Project and content management for Contemporary Authors volumes
WORK TITLE: The Forever Summer
WORK NOTES:
PSEUDONYM(S):
BIRTHDATE:
WEBSITE: http://www.jamiebrenner.com/
CITY: Manhattan
STATE: NY
COUNTRY:
NATIONALITY:
RESEARCHER NOTES:
LC control no.: n 2011061154
Descriptive conventions:
rda
LC classification: PS3602.E6458
Personal name heading:
Belle, Logan
See also: Brenner, Jamie, 1971-
Found in: Blue angel, c2011: t.p. (Logan Belle)
Gin lovers, c2013: t.p. (Jamie Brenner) p. 4 of cover (grew
up in Main Line Philadelphia; under the pen name Logan
Belle, she is the author of the erotic novels Bettie
Page presents: The librarian, Miss Chatterley, and the
burlesque trilogy Blue angel; has worked in book
publishing for more than a decade as a scout, a
publicist, and an agent; lives in New York City)
================================================================================
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS AUTHORITIES
Library of Congress
101 Independence Ave., SE
Washington, DC 20540
Questions? Contact: ils@loc.gov
LC control no.: n 2013024147
Descriptive conventions:
rda
LC classification: PS3602.E6458
Personal name heading:
Brenner, Jamie, 1971-
See also: Belle, Logan
Birth date: 1971
Found in: Gin lovers, c2013: t.p. (Jamie Brenner) p. 4 of cover (grew
up in Main Line Philadelphia; under the pen name Logan
Belle, she is the author of the erotic novels Bettie
Page presents: The librarian, Miss Chatterley, and the
burlesque trilogy Blue angel; has worked in book
publishing for more than a decade as a scout, a
publicist, and an agent; lives in New York City)
LC copyright catalog, Apr. 30, 2013 (title: Blue angel;
authorship on application: Logan Belle, pseud. of Jamie
Brenner, 1971- )
================================================================================
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS AUTHORITIES
Library of Congress
101 Independence Ave., SE
Washington, DC 20540
Questions? Contact: ils@loc.gov
PERSONAL
Born 1971; married; children: two daughters.
EDUCATION:Attended George Washington University.
ADDRESS
CAREER
Writer. Previously, worked as a literary agent. Has also worked at HarperCollins Publishers, Barnes&Noble.com, and Vogue.com.
WRITINGS
Also, author of Now or Never, The Librarian, and Miss Chatterley.
SIDELIGHTS
Jamie Brenner is a writer and former literary agent. She attended George Washington University before moving to New York and working for companies, including HarperCollins Publishers, Barnes&Noble.com, and Vogue.com. She writes novels under her own name and erotic fiction under the pseudonym, Logan Belle.
Ruin Me and The Wedding Sisters
In Ruin Me, Brenner tells the story of a dysfunctional mother-daughter relationship. Anna Sterling, a famous art scout and dealer, is the overbearing mother of Lulu. She insists that Lulu, who is in college, have the same career and believes she can make the best decisions for her daughter. Lulu defies her mother’s wishes and begins dating a street artist who goes by the name, GoST. She is forced to stand up to Anna and to take control over her own life. Marlene Harris, critic in Xpress Reviews, deemed the book “recommended for lovers of coming-of-age stories.”
Jo, Meg, and Amy Becker are the title characters in Brenner’s 2016 novel, The Wedding Sisters. Their parents, Hugh and Meryl, are unable to pay for three weddings in a year, so they suggest the sisters all get married at one big event. When the media decides to cover the wedding, the event becomes even more overwhelming than anyone imagined. A reviewer on the Harlequin Junkie website commented: “Part madcap adventure, part family saga, The Wedding Sisters touched upon subjects serious, lighthearted and at times frivolous. But through it all, author Jamie Brenner painted a realistic picture of how complicated—and important—family truly is to each of us.” “Mixing high society and high drama, this one is witty, heartfelt, and fun,” asserted Stephanie Turza in Booklist.
