I thoroughly enjoyed this book beginning to end. It grabbed my attention right from the beginning. I felt like all the characters were well rounded. I genuinely liked the characters and wanted to know what happened to them in the past and present. This would be a book for someone who likes romance or a thriller. I felt the ending tied everything together nicely. I would be interested in reading other books from this author.

The story opens with Ann Gordon waiting for a realtor to look at a vacation home that has been in the family for generations. Neither she nor her sister, Poppy, can afford to keep the house where their family spent summer vacations. The home, that was once rich with wonderful memories and not so wonderful memories.

The story unfolds going back into the past, where Ed and Connie Gordon, along with their two daughters, Ann & Poppy, and their adopted son, Michael arrive at the summer home. Michael had a very rough life, and was left an orphan after his mother died. The Gordon's welcomed him into their lives to give him the stability and siblings he never had.

The three siblings struggle with their own inner thoughts and raging hormones changing them into teenagers. As they each try to discover who they are, it creates a divide between them. Where once they were close and did everything together, now they barely know one another.

After one harrowing event, leaving Ann damaged, she returns home seeking comfort, but Poppy is gone. Ann goes to Michael, and when Ed goes to ask Michael if he knows where Ann is, he finds them together in bed. Both pleading that nothing happened, Michael is beside himself feeling that he let Ed and Connie down. He avoids Ann and digs into his studies.

Meanwhile, Ann has a secret, and when she reaches out to the one, who she believes will help her. It sets into motion a terrible chain of events, where Michael believes he is helping ups and disappears.

Now years later, with everyone harboring secrets and believing the worst in one another, the death of Ed and Connie has brought the daughters back together to handle their parents' estate. Unable to find the will, Ann tries to rush the sale of the homes before word might get back that there is another heir. Unaware that Michael is closer than Ann knows, and when Poppy learns from a friend where Michael is and his plans; Poppy tries to get all the siblings together to talk. A talk that should've happened years ago, where the summer home that was filled with heartbreak, might be the very place that can mend all their hearts.

This was a wonderful story! I really enjoyed how it was told from varying perspectives and I got to know each of the protagonists. A story about forgiveness, and learning not to jump to conclusions before knowing the facts.

I received an ARC from NetGalley via St. Martin's Press and I have voluntarily reviewed this book.

Lack of communication, of their truth, caused a tight knitted family to break apart. This is an emotional story. The first part of the book was a bit slow to me, but ground works needs to laid to have a strong foundation, and that was taking place during this time. Before I realized it, I was involved and knew this family was heading for a huge disaster. I wanted to shout out to them to stop their damaging ways.

I enjoyed this heartbreaking, uplifting, emotional read. The author did a great job on character development, location setting and plotting a (mostly) believable story. There are one or two things that I accepted since this is a work of fiction that in real life would not occur.

I want to thank NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for allowing me to read the advance reader copy. My review is my own opinion, not influenced by receiving the ARC.

Good heavens. What a twisted tale of woe. People who won’t communicate with family members, a lying, scheming, selfish man and Loads of sadness. If you like lots of drama, this book is for you.

An interesting book with some good character development. There were some twists that helped keep the story moving. Would make a good vacation pick.

I really like stories like this, nice when I can relate to a lot going on - the settings, etc... I like how it went from person to person, telling this tale of three siblings and the miscommunication/lies that can change lives. I do like how it ended. Nice to have it all figured out and happily for everyone.

I really enjoyed this book. I was expecting a much lighter “beach read” and was pleasantly surprised at the depth of the writing. Much more of a literary novel. The characters were flawed and human, the sense of place and home were well written. As were the familial relationships and feeling of grief and loss. I will recommend this book.

This book was really touching, it's the first time I read about a story on the beach and I'll just say it's full of feelings, every character, I could feel what they conveyed, this book provoked laughter and sadness.
This book is perfect to read in summer in a quiet place, like the beach, listening to the waves of the sea.
Thank you for the opportunity to read this ARC.

