DNF at 9%

I was really enjoying this book at first. The idea of a generational reconciliation in a small town sounded so good. And it was going super well in my opinion up until this point.

Around the 9% mark there were several comments in a row that raised red flags for me. I absolutely love to read a book with a flawed character when I feel it is written well and transparently. However, at this point in the book a few comments were made about one of our main characters being conservative. The way in which these comments were written is what made me uncomfortable as a reader. Especially as someone who is not white. After comment number 3 I decided I would not be able to comfortably continue the book. I would not be able to recommend it simply because I have not and will not finish it.

Thank you to Harper Muse Audiobooks for the ALC!

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Muse Audiobooks for an advanced copy of Summer on Lilac Island, by Lindsay Macmillan.

As someone who grew up in the Great Lakes State, I loved the idea of a story written about Mackinac Island! Summer on Lilac Island follows the complicated story of a mother and her daughters as Gigi returns, after a long time away, to face her past and come to terms with the realities of what she left behind. I loved the multiple perspectives but, to me, the book should have focused on only the mother, her two daughters, and the grandmother. There were too many characters and too many storylines, in my opinion. This book felt more like a television series than a single novel. I found myself losing interest towards the end of the audiobook, waiting for the “happy ending” that I knew was coming. I did enjoy that the author gave a voice to the island itself, that was a fun perspective!

The narration by Kira Fixx was wonderfully performed! I would recommend this book to someone who is a fan of the Michigan summers!

This was a great story for summer. The narrator did a good job with the different voices. It must have been challenging to come up with so many! Nice story with likable characters. Seriously a romance book - so many different lines, but the author wrapped them all up well without it being too unbelievable. Thanks to the publisher and Net Galley for the opportunity to read/review.

Summer on Lilac Island, the third novel by Lindsay MacMillan, is an ode to Mackinac
Island, it’s geography, history, and people. Centering around Gigi (Georgiana) Jenkins and her somewhat distorted world view, the story takes place primarily over the summer Gigi had nowhere else to go and was invited home by her mother, Eloise. Having escaped the Island a few weeks before high school graduation, Gigi has wandered about the country working meaningless jobs to get by. But the last job in LA did Gigi in, financially and emotionally. While she had vowed to herself to never spend another summer on Mackinac, it is now seeming to be a safe harbor in her 29 year old’s storm.

The story shares why Gigi is the caustic, disillusioned person she is going back to when her father, Gus, walked away from his wife and daughters only to show up and stay for a short time over and over, disappointing Gigi each time. It also tells why her sister, Rebecca, is so different from Gigi.

Within this wonderful saga, the reader will be introduced to townspeople such as the showy mayor, the hardworking Tang family and their daughter Lillian, a childhood friend of Gigi’s, her grandmother Alice Klein, and her mother’s best friend Deidre and her husband Fred, the town doctor. Also, newcomers are brought on board, such as Dr. James Kentwood, a young doctor there to help Fred during the busy season, and famous Scottish author Clyde McDougall. Each of these characters have their own role to play in this pivotal summer in Gigi’s life. Their interactions reveal not only personalities, but also uncover animosities and long buried secrets.

This story is exceptionally well written. The plot is tight and often surprising. The characters are well drawn, flaws and all. The small island adrift in Lake Huron seems to symbolize Gigi who is adrift in her life. This novel embodies personal discovery, forgiveness and reconciliation, resilience, and new beginnings. Although this is the first book I have read by Ms. MacMillan, it certainly will not be the last! I very much enjoyed this book and I do recommend it!

This was a great audio to listen to as we near the start of Summer! As a fellow Michigander, I immediately requested this one knowing it was set on Mackinac Island! I loved hearing about the history and her descriptive sentences had me feeling nostalgic for all my vacations on the island. It was a really great listen!

This book started off with us meeting Gigi on a boat heading home to the island she grew up on, back home to live with mum jobless and penniless. I enjoyed this part of the story and really enjoyed her interaction with the Scottish author, he seemed like so much fun.

This story becomes a story of three generations of woman starting with Alice the grandmother, Elouise the mother them Gigi and Rebecca the sisters.

