I’m a lover of a good family drama saga. Even more so if the setting is the beach or a beach town. I can usually connect with that kind of story line. So, I was hoping to love this one. I had a hard time connecting with the characters or the plot, and found myself hard-pressed to continue. I got rather tired of the lack of communication that seemed to be the cornerstone of the plot. The ending seemed a bit rushed. I wish I had liked this one more. But, there are some good reviews so perhaps it just wasn’t a match for me and my taste.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!

I only read about 50 pages of this book....The premise made little sense to me and the characters seemed way too black and white.....sorry

Wow! I am so glad I read this book and super appreciative of Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

I so enjoyed this family’s journey that revolves around their summer home in Cape Cod. This story captured my attention from the first page. I could absolutely connect with each of the siblings and each of their dramas. Each character had their own complicated spin that added to the suspense.

I would definitely read another book by this author especially since this is her first offering.

The Gordon family lives in Wisconsin, but have a second home on Cape Cod that has been in the family for generations. After a disastrous event at the end of their annual summer vacation, seventeen year old Ann has a secret that will affect the family for many years to come, and leaves a rift between the three siblings.
Fifteen years later, when their parents have been tragically killed in a car accident, the decision of what to do with the home on Cape Cod will force them to reunite.
This debut novel checked off so many boxes for me — family drama, love and forgiveness, hope, dysfunction, and a smidge of romance. These characters were believable and endearing. I love books with siblings and the push and pull of their relationships over time. This story was well told and I enjoyed seeing how it played out. Be sure to add this to your summer reading list.
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wow it's hard to believe this is a debut novel!
this reminded me of a cross between an elin hilderbrand novel and the most fun we've ever had.
told from the perspective of 3 siblings, we get inside into a complicated family.

Such a good book! This book centers around 3 siblings whose lives change dramatically one summer. It’s mostly based in Cape Cod - one of my favorite places - and is very well written. The start was a bit slow for me and I struggled a bit until I got to about the 30% mark then I couldn’t put it down. I just had to know how it ended! The author did a brilliant job with the characters with a few tearful moments toward the end. This is a good book if you’re looking for a lovely story about how a family is ripped apart then comes back together.

The Second Home is told from the perspective of 3 siblings - Ann, Poppy and Michael. This family drama covers the span of ~20 years. I liked this novel, however did not find any of the characters particularly likeable. I did enjoy reading about the setting of Cape Cod and thought the author did a good job with her descriptive writing. Her descriptions made me want to escape to a cabin on the beach in summer. I felt that the lack of communication between the characters in the story was almost not believable, and would have appreciated it if the author delved into that aspect a little bit more to make it feel more realistic.

I enjoyed this wonderful novel. A close-knit family wo live in the Midwest and during the summers go to Cape Cod to the second home that had been passed down through generations.
The children Ann, Poppy and adopted son Michael couldn’t wait for summer to arrive to go to Cape Cod, but one summer accident destroys that family bond.
It was heartbreaking and frustrating to see that the parents nor the kids as they grew older tried to repair that family bond and left too many years go by without discussing what really happened during that last summer at the summer home.

Thanks to NetGalley, The publisher and author for the eARC.

I so loved this book! I was given an advance reader’s copy through NetGalley. The story was so emotional told by all three kids in the family, Ann, Poppy and the adopted son Michael. It takes place mostly in Cape Cod, which I loved as I never really had a beach experience or surfed and this took you there, right there you almost felt what it was like to catch a wave.
This was Christina Clancy’s debut novel, wow I never would have guessed, it brought out many emotions, heart tugging and heart stopping and I would recommend you don’t miss this memorable page turner.

This was pretty good. 3.5 rounded up to 4 for GoodReads.
I loved the descriptions of the old Gordon house in Wellfleet and the Outer Cape in general.

I did put the book down for a while about 1/4 in when the event that implodes the family is about to happen. Because I was annoyed at these two characters for being so naive, stubborn, and unwilling to communicate at ALL with anyone. Granted one conversation would have eliminated the entire reason for the book but I was still reluctant to continue with these characters knowing there was still so much book left.

Fortunately, shortly after that, the book zooms back into 2016 and we're back to the house on the Cape.

The ending is very rushed and wraps up too neatly in 2 pages. It really felt lacking. There was so much detail and minutae in the first half of the book. Then the second half of the book really jumps around as much. Things happen off the page and the reader just gets a mention.

Now as I write my review perhaps it should be 3.5 rounded to 3 for Good Reads because as I type this out I realize that the book left me wanting more - especially in the second half.

The one quibble I have for the editors is that when Poppy drives to the Cape she notices the Friendly's at the rotary is closed. It closed in 2018; it would have been open during the time period of the story (2016).

One other quibble is that Michael calls Shelby his ex wife several times until Poppy asks him about it and then he says he never married. Which is it?

