An easy summer read for those taking a week-long trip to their local island and looking to start and finish a book during their vacation.

Told from the POV of Faith—David's girlfriend who was invited to spend the a few weeks with him at his summer home on Hadley Island—Orla, who hasn't been back on the island since her best friend disappeared 15 years ago—and Henry—the man who was accused of killing Orla's best friend, Alice. As the summer heat of summer sets in, Orla begins to reminice on the past: her childhood crush on the son of the island's wealthiest family, her friendship with Alice, and worst of all that fateful night that severed both relationships for good. When another girl, Gemma, goes missing, everyone is on edge. And as the Fourth of July approaches, it becomes harder and harder to ignore that history may be repeating itself...

While I guessed the culprit pretty early on, I enjoyed the simplicity of the story and the build up of suspense. Each character was important and well-developed rather than having a bunch of side characters that came off shallow. All in all, a wonderful summer read!

Thank you NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for the opportunity to read this book ahead of publication!

⭐️⭐️⭐️✨ (3.5 stars)
Dead of Summer had all the ingredients for a compelling mystery—an eerie island setting, long-buried secrets, and a decades-old disappearance—but somehow it didn’t fully hook me. The blurb had me excited, and I usually enjoy Jessa Maxwell’s writing, but this one fell a bit flat. The characters felt distant and hard to connect with, and something about the pacing or tone just didn’t click for me. That said, I’m a total mood reader, so this might hit differently at another time. Still worth checking out if you’re drawn to atmospheric summer thrillers.

First Line: She hears a scream before she hits the water. Hers? Someone else’s? It doesn’t matter - it is quickly swallowed up in the roar of the waves.

Reasons to Read:
Island Secrets 🏝️ — Hadley Island may look like a peaceful escape, but its past is full of whispers, tragedy, and things better left buried.


Dual Perspectives 👀 — Told through the eyes of Orla, Faith, and Henry, each character brings a piece of the puzzle—and a motive to question.


Vanishing Girls 👧 — With one girl missing in the past and another vanishing in the present, the mystery becomes a chilling full-circle moment.


Good For People Who Like: Multiple POV, Island Settings, morally grey characters

Rating: 4 suitcases + Boat

Thoughts: This book was one of my most anticipated ones this month and it did not disappoint. I had some pretty solid theories about how this book was going to end up, and it still managed to surprise me. There is a lot of ambiguity about these characters and despite it being 3 POVs, it was very easy to follow because the characters were so different. This book really fit in with a summer vacation vibe, and continues with the popular “missing person” trope that is happening right now.

This is definitely a quick little popcorn thriller with a the summer atmospheric vibes. Old money, power, status, secrets. A remote island in New England? Loved all of that.

I was a bit bored at times and things felt a bit predictable to me.

A bunch of smoke and mirrors and a very thinly veiled plot. But it makes for a quick summer poolside thriller.

Thank you @atriabooks for the gifted advance reader copy!

Orla returns to Hadley Island for the first time since her best friend was lost at sea years ago. Faith arrives with her wealthy boyfriend to stay for the summer at his family’s mansion. And Henry has been watching the island for years and knows everyone’s secrets…

This was a solid and bingeable summer thriller! I loved the isolated island setting. The beginning is more of a slow burn with the background stories of each character and their connection to the island. But as their lives intersect, the suspense ratchets up to a dark and twisty conclusion.

Rating 4⭐️

As a teenager Alice Gallo disappeared from the shores of isolated wealthy Hadley Island in New England. Her best friend Orla O’Connor returns to her family’s beachfront home to clean it out before her parents sell it. David was Orla’s childhood crush and son of a wealthy Manhattan family and is back for the summer with his new girlfriend Faith. Local Henry hasn’t left his house since Alice disappeared because of the accusations against him. Soon another person disappears on the island.

The story was a slow burn summer mystery. I enjoyed the island setting. The story went between past and present. It’s told from the POVs of Orla, Faith and Henry. It was more mystery than thriller. It centered around what happened to Alice. All the characters had secrets and lies. The beginning was a bit slow but the second half picked up. I was looking for more of a bigger twist. I didn’t have it totally figured out but had some predictions. I needed more character development. I found a part of the ending ridiculous.

