I was so excited to receive an advance copy of Maine Characters by Hannah Orenstein! I’ve loved Hannah’s books and Maine Characters did not disappoint!

Maine Characters was like diving into a Elin Hilderbrand novel: the characters, writing style, setting, and food descriptions. I adored it all!

I can’t wait to recommend Maine Characters to anyone looking for a beach read this summer! I can’t wait to read whatever Hannah writes next!

Thank you to NetGalley and Dutton for an advanced copy of this book!

Although this book has been comped to The Parent Trap, the only thing they have in common is two women discovering they are sisters, half-sisters in this case. Though I disagree with the comp, I absolutely loved this book. In fact, it is definitely my favorite book by this author. I have read all five and it is nice to see her evolve and grow with each one. This one is not a romance, although there are small romantic subplots but it is about family, most specifically sisters. I loved how the relationship between Lucy and Vivian developed as well as the way the author doled out twists and secret reveals. The writing was beautiful descriptive, and I could practically see the sunset, smell the barbeque, and taste the wine. This book is a gem!

the cover pulled me in and it wasn't what i expected... it was okay..

the synopsis was right there for me to read it but i just didn't?? my brain just thinks pretty lakefront books are romances. this was a story of estranged sisters which i usually would love and i think i would've liked it more had i read it physically. this was okay overall, i didn't love either sister, but the setting was amazing and i need to be in maine yesterday.

A modern day Parent Trap with a twist!

When Vivian goes to her father's lake house in Maine to spread his ashes, she's greeted by her half sister, that she never knew existed. Lucy, Hank's other daughter, spent every July with him at the lake house in Maine, while Vivian was back home in New York City, thinking he was on a work trip. Vivian plans to sell the lake house, but Lucy wants it to stay in the family. With tension between the two sisters, who both have strong feelings about their father, will they be able to form a sibling bond, or will they leave the lake and go on with their lives individually?

This was a heartwarming book, with the FMCs having strong personalities. With one daughter who only saw her father once a month each year, and the other who grew up with him, they both have different views and opinions on the kind of father he was. It was interesting to see the mothers come into the picture, and learn the actual story behind the two sisters, and the reason they were kept hidden from each other all their lives. When the sisters kept learning more and more about the truth, it was interesting to see how they responded, and the way they receipted one another. This was my first Hannah Orenstein novel, but won't be my last!

What do you mean I wasn’t in Maine while I was reading this?! I truly felt so immersed in this setting and story, I couldn’t put it down.

"Maine Characters" by Hannah Orenstein is a charming book about family. The story follows Vivian and Lucy, two half-sisters who must spend the summer together at their father's lake house. The catch is, their father has passed recently away, and Vivian and Lucy didn't grow up together, so they have to get to know each other. There's plenty of banter since they couldn't be more different, but as time goes on, they start to bond.

This book is the perfect summer read. The setting is ideal: a lake house in Maine with small-town vibes. The plot is simple, and the writing flows easily. The characters are easy to get to know, and the story is emotional. However, despite everything seeming perfect, it didn't turn out to be a great reading experience for me. I couldn't quite get into Orenstein's writing style, and I found the language a bit flat and dull. So, for me, this book ended up being just average.

Overall, if you're looking for a light, heartfelt summer book with a beautiful setting and relatable characters, "Maine Characters" is worth a try. I think a lot of readers will enjoy this.

I don't know that I've ever disliked the main characters of a book so much. I was too irritated by them to actually enjoy the story and I just didn't care at all what was happening.

What a perfect summer read! I absolutely loved Vivian and Lucy’s relationship arc and cheered them on from the beginning. I found it refreshing that the focus truly was on the sisters and didn’t linger too long on any of the romance (which was great, but I wanted as many interactions between Vivian and Lucy as possible, and the author delivered!).

Thank you to NetGalley and Dutton Books for this eARC!

Happy pub day to MAINE CHARACTERS by @hannahorens! And thank you to @duttonbooks for the advanced reader copy.

Vivian Levy grew up in New York City with her mom and dad and every summer, she would spend a month at her family’s lake house in Maine with her dad. Lucy Webster grew up with a single mom in that same town and Maine and every summer, she would spend a month at that same lake house with that same dad - her dad.

After her dad dies suddenly on Father’s Day, Vivian meets Lucy, who she has never met but long suspected existed in some form. Lucy, by contrast, has always known about Vivian from afar. They are two half sisters bonded by two things: the bad decisions of the same man and by a love for their lake house. It’s got woodsy parent trap vibes but with wine.

