I know Mary Kay Andrew’s has been writing for ages but she’s still a newish to me author. After enjoying Homewreckers and devouring The Newcomer, I was excited to receive an ARC for Summer at the Saint! MKA did a wonderful job mixing up murder, mystery and romance. It was a fast, fun read and will be perfect for the beach.

Thanks NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the advance copy.

I am always blown away by Mary Kay Andrews, I liked learning about the Saint and all the people who worked there. I enjoyed the mystery as well. SUMMER AT THE SAINT is a fun, novel that I know my customers will enjoy. I will be recommending this one.

Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for my gifted copy.

There was so much going on in this book. The setting was lovely and the characters were mostly likeable, but there were too many storylines and characters to keep track of. I had very high expectations for this book, as I adore Mary Kay Andrews' work, but I finished this novel feeling somewhat disappointed. Don't get me wrong, the book was fine, but I did not feel as though it lived up to the standards that Andrews has set with her previous works. 3.5/5 stars

I went into reading this book blindly and was pleasantly surprised by it! This is my first Mary Kay Andrews book and I can't wait to read more of her books. I liked how easily the book flowed, there were never any boring parts! The part where Felice and Livvy try to solve the mystery themselves was really interesting. This book kept me up all night, it was definitely a page turner!

I can't pass up the chance to read a new Mary Kay Andrews book. MKA did not disappoint me. A mix of mystery and women's fiction. I loved the setting and the descriptions have me wanting to take a vacation at the Saint.
Family drama, southern beach resort, twists and turns, friendship, scandal, murder and romance. A fantastic book to take and read on the beach!

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the opportunity to read this book.

Traci, a widowed owner of the hotel, St. Cecelia, is determined to return the Saint to its former glory. Staff shortages and her rude brother in law try to stand in her way, but she find a few great hires who love their job and want to help the Saint be successful. When one of the summer staff dies, questions come up and so many secrets begin to be uncovered.

I love Mary kay Andrews and her writing. Although her stories are longer, there is romance, mystery, friendship, secrets, and so much more. Like all of Andrews’ books, they are complex, have a bunch of characters, and multiple storylines going. It can be a lot to follow but I love them and find them more interesting than mindless reads since there is more to pay attention to.

A summer at the St. Cecelia resort (“the Saint.”) promises sun and fun for the posh and privileged. Traci Eddings, the widowed owner of the Saint is facing increasing budget crises post-pandemic. Tracy has big plans for the summer to revive the resort but is stopped short when a young woman is found murdered on the property. As she and the town look into the present murder, it turns out to be more connected to past sins at the Saint than anyone realized.

Unfortunately, while this one had a lot of promise, it fell short for me. It straddles genres, which is impressive, but surprisingly as someone who loves beach reads, romance. and thrillers/mysteries, this just didn't meld the genres the way I wanted. There are a lot of characters and it can be difficult to keep them all straight as the perspectives jump all over the place. Because of that, many of the chapters start with a pretty lengthy recap which became drawn and repetitive. Most of the "twists" I could see coming a mile away and it took a frustratingly long time to get there. That said, I loved a handful of the characters and the main character, Traci, is a heroine worth rooting for.

Thank you to Netgalley, St. Martin's Press, and Mary Kay Andrews or the ARC

I am so sad I didn’t love this one. I have read and loved the last 5 novels from this author. This book just had so much going on. I also felt like it included a lot of harmful stereotypes and cliches. I wish the book had been a shorter, and had some more editing.

Tracy is trying to keep the exclusive resort, the Saint, up and running after COVID. She's trying to increase salaries, provide a place for staff to live, hire more people—the list is endless. Plus, she's mourning the loss of her husband four years ago.
Things are going well until someone turns up dead. Before time, could she figure out what was happening at the Saint? Can it be saved?

As always, MKA gives you those wonderful summer vibes with mystery, romance, and laughs. It is a great beach read.

While I enjoyed the twists and turns of this book, some parts were a little slow. Particularly the part right before the murder of Parrish. Nonetheless, I do love Mary Kay Andrew’s writing! I would recommend this book!

Summers at the Saint was my first read by Mary Kay Andrews and I was so happy it was! I rated this book 4 stars. From the beginning, the story was so close to a 5 star read to be but the story felt drawn out and slow in the middle but picked back up speed towards the end. The overall story and plot gave me major Outer Banks vibes with people from all walks of life being thrown together at the Saint. I truly loved all the background chapters at the begging. This allowed me to connect to each character indignantly and know their role in the story. The writing was beautiful with a good mix of dialogue and descriptions. A few plot twists I certainly never saw coming! I also loved the way that as a reader, I never knew who to fully trust. This definitely kept me engaged as I didn’t know exactly where the story was going. I also think the ending summed the story up wonderfully and I was happy at the end! I already can’t wait to dive into another Mary Kay Andrews book!

