Beach House Summer
My Rating: 4
Genre: Fiction
Format: eARC*
Publication Date: May 12, 2022
Author: Sarah Morgan
Similar To
Beach House Summer Blurb
USA Today bestselling author Sarah Morgan returns with the ultimate beach read, as one woman forges the most unlikely friendship of all, and embarks on a summer of confronting her past in order to build the future she wants…
When Joanna Whitman’s famous ex-husband dies in a car accident, she doesn’t know what to feel. Their dysfunctional marriage held more painful secrets than she cares to remember. But when she discovers that the young woman with him in the crash is pregnant, Joanna feels compelled to act, knowing exactly how brutal the media spotlight will be on celebrity chef Cliff Whitman’s ex-wife and his mysterious female friend.
Ashley Blake can’t believe it when Joanna shows up in her hospital room and suggests they hide away at her beach house on a sleepy stretch of California coast. Joanna should be hating her, not helping her. But alone and pregnant, Ashley can’t turn down Joanna’s offer. Yet she knows that if Joanna ever found out the real reason Ashley was in that car, their tentative bond would shatter instantly.
Joanna’s only goal for the summer is privacy, but her return causes major waves in the local community, especially for the man she left behind years ago. All Ashley wants is space to plan for her and her baby’s future, and to avoid causing any trouble for Joanna. But as secrets spill out under the hot summer sun, this unlikely friendship is about to be put to the test.
Beach House Summer Review
As a quick reminder, here is my rating structure:
- 1 star: Did not finish
- 2 Stars: Finished but I do not recommend
- 3 Stars: Liked but could use some improvements
- 4 Stars: Loved this book!
- 5 Stars: Rare. The unput-down-able, binge read obsession.
My star ratings are also based also genre based. I compare all books with books of the same genre. While I would love to believe that my love of books in general transcends all bias, there are genres I prefer over others.
I’m human.
Example: If I read a mystery novel and think it deserves a 5-star rating, then I have compared it to other mystery books, and determined it to be one of my absolute favorites. The unputdownable mystery.
This will hopefully keep me from comparing Outlander, a personal obsession of mine, with the experience of reading The Hate You Give. Both 5 star books for me, but completely and totally different. I couldn’t even try to rate them against each other, so I don’t. Makes my life easier. 🙂
My Thoughts
Man, I love summer reading. All of these great books come out that I can absolutely fly through. Maybe it’s the longer days, or the sudden influx of so many binge worthy books, but I always have so much energy for reading once the warmer weather comes.
This is perfect summer reading because the beginning is intriguing and by the end it’s all the good feels. Made me want to go somewhere new and pursue my dream of working in a bookstore. Or be brave and face the fears that are holding me back everyday.
Beach House Summer didn’t quite make it to 5 stars because the ending felt a bit rushed, especially the romance. I probably would have preferred less toiling in the beginning or an even longer book so that we could really explore the second chance relationship. The couple seemed to transition so quickly from re-meeting to rekindling that I could have used some more romantic tension and build up.
The setting and the female bonding and growth more than make up for the lack of romantic development. In fact, I almost think that was the point of the book, women do not need to center their lives around romantic relationships, because our relationship with ourselves and each other can be more than fulfilling, as long as we put the work into them. Dare I say that I didn’t even need the romantic twist as it was?
Conclusion
Perfect book to get beach reading into the swing of things. Now I need to go find my straw hat and flip flops. Anyone got any sweet iced tea?
*Special thanks to Sarah Morgan, Netgalley, and HQN for providing a copy of Beach House Summer in exchange for an honest review.
Leave a Reply