Hannah was actually the first person I ever met from the internet, and in the many, many years we have lived since high school, her love for her family’s lake house in Maine, with its beautiful sunsets and precious loon babies, has never wavered. This book is so clearly a love letter to that lake house and the experience of living in a small town and everything that comes with it. There’s a trained sommelier who wows a love interest with wine picks, there’s grief, there’s bad decisions relating to boys, and there’s a developing relationship between two sisters forced to grapple with the fact that their lives are not quite as they thought.

I’ve read all of Hannah’s books and this is by far her best: a love letter to the lake and to relationships of all kinds and to really excellent sunsets. I loved it.

2.5 ★

thank you to Dutton for sending me an ARC!

This story follows Vivian and Lucy, two half-sisters grieving the loss of their father, Hank. Hank held secrets about his past from both daughters, which comes to shock both of them upon uncovering his lies after his death while figuring out what to do with his beloved lake house. Of course, things are tense between Vivian and Lucy (for good reason). It’s always awkward when you request an ARC and end up not liking it, but I really just couldn’t help it. I tried to like this one I promise!

I think at first the author wants us to “pick a side” with Vivian and Lucy, but they both acted pretty unreasonable in my opinion and it caused them to be pretty unlikable. I couldn’t pick anyone’s side. I wrote this off assuming they’d grow to be likable at some point but they just … didn’t. Any character growth that happened throughout the story felt either inauthentic or rushed and time and time
again I found myself being frustrated with all of these characters; including the dad, his wife, his old girlfriend, and the two daughters….so, everyone. When a story has no other plot outside of the character’s development, it’s even more important since there’s no plot to distract from the characters. Ultimately that’s why I’m rating this so low, unfortunately. What a bummer, because I really wanted to like this one!

This was okay for me. I really liked the setting and I wanted to visit there when I finished the book. I also liked the different layers of drama which made the story engaging. There is parental drama, sibling drama, romantic drama all of which layered across the story.

The biggest problem for me were the main characters. I found both Lucy and Vivian unrelatable, petty, and childish. I understand that they were dealing with and processing a lot but it seemed like they kept having the same issues and arguments over and over. The book dragged on because there was very little growth or headway with these two until the end.

Overall this was an good story if you like family drama but it definitely could have been shorter.

Maine Characters by Hannah Orenstein released today and is the summer 2025 book you need on your shelf! 🐟🚤🫐

First of all, THIS COVER! 😮‍💨 Absolutely stunning. I was intrigued by the cover and the story just grabbed me by the heart and didn’t let go. 🌅

Readers of Annabel Monaghan and Katherine Center I think will enjoy this book! I loved the exploration of boundaries and romantic relationships of the various characters in various ages and stages of life. This wasn’t a 20-something girl trying to find love, which is a plot I have been finding it hard to get invested in. Not here! 👏🏻

There is also the pretty heavy hitting idea of finding out you have a half-sibling as an adult and watching Lucy and Vivian navigate that was really interesting.

I went into this book honestly based on the cover alone and a pretty minimal understanding of the plot and I am pleased to report that this was the five star read I needed to slide into the summer! 😎

Thanks so much to NetGalley and Dutton for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review. Out today!!

I enjoyed the dual pov and the storyline. The concept was good and the plot ended up playing out well.

The characters were not likeable for the first 2/3rds of the book. The story and wanting to find out what happens is what kept me interested in reading and I'm glad the characters had such drastic changes to their personalities by the end of the book. I think the story ended well but would have loved a little more in an epilogue.

I will not lie: I was 10000% dragging my feet through the first half of this book, but after getting about 60% of the way through, things started to turn around and I was able to enjoy it a little more. So let's start with what I liked:
-the COVER. omg it's gorgeous.
-the setting. idyllic lakeside abode in Maine? Small-town cuteness? Yes please.
-Some of the minor side characters, like Caleb and Dawn.
-Very solid writing- the author knows what she's doing!!
-The ending was very sweet and more touching than I expected.

But unfortunately, this story was not my favorite overall. I found the main(e) characters to be absolutely insufferable, and so insanely emotionally immature and unlikable that at times I couldn't remember if I was reading about 12 year olds or 30-something's. It seemed like everyone in this book was angry and dramatic just for the heck of it. Some of the arguments were valid, but it seemed like no one actually communicated, and when they did it was like pulling teeth. I like reading about juicy family drama, but this just felt petty. I also didn't love how this book made infidelity and having an unhappy marriage seem like an inevitable thing.

I think this story has promise, and for the a different person it might be a hit, but for me it just didn't land quite as well. I would definitely check out other books by this author because as mentioned above, she writes really great descriptive scenes!

Thank you NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for providing this ARC for me to read and review!!