The Forever Summer
The Forever Summer finds a DNA test bringing generations of women together. Young and naive Rachel discovers Marin, an attorney experiencing a life crisis, is her half-sister. Marin’s mother, Blythe, convinces the two to travel together to meet their grandmother, and all of the women are impacted by the trip.
“Clunky characterizations mar Brenner’s … novel about three generations of women linked by a DNA test,” remarked a Publishers Weekly contributor. However, a writer on the Under the Covers website suggested: “If you are looking for a heartwarming read to take with you this summer, then look no further. This book captures the essence of summer and of family and delivers it in a way that will leave you with a smile on your face.” A Kirkus Reviews critic described the volume as “engaging and not too fluffy, an excellent choice for summer vacation reading.” Similarly, Booklist reviewer, Alene Moroni, called it “an engaging and emotional read with characters who stay with you.”
BIOCRIT
PERIODICALS
Booklist, June 1, 2016, Stephanie Turza, review of The Wedding Sisters, p. 46; March 1, 2017, Alene Moroni, review of The Forever Summer, p. 49.
Kirkus Reviews, February 15, 2017, review of The Forever Summer.
Publishers Weekly, February 27, 2017, review of The Forever Summer, p. 73.
Xpress Reviews, May 16, 2014, Marlene Harris, review of Ruin Me, p. 1.
ONLINE
Debutante Ball, https://www.thedebutanteball.com/ (April 22, 2017), Amy Poeppel, author interview.
Harlequin Junkie, http://harlequinjunkie.com/ (July 3, 2016), review of The Wedding Sisters.
Jamie Brenner Website, http://www.jamiebrenner.com/ (October 19, 2017).
Macmillan Website, https://us.macmillan.com/ (October 19, 2017), author profile.
Under the Covers, http://www.underthecoversbookblog.com/ (July 6, 2017), review of The Forever Summer.*
Jamie Brenner grew up in suburban Philadelphia, where her Saturday routine of breakfast at a diner with her dad followed by a visit to the local bookstore sparked a lifelong book obsession. After studying literature at George Washington University in Washington, D.C., Jamie moved to New York City where she started her career at HarperCollins Publishers, then later Barnes&Noble.com and Vogue.com before returning to books as a literary agent. Now a full-time writer, her latest novel, The Forever Summer, is a USA Today bestseller. Her next book, The Husband Hour, publishes in April 2018 with Little, Brown. Jamie lives in New York City with her husband and teenage daughters.
Jamie Brenner
USA flag
Jamie Brenner is the author of THE WEDDING SISTERS, coming June 2016 from St. Martin's Press. Her previous novels include The Gin Lovers, chosen by Fresh Fiction as one of the Top Thirteen Books to Read in 2013. She lives in New York City with her husband and two daughters.
Series
Gin Lovers
1. The Gin Lovers (2012)
2. Little White Lies (2012)
3. Society Sinners (2012)
4. Vice or Virtue (2012)
5. Dangerous Games (2012)
6. Hell Hath No Fury (2012)
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Novels
Ruin Me (2014)
The Wedding Sisters (2016)
The Forever Summer (2017)
The Husband Hour (2018)
JAMIE BRENNER is the author of The Gin Lovers, chosen by Fresh Fiction as one of their Top 13 Books to Read in 2013. Jamie also writes erotic fiction under the name Logan Belle. Her debut novel, Blue Angel, was the first in an erotic trilogy published by Kensington, followed by the erotic romances Now or Never, The Librarian and Miss Chatterley. Her novels have been translated into a dozen languages. She lives in Manhattan, blogs for Romance at Random and Heroes & Heartbreakers, and is busy raising two daughters who aren't allowed to read her books.
