Three Women at a Crossroads in Their Lives

Serenity, a crime writer, is headed to her family’s cabin on Lake Tahoe to meet three women she didn’t know existed until she took a DNA test on a lark. The test was supposed to be a bit of research to help her writing. Instead it revealed two half sisters. On top of her husband’s criminal trial, Serenity now wonders if everything she thought she knew about her family is a lie.

Regan, an ad executive, has a prestigious job and a demanding mother. She’s suffering from a serious romantic mistake at work. She’s never known who her father is, so she’s intrigued to see if her half-sisters can shed light on her background.

Lorelei was raised in a series of foster homes. She never knew who her parents were. She took the test to try to find her background and perhaps resolve her feelings of inferiority. She’s facing a crisis because her husband was cheating on her. She arrives at the cabin with her four-year-old daughter, Lucy.

The women get to know each other, but a weekend isn’t enough. They agree to spend the summer together getting to know each other and perhaps resolving their personal issues.

The plot is fascinating. With so many people taking DNA tests there are bound to be disquieting findings. I thought this was a good basis for the story. The three women are likable. They’re all stressed, but they’re trying to work out what they should do next and supporting each other.

Novak does a good job presenting the dramatic scenery around Lake Tahoe. I thought the descriptions were some of the best parts of the book.

I received this book from Harlequin for this review.

Serenity decides to take a DNA test thru 23 and me and gets results she isn’t expecting. She finds she has 2 sisters she didn’t know about. The sisters agree to meet. All have different upbringing and problems they bring to the table. This is a story of sisterhood, even if you are just meeting. It is a perfect summer read. Thank you to net galley for an advanced readers copy.

One Perfect Summer by Brenda Novak

Three women take a DNA test
Results are returned
Voila – two unknown half-sisters found
Get to know one another online then
Meet in Reno to see what is what
All three facing big issues
All three curious about one another
All three wondering who their common ancestor might be
Summer spent together
Time to share stories of their past
Their secrets come out
They grow closer
Who are they really?
How are they linked?
And what will their futures hold?

What I liked:
* The three women
* The similarities and differences in the lives of all three
* The caring that developed between the sisters
* Their willingness to assist one another in finding solutions to issues they were facing
* That it wasn’t easy for any of them
* The mystery solving of who their common parent was
* The bit of romance in each of their lives
* The growth all three appeared to achieve
* The relationship forged between the women making them as close as the sisters they are genetically
* The positive potential future of the three women

What I did not like:
* The people that created the issues to be solved in the sisters lives
* Not knowing for sure what the future for the three women will end up being.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin-Mira for the ARC – This is my honest review.

4-5 Stars

When Serenity submits her DNA to be analyzed, she never expected the results she received, and how the author's mind worked as the pieces of this book fell together!
Can you imagine finding a sister you never knew you had, actually not one, but two, and now these young woman are meeting each other at Lake Tahoe for the first time.
They come with a lot of baggage, but seem to form an instant connection, sisterhood, and a bonus of a four year old niece!
We are kept guessing here, and when the final facts unfold, wow, never ever saw it coming, will you be blindsided like me, or have an idea what happened here?
Loved the epilogue at the end, there is a completion, but we could continue here!
I received this book through Net Galley and the Publisher Harlequin, and was not required to give a positive review.

Quality of Writing: 8/10
Pace: 5/10
Plot Development: 5/10
Characters: 8/10
Enjoyability: 8/10
Insightfulness: 7/10
Ease of Reading: 10/10
Overall Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
I received an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review through NetGalley.
The premise for this book was really interesting. What would you do if you found out you had not one, but two, previously unknown half-sisters?
I started reading this book with a little excitement, but here’s what I found: it was too tidy. Some people might question what I mean by that, because clearly these women all have huge life problems that are not tidy. What I mean is that this would never happen in the real world.
What are the odds that these three sisters meet up when they’re all in their thirties and each of them is going through a mid-life crisis at the same time? Not only that, but they’re all vastly different crises too.
Then there was all the romance that didn’t pay off. this is clearly not a romance novel, even though midway through that’s exactly what it looks like. That ended up being more disappointing than anything else. I know that Brenda Novak was attempting to write a “real life” kind of book where not everything works out, but it just fell short.
And the ending was a total let down. It made sense, but was way too rushed. It was like Novak just slapped an explanation on the end and hoped we wouldn’t notice. We didn’t even get all the information we were after! I have so many questions that will probably go unanswered since I do not foresee this being a series.
In the end, I probably wouldn’t recommend this book to others. It had some fun moments, but not enough to redeem it.