I enjoy Hannah Orenstein and thought this was an interesting premise but it fell flat for me. I really struggled to get into this one.

Thank you to NetGalley and Dutton for providing me with an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review!
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Every summer, Vivian Levy and Lucy Webster spend a month with their father at his lake house — separately. Raised in New York City, Vivian is an ambitious sommelier with a secret that could derail her future. Lucy grew up in a tiny Maine town, where she now teaches high school English while watching her marriage unravel. They’ve never met. While Lucy envied her half-sister from afar, their father kept Vivian in the dark.

When Vivian arrives at the lake to spread his ashes and sell his cabin, she's shocked to find Lucy there, awaiting his return. In an ideal world, they’d help each other through their grief. Instead, forced to spend the summer together, they fight through a storm of suspicion and hostility to untangle the messy truth about their parents’ pasts. While Lucy is desperate to hold onto the house, Vivian is scrambling after a betrayal. After thirty years apart, is it too late for them to be a family?

For fans of Carley Fortune and Elin Hilderbrand, this sister story set on a lush lake brims with the undeniable heart, depth, charm, and humor that have endeared Hannah Orenstein to legions of readers.
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I was initially drawn to this book because I am someone who spent time each summer in Maine in my formative years, so books that take place there call to me. When I read in the description that it would appeal to fans of Carley Fortune and Elin Hilderbrand, I was even more intrigued because those are two of my auto-buy authors. Well, I am so glad that I got the chance to read this book! It is filled with rich characters, a beautiful setting, and plenty of action. I love reading books about sisters, and the story of the relationship between Vivian and Lucy is complex and beautifully written. There is complexity and nuance to the plot, and just when you think that something predictable has happened, a pleasant surprise comes along, and suddenly a bit of a twist has occurred. I had never read this author before, but I will certainly check out her back catalog. This is a great summer read for someone who is looking for an escape to the lake!

The cover is so cute. I was drawn in by the setting in Maine. I struggled to connect with both Vivienne and Lucy. I’m not sure why the characters were made to be almost opposites. Vivienne was mean. Really, they were both pretty immature for their age. I think the storyline could have been more impactful without all the love triangles. I was hoping for a heart tugger.

Look at this gorgeous cover 😍

I loved the setting, a beautiful lake house in Maine. Living in New England and having been to Maine and Portland, it felt like a love letter to them and to summer in New England.

I enjoyed the dual POV from each sister. Lucy started out a bit insufferable for me (though I didn’t agree with all of Vivian’s choices either). But then, as the book went on and their relationship grew closer and each woman made new choices, I grew to like them both.

I did feel the book dragged on a bit, and much of the beginning or middle could have been omitted. There were times it felt slow and I felt myself becoming annoyed with the sisters and their actions. However, the ending was touching (albeit a bit abrupt). I would’ve loved for the story to play out a little more, but I’m genuinely happy with where each sister was at the end; physically, mentally, and emotionally.

⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Thank you Penguin Group Dutton and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I started this story very hopeful. Two sisters who are just getting to know each other and journeying through grief together and I had such high hopes for the journey they would go on. Unfortunately, they drove me crazy. I would have thought they were very young women if I wasn't told that they were in their 30s. Vivian came off as so self centered and awful and then it seemed like Lucy stooped down to her level. Then the complicated love story that involves cheating, which I'm never a fan of. I kept reading but the story never quite recovered enough for me to rant and rave about this one, unfortunately.

Thank you Net Galley, Penguin Group, and Hannah Orenstein for an eARC of this story.

Every summer, Vivian Levy and Lucy Webster spend a month with their father at his lake house — separately. Raised in New York City, Vivian is an ambitious sommelier with a secret that could derail her future. Lucy grew up in a tiny Maine town, where she now teaches high school English while watching her marriage unravel. They’ve never met. While Lucy envied her half-sister from afar, their father kept Vivian in the dark.

When Vivian arrives at the lake to spread his ashes and sell his cabin, she’s shocked to find Lucy there, awaiting his return. In an ideal world, they’d help each other through their grief. Instead, forced to spend the summer together, they fight through a storm of suspicion and hostility to untangle the messy truth about their parents’ pasts. While Lucy is desperate to hold onto the house, Vivian is scrambling after a betrayal. After thirty years apart, is it too late for them to be a family?

I adore this cover! If you loved The Parent Trap, I think you’ll enjoy Maine Characters. Think Parent Trap, but with adult children (with adult problems and drama). Thoroughly enjoyed reading this, picturing the beautiful Maine lake scenes in my mind.

Maine Characters is out today! (5/13/25)

Thanks to @netgalley and @duttonbooks for access to this book in exchange for an honest review.