Thank you NetGalley and Atria publishing for the ARC

This makes me so sad to write because I loved her previous two books, but this one just didn't do it for me. I found the beginning to be slow. The plot predictable, and it just didn't have the urgency of her previous novels. I will recommend this to readers that want a summer thriller, and I will continue to read this author.

I’ve enjoyed Jessa Maxwell’s other books and this one was on par with those. I think I’ve been reading too many thriller/mysteries lately because little of this was a surprise to me: I guessed the main twists early on. However- it was still a solid read and even though I had guessed, it was written in a way that had me quickly turning pages and not wanting to put it down!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This moody, atmospheric thriller set on a remote New England island weaves together three unique perspectives:
-Orla, returning to the island a decade after her best friend Alice vanished, now forced to confront her haunted past
-Faith, the young glamorous new girlfriend of Orla’s childhood crush, David, who is hoping her summer invite means a ring and life of luxury is in her future, and
-Henry, the island recluse who is long suspected in Alice’s disappearance, who obsessively watches the small community from his island home.

This is one of those thrillers where you just cannot wait to see how each of the unique POVs are going to eventually collie and intersect! The frequently changing POVs, short-ish chapters, and eerie atmosphere of secrets/darkness hiding underneath the facade of wealth. While ‘rich people behaving badly’ is often an overused in this type of thriller, I especially found Henry’s POV unique, making this read stand out to me amongst other summer thrillers. There is an overwhelming sense of claustrophobia, building tension, and a well-paced series of twists and reveals!

I was excited to receive an early digital copy of DEAD OF SUMMER from Atria Books because I liked Jessa Maxwell’s previous novel, The Golden Spoon. This one has less cozy vibes and more of a thriller-like feel.

DEAD OF SUMMER is told from the perspectives of three different characters:

Faith, who is accompanying her ultra rich boyfriend to his family’s Hadley Island summer home for the first time. Might David propose?

Orla, who is returning to the island to prepare her parents’ house for sale. She’s still grieving the loss of her best friend when she was just a teenager. David is her childhood crush.

And Henry, a reclusive man who loves to watch the comings and goings of the island.

Their stories come together nicely when a young woman disappears. The novel is well paced and the chapters are short and snappy. It’s a solid summer thriller that doesn’t make readers think too hard, but delivers on what it promises: a twisty mystery. I gave this one three and a half stars. It will be available on July 22!

Thank you again to Atria Books and NetGalley for the ARC of DEAD OF SUMMER in exchange for my honest feedback.

The Clarkes are a prominent family on Hadley Island, but also notorious for secrets of the past.

This one unfortunately wasn’t for me. It was so very slow moving, especially for the genre. I couldn’t get into any of the characters parts except Faith and the past scenes. Henry and Ora both were boring for me. Give this one a try if you’re okay with slow moving but it wasn’t for me.

“It’s a great mystery of the world how the rich seem determined to make themselves miserable.”

Dead of Summer comes out 7/22.

Great new psychological thriller from Jessa Maxwell, whose other two books The Golden Spoon and I Need You to Read This proved delightful as well!

Orla O’Connor returns to Hadley Island for the first time in a decade, a small and remote New England island where she grew up. Orla’s come reluctantly to clear out her family’s beach house in order to put it up for sale, and perhaps to clear up her past that continues to haunt her.

Orla is haunted by her long- standing crush on David Clark, the scion of an uber wealthy family who lives on the island. But the homecoming particularly depresses Orla because of the disappearance of her best childhood friend Alice during the Clark’s annual fourth of July party. Alice was presumed dead as her body was never found.

Henry, a local fisherman, has isolated himself on a small island off Hadley Island after police accused him of being somehow involved in Alice’s death. Henry, though declaiming his innocence, became a social pariah and relies on a relative to drop off groceries to his eroding pier. But using a telescope, Henry vigilantly watches the goings on in town.

The summer Orla that has come back, the Clark family has decided for the first time to re-host their July fourth party. David has come home with his girlfriend Faith who’s impatiently hoping he’ll put a ring on their relationship.

The story shifts narration between Orla, Henry and Faith. Things start to go haywire, freaking out Orla as she sees lights come on in Alice’s abandoned house next door and an attractive local girl goes missing,

The sinister atmosphere proves gripping.

Thanks to Atria Books and NetGalley for an advanced reader’s copy.

