I did enjoy this book but the characters fell a little short for me. I was intrigued enough to finish the story and did enjoy the book. I'd recommend it just with a note that there is a bit of a slower pace with development needed, give it a chance!

Christina Clancy's The Second Home explores the many layers of family love and conflict. The story moves back and forth between the late 90s and present day following the Gordon family as they spend their summers on Cape Cod in the family home that's been passed down for generations. During one particular summer a secret rips the family apart and creates fissures that ripple throughout the rest of the book. The chapters alternate perspectives between the three children giving the reader tremendous insight into the motivations and inner turmoil of each character. I found myself very frustrated with the main characters Ann and Michael as it seemed to me that they both were too quick to believe the worst about each other. That frustration compelled me to keep reading however so I suppose it was an effective plot device. Overall this book examines the love of family and the resilience of family connections through trauma and grief. Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the review copy.

Solid beach read or those looking for family oriented fiction. No surprises but very readable and likeable characters.

Two sisters decide to sell their family's summer home after their parents pass away; until their adopted brother shows up.

Michael is ready to set the record straight about that summer years ago.

Compassionate & Heartbreaking!!

Each summer, the Gordon family packs up the car and heads from Wisconsin to an old family home on the Cape. But one summer changes everything. Sisters Ann and Poppy grow apart as Ann becomes closer with the family for whom she is a babysitter. Poppy falls in with a new group of friends (for better or worse). And their newly adopted brother Michael is just struggling to figure out where he fits in -- especially with his "sister" Ann.

That summer leads to more than 15 years of secrets, lies, and festering resentment.

Circumstances force these siblings -- now strangers -- back together to reconsider that summer and their feelings about each other and their second home.

The story had a couple twists that kept me interested and separated it a bit from all the other books about houses on the Cape (of which there are many). I wanted to keep reading to see how it all worked out. It was fairly fast-paced and had a few rather poignant moments, particularly those moments that included siblings' parents, Ed and Connie.

There also were frustrating moments. This was another book where I felt like screaming, "Just talk to each other!" When resolution comes, it was almost too quick and felt lacking. There was a lot of angst, some of it understandable, but some of it was a tad over the top. Also, because of how time passes in this book, I feel like I missed seeing some of the character growth.

I would recommend this book for anyone looking for a beach read and anyone interested in family dynamics.

Currently classified on Amazon as Family Life Fiction and Coming of Age Fiction, this debut novel is a family drama that meshes the soul of Cape Cod with the heart of a family. The family’s salt box cottage on the Outer Cape bears witness to the struggles of the current Gordon family, as it has stood strong for other generations who came to this world of ocean, sand, and scrub pines.

The cover of the book is eye-appealing and enticing. Three young people, who must be the three siblings in the book are together, yet separate. The title of the book could have been “The Summer Cottage”, “The Vacation Place, or even “WellFleet”, but “The Second Home” is the only title it could be - this truly was a sheltering ‘home’, the place you go back to when you have nowhere else to go.

So, we have the perfect title and cover. What’s inside? First, the word pictures of Cape Cod are the best I have read (and Cape Cod is a popular setting for books). Second, the gentle wit and fresh use of words is appealing. Third, this story of a family united by so much, yet pulled apart in a moment is readable and compelling, like the constant ebb and flow of the tide.

In many ways this is a 5-star book, but for me, it was a bit long and slow in places. Some reviewers have called this book the perfect summer beach read, but I’m not so sure. Dark, tragic, evocative, this is a book to be read in late February, as the hope of spring begins to nudge winter away. Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an advance review copy. This is my honest review.

Absolutely fantastic. A mix between a beach read, but with being slightly dark and edgy instead of light and fluffy, with mystery and romance. Loved the character development through the years, every character followed a clear and consistent arc.

Ann and Poppy are sisters - daughters of two pseudo hippies from Wisconsin, who also happen to have inherited a house in Wellfleet, Massachusetts. Since the parents are teachers, the family is able to spend their summers at the beach house and the girls and their adopted brother, Michael, have many happy memories from those visits. One summer, however, something significant takes place and changes everyone’s lives.

For much of the first half of the book, you get lulled into thinking it’s a book about families and their challenges, but that changes! It seemed to take a long time to get to this point and the author then condensed a lot of years into the remainder of the book. I must admit that I like endings with no loose ends, but this one tied up a bit too predictably for me.

On the positive side, I’m also a fan of books about families and that take place at the beach/shore and so I liked these elements. The historical background of their beach house and learning about Wellfleet were also interesting.

Thanks to Netgalley and St Martin’s Publishing Group for the opportunity to read The Second Home in exchange for an honest review.

This was an okay book, but I would read more of this author in the future. The plot seemed stale---estranged siblings and a hidden secret. I did not give up on it, however, and it would make a good beach read. Who wouldn't like a house on the Cape?

