Summering on Nantucket in the mid-90s? Yes, please. Sheila, Ariel, Wyatt, and Nick would certainly agree with me. When these four strangers take summer jobs on the island, taking the only rooms still available in a half-way demolished hotel, they become fast friends. Ariel & Wyatt become a couple early on; Nick and Sheila find summer fun elsewhere on the island. Fast-forward twenty years and they are all returning to the island for a much-anticipated reunion. Except this time, Nick owns the swanky hotel that now stands where their hovel once was. And the other twist? Their kids are now the ones finding summer love on the island.

The book was a cute, fun beach read. Nothing much to think about, so if that’s what you’re after, this is the book for you! Nice, light-hearted romance can be a great escape once in a while. If this is what you’re looking for, I’d definitely say grab a copy at your local bookstore.

Thanks to the author, Random House and Netgalley for this ARC in return for my honest review.

I really liked this book. It’s a romance but also women’s fiction, and it’s beautifully written and plotted.
Without repeating the plot, four kids out of college end up living together in the basement of an old hotel. They have varied backgrounds and different values but they form a tight unit by necessity.
As adults, the four of them, their spouses and some of their adult children get together at the now beautifully restored hotel, owned by one of the original four. As they reminisce, their kids are off having adventures and romances the same way their parents did.

The characters are so well described, I felt like I knew them personally. I could follow this group and their lives in future books for sure. The descriptions of beautiful scenery, restaurants, and shopping of Nantucket bring the island alive.
I highly recommend this book, 5 stars.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.


Blurb:

When four strangers rent bargain-basement rooms in an old hotel near the beach, they embark on the summer of their lives. First there's Ariel Spencer, who has big dreams of becoming a writer and is looking for inspiration in Nantucket's high society. Her new friend Sheila Murphy is a good Catholic girl from Ohio whose desire for adventure is often shadowed by her apprehension. Then there's small-town Missourian Wyatt Smith, who's immediately taken with Ariel. The last of the four, Nick Volkov, is looking to make a name for himself and have a blast along the way. Despite their differences, the four bond over trips to the beach, Wednesday-night dinners, and everything that Nantucket has to offer. But venturing out on their own for the first time, with all its adventure and risks, could change the course of their lives.

Twenty-six years after that amazing summer, Ariel, Sheila, Wyatt, and Nick reunite at the hotel where they first met. Now it's called The Lighthouse and Nick owns the entire operation with his wife and daughter. Ariel and Wyatt, married for decades, arrive with their son, and Sheila's back too, with her daughter by her side. Life hasn't exactly worked out the way they had all hoped. Ariel's dreams have since faded and been pushed aside, but she's determined to rediscover the passion she once had. Nick has the money and reputation of a successful businessman, but is it everything he had hoped for? And Sheila has never been able to shake the secret she's kept since that summer. Being back together again will mean confronting the past and finding themselves. Meanwhile, the next generation discovers Nantucket: Their children explore the island together, experiencing love and heartbreak and forging lifelong bonds, just as their parents did all those years ago. It's sure to be one unforgettable reunion.

This delightful novel from beloved storyteller Nancy Thayer explores the potential of dreams and the beauty of friendship.

Summer Love by Nancy Thayer. They return to the island years later to get together to talk about things and to have a reunion. When they return and go down memory lane things take different directions. A Writers, finance, hotel owners., summer jobs. I like the characters better when they were younger. Nantucket sounds like a beautiful place. Summer Love is a good Summer read.

I love Nancy Thayer's Nantucket books. Summer Love once again explores friendships and relationships that span about 25 years. Four people came together as strangers with hopes and dreams. We get to see how successful these dreams were as the four reunite years later. A good beach read that will satisfy no matter what the season.

Once again, Nancy Thayer brings idyllic Nantucket to life. Twenty-five years ago, 4 strangers rent basement rooms in a broken down hotel. They all meet and click instantly, some better than others. Years later, when one of the main characters, Nick is a successful hotel owner, they all come together to reminisce of the summer together with families of their own.

The book alternates between summer of the past and summer of the present. I absolutely adored this book and all of the characters in it. Another win for Nancy Thayer!

I don't think I can ever truly write the review this book deserves.

I hung on every word this book dripped. I could not get enough. At times I forced myself to slow down, I just didn't want it to end. I don't think I will ever forget this unbelievable story and I will forever recommend this to everyone I know.

This book just pulls you right in by the heart strings. I was instantly captivated and fell in love with the characters. I felt as though I knew these people in real life. If you are looking for a book that is raw, emotional and give you all the feels, look no further, Summer Love, is the perfect book for you.

Nancy Thayer, is a true storyteller and nothing can compare to the perfect narration.

I am still left in awe after concluding this book last night. Wow, just wow.

5 stars.