This is a story about three sisters who find each other via DNA testing. They decide to meet for a week and the week turns into a summer. Each sister has their own battles they are dealing with and the summer is a perfect time to work through them.

I loved this book. It has a strong sisterhood despite the fact the sisters just met. They are extremely supportive of each other through each other’s problems.

The ending is perfect. Wheels things don’t turn out how the sisters expect in some areas, other areas are exactly how they should be!

Good summer read that explores the complexities of finding unknown siblings using a DNA kit. The story unites strangers to form an unbreakable sister bond. I received an ARC from the publisher and NetGalley and this is my honest review.

A well written and enjoyable story overall. Some parts did drag a bit, but it balanced out in the end. I enjoyed the connections between the sisters from very different backgrounds. The growth in the relationship was realistic and made it easy to connect with the women. Key themes of complex relationships, tragedy, and the true meaning of family are things that will likely resonate with many readers. t

That was an excellent read.

Three sisters that come together, and although they look alike, the differences become more obvious.
We start with Serenity (she was the one who started this all off) she’s a writer, she’s also just finished a messy divorce and a trial from hell.
Lorelei has enough on her plate, without coming out into the middle of nowhere, to meet her sister. She’s also on the brink of a divorce!! Her husband is having an affair with her best friend, and the other woman is pregnant!
Reagan, is dating a married man, it wasn’t meant to happen that way, but she fell in love....

Will the three women be able to become the sisters they all seem to need? Or will jealousy and outside forces pull them apart?

The meeting between the three women who are biological half sisters, is tense, how can it not be, they never knew each other existed. And who is their father? And how did they never know of each other?
Really well written, I felt all the emotion that the sisters had felt. The backstory of each woman is crucial in learning about them.
But did we really need the amount of information that was dumped on us about the brothers that lived next door? We need a little, but not as much as we got. (But I did wonder if they would get a book to tell us their stories.) And some of the other family members got page time, which sometimes took us away from the main story.

So what does the future hold for them? Will they find the truth in the past? Or will they be able to let go and forge a bond that will take them into the future.

And it brings to mind the debate on nurture versus nature, and the sisters definitely had different upbringings. And reading the interaction with Lorelei and her daughter was lovely. The interaction with Serenity and her parents was interesting.

* i was given an arc for an honest review. These thoughts are my own*
🦋

One Perfect Summer is set at beautiful Lake Tahoe. More specifically, most of the story unfolds at the cabin on the lake owned for decades by Serenity's family. Serenity grew up in a stable home with a younger brother and two younger sisters. She is a true crime author who has experienced writer's block for the past eighteen months and missed the deadline for her next book. Her life fell apart when she discovered shocking information about her husband that ended her once-happy marriage just as she and Sean were ready to start a family. As the story opens, Serenity is struggling to regain her equilibrium. Her circumstances have not been helped by learning that she has two half-sisters, both of whom are close to her age.

Reagan, an only child, was raised by her mother -- a workaholic -- after her father's death. She has worked hard to establish herself in the advertising industry and a partnership with her prestigious New York firm is now in jeopardy because of a rash mistake. She consummated her longtime flirtation with Drew, one of the partners, and is so ashamed of her behavior that she has fled the workplace. She is convinced that she must resign, but the prospect of starting over with another firm is daunting and disheartening.

Lorelei has flown from Florida to Reno with her four-year-old daughter, Lucy. Like Serenity and Reagan, she needs to make major decisions about her future after discovering that her husband, Mark, betrayed her. Lorelei has no relatives other than her husband, daughter, and Mark's large family. She grew up in a series of foster homes after being found wandering alone at the age of two. How she came to be lost remains a mystery, along with the identity and fate of her birth parents.

The three women connected on Facebook six months ago. Serenity has not confronted her parents, worried that questioning one or both of them could result in the destruction not only of their long, happy marriage, but her relationships with them and her siblings. Reagan, likewise, has not asked her mother about the test results, fearing her mother's reaction and confident that she will not be forthcoming, anyway. Serenity's parents have no idea that she has invited Reagan and Lorelei to the cabin for a week for the purpose of getting acquainted and attempting to untangle the riddle of their familial status.