The Second Home centers around three siblings and a rather intense summer in their youth. The story time jumps from when they were teenagers and then several years later with them as adults when their parents are killed in a car crash and they are forced with the decision of whether or not to sell their parents' summer home.
It was decently written. There was definitely a villain in the story that feels a bit over the top of still a formidable foe without giving too many spoilers.
Plot wise, there seemed to be a lot of situations and unnecessary drama added to the story with the characters' life choices. Definitely PG-13/moving into R rating. Overall, not really my favorite but not a bad vacation type read.

I only gave this book 3 stars because I felt that the author just went on and on and I guess I wanted her to get to the point of the story. I wanted to like the main characters but Ann and Poppy were selfish and self centered and I can't buy that it took them so long to come together and talk out their problems. Ok read.

The Second Home is a very entertaining novel involving three siblings who drift apart until circumstances bring them back together years later. Each of the siblings has an interesting backstory and appealing presence. The author helps us to get to know them by alternating episodes. Naturally, given the title, a second home is at the center of the story. The plot kept me reading to the end.
Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC.

I really enjoyed this book. It is well written, has interesting characters, and the story moves along at a good pace. It made me want to keep reading more and delving into the story of this family, who live relatively ordinary lives in Wisconsin and vacation at their summer home on Cape Cod. Most of the story happens in the summer, hence making this house quite important to the family. However, a series of circumstances conspire to make the sisters want to sell the house and all its memories and move on with their lives. Fortunately, due to complications and revelations about past secrets, the house was never sold. The story did make me think, do we ever escape our past and does getting rid of material things that remind us of the past really help?

Great premise and well-written details of a complex family structure involving two biological daughters and an adopted (teenage) son. The setting of the beach community was rich with detail as well. However, the one thing that kept me from really investing in the story was the creepiness of the male characters - one who who seduces his babysitter and the other who introduces a young surfer into a world of drugs. They were both cliche and unnatural at the same time. Not sure how to explain it, but I just couldn't get into their storyline. Other than that, the author did a nice job.

Enjoyable book that maybe could have been a little stronger.This revolves around some long-standing family drama, told from multiple points of view---which always makes it interesting. This is debut novel, so I'm sure there will be more good novels to come. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an e-arch in exchange for an honest review.

The book description released by the publisher is a great summary of the story line. The Gordon family is loving yet dysfunctional, unique yet ordinary. I didn’t really love any of the characters, though, and felt annoyed by some of their antics and sins of commission and omission. The last chapter also seemed to be forced and tried quickly to address the wrongs and unite the family once and for all. That being said, it was an easy read and would be a perfect summer beach novel.

The Second Home by Christina Clancy is a good family drama. It takes place in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and Cape Cod. The writing about Milwaukee and Cape Code were very descriptive and it felt like you were there. I am familiar enough with Milwaukee to know the places the author described and she makes me want to visit Cape Cod.

The main characters were likeable and I was able to sympathize with them. However, at times I wanted to hit them and say wake up. I suppose this and bad decisions go along with teens and growing up. However, bad decision making goes on into their adult life.

The book does fail to develop some story lines that could have been interesting and the ending did seem a bit rushed to tie the story into a neat bow. It is a good debut and I will think about Ann, Poppy, and Michael for a while.

Thank you to #Netgalley for an advanced readers copy of this book for an honest review.

I received an advance copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange of a honest review.

The story of Michael, Ann, and Poppy is everything I seek for when I want to read a well-written beach read: family drama, a love story, and dreamy descriptions of the East Coast. While reading, I felt like I was at Cape Cod, and could literally picture 'the second home.' The story moves from the past to the present from the perspectives of all three characters. Sixteen or so years earlier, the family home is rocked, and the story tells how each one dealt with the erosion of their family life. Secrets happen intentionally and unintentionally between all the family members. At times I was mad at each one, and at other times I cried for them. Each storyline and timeline of how all three were entangled and part of each other although at times miles apart made it an engaging and higher brow beach read.

Book Review: The Second Home by Christina Clancy

A second home on the coast that has been in the family for years. The three children who live there and how they’re lives are completely changed after one fateful summer there.

This was a story about family, love and healing. There was a good amount of emotion in this story. I teared up several times reading this and just FELT so much for these people about what was happening in their lives. There was one point in the story that I got so upset with something happening in the storyline that I had to put the book down and walk away. It was so easy to become emotionally invested in there characters! And the way the second home in Wellfleet was described made me wish I had a house like that too!

Really enjoyed this book and gave it 4 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️!

I don’t think this book was a good fit for me. Although, at first the story was intriguing, I found parts of it that didn’t add up or went unexplained. I had a hard time getting through this one and I really wanted to love it. It just fell short for me personally. I did enjoy the family dynamics, and the raw story that takes place after the death of the parents.