Once again, in her 25th novel, Elin Hilderbrand delivers a superb romance/family drama set in Nantucket. Elin has a knack for painting Nantucket in a beautiful, romantic light and developing characters that become your best friends.

Based on the play, Same Time Next Year written by Bernard Slade, our two main characters Mallory and Jake agree to meet up every Labor Day weekend "no matter what" after they fall deeply in love in 1993. This means through marriage, births, deaths. Anything. No matter the cost. No matter what. This becomes a 28 year affair, but only 3 days out of the year. The rest of the year they don't communicate. At all. Sure they have run-ins, they hear about each other through family and friends. But they don't text. They don't call. Until Jake has landed on Nantucket the Friday before every Labor Day weekend and then it's like they've never been apart.

This book explores love at it's deepest levels, friendship, and how it can all be so complicated. But is love really complicated or do we just make it complicated? Every labor day weekend Mallory and Jake show us how simple life and love can really be.

This was really good! I loved Mallory and Jake's story and how it unfolded. I don't know why I was so unprepared to be so sad at the end, but alas, I cried my eyes out. Great book!

28 Summers starts each chapter with defining moments in culture from each year of Mallory Blessing’s 28 Summers in Nantucket. Labor Day weekend is the defining weekend of every year for Mallory and Jake. No matter what, these two meet every year and love each other. This book is full of near misses, disappointments and heartbreak, and even though you may not always agree with them, you root for the characters in this book. Can you really love someone if you only spend 4 days a year with them? Elin Hildebrand allows us to find out the answer to this in another beautiful novel that needs a sequel.

28 Summers ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 ⁣
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“It’s like a game of Would You Rather? Would you rather have perfect bliss for only three days or a solid but dull relationship all year long?”⁣
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Jake McCloud and Mallory Blessing have a love affair that’s been going on for 28 years. No, not 28 years, 28 summers. Every Labor Day weekend they meet up on Nantucket and relive their first weekend together. No matter where they are, where their lives have gone, they always meet.⁣
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First off, I love Elin Hilderbrand and this book is no exception. There’s something about the narrator’s voice that always pulls me in. It’s slightly all knowing, sometimes a bit foreshadowing. And I love the way she pulls side characters in.⁣
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Book that span decades always draw me in. We start in 1993 and follow these characters through 2020. By the end, I don’t want to lose them. I feel like I’ve grown and lived right beside them. Along with the years of character growth, we see culture through the decades as well. I love how each chapter starts with cultural references from that year. It’s a fun way to set your perspective for the time period (even if I was just a young kid for many of them).⁣
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Some years we relive their romantic weekend, others we focus on one character or the other. We don’t always see their one weekend and that helped to keep the story moving without getting monotonous.⁣
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If you don’t like books with cheating, obviously this one won’t be for you. But I loved seeing the way their affair shaped their lives, for better or worse. They continue living separately but they always have each other silently shaping the decisions they make. I wanted to shake them at times but I couldn’t stop rooting for their happiness either.⁣

I've heard it's not truly summer time until you've read the latest Elin Hilderbrand book and now I definitely have to agree. I recently read a few of her other titles and they were solid reads, but this one has been my favorite so far! I loved the story and I was not expecting the splash of politics but it was welcomed and loved. My favorite part was the cultural references at the beginning of every chapter/or summer! It really took me back to that year and helped develop the story. This is a PERFECT beach read. Fast, engrossing, and well written. I think this book will do great. Thank you to NetGalley for a free copy in exchange for an honest review!

Same Time, Next Year is the theme of the book as Mallory and Jake have the most unexpected love story. I truly loved all 28 summers that the two had together as their lives took unexpected turns by their love continued to burn year after year. I laughed; I cried; I wanted more of this perfect summer read!

28 Summers is based on the movie Same Time Next Year. The story takes place in Nantucket. Mallory is Cooper’s little sister and Jake is Cooper’s friend from college. Every Labor Day weekend Jake and Mallory meet no matter what is going on in their lives. I loved how each year has a recap of what was going on the world. This book will having you enjoying the romance, make you cry with heartbreak and everything in between. 28 Summers is a great beach read! Thank you to Little, Brown and Company and NetGalley for the ARC. This is my own opinion.

In 28 Summers the popular author explores the ups and downs of love, trust and loyalty in relationships. I like how the beginning of each chapter gives the highlights of that year. The story moved along quickly but lacked much depth. It is a good beach read.

What I enjoy about Elin Hilderbrand’s novels is that she transports the reader to Nantucket through the magic of her words. While this was a love story between Mallory and Jake, it was difficult for me to feel sorry for them. I don’t want to give anything away but I wanted Mallory to be a stronger woman and Jake to follow his heart. Throughout the years, we are witness to many love affairs, marriages, friendships and infidelities which make for a perfect summer read. #28Summers #ElinHilderbrand #NetGalley

Elin Hilderbrand knows how to spin a story. I have read every book she has ever written and was pleasantly surprised by the warmth and honesty portrayed in this book. It outlines the life of one woman as she struggles with love, her career as a teacher and raising her son as a single mom.I really loved how she only gave glimpses of the years. This kept the story moving without weighing down the reader too much. This is a must read.

Four and a half stars! I loved it! It was everything I expect from a Elin Hilderbrand novel. There was love, romance, definitely scandal, heartbreak and loss. It all takes place on the island of Nantucket which is perfect! Throw in some politics and gossip - it’s a juicy one! I look forward to a new Elin book every summer - I hope she doesn’t stop writing for a long tine! Thank you to Netgalley for the E-ARC and to Elin for writing another summer must read!!