I’ve been a fan of Nancy Thayer's novels for a long time, always loving that beach read feel in Nantucket. Unfortunately “Summer Love” wasn’t my favorite. The story with 2 different timelines kept me interested, but I found too many slow spots. Thank you NetGalley and Penguin Random House for the advanced copy!

Nancy Thayer is a master when it comes to writing about Summer Love. Four friends that go on vacation and speak of their dreams and come back together years later to find their lives turned out differently than they expected. In the second reunion of the group, they bring their children with them and they two experience some of what their parents did.

Nancy Thayer is a fantastic author and writes with such hope and honesty that the reader is pulled into each and every one of her books.

Thank you to #netgalley and #randomhousepublishing-berkley for allowing me to read the eARC of this book. All opinions expressed above are my own.

Summer Love is about a group of people that meet one day and then reunite 25 years later.
I have to say, this was not a favorite book for me. I usually love Nancy Thayer books and rave about them. This one just didn’t grasp me from the beginning which made it hard to keep on reading.
I would like to reread this book at a later time.
This may be a great summer read for others.
Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and author for the opportunity to read this book for my honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

This book felt a little slow to me. I enjoyed the present timeline more than the one of the past. I didn’t feel the 4 roommmates of the past were last close to come back together. They seemed to not like each other that much, which really just didn’t make sense for the book and it’s theme.

A lovely exploration of the beloved Nantucket, summer reunions & old friends. The atmosphere created was really well done & the island vibe was almost palpable. I did have some difficulty connecting with the characters as they felt a little two dimensional. The ending was rather anticlimactic and felt a little abrupt. Even still, I think this would be a good book for enjoying by the pool or on the beach. Nothing overly complicated, just an enjoyable, atmospheric beach read.

Summer Love
by: Nancy Thayer
Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Ballantine Books

With the island ambience of a Nantucket setting, Summer Love evokes feelings of nostalgia, longing, and memories. The "Sand Palace Four" spent one special summer on Nantucket Island in the nineties, and then returned twenty-five years later to reminisce, re-acquaint, and remember.

In 1995, Sharon Waters was renovating The Sand Palace hotel, circa 1970s. When four twenty-two-year-old college graduates arrived with their luggage, they had no idea how their lives would forever change in one fateful season. Waters offered them each one of four basement bedrooms in a wing of the hotel, so that they could work summer jobs and save money.

Thayer captured the spirt-filled hope of optimistic young men and women with their futures ahead of them. The sweet and well-off Ariel was from Massachusetts, working as a summer real estate receptionist. Red-haired Sheila from Ohio cleaned hotel rooms on the island. Wyatt was a geography major who got a job at Cabot's Marine, and handsome Nicolas from Harvard sold men's clothing at Fanshaw's.

The dual time-line delivers the foursome's stories, from each point of view, during their vulnerable young adulthood and in their later adult lives as they gather for a reunion. I was captivated as always with Thayer's writing, which embraces self-discovery and coming of age. I'm always satisfied with a Nancy Thayer book and the tender sentiments that her characters and idyllic settings bring me.

Thank you to Net Galley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Ballantine Books
for the advance reader's copy and opportunity to provide my unbiased review.

I have read several books by Nancy Thayer in the past, and found them quite enjoyable so I had high hopes for this one. Unfortunately, I felt like this one fell a little short for me. The POV switches between several character and the story does jump back and forth between past and present. This certainly impacted my ability to keep up with who was who and how everything was connected, but beyond that I really just didn't feel like I connected with any of these characters. I anticipated it being more a story about a close friend group, and really didn't get that close vibe in the story at all. It was a well written read, and certainly had it's moments but just wasn't quite as grabbing for me personally as I had hoped it would be. I would still certainly recommend giving this one a try if you enjoy Nantucket romances.

**I received a complimentary copy for consideration. All thoughts are my own.

I always look forward to the summer and Christmas books from Nancy Thayer. Even if the story is a bit predictable, they are always fun, entertaining and almost like a trip to Nantucket. You can’t ever really go wrong with that. Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for an advanced copy in exchange for my review.