Interview with Jamie Brenner + #DebBallGiveaway of THE FOREVER SUMMER
Posted By Amy Poeppel on Saturday, April 22, 2017
[Pin It]
What a thrill to have author Jamie Brenner as today’s guest on The Debutante Ball! Jamie, the author of one of my favorite books THE WEDDING SISTERS, has a new book coming out this Tuesday, April 25th called THE FOREVER SUMMER. Booklist calls THE FOREVER SUMMER “An engaging and emotional read with characters who stay with you […] a good fit for fans of Elin Hilderbrand.” In THE FOREVER SUMMER, the discovery of long-buried secrets brings three generations of women together to Cape Cod for the summer homecoming of a lifetime.
I feel so fortunate to have gotten to know Jamie – she’s a lovely friend and a wonderful, engaging writer.
About THE FOREVER SUMMER:
Marin Bishop has always played by the rules, and it’s paid off: on the cusp of thirty she has a handsome fiancé, a prestigious Manhattan legal career, and her father’s hard-won admiration. But with one careless mistake at work, Marin suddenly finds herself unemployed and alone. Before she can summon the courage to tell her parents, a young woman appears, claiming to be Marin’s half-sister. Seeking answers, Marin agrees to join her on a soul-searching journey to Cape Cod, to meet the family she didn’t even know she had. As the summer unfolds at her grandmother’s beachside B&B, it becomes clear that her half-sister’s existence is just the first in a series of truths that will shake Marin’s beliefs—in love, and in her own identity—to the core. THE FOREVER SUMMER is filled with shocking revelations, heartfelt romance, and resilient women banding together against the most unexpected twists of fate.
If you haven’t preordered already, pick up a copy of THE FOREVER SUMMER on Tuesday! You can also enter to win a signed copy by retweeting on twitter:
RT to Enter! Interview w/ @JamieLBrenner + #DebBallGiveaway of THE FOREVER SUMMER https://t.co/vkjh6SaJyC
— The Debutante Ball (@DebutanteBall) April 22, 2017
Or you can also enter by sharing the post on Facebook. We will select and contact the very lucky winner on Friday, April 28th at noon (US Only).
Welcome to The Debutante Ball, Jamie!
Talk about one book that made an impact on you.
When I was in middle school I discovered Scruples by Judith Krantz. I lived in suburban Philadelphia, had a very lovely but sheltered life, and my mind was basically blown by the world depicted in this book. The heroine goes from an ugly duckling to a swan in the most spectacular fashion, and the settings of LA and Paris let me feel like I had travelled. The book stayed with me my entire life, and the fact that Judith Krantz was fifty years old when it published inspired me. Scruples really set the stage for my dreams as a woman and as a writer.
Which talent do you wish you had?
I wish I had a creative visual sense. I’ve been watching a lot of HGTV, and the way some people can walk into a room and know exactly how to transform it seems like magic to me. I have zero interior design ability. When I’m writing a book one of the most difficult parts is describing a room. I look at someone like Jane Green who has the writing ability and the design talent and I’m just amazed.
What is your advice for aspiring writers?
A few things. Write the type of book you like to read. And read a lot. When you love a book, really analyze what worked for you. And don’t be afraid to write badly. The adage that “writing is re-writing” is very true.
Have you ever met someone you idolized? What was it like?
When I first moved to New York I worked in book publishing and somehow ended up invited to a book party for Sydney Sheldon. I grew up reading his books — Master of the Game is an all-time favorite. Those sprawling, epic novels full of intrigue and sexuality…no one writes like that anymore. Anyway, I was at the party at Le Cirque — Barbara Walters was there and a lot of accomplished people — and I met Sydney Sheldon. I had this epiphany that I didn’t want to spend my life in New York just meeting authors; I needed to be one. I didn’t have a good time that night because the distance between where I was in life and where I wanted to be seemed so vast. I’ll never forget it.
Talk about one thing that’s making you happy right now.
I had a rough start to the year diagnosed with breast cancer. I’m happy the surgery is behind me and that they caught it early. I really am looking at life a little differently at the moment. I’m just happy to be cancer-free.
More about Jamie:
Jamie Brenner is the author of The Wedding Sisters and her latest The Forever Summer. She worked in book publishing for twenty years before writing her own novels. She lives in New York with her husband and two teenage daughters.
