Review by Booklist Review
Exhausted by all the high-stakes hostility involved with so many divorces, Marlow Madsen decides to shut down her L.A. law practice and head back home to Florida. Along for the ride are Marlow's best friends Aida Trahan, who has just weathered her own acrimonious divorce, and Claire Fernandez, who lost her home to the wildfires sweeping through southern California and her yoga practice to the COVID-19 shutdown. Once the three women arrive on Teach Island, they soon discover this will be more than just a summer of sun, sand, and secrets. It is going to be a chance for each to chart a new course in life. Best-selling Novak (The Bookstore on the Beach, 2021) once again demonstrates her signature skills for emotionally layered storytelling and nuanced characterization to perfectly enhance a well-crafted plot centered on self-discovery and second chances. Neatly bridging the line between contemporary romance and women's fiction, Summer on the Island will resonate with many readers who, in the midst of a global pandemic, may be rethinking what is truly important in life.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Three friends embark on an island retreat for a break from their stressful lives in this beautiful tale of friendship, loss, and love from Novak (The Bookstore on the Beach). Divorce attorney Marlow Madsen, whose father just died and whose mother, Eileen, has MS, invites her friends Claire and Aida to escape their troubles with a summer at her family's beach house--but their peace is short-lived. Marlow embarks on a romance with Walker, the oldest son of the beach house's longtime housekeeper, and Eileen's closest confidant, Rosemary. But the reading of her father's will reveals that Marlow and Walker share a half brother, jeopardizing their relationship and Rosemary's friendship with Eileen. Meanwhile, newly divorced Aida struggles to adjust to the loss of both her marriage and the privileged lifestyle that went with it, while Claire, who was Aida's husband's unwitting mistress before the pair became friends, struggles to let the affair go. Boundaries are tested, secrets unearthed, and hearts broken. Novak doesn't shy away from the messiness of her characters' emotions, making for a powerful story of forgiveness, acceptance, and redemption. The realistically flawed characters, believable drama, and scenic setting make this unputdownable. Agent: Annelise Robey, Jane Rotrosen Agency. (Apr.)
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Review by Library Journal Review
After her father's death from COVID-19, Marlo Madsen returns to a small island off Florida's coast to enjoy one last summer there as she helps her mother settle the estate. For fun, she brings along two good friends, who prove especially helpful when her father's will reveals an unsettling secret and Marlo needs to rethink her life. With a 100,000-copy first printing.
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