Novak has crafted an engrossing story about three women who find each other at a crucial time in each of their lives. Ironically, each of them is facing the biggest crisis of her life and confronted with choices that will determine the course of her life. In addition to deciding whether and how to approach her family with the information she has learned, Serenity must get her writing career back on track. And has been actively resisting her feelings for Sean's stepbrother, Sawyer, who stood by her during the ordeal with Sean at the expense of his relationships with his stepmother and extended family. Reagan must find a way to forgive herself for being reckless and deal with the consequences of her lapse in judgment. And forgiveness is the key theme of Lorelei's conundrum, as well. She contemplates what her life will be like if she has the capacity to forgive Mark and return to the life they've built together in Florida. And dares to ponder what it would be like to move forward an an independent woman for the first time in her life, always with Lucy's best interests guiding her decision-making.

The pace of the story never slows as Novak injects various romantic and domestic complications. The three women get off to a rocky start, but are soon getting along well enough that they decide to spend not just a week, but the entire summer at the cabin. Part of the impetus is the arrival of Finn and his two brothers who are renting the cabin next door for the summer. Lorelei and Finn are drawn to each other, and Finn's brother, Davis, is recovering from a devastating and life-changing injury which gives Lorelei a purpose for remaining and risking her husband's ire.

Novak believably depicts the burgeoning relationships of the three women, including -- typical of sisters -- their disagreements and frustrations with each other. They decide to have one perfect summer together before they must each make final decisions about their lives and circumstances. As the days pass, they learn to confide in, rely upon, and help each other. And as the summer progresses, their investigation into the identity of their father proceeds, as well. The tragic truth is eventually revealed, but the focus of the book is squarely on the development of sisterhood.

One Perfect Summer illustrates that technology has the power to reveal secrets that were meant to remain hidden. The fallout from such disclosures can be devastating and destructive, or bring people together, creating and expanding families. When, like Serenity, Reagan, and Lorelei, people find the string, tug on it, and unravel their whole history, they choose how to react to and deal with the newly-discovered information. Novak's One Perfect Summer is a feel-good story. For her characters, finding answers simultaneously brings closure . . . and possibilities. Their journey is both entertaining and satisfying.

This book was amazing!! Already pre-ordered my physical copy!! Anything Brenda Novak writes is a great read and engaging!

One Perfect Summer by Brenda Novak. A story of family coming together for the first time stepsisters that didn't know about each other each with their own issues. A enjoyable storyline that keeps you intrigued.

Do you enjoy women's fiction?  Are you ready to be immersed in a long (464 page) book?  If you  might answer yes to these questions, this title could provide you with an escapist read.


The setting is Lake Tahoe, a beautiful and peaceful place with lots of water, places to walk and sports to enjoy.  There are three protagonists; Serenity, Reagan and Lorelei. 

Serenity writes books about true crimes.  There is a true crime in her personal life that has changed everything for her.  Next is Reagan; she is an ambitious, successful advertising executive until one decision and one moment changes everything. She will be faced with some big decisions. Then there are Lorelei and her four year old daughter Lucy.  Lorelei grew up in foster care and knows nothing about her family.  She was happy in her marriage until...


What do these women have in common?  No spoiler as this comes out early in the novel; the three share a blood relationship discovered after they did testing with a DNA site.  How are they connected?  Who is their common biological relative?  Why has no-one ever discussed any of this with any of them>  You will need to get very close to the end of the book to find the answer.


Around this central plot there are many others involving the sisters' families, their evolving relationship and their next door neighbors, all of whom have their own stories.  The strands intertwine and four narrators voice the story; these are the three sisters and Finn, one of the neighbors.


Overall, this was a book where the pages turned.  The characters are well established and each is very much their own person.  That said, I think that the novel might have been (even) better had it been shorter.  Sometimes sections replayed things that were already known to the reader.


This was the first novel that I have read by this author.  I would most likely read another of her books.
3.5 stars


Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this title in exchange for an honest review.