Straight off I just did not like Elouise, there was just something about her that turned me off. She was trying to control Gigi and make her someone she wasn’t and I hate that.

I also didn’t love Rebecca off the bat as on that first phone call between the sisters she seemed quite standoffish however I did grow to like her.

To be honest I just didn’t connect with the characters in this book at all but I did enjoy the growth these 4 woman made throughout.

I was also fortunate to receive an early audiobook of this and while I enjoyed the narrator’s story telling I didn’t love her when she was doing each character individually.

Overall it was an ok read.

“I received a complimentary copy of this book from NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.”

A decent summer read with a picturesque setting, but it didn’t quite capture my full attention. The story offers a sweet romance and well-developed characters, yet at times, the pacing felt a bit slow and would lose my attention. While the descriptions of Lilac Island are beautifully vivid, I found myself wishing for a bit more depth in the plot as well as a quicker pace. Overall, an enjoyable book for those looking for a light, escapist read, but it might not be the most memorable.

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC for my honest review.

Summer on Lilac Island

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5


Family drama
Two generations finding love
Heartfelt
Small town/small Island vibes
Mending friendships/relationships


This story follows mother and daughter finding love but through both of them being match makers for one another.
Eloise (mother) finds herself needing to let go of her love for her ex husband and get herself back out there. Will she find a second chance with love?
Will Gigi, the wild card, carefree woman with a little bit of daddy issues finally find someone she can see herself settling down with?


IMO:
I kinda like how it’s narrated, it speaks in 3rd person instead of dual POVs. You get insight on just about everyone’s feelings & thoughts. AND I do mean EVERYONE.

I’ve read some books that have a 3rd person perspective but didn’t really like it. But this book I REALLY enjoyed it.

I really love the way it was written as well. I can definitely see this as a tv series one day if it caught enough attention!

A fantastic story of second chances in love when you least expect it. Enjoyed the story from page one

Beautiful tale chock-full of laugh out loud funny moments, angst, love, life-long heartache, summer love, family, frenemies, friendships, and what else????

Mackinac Island and a full-cast of well-developed, impossibly entertaining characters!

100% recommend! Great beach read!

PS: loved the narrator!

Small town charm, a little romance, coming home, and finding peace on Mackinac Island- there is a little of everything in this book. I loved this audiobook about family reconnecting and rediscovering home.

I really enjoyed this one! I love traveling in real life and through reading. Summer On Lilac Island takes place on Mackinac Island and centers around a strained mother/daughter relationship. The book gave me Elin Hilderbrand vibes. It would make a great vacation read.

I listened to it and thought the narration was great! It was perfect to listen while walking.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.

This was the perfect book for a nice long weekend. It is a good mother-daughter feel good, humorous, romp with a dash of romance. Everything you want for a summer read! The narrator was amazing and brought the fantastic setting of Lilac Island to life with charm and fun. The perfect small town setting filled with antics, mischief and a few twists with emotion at its heart. This is a lovely book for lovers of second chances, small town, summer and romance. I'll read this again, I have no doubt. Thank you NetGalley for the advance audio listen. Opinions are my own.

Summer of Lilac Island
By Lindsay MacMillan
Narrated by Kira Fixx

Publishes July 1,2025

Gigi Jenkins return to Mackinac Island is determined even thought broke to make it through the summer. This charming lakeside town in Northern Michigan seems like a dream, ferry rides, history, fudge shops and more. This is more than just a romance, its strong family history of many broken relationships and what power you can have coming home to a place you have so many memories at.

I really enjoyed the narrator, I think she was perfect for this book and just felt like I was on the island with them. I could feel the emotions and could almost smell what it would have smelt like.

Thank you NetGalley and Harper Muse Audiobooks for the ALC audiobook. All opinions are my own.

This was a good, quick read! There was matchmaking from the mom and the daughter for each other which was a fun storyline to follow. There were a bunch of POV's and I did enjoy the description of Mackinac Island. I didn't fully connect with any of the characters which is why I didn't rate it any higher.