I love books involving family secrets and this book did not disappoint. Plus the description of that area on Cape Cod were fascinating. Makes me want to visit that area all over again. Would highly recommend.

I’m in a minority here, that is, not very excited about this book. Within its genre (women’s fiction), it’s not a bad book, but the whole plot relied on constant miscommunication among the characters which I found rather unbelievable in what was painted as such a close family. Warnings: very vivid date (?) rape scene, off-stage suicide.

Christina Clancy has written a story which sounds like she lived it herself.
The characters come alive as we hear their stories through their voices, and they couldn't seem more real, flaws and all. I felt the emotions of the characters, and wanted to know more and more about them.

The second home is the place we all want to spend time. Getting to do so while in the company of such interesting people is an added bonus.

Two sisters and their adopted brother have very different personalities and complicated lives. But all three are brought together through time spent at the summer home on the Cape - a home passed down through the generations and now cared for by their parents.

But one summer separates them all emotionally and physically. Pain and hurt cause relationships to break.

Years later, with their parents dead, the siblings are brought back together against their will to sell the vacation home. Will they find healing, or will the bitterness of the years carry them along to their own graves?

A great summer read!

Is there anything more tantalizing than watching a family uncover old and festering secrets? Add the rich background of a family home holding scores of memories--painful and pleasant--and THE SECOND HOME delivers a compelling and haunting read.

I really enjoyed this novel. It grabbed me from the first page. I loved the characters and the setting, which was described in incredible, vivid and specific detail; it's clear the author was writing about places she lives and knows well (Milwaukee and Cape Cod.) The author did a great job of keeping the suspense going through out, making us wait until almost the very last page to finally have the main characters come clean and be honest about all the secrets they'd been holding back and ways they'd been suffering in silence during the intervening years. It did bug me that Ann and Michael believed such horrible things about each other for such a long time, and didn't give each other the benefit of the doubt, My other big complaint is that after all that waiting and angst, I really really wanted a steamy love scene (or at least a heartfelt kiss!) at the end between Ann and Michael, but instead the author completely drops the ball and leaves it all off the page, giving us a squeaky clean dialogue scene that just ... peters out and quietly ends ... and then flashes forward to an epilogue in the future. Boo! Epic fail! This isn't Jane Austen -- give us the romance we've been waiting for!! I really liked it except for my disappointment over that. I hope in future books, the author gives us a better scene at the end.

A terrific read! A family saga that warms your heart and never fails to engage. Home is something different for everyone but it is always the lodestone of life. This novel depicts that truth with empathy and realism. The Gordons were a special family and it takes a lot of revelations until everyone figures it out. Yet, all the characters are realized with clarity and pathos. The descriptions of Cape Cod and it’s flora and fauna are detailed and create the atmospheric backdrop for this charming Massachusetts peninsula. I recommend this book wholeheartedly.

The story was good but the details and misunderstandings were drawn out for too long. There were dull chapters, great chapters, tiresome chapters, good chapters, really wonderful chapters...and then suddenly it was over. The best part was wrapped up in a few pages.
Advanced reader copy courtesy of the publishers at NetGalley for review.

First- Trigger warning, this book contains a detailed scene with sexual assault

Alright, so. This book is just flat for me. A dud. It’s inconsistent, glosses over the law. Characters are underdeveloped and constantly do things uncharacteristically. One of those books where if everyone just COMMUNICATED it would have been 5 pages long.

The characters were well-written and I liked getting their individual perspectives. It made for a much more well-rounded read. I recommend this for anyone who enjoys the intricacies of what makes a family and forgiveness.

I enjoyed this book very much but last chapters of the book was kind of felt rushed. But still it was quite an emotional story. <3

I really got invested in the characters in this book. I had to keep reading to see what happens to them in the end. The story has a lot of bad things happening to real people. How the people react to hardship is sometimes disappointing or aggravating, but they are young.

I am always drawn to family drama set in a beach scene. This book started really good for me I was hooked for the first half. Then I thought it dragged. The storyline was ok but the ending too predictable.