A review will also be posted to my Bookstagram account: _pagesandplants_

Summers at the Saint was just okay. It wasn’t good or bad, but just a predictable easy story to read. It became a little more exciting near the end which helped with finishing the book. There were so many far-fetched parts, but that’s okay. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to read this book!

TLDR: Easy murder-mystery beach read, but not one of my favorites. 3.5 stars.

Traci Eddings has taken over running the storied Saint Cecelia Hotel after her husband's untimely death. As she prepares for another summer running the Saint, she's met with the departure of some of her key staff members. With an eye towards enticing new people to work at the storied hotel, she decides to take a tip from the past and build staff housing to help with the high property costs in the area. Her niece Parrish, her ex-best friends daughter, Livvy, wait staff Garrett, affluent KJ, and head chef Felice take up residence in the staff house and are the key, Traci hopes, to reviving the Saint to its glory days. After the murder of one of their own, and a death from the past coming back to threaten the resort's future, Traci has to work to solve the mysteries of the past and a murder that hits close to home in order to save her beloved hotel.

This was my first Mary Kay Andrews book and I found it to be an easy beach read. The story was good, the setting was there, but I just didn't connect with the characters or the writing. The characters were one dimensional and the grief that was a center of the novel wasn't deep enough to be believable.

Liked, but didn't love.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

The Saint Cecelia Resort sprawls along the Georgia coastline. It's huge and pink and full of tradition. The Eddings family built it long ago and still runs it today. If you grew up coming to "The Saint" you were considered a "Saint". If you were from the wrong side of the river you were considered an "Ain't". Scandals run in this family and Traci, wife of the late son, is slowly learning about them. She is trying to make the wrongs right and put the guilty ones in their place. I loved this book! I highly recommend it. Thanks to NetGalley for allowing me to read the ARC of this book.

I received an arc from the publisher for an honest review.

I loved it, It will be a huge hit this summer as one of the best beach reads of 2024.

The story takes place at a historic hotel on the coast of Georgia. The main characters are a “family” that has inherited and runs the hotel. It has romance, heartache, humor and a little mystery too. Some of the characters are very likable and others not so much but each plays an important role in the story.

Put this one on your TBR list and enjoy with the summer sun!

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and Macmillan Audio for the gifted copies.

Summers at the Saint is Mary Kay Andrews at her best. It’s got mystery, romance, family drama, and plenty of coastal southern charm - as do all her books! It’s another solid installment from the Queen of the Beach-Read-Mystery. I recommend this to anyone who’s enjoyed previous MKA books, anyone who wants a beach read with a bit more complexity than most, or anyone missing the the South this summer.

The narrator, Kathleen McInerney, does a great job per usual. She’s narrated many MKA novels and novellas and I’ve come to associate her voice with strong female protagonists and southern beach towns. Highly recommend!

This book had all the right pieces- great characters, an interesting plot, twists and turns when you need them. I really enjoyed almost everything about Summers at the Saint and would highly recommend. I especially loved Tracy and Livvy as characters. There aren’t many books that have a murder/mystery AND feel good/borderline romance feel to it. This one did and it worked so well!

You guys! Let’s talk
I’ve been going through and reading Mary Kay Andrew books so far this is my favorite!
The story takes place in Florida, main character says that she loves the saint. The saint is a resort hotel and as a teenager, she grows up and actually gets a job there, and throughout the beginning of the book 1st couple of chapters, it mentions that she marries the owners son.
Now, as an adult, she’s struggling to keep her business afloat in the new wave of this next generation battling the traditions of the old generation! as you go through the story, there are some tragedies that happen, and some mysteries from present time and past. And a little love interest. Just keep in mind that MarykayAndrews is so amazing at creating these characters that have such death to them and also if you would mind that every character mentioned has a very very big storyline. As a native Floridian, this story taking place in Florida, gave me all the vibes I needed to get me started to transition from spring to summer..
Thank you NetGalley I had the privilege of reading both the audiobook and the e-book !!!
#netgalley #summeratthesaint

This is the perfect beach read! It is set at a luxe resort on the Georgia coast and offers the perfect setting for an escape through a captivating story. The Saint is run by a family, and lots of family drama provides a backdrop to how the resort—including some new staff—functions during one memorable summer (with lots of references to another summer in the past). The story involves multiple mysteries, including murder and attempted murder, plus a host of other crimes. There are a lot of characters, most of whom are quite interesting, and how they work together makes for an engaging story—once I started I did not want to put it down. Thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This wasn't quite what I was expecting. This is a murder mystery wrapped in family drama. And there is A LOT of family drama. If you are looking for a zany, humorous beach read, keep looking. If you want a complex tale that flashes back occasionally about twenty years earlier, this is your book.

I enjoyed the story, and I didn't guess the killer before the big reveal.

Not family friendly due to drug and alcohol use, profanity, and adult situations.