Mackinac Island—one of my absolute favorite places in Northern Michigan.

Lindsay MacMillan transported me straight there in Summer on Lilac Island. I could practically smell the fresh fudge and lilacs, hear the clatter of horses and the whir of bikes, and feel the charm of the island coming alive through every chapter.

Listening to the audiobook was like taking a mini vacation. The story of Gigi and her mom Eloise had that feel-good, Hallmark-movie magic—with a touch of matchmaking and heart—but what made it even more special was the setting. From the iconic Grand Hotel to the Pink Pony and Arch Rock, the book is a love letter to all the quaint, beloved spots on Mackinac Island.

If you're a Michigander (or just love the charm of Northern Michigan), this is a must-read. Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced audiobook copy—this one truly brought the island to life for me.

Summer on Lilac Island is a great beach read. This was a story of difficult family relationships, long lost loves, and long term complicated friendship. The story spans three generations and I really loved reading about all of the stong women in this family.

Gigi was a tough character for me to love right off the bat, but man was I rooting for her by the end. She thought she was going home for her mom, but in reality, she is the one that needed that time to mend her relationships and ground herself

Thanks to NetGalley and Harper Muse for the audiobook ARC!

Summer on Lilac Island is a romance for three generations. A great romance for Midwesterners, as Lilac Island is really Mackinac Island (home to an island without automobiles, home to horses, bicycles and fudge).

Gigi is on the ferry to return to her childhood home and re-coup and regroup when life isn’t really working out so well for her. She meets an author on the boat ride to the ferry. Once she arrives home, she learns that her mother has set her up on a date with the towns doctor.

So Gigi agrees to go on the date only if her mother agrees to go out with the author.

I loved all the references to the island, like the multiple fudge companies and their offerings. This book brought back great memories of visiting the island with my aunt and uncle and biking around the island. The Grand Hotel really does have the world’s longest porch at 660 feet. (So probably this Michigan girl is rounding up to 5 stars because of the Michigan connection.)

The book was narrated Kira Fixx, who did a great job! (Especially loved how she did the author's voice.)

Many thanks to NetGalley and Harper Muse Audiobooks for approving my request to listen to the “advance listen” copy of Summer on Lilac Island by Lindsay MacMillan in exchange for an honest review. Approximately 14 hours. Just in time for summer, publication date is July 1, 2025.

I especially loved this line in the book. Roughly, there aren’t any dull stories, only dull story tellers.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperMuse for providing an advanced audiobook in exchange for an honest review.
Summer on Lilac Island releases July 1, 2025

<i>“Family saga and romance, set against the backdrop of a characterful island town.”</I>

As an only child who has a close relationship with their mother, I was particularly excited to dive into a “heartwarming” mother-daughter centered novel, but this did not hit the spot.

Perhaps it was the archaic nature of the island, set in their horse-and-buggy ways, or the immediacy of a matchmaking scheme that felt suffocating and controlling.

Multiple character perspectives (8), including those of inanimate objects written in third person, took away from the intimacy of mending a fractured family dynamic of which I was eager to explore, and I struggled to find any of the characters likeable.

There’s also something so unsettling about using the only character of colour’s queer coming out as a plot device for the straight, white, ex-best friend to finally realize that all the running she did in her adult years — from destinations, jobs, and boyfriends — wasn’t actually the freedom that she convinced herself that she needed.

Even though I’m close in age to the main character and have a history of an absentee father that closely mirrors Gigi’s experience, I feel as though I was not the target demographic for this seasonal read.

Summer on Lilac Island was a wonderful read.

Not what I had expected, but oh so good. Gigi was a tough character for me to love right off the bat, but man was I rooting for her by the end!

Gigi heads home to Mackinac Island for the summer to help care for her mother (or so she thinks), yet her mother has other plans. Plans involving James the new local general practitioner.

Gigi doesn’t have the best track record with men, and James isn’t her usual type, but that’s exactly what she needed!

A summer to find herself, heal past wounds, and find love.

Thanks to NetGalley and Harper Muse for the audiobook ARC!