QUOTED: "an engaging and emotional read with characters who stay with you."
The Forever Summer
Alene Moroni
113.13 (Mar. 1, 2017): p49.
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2017 American Library Association
http://www.ala.org/ala/aboutala/offices/publishing/booklist_publications/booklist/booklist.cfm
The Forever Summer.
By Jamie Brenner.
Apr. 2017. 368p. Little, Brown, $26 (9780316394871); e-book, $13.99 (9780316394888).
Over the course of a summer, seven women gather in a sprawling bed and breakfast in Provincetown to reconcile their complicated family relationships. Marin Bishop's perfect life has fallen apart all at once with the appearance of a surprise half-sister, Rachel, and the loss of her prestigious job. She and Rachel leave Manhattan to meet their grandmother Amelia on Cape Cod, stay for a few days at her inn, and forge connections neither knew they needed. As they gradually extend their stay week by week to the entire summer, Marin's parents, boyfriend, aunt Amelia, and Amelia's wife, Kelly--and seemingly all the other residents of Provincetown--variously participate in their journey. Kelly teaches Marin the family craft of mosaic construction, and Marin's completion of a long-planned gift wraps up her visit and sets her on her course, while great changes also come to the lives of Marin's mother, Amelia, and Rachel. An engaging and emotional read with characters who stay with you, this is a good fit for fans of Elin Hilderbrand, beach reads, and women's stories. --Alene Moroni
Moroni, Alene
Source Citation (MLA 8th Edition)
Moroni, Alene. "The Forever Summer." Booklist, 1 Mar. 2017, p. 49+. General OneFile, go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?p=ITOF&sw=w&u=schlager&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA488689543&it=r&asid=abff21d168fa95ce0277544fc986fd27. Accessed 9 Oct. 2017.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A488689543
QUOTED: "engaging and not too fluffy, an excellent choice for summer vacation reading."
Brenner, Jamie: THE FOREVER SUMMER
(Feb. 15, 2017):
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2017 Kirkus Media LLC
http://www.kirkusreviews.com/
Brenner, Jamie THE FOREVER SUMMER Little, Brown (Adult Fiction) $26.00 4, 25 ISBN: 978-0-316-39487-1
Four women find themselves in a tangled family web that they work to unravel over a Provincetown summer in this new novel by Brenner (The Wedding Sisters, 2016, etc.).When Marin Bishop breaks off her perfect-seeming engagement to pursue a passionate affair with her boss at a Manhattan law firm, she believes it's the most dramatic thing that will happen to her as the summer begins. But when her firm finds out, she and her lover are summarily fired, right after she learns from her Philadelphia society parents that they're getting a divorce (something her mother, Blythe, is struggling to accept herself). In the wake of all this, Marin is thrown for an additional loop: while she's a daddy's girl at heart, she finds out that she's not her father's biological child. Indeed, she has a half sister neither she nor her mother knew about, a young Californian named Rachel who comes to New York to see Marin before continuing to Provincetown to meet her newly discovered grandmother Amelia. The biological father of both girls, Amelia's son, died many years ago. On a whim, Marin joins Rachel, and, out of desperation, Blythe tags along. They all find themselves at Amelia's beachfront guesthouse--closed for this summer but open to a new, blended family. As the summer unfolds, each of these women must process the information they've gained and the new people they've encountered, relearning how they fit in the world and what it means to be family. Soap-opera twists and turns are tempered with the believable goodness of the characters, the messiness of their journeys, and just a hint of unpredictability as events unfold. Not all the endings are happy, but most are. Engaging and not too fluffy, an excellent choice for summer vacation reading.
Source Citation (MLA 8th Edition)
"Brenner, Jamie: THE FOREVER SUMMER." Kirkus Reviews, 15 Feb. 2017. General OneFile, go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?p=ITOF&sw=w&u=schlager&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA480921834&it=r&asid=933a8b1415a63f6e61ead34641ed89bd. Accessed 9 Oct. 2017.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A480921834
QUOTED: "Clunky characterizations mar Brenner's ... novel about three generations of women linked by a DNA test."
