Review: Girls of Summer by Nancy Thayer (audio)

Title: Girls of Summer

Author: Nancy Thayer

Narrator: Kate Rudd

Published: May 2020, Brilliance Audio

Length: 8 hours 44 minutes

Source: Publisher

Summary:

One life-changing
summer on Nantucket brings about exhilarating revelations for a single
mother and her two grown children in this sensational novel from New York Times bestselling author Nancy Thayer. 

Lisa
Hawley is perfectly satisfied living on her own. Having fully recovered
from a brutal divorce nearly two decades earlier, she has successfully
raised her kids, Juliet and Theo, seeing them off to college and beyond.
As the owner of a popular boutique on Nantucket, she’s built a
fulfilling life for herself on the island where she grew up. With her
beloved house in desperate need of repair, Lisa calls on Mack Whitney, a
friendly–and very handsome–local contractor and fellow single parent,
to do the work. The two begin to grow close, and Lisa is stunned to
realize that she might be willing to open up again after all . . .
despite the fact that Mack is ten years her junior.

Juliet and
Theo worry that Mack will only break their mother’s heart–and they
can’t bear to see her hurt again. Both stuck in ruts of their own, they
each hope that a summer on Nantucket will provide them with the clarity
they’ve been searching for. When handsome entrepreneur Ryder Hastings
moves to the island to expand his environmental nonprofit, Juliet, an
MIT-educated web designer, feels an immediate attraction, one her rocky
love life history pushes her to deny at first. Meanwhile, free spirit
Theo finds his California bliss comes to a brutal halt when a surfing
injury forces him back to the East Coast. Upon his return, he has eyes
only for Mack’s daughter, Beth, to whom he is bound by an unspeakable
tragedy from high school. Can they overcome their past?

As the
season unfolds, a storm threatens to shatter the peace of the golden
island, forcing Lisa, Juliet, and Theo to decide whether their summer
romances are destined for something more profound. Nancy Thayer dazzles
again in this delightful tale of family, a reminder that sometimes,
finding our way back home can bring us unexpected gifts.

My thoughts: There are a few authors that to me just signify the start of summer and Nancy Thayer is definitely on that list. Her books, usually set on Nantucket, just scream summer and I look forward to getting my hands on them each year.

I loved that this focused on a woman who was older. Lisa is in her 50s and while she is not necessarily looking for love – she was married is now is now divorced with two adult kids – she does find it. And I love that she wasn’t even looking for it – I am such a firm believer that love always happens when you aren’t looking for it. I also loved that Lisa finds this love with someone she knows…isn’t that always the case? Of course she’s a bit resistant at first for a number of reasons, the biggest being the age difference, but once she gets past that, it was an enjoyable ride to watch Lisa and Mack find their way to their HEA – because you just know that’s where they are headed.

In addition, we also meet Lisa’s two adult children who have come back home to Nantucket unexpectedly. Both end up finding their own HEA as well and I enjoyed these journeys, too. All the characters are so well drawn that it was easy to become attached and I could not help but want everyone to find their happiness. I particularly loved the character of Ryder Hasting and all the he stood for with his role in bringing awareness to saving the oceans and his business, Ocean Matters. My husband and I are very involved in a organization called Billion Oyster Project in NYC that is dedicated to restoring oyster reefs in New York Harbor. 

This was a very enjoyable book and perfect to add to your summer reading.

Audio thoughts: I was so excited to see that Kate Rudd was narrating this book. She is one of my favorite narrators and she did such a great job with all the characters, giving them each different personalities and voices. Her pacing and intonation were spot on and she really brought this audio to life. It was very enjoyable to listen to.