Dead of Summer is a mystery / thriller set in a wealthy vacation community, Hadley Island. The story is told from multiple POVs from both locals and the summer vacationers - first from Faith’s POV, invited by her boyfriend David to his family’s estate on the island for the summer. Next from Orla’s POV, a native of the island who returns from New York after a long absence, due to the fall out from the death of her best friend.

I liked it overall - but a few things:

I loved that setting really had a clear sense of place. It felt like a character in the story, not just the backdrop. The book felt very alive, with well-developed characters with memorable back stories. It’s a great beach read thriller for a summer vacation, something light and easy to follow.

However, the plot twist didn’t do it for me. It was quite predictable, but as someone who has read a lot of thrillers, it’s hard to surprise me anyway, so maybe that’s a “me thing”.

This was my first book by the author, and I would love to explore her backlist! Thank you to Atria Books and NetGalley for an advanced copy. It’s due out July 22. Opinions are my own.

This was a good summer thriller. The pacing was perfect, starting off fast and never slowing down. I liked getting the multiple perspectives, learning about the past through various lenses. When it came to the conclusion and final twist, it fell flat for me. The bread crumbs sprinkled throughout made the reveal easy to guess, though I still enjoyed the shock of it happening. I wish the ending had more time and wasn't as rushed. It did not feel satisfying.

This sadly was not my favorite. Although it was a quick read, I found it pretty predictable & I did not like the ending.
Multiple pov with some flashbacks. We find ourselves in an east coast island. Wealthy people behaving badly. Two missi g girls & a recluse living on a rock. It all sounds great but something was just missing for me.

This was my frist book by Maxwell and it wont be the last! This is a thrilling, haunting story in a spooky coastal setting. I enjoyed the multi-POV structure as well as the atmospheric writing and solid pacing. I would classify it as psychological suspense with lots of fun summery twists. The perfect twisted summer read!

Ah, this one had me from the start! Narrated through the perspectives of three distinct characters across different timelines, the story unfolds seamlessly, keeping me engaged throughout. Now, that’s saying something!

Orla and Alice are the bestest of friends, growing up on Hadley Island; Hadley is the tourist destination of the summer for many but like so many of these spots, it’s filled with locals who cater to the rich. As the girls get into their teens, a tragedy takes Alice, altering the lives of more than one person from the island.

Orla returns, years later, to clean up and sell her parents’ home – a difficult task as there’s nothing but painful memories to greet her. While there, she runs into David, the islands rich boy who visited every summer and who Orla had feelings for. David is there with his stunningly gorgeous girlfriend, Faith.

Meanwhile, Henry, ostracized and accused of being responsible for Alice’s disappearance, lives in isolation on "the rock", remote and set apart from the island. Despite his seclusion, he has his ways of staying quietly informed about the island’s happenings.

When another young girl vanishes, Orla, Faith, and Henry find themselves entangled in a web of past and present mysteries.

This suspenseful tale is brilliantly crafted, with Jessa’s clever red herrings and rich character development keeping me guessing. The story’s pull comes from both its compelling characters and intricate plot, making it impossible to put down.

I was fully immersed from beginning to end!

I loved The Golden Spoon so I was really excited to dig into Dead of Summer. While I enjoyed it, it was very different. It's a slow burn, almost too slow. The first half is a bit clunky and I had to push myself a bit to keep going but the second half really picked up. While ultimately the ending was satisfying and a bit twisty, you just have to hang in for the first half.

3 stars!

This book is mostly set around one particular island and its inhabitants. I found that the story was well thought out and that one of the antagonists of the story was defeated towards the end. This book is also a great symbol of teamwork and girl/women power in the story, which had a dark undertone that can be understood quite easily. I wish I could have seen more of what happens to the antagonist’s father, if he was caught or not, and what had happened to the estate of that place, as he is equally or more equally responsible for the pain and suffering that the girls have suffered when they were young.

Overall, I loved reading the multiple perspectives of the different characters, with me gaining sympathy for some of the characters that I had read. I would also read another of Jessa Maxwell’s novels in the future!

Thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

A story of two women and the very rich man and his family that have defined their lives. The story also of a man, outcasted by suspicions of his part in the death of a young woman many years before. Will justice be served. Mysterious and ultimately twisty, this style isn't my favorite but i did enjoy reading it overall.