The Forever Summer
264.9 (Feb. 27, 2017): p73.
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2017 PWxyz, LLC
http://www.publishersweekly.com/
The Forever Summer
Jamie Brenner. Little, Brown, $26 (368p) ISBN 978-0-316-39487-1
Clunky characterizations mar Brenner's (The Wedding Sisters) novel about three generations of women linked by a DNA test. When 22-year-old Rachel Moscowitz contacts 30-year-old second-generation attorney Marin Bishop with news that they may be half-sisters, Marin's life is in disarray. She's facing a broken engagement, being fired for a workplace affair, her parents' separation, and now the discovery that the man she calls Dad is not her biological father is simply too much. Why did her mom, Blythe, keep it a secret, and why does she insist on joining the two younger women on a trip to Provincetown to meet their grandmother Amelia? This is a summer of revelations about infidelity and of change: for Amelia and her partner Kelly's long relationship, for Rachel as she tries to grow up and falls in love for the first time, for Marin, whose life turns upside down; and for two very different half-sisters forging a connection. Brenner tells these messy personal stories well, but some characters lack complexity. Only Amelia and Kelly emerge fully-fleshed. Too often, Rachel resembles a lovestruck teen and Marin a conceited adolescent, while Blythe tends toward the pathetic rather than the sympathetic. (Apr.)
Source Citation (MLA 8th Edition)
"The Forever Summer." Publishers Weekly, 27 Feb. 2017, p. 73+. General OneFile, go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?p=ITOF&sw=w&u=schlager&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA485671153&it=r&asid=a3832977067b90355986a36c8f84fe0a. Accessed 9 Oct. 2017.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A485671153
QUOTED: "Mixing high society and high drama, this one is witty, heartfelt, and fun."
The Wedding Sisters
Stephanie Turza
112.19-20 (June 1, 2016): p46.
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2016 American Library Association
http://www.ala.org/ala/aboutala/offices/publishing/booklist_publications/booklist/booklist.cfm
The Wedding Sisters. By Jamie Brenner. June 2016. 336p. St. Martin's/Griffin, paper, 515.99 (9781250045744).
Meryl and Hugh Becker are thrilled that their daughters, Meg, Amy, and Jo, are all engaged to wonderful men. Since three weddings in a year is a major financial stretch for the Beckers, Meryl decides to throw one big wedding for them. Easy enough, until the press hears about Meryl's plan and latches on to the social-climbing sisters. Since Meg will marry the son of a Republican senator, Amy is engaged to the son of a famous fashion designer, and Jo will be marrying into Dutch royalty, People magazine offers to pay half a million dollars for photo exclusives of the big day. Even though Meryl is glad to have the blowout wedding paid for, planning the event while managing the expectations of three daughters, three fiances, and three sets of in-laws is harder than she ever imagined. Brenner tempers the weighty emotional aspects of the sisters' journey with the fluffy frivolity of wedding planning, a contrast that fans of Emily Giffin and Lauren Weisberger will adore. Mixing high society and high drama, this one is witty, heartfelt, and fun. --Stephanie Turza
Source Citation (MLA 8th Edition)
Turza, Stephanie. "The Wedding Sisters." Booklist, 1 June 2016, p. 46. General OneFile, go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?p=ITOF&sw=w&u=schlager&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA456094108&it=r&asid=db7e1263df5ddac54797f31e9898141e. Accessed 9 Oct. 2017.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A456094108
QUOTED: "recommended for lovers of coming-of-age stories."
Brenner, Jamie. Ruin Me
Marlene Harris
(May 16, 2014): p1.