Serenity, Reagan, and Lorelei are all at different and challenging places in their lives when Serenity's DNA test reveals that they are half sister. Reagan, an ad executive, has just lost her job (a cautionary tale regarding workplace romance), Serenity's husband is a creep, and Lorelei's husband is cheating on her (and their little daughter). When the three of them get together, they discover they have more in common than genes and that they can encourage each other in ways they have not experienced before. How they come to be half sisters given their geographic difference and the secrets that have been kept from them comes out late in the book so no spoilers. I liked all three women- rooted for each other. Thanks to the publisher for the ARC. Novak is a good storyteller and this makes a good read if you'd like a good distraction from the news.

If you have read Brenda Novak books previously, I must tell you that this is not the typical romance or suspense read that you are accustomed to. This novel is very different, in a good way. It is the story of three sisters who discover each other through a DNA test and are seeking the truth about why they are related. It is a story of relationships, those that are broken and may or may not be able to be repaired and those that are new. It is a story of trust, broken trust and the newly formed trust when a new relationship begins. I must say that I was immediately immersed in the stories of Serenity, Lorelei and Reagan. I enjoyed the way that each sister was given her own point of view during the story. I think I got to know them better that way, so it made the whole book much more appealing to me. I was able to identify with each sister in some special way, based on events in their lives, but Lorelei was very special to me. I think that fans of Brenda Novak will thoroughly enjoy this book, and I highly recommend to new readers who are fans of women’s fiction. This book has something for everyone, including romance and a mystery!
Disclaimer
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley. I was not required to write a positive review. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255, “Guides Concerning the Use of Testimonials and Endorsements in Advertising.”

23andMe is uncovering a lot of long-held family secrets. Serenity, Reagan, and Lorelei have discovered they are half-sisters and have decided to spend a weekend together in Lake Tahoe to try and get to know each other. Serenity is dealing with the fall-out of her eight-year marriage ending; Reagan had and affair with a married man; Lorelei's husband has just admitted that he cheated on her with her best friend. The three ladies spend enough time together to realize they need more than just the weekend they originally planned for.
I liked the depiction of Lucy, Lorelei's four-year-old, in this book. She wasn't a plot moppet at all. However, I did not like the fact that all of the characters felt a little flat. This is a long book but there was So Much going on that none of it felt like the kind of in-depth story that Novak can do. I actually would have liked it much better had every romantic interest been edited out and the ladies had just had time to grow from the bonds with each other.

Three stars
This book comes out April 7th
ARC kindly provided by Harlequin Mira and NetGalley
Opinions are my own

The best part is the DNA aspect of the story. Very new within the book writing community. Ms Novak jumps right in and tells a great tale. Being this was an ARC I am sure small story issues will be fixed. Overall the three sister who "found" each other are brought together to try to come up with their story. They get to know each other at pivotal times within each of their lives. No spoilers but a husband who cheats, a sister who has a fling and a sister whose husband is in jail. YES she throws it all into this novel. Very well written and composed characters. The sub plot of the neighbors was really good, in my opinion, just enough to imagine something happening.

This is a great books and even better beach read.

Personally,I loved this book and didn’t want it to end. I’m hoping that there will be a sequel so I can find out what happens to the three sisters.

I am a huge Brenda Novak fan, and was excited to get this book on Net Galley. This was a very interesting topic and have often thought about having a DNA test myself. Cannot imagine having this type of result, but loved how the three sisters came together and supported each other while they are all dealing with personal life events. I have two things that I had trouble dealing with this book, I am not a fan of the separation of perspectives. To me that feels like the story keeps starting and stopping, I guess I prefer when everything just flows more evenly. The other part, and this is just me and my personal beliefs, I did not care for the turn the discovery of how the girls were related took. But that aside this was an excellent read and another Novak stunner.

Wow, what can I say! Brenda took a topic of today, DNA testing, and made an amazing story around it!
We center around 3 women, Serenity, Lorelei & Reagan, who find out they are half sisters after taking the DNA test. They talk for a few months and then decide to spend a week together in Tahoe at Serenity's families home. They get to know each other better, and try to work on how they are related.
This was a great story, I loved how the sisters came together, learned to love and protect each other, Brenda, this story deserves a trillion stars! But I can only give it 5 on here, but I will tell you all, make sure you grab this book asap! And sit back and enjoy the ride!