not true. This is a story where all the characters get the same importance. Each one of them plays a crucial part in the lives of the other. Sarah Danhauser in her 40s is a stepmother, a wife, and a daughter. She plays all these roles differently and as the story keeps progressing the different layers of her characters become more visible to the readers. This is true about all the other characters as well. The catalyst of this story is the wedding of Ruby (Sarah’s stepdaughter) and her friend Gabe.

Everything revolves around this wedding initially. All the involved characters have something to do with this new union. But as we progress in the story the author brilliantly unfolds all about the past and present secrets of these characters. All this goes on during the pandemic and months of isolation. Ruby’s decision to marry this boyfriend (Gabe) she knew for a few months during the pandemic seems to be a hasty decision that makes her have second thoughts. Does she even know Gabe well enough to tie the knot? Gabe himself has a secret that someone from the family gets to know!

Sarah’s husband Eli is a well-known dentist who is extremely nervous about this wedding due to a connection to a mistake he has done many years back! Will that secret come out? If it does, it might destroy his family!

Sam, Sarah’s twin brother has lost his wife. After years of marriage, the man struggles with his sexuality. He never thought that he would be attracted to men! He is not accustomed to the gay partying lifestyle. What will he do?

The book has many characters so you need to have some focus but believe me it is totally worth it. I feel the story could’ve been a little shorter than what it is but still, that does not take away from it as it is filled with drama. If you enjoy reading about family drama then this should be a must-read. The story is told from several characters’ POVs and fortunately, the narration is in a third-party style which makes it a lot easier to follow. The book is a mixture between a plot-driven story as well as a character-driven tale. However, I feel the characters’ influence on the story is much bigger. What I appreciate the author doing is including so many issues that are relevant to many families in this book be it, love, infidelity, trust, sexuality, grief, and friendship. There is a lot to read about here. A few years ago I have read Mrs. Everything by the same author and liked it a lot. I’m loving this book even more than that one. I think Jennifer Weiner has a winner here.

Many thanks to the publisher Atria Books and NetGalley for providing me with an advance reader copy of this book.

3.5 stars
While I like Jennifer Weiner’a writing style and think she does a great job with character development, I wasn’t a huge fan of this particular book. There were multiple characters’ POV, which sometimes made it difficult to keep track of certain smaller details & storylines. It also felt like there were too many coincidences or as if complex feelings and situations were too exaggerated.

At the same time, I did find the book engrossing as I wanted to learn what happened with each of the characters.

I received this book for free in exchange for a honest review.

Keeps me thinking

I read this book a few days ago. While the author is a favorite of mine, I had a hard time getting caught up in the plot. It is told in alternating views from many people and even a house. For me it was too many views and I found myself popping out of my app and checking the weather, etc. more than I would have liked. But now that I have had time to reflect upon it, I really appreciate the way it handled how we all change and how our memories of the way things happened may not be the same as how someone else remembers them and definitely mot the same as reality. It did make me look back on some of my horrible choices with a little more compassion.

The pretty wild coincidences were a bit much. The fact that the odds of one of them occurring were mentioned, but there were several unlikely events.

All in all a solid book.

I really loved this story about a blended family, planning a wedding during COVID-19. Their histories, their personalities, and the settings enabled me to suspend disbelief and be entertained. There are also a lot of sex scenes which were intriguing, few writers seem to incorporate this anymore. One of my favorite authors prevails again! Thank you Jennifer Weiner for writing this entertaining book and to NetGalley for the ARC.

This was exactly the fun, quick read I hoped it would be! Weiner wonderfully writes each of the characters and immediately draws you into their world. Add this to your list of summer reads.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. However I found there to be a lot of moving parts. The first half of the book I was having trouble keeping up with who was who. By the end things made sense, but I do wish there has been one less plot line. All in all, a fun, fast read!