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2014 Library Journals, LLC
http://www.libraryjournal.com/lj/reviews/xpress/884170-289/xpress_reviews-first_look_at_new.html.csp
Brenner, Jamie. Ruin Me. Griffin: St. Martin's. May 2014. 260p. ebk. ISBN 9781466862135. $3.99. NEW ADULT ROMANCE Anna Sterling is a legendary art dealer and discoverer of new talent. She has not only decreed that her daughter, Lulu, will follow in her footsteps by taking over her gallery, she also believes herself to be the arbiter of Lulu's taste in art and in men. But Anna's vision is locked in her own particular tastes, and she doesn't see the changes in the art world. Anna is also convinced that because her college-age daughter has a different view, she must make Lulu conform. Instead, as the vise around her life tightens, Lulu breaks away, creating a new business around her own take on art and with the street artist who embodies that vision.
Verdict At the end of Brenner's (Now or Never) latest, Lulu makes her own world and discovers that standing up for herself is the best way to get her mother to see her as an adult. The fascination and eventual romance between Lulu and the street artist known as GoST proceed in fits and starts as the young couple work out whether they can have a relationship, coming as they do from totally different worlds. But the story of Lulu's growing independence from the smothering Anna is the one that sticks in the mind. Recommended for lovers of coming-of-age stories.--Marlene Harris, Seattle P.L.
Harris, Marlene
Source Citation (MLA 8th Edition)
Harris, Marlene. "Brenner, Jamie. Ruin Me." Xpress Reviews, 16 May 2014, p. 1. General OneFile, go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?p=ITOF&sw=w&u=schlager&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA371970997&it=r&asid=5647bc870659f033d478a690fb943a3b. Accessed 9 Oct. 2017.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A371970997
QUOTED: "Part madcap adventure, part family saga, The Wedding Sisters touched upon subjects serious, lighthearted and at times frivolous. But through it all, author Jamie Brenner painted a realistic picture of how complicated–and important–family truly is to each of us."
REVIEW: The Wedding Sisters by Jamie Brenner
Posted July 3rd, 2016 by Sara @HarlequinJunkie in Blog, HJ Recommends, Review, Women's Fic - Chick-lit / 8 comments
HJ_Recommends
In The Wedding Sisters by Jamie Brenner, Since the day Meryl watched her three young The-Wedding-Sistersdaughters pretending to be brides, with their father part of the play-acting by ‘walking them down the aisle’, she couldn’t wait to plan their real weddings. And with her eldest daughter Meg newly engaged to a senator’s son, Meryl’s own dream is coming true as she helps her with the details. But she didn’t expect that her other daughters, Amy and Jo, would also announce their own engagements over the next few months. With three weddings and each woman entering into very well-known families, Meryl has her work cut out for her.
“We’re throwing one party–one–and the girls can share it, or you can hand all this off to their rich future mothers-in-law and let them take care of it. Or we can find some way to space this out over time. But I’m not going to go bankrupt throwing three weddings this year.”
In the process, Meryl realizes that her own longtime marriage to her husband Hugh has seen better days. And finding out that he is losing his job and possibly their apartment is only putting more pressure on her. While Meg, Amy and Jo each face their own individual problems, Meryl must try to be supportive as she watches her own world crumble. Between the incredible attention The Wedding Sisters (as dubbed by the media) are getting, her mother suddenly moving in with her and Hugh, and trouble dealing with her daughters’ future in-laws, she’ll just be happy when she finally gets to see them walk down the aisle.
‘That was the thing about weddings: They forced family members to deal with one another, like it or not.’
The Wedding Sisters was a whirlwind of a novel, centering mainly around a trio of sisters and their mother, all of whom were scrambling to figure out their lives while everything around them turned upside down.
“There is no job, no career, no appearance, no amount of money–that is more important than love.”
This was quite an adventure. I have to say that author Jamie Brenner was able to hold my attention from page one and tell a story that was both entertaining and heartfelt. Sure there were times where I wanted to have a serious talk with some of the characters (or smack them) over some of their decisions or their attitude. But my reactions felt real and I think very similar to what it’s like for most of us to deal with our own family and friends. It’s not always easy or pretty handling emotions so it felt like Meryl, Meg, Amy and Jo were shown in an honest light, making mistakes, being selfish and ultimately being supportive of one another.