Summer Love by Nancy Thayer is a story about friendship, summer fun, and secrets. Ariel, Nick, Sheila, and Wyatt have just graduated from college. The four of them have jobs on Nantucket Island for the summer. They are the lucky four who have obtained accommodations in the basement of a hotel under renovation. They work during the day and enjoy the island during their free time. Twenty-six years later, the four reunite at the same hotel that is now owned by Nick. They bring their children who are now in their early twenties just like they were when they first came to Nantucket. Their “children” become friends and set off to enjoy Nantucket Island. Summer Love is told in alternating chapters of this summer and that summer. The point-of-view alternates between the characters. We get to see the four roommates get to know each other and enjoy their summer on the island. The four were from differing backgrounds. Personally, I felt that they were not that close. The only reason they spent time together is because they were roommates. They even found each other annoying at times. The pacing is mixed in Summer Love. There are times it flew by and others when it moved at a snail’s pace. I found the story to be predictable and I thought the characters lacked development. The ending was just the end (anticlimactic). It did not feel like everything came together. Summer Love is the type of book you read when you want an uncomplicated book. It is a good vacation story (a beach read). I did feel that Nancy Thayer brought Nantucket Island alive. I could envision the island with its quaint shops, the beach, the ocean, and the dingy basement rooms. She also shows the diversity between the rich people who inhabit the island in the summer and the working class. Summer Love is reminiscent of those essays we had to write at the beginning of the school year that detailed what we did over the summer. Summer Love is a lighthearted tale about the scattered sand, the hot summer sun, the open ocean, plethora of parties, boastful bragging, a sinful secret, unsatisfied visions, and summer reunion.

Summer Love by Nancy Thayer is a women’s fiction novel. The story in Summer Love is one that is told in two timelines, one from the past, twenty six years ago, and one from the present. This is also a novel that changes the point of view between multiple characters in the past and present.

Twenty six years ago in Nantucket four strangers came together for the summer that shaped their lives. Ariel Spencer had come to work in Nantucket for the summer dreaming of one day becoming a writer. Wyatt Smith had his future plans of becoming a scientist. Sheila Murphy was planning her wedding to her longtime sweetheart and Nick Volkov had big dreams of one day owning the world.

Now, those same four friends are now returning to Nantucket all these years later with their children. Nick has made his dreams come true and became a businessman who is now opening a hotel in Nantucket so he invited the others to return. Ariel and Wyatt did marry after their summer together and Sheila went on to become a mother and wife herself and now all four have come to celebrate that summer that started it all.

I’ve read many a novel by author Nancy Thayer and have enjoyed each and every one including Summer Love. Immediately upon beginning to read I feel like I’ve stepped right out onto the island of Nantucket myself and got caught right up into the characters lives. The story unfolded in the past and present simultaneously with the children of the original four having their own coming of age summer right along with their parents before them and I was just as engaged by both timelines. Definitely an author I will continue to return to time and time again.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

This is a Women's Fiction book. I gave this book several tries, and I really wanted to love it. I just could not make myself care about any of the characters, and I could not get into this book. I received an ARC of this book. This review is my own honest opinion about the book like all my reviews are.

Summer Love is about four strangers who rent rooms in the basement of an old hotel in Nantucket for the summer. They bond, grow up, each have a job, and dreams. After the summer, they went back to the real world, They begin life as an adult, with responsibilities, and creating their life, their dreams, jobs, family, and moving on through their journey.
Twenty-six years later, they decide to have a reunion, in Nantucket, where it all began. Nick had bought the old hotel and fixed it up, so they had it there. They brought their family, where they caught up with what each had done. Their children started building a bond just like their parents had done. The last day of the reunion, their children all had jobs in Nantucket, and they were going to have their own summer on Nantucket.
It is the story of growing up, living life, and passing onto their children, to choose their own path.
I received an ARC from Ballantine Books through NetGalley.

Welcome to the beach read season! And a great start with 2 timelines set on Nantucket Island. Than…..set in 90’s, four college students get summer jobs, Nick, Sheila, Wyatt and Ariel. Four very different people and personalities but they became fast friends. Living in a dump of a soon to be torn down hotel, the Palace, but they have their own nickname….the Sand Palace. The story is about personal growth, finding themselves and finding love,
This…….set in present time, Nick dreams have come true and now owns the Hotel on Nantucket Island. It’s been 25 years since Nick seen his old roommates and he invites the other 3 and their families for a reunion, The others have met occasionally, but Nick was never invited. Time for a little bragging and showing off. Also watching as their adult children develop their own friendships.
I was swept away with the descriptions of Nantucket, was like a Staycation! Love the characters and their developments. Was a wonderful read.
Thank you NetGalley for this ARC. I am voluntarily posting an honest review after reading an Advance Reader Copy of this story. #NetGalley #SummerLove

Wow wow wow what a book this was!! I loved this fun little escape to the sunny shores of Nantucket.. giving me all those summery feels!!

Ariel, Sheila, Wyatt, and Nick all become fast-friends as they are chosen to be summer tenants in the basement at the Nantucket Palace hotel. Twenty-five years later, Nick now owns that hotel renaming it The Lighthouse. He invites the group back to where it all began. From there they renew that bond, also bringing their grown children into the mix—where they themselves find love, and learn how to make their own life choices.. regardless of what’s expected.

This impeccably sweet story of a reunion between the original four friends, their spouses, and the next generation to discover the magic of Nantucket has so much heart, it filled my soul with happiness. 💕

*Thanks to the publisher for the ARC. All opinions are my own.