No summer is complete without a new book by Elin Hilderbrand! And while this one is a little grittier and twisty-er. It is still the perfect summer read! This book is begging for a beach chair and a cool drink. It's excellent.

If I could give this book more than five stars I would. It is a terrific read and just keeps moving. It was wonderful to see all the characters progress through the years to the extent that they became family. I will warn you that the last few pages are best read with tissues in hand. I could easily have continued reading through another 28 Summers.

I don't remember why I started reading Hildebrand. I remember being a snob about the covers and thinking I was too good for summer chick lit, but this book made me really happy. Perfect quarantine reading.

Hilderbrand never disappoints!

Hilderbrand is known for beachy, fun, summer reads and 28 Summers is NO exception!

If you are looking for a book to escape for a while, this is it. Seeing as the world has come to a halt and vacations have to be put on hold for the moment, this is a great novel to enjoy. It puts you in a perfect head space.

If you've ever watched the film "Same time Next Year" and loved it, than you'll love this too. This book was apparently based on that movie.

Definitely a great book to read. Highly recommended!

Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to read this book in exchange for my honest review.

I don’t typically like novels focused on romance, but Hilderbrand’s books have always been the exception. She writes about Nantucket with such passion that it has made me want to move there myself. This book focused on Jake and Mallory, not a couple, but a “Same Time Next Year” situation - they see one another just once a year, over Labor Day weekend, in Nantucket. I really enjoyed the plot, as well as the bite-sized chapters. I also loved the chapter intros: “What we were talking about this year” - lots of nostalgia!

My only complaints are that first, the book ended too abruptly for me. Second, couldn’t Jake and Mallory have just...been together? I never understood why they wouldn’t just give dating a try. I also didn’t get why Jake stayed with Ursula, who seemed to have no redeeming qualities besides being extremely driven and successful and a decent mother. 4 stars!

I am so grateful to Netgalley and Little, Brown and Company for the ARC which I received in exchange for an honest review. I couldn't believe how lucky I was to get approved to read a book I'd being looking forward to all year.

(SW at the end of this review)
I wasn't sure if I was going to enjoy a story about infidelity taking place one weekend a year for "28 Summers", but I really loved it! I loved the beginning of each chapter/year, which reviewed historical facts for the year. The book covered a lot of time, and a lot of Labor Day weekends, but as usual Hildebrand did so masterfully. The story flowed beautifully. I enjoyed the characters and their strengths and foibles as they navigated through their sometimes messy lives, I always love being transported to Nantucket (although I have never been in real life!)

It was fun hearing about the characters' teenage children Link and Bess (will we get another book about their relationship please?) I love when details about teenagers remind me that my own are "normal".

The ending of the book, although sad, helped me as I process the death of my own mother two weeks ago after a week in hospice. I have realized we don't talk enough about death and although awful, it's important. So thank you Elin Hildebrand for that.

I highly recommend this book!

Another smash from Elin Hilderbrand. I grappled with the central idea of this novel- two adults, one of whom is married for the majority of the story- spending Labor Day weekend together every year for 28 summers. However, as the novel progressed, I found that much of the genius in the book is centered on confronting your feelings over this arrangement. Initially I thought “if they’re in love, why don’t they just get married?” But it really isn’t that simple.

The story is woven perfectly, with snapshots of the important developments over 28 years, intertwined with Labor Day weekend each summer. Covering that much ground, a book could easily become too long or not provide characters with enough depth, but Elin is a master and she manages to attach you to everyone in the book without drawing it out. I think this one will make an excellent book club choice for the conundrums it presents.

Mallory Blessing's story arrives in 28 chapters, each with a note about what happened that year. It is a bit of history and pop culture combined. Mallory inherited her aunt's cottage on a beach in Nantucket, MA, when she was a young adult. Mallory always loved the beach cottage even though she has only visited once. Life changed for her—Mallory dove into a blissful state of happiness with her cabin and some money to help.

The significant people in Mal's life included her brother Cooper and best friend, Leland. Once settled in her island life, she preferred not to visit back home in Baltimore. Coop asked if he could have his bachelor party at her place, and that night changed her forever. Mallory met Jake McCloud, Coop's college friend. Their meeting would turn into a year-long wait to see each other on Labor Day weekend. They both counted the days but did nothing to change their lives for the rest of the year.

Jake had a girlfriend, Ursula, who he had known since he was a child. He wasn't willing to give her up, not quite yet. Mallory would never leave Nantucket. They made up their minds and cherished each yearly weekend with their traditions and rituals, mostly unchanged over 28 years.

Both Mallory and Jake had children, a bit of a mystery there for a new reader to discover. Mallory's son, Link, was the love of her life and proved to be a brilliant mother. Link knew his father, but as he grew up, he wanted to visit him less and less. This novel read like a real love story, spread out over 28 years. Jake and Mallory's love for each other is joyful to imagine with the author's description. It is a story that could play out in real life for anyone.

I hope the summer readers of EH's latest novel enjoy each page. I did. Thank you to the author, Little, Brown and Company, and NetGalley for the chance to read this e-ARC with a publish date of June 16th.

I read this book in 2 sittings. Elin Hilderbrand had me hooked right from the very start. I loved the way she introduced each chapter by reminding readers what was happening in that particular year. 28 Summers follows Mallory through, as you guessed it, 28 summers of a love affair with her brother's fraternity brother. We follow them through job changes, marriage, children and death. While I enjoyed this book very much, the more I thought about Mallory's life, the sadder I became. Spoiler alert! While she never cheated on any partners, her lover cheated on his wife over and over again. I wish Mallory had been a little stronger. Fans of Hilderbrand will eat up this beach read.