(51)Island Girls by Nancy Thayer

Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Island Girls 

Publication Date: June 18, 2013
Pages: 320



There is a new Nancy Thayer novel on the market, you know what that means, right?  Summer is officially here! :)

As usual we find ourselves back on Nantucket.  This year we meet three sisters with a unique history.  Arden is the oldest of the three and her mother was Rory Randall's first wife.  Arden wasn't very old when her father left her mother for his second wife,  and shortly after Meg came along.  And of course, Rory Randall was never known for being faithful, and soon he left Meg's mom for Justine.  Justine had a daughter from a previous relationship, Jenny, and Rory adopted Jenny, making her like his own in every way.  The three sisters only saw each other when they joined Rory on the island every summer. Well until the summer when Justine's  jewelry came up missing and Meg and Arden are "exiled" from the island.

Flash forward nearly twenty years and we find Meg a successful college professor, Arden is a local television personality, and Jenny is the island's resident computer repairman.  And Rory Randall has just passed away from a heart attack.  His will stipulates that the three sisters will inherit the island house and split the proceeds of the sale, but only if they spend one final summer together.  With so much animosity between the three sisters will they be able to last the whole summer?  Or will they finally be able to put the past behind them and repair their relationships?

As always I thoroughly enjoyed Nancy Thayer's new novel.   I love the Nantucket setting and I really enjoyed all three sisters, but for different reasons.  I think that Meg was my favorite and I really enjoyed her relationship with Liam. It was a "new" kind of relationship to be found in a beach read, well, new to me. Arden was hit & miss for me, but in the end I liked the way things turned out for her.   I also thought the author was very clever to bring all of Rory Randall's women together at the end of the book, all of his daughters, wives, and even a surprise guest.  Sometimes the ending of Beach Reads can be a bit predictable, but I thought the author did a really nice job wrapping things up, but keeping the element of surprise.

Bottom line, no "Beach Reads" list is complete without a Nancy Thayer novel somewhere on the list.  Her stories are fresh and her characters are unique, but most importantly, the Nantucket setting is just perfect.  Island Girls is a definite must read this Summer, be sure to add it to your summer list!

Latest Instagrams

© Charlotte's Web of Books. Design by FCD.