There were a lot of layers to this book, with the wedding problems being at the forefront of course. But each couple, even Meryl’s mom Rose, had their own issues to work through which certainly added depth to the story. I liked that although each of the three young women were marrying into affluent families so it seemed like they were sort of copying each other, their relationship problems were actually quite different. And they each handled the situation completely differently which I appreciated. The ending (which was more of a happy-for-now) felt like it was pretty true to their characters and even made me chuckle a bit.
Meryl and Hugh’s marriage also underwent some changes and to me it felt like having her mom Rose move in with them may have forced them to deal with certain aspects of their past that they had never really discussed over the years. It was interesting to see how their thirty year relationship held up next to the newish love their daughters had with their fiances and to see how they all had something to learn about themselves. I did want to mention that Rose in particular had a very poignant role in how things progressed and although she was a tough woman to like, she was undoubtedly my favorite character.
Part madcap adventure, part family saga, The Wedding Sisters touched upon subjects serious, lighthearted and at times frivolous. But through it all, author Jamie Brenner painted a realistic picture of how complicated–and important–family truly is to each of us.
Book Info:
4SPublication: Published June 7th 2016 | St. Martin’s Griffin |
QUOTED: "If you are looking for a heartwarming read to take with you this summer, then look no further. This book captures the essence of summer and of family and delivers it in a way that will leave you with a smile on your face."
Review: The Forever Summer by Jamie Brenner
Posted July 6, 2017 by Francesca in Reviews / 3 Comments
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Review: The Forever Summer by Jamie Brenner
Review: The Forever Summer by Jamie Brenner
4 Stars
The Forever Summer
Author: Jamie Brenner
Published by Little
Released: April 25th 2017
Genres: Chick Lit
Pages: 368
Format: Audiobook
Source: Purchased
Recommended Read!
“If you are looking for a heartwarming read to take with you this summer, then look no further.”
~ Under the Covers
I haven’t read a Jamie Brenner book in a while and picked this one up because I know I enjoy her writing and wanted a good beach read. That cover? Perfect beach read. This is completely different than other books I’ve read by her in the past. Obviously the genre is the first thing, which I knew going in. This is a chick lit revolving around a family and it’s set mostly in a small beach town. I love cozy beach town reads in the summer!
THE FOREVER SUMMER is a fun tale of family drama and secrets, lives falling apart and finding a new path. Narrated from multiple POV, we get to meet three generations of women who didn’t really know there was a connection between them. It all starts with a DNA test. Marin Bishop is in the midst of a meltdown in her personal life. She just broke off her engagement because she’s in love with (and has been cheating with) her boss. They both get fired because of this relationship and she’s not sure where they stand. Now having to figure out what to do with her life, she gets an email from someone claiming they are most likely half sisters due to the DNA results. This opens up a world of family secrets and a summer trip that changed all their lives.
I can’t even say I had a favorite character. I loved them all because they were so intricately connected. The long lost sister, Rachel, that is trying to find her family and brings them all together. The mother Blythe, who has lived a life with the guilt of her secrets. The grandmother Amelia, whom I loved dearly from the very first moment we get to meet her. And all the other side characters. They’ve all been through a lot in their lives, and there’s still more to come for them. But the bonds they develop, even kicking and screaming for some, are beautiful to watch.
There’s a human element to this story you can’t help but connect with and it really made me get so involved with each and every one of the characters in this story. Main and side ones alike. Jamie Brenner excels at telling this story with charm. While dealing with some serious and complicated issues, this story still felt very much like a light read. That, to me, is quite the accomplishment. But this is something I’ve come to expect from all her books!
If you are looking for a heartwarming read to take with you this summer, then look no further. This book captures the essence of summer and of family and delivers it in a way that will leave you with a smile on your face.