A book of an all American family that spends its summers on Cape Cod. Until one summer when a horrific act causes the family to lose trust and love in each other. Not until the parents are killed in a car crash years later is there an opportunity for the siblings to reunite. Can this family forgive the parts they played in a complicated history and learn to love each other again? The Second Home is a good read and the above comments and review are my honest opinion. Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for an ARC of this book.

Really angsty and emotional family drama set in Cape Cod over a span of years. There was a definite sense of the geographic location-enough that I almost felt like I was there. The Cape is one of my favorite places in the world! The story is told from three different POVs, Ann, her sister Poppy and their adopted brother Michael. All three of them suffer from the misunderstandings that happened when they were in their mid-teens-right when emotions are at their angsty best! There were times when all three of them annoyed me and I couldn't help but grieve for their parents who died before any of the misunderstandings were really cleared up. At the beginning, the parents have suddenly died and Ann is dealing with selling their Cape Cod house. The story then moves to the past when the family was ripped apart. There were a couple of times when there was a time jump that seemed a little jarring but that is only a mild critique. I was able to follow the story and was definitely invested in the outcome of the plot.
Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC in return for my honest review.

It is difficult to believe that The Second Home is Christina Clancy"s first novel! It is an excellent family saga filled with lies, secrets, and deceptions......all of which make it a great dramatic story. It is told from three different points of view. I loved the story and I loved the characters. This is a five star book and I highly recommend it to anyone who loves family dramas! I am looking forward to Ms. Clancy's next novel! Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!

3.5 stars - rounding up to 4 for a good debut novel. I enjoyed this family drama from Christina Clancy. It was well written and the characters were interesting. I did find it a little hard to believe that Poppy and Ann or even Ed and Connie wouldn't have looked a little harder for Michael or even that Michael wouldn't have reached out to Ed. And it was a little strange to me that he felt such deep ties to them when he had only lived with them for 2 years. But overall I enjoyed the story and the setting on Cape Cod. Thanks to NetGalley for the digital ARC.

I had the hardest time getting into this one. And by the like 70% mark I was just done. It drone on and none of the characters were that likeable.

The Second Home is a story about siblings, hippy parents and a place on the Cape. It's also a story about one sibling who has a horrible experience and how the anger, the pain, the way she gets out of it and how it effects all of the other family members. You find yourself pulling for her, being frustrated with her and still loving her. Great read. Thank you #NetGalley#StMartinsPres#TheSecondHome

What a perfect escape read. I’ve never been to Cape Cod by I have a place I love to visit on Lake Erie. This invoked that love of place and got it fits into your history. One of my favorite moments in the book is when Poppy is driving toward the house and starts to feel as she sees signs and landmarks fly by. I know exactly how that feels. Ann, Poppy and their adopted brother Michael spent summers in the family vacation home. One summer, everything fell apart dividing the siblings and Michael disappears. After their parents death the summer house draws them back together. This is a fantastic family drama. Christina Clancy writes with such a sense of setting that I felt I was there. I highly recommend this book! Perfect for summer.

Thank you to the publisher and author for providing me with a digital ARC of this title via Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

I was intrigued by the summary of this title and was excited for the opportunity to read it. I tried twice and got a little further each time, but couldn't do it. The first time I just couldn't get interested in the storyline. The second time, I got into the book quicker and was interested to see what happened, but I gave up when she started babysitting for the creepo on the island. The way he watched her, talked to her, and flirted was beyond disturbing. He's married and she is a teenager hired to watch his children. It was gross and disturbing and I had no interest to read more and find out if anything further happened.

I liked The Second Home by Christina Clancy. It was a good story to pass the time during quarantine. It was entertaining and kept me interested. I love stories that take place at the beach and this one takes place in Cape Cod.

Clancy has a gentle approach to her writing style in this book. She is not in your face. She just lays out a nice story for your enjoyment. If you like stories about families with history and young love, you will like this one and I would definitely recommend it for your reading pleasure. This book warmed my heart.

I grew to like her charecters and had several chuckles over Ed and Connie who were the parents of Ann and Poppy. They still had a great love for each other and I admired them. Have you ever had a teacher that was on the hippie side? Now, imagine them as your parents and going to the same high school where they teach.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher for a fair and honest review.

Overall I enjoyed this one. It is actually more like three stories in one.

A story about the highs and lows of family relationships...parents/children, siblings and a teenage adoption added to the mix. But there’s also a parallel story about how outside influences on those family members (prompting misunderstandings, lies, jealousy and estrangement) can take its toll on the family dynamic. And ultimately it explores how a home can feel and mean different things to individuals at different stages/phases of their lives.

It is well written and angsty enough to have kept my attention.

My only personal issue is that I ended up not particularly liking any of the characters, the exception being the adopted son, Michael. But that’s my take (and probably not a popular opinion).
Overall recommended.

A big thanks to #NetGalley and #StMartinsPress for providing me the ARC. The opinions are strictly my own.