Member Reviews
I enjoyed every page of this fantastic book. It captured me from page one to the end..it definitely deserves the 5⭐️ Rating that I gave this great book!!
Frankie Simon sells movie memorabilia in a shop that her mother opened years earlier. Her mother died in a car accident a few months earlier and she is still grieving. A mysterious package arrives containing a photograph of her mother and famous movie stars Glory Cartwright and her husband at a coastal film festival and her life begins to unravel. Who was her father? Is it Mitch Beckett, the husband of Hollywood legend Glory Cartwright? Frankie starts a journey that reveals family secrets that some don’t want revealed. A great story and summer read.
4 stars! I loved everything about this novel from the characters and setting to the storyline. I read the book in one day and I’m sad that it is finished. I think it’s only appropriate that this be made into a movie!
Famous acting duo Glory Cartwright & Mitch Beckett take a year long sabbatical from Hollywood heading for Mitch’s childhood home on Cape Cod. Mitch’s best friend Russ & his wife Louise welcome the starlets with open arms.
Frankie Simon runs The Memory Shop in California. Her beloved mother, Maeve started the memorabilia store in the 80s before tragically passing away. Frankie loves watching customers find their special piece of nostalgia. She discovers two sealed envelopes addressed to Gabe & Mitch along with an old photo of her mother standing were close to Mitch Beckett. Frankie’s curiosity is piqued when she does the math. She wasn’t aware that her mother knew this famous actor. And her mother never revealed who Frankie’s father was.
Traveling to Cape Cod she endeavors to deliver these unopened letters to their rightful owner, and she hopes to learn something about her mother and possibly her father along the way. Frankie gains much more than she bargained for. The dual storyline is fast-paced and reads like a movie. It’s absolutely fabulous.
I received an advance digital review copy of this book all opinions are my own.
Family secrets….
New friendships….
Finding true love…..
A Summer to Remember was a perfect, summer read for me. I really liked the characters. The authors writing draws you into each character and their flaws.
Frankie is the owner of a Hollywood Memorabilia shop. Her mom started the shop and has passed away leaving Frankie to keep it running. After Frankie receives a photo and sealed letters from her mother’s estate, she starts wondering if a man in the picture could be her father she’s never known. Her journey takes her to Cape Cod to get questions answered.
Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and author for the opportunity to read this book for my honest opinion. All opinions expressed are my own.
Erika Montgomery takes you on a wonderful journey of secrets, love, friendship and family betrayal. I enjoyed the character interaction and found myself rooting for a great ending. I got it! Quick, fun read.
I received a complimentary copy of this book, all opinions are my own.
A Summer to Remember
Rating: 4/5🌟
What a perfect beach read!
Frankie is getting by - just barely. She’s living alone in LA after a disastrous break up (with the guy who happens to be her landlord), is barely keeping her celebrity Memorabilia store alive, and the worst part? She feels incredibly stuck.
After an unexpected package shows up containing letters and photos of the famous Glory Cartwright and her mother, Frankie is left questioning who she is and where she came from. Following her mother’s story across the country, Frankie learns what it means to truly love someone else and what happens when friends become your family.
I really enjoyed this - the entire book felt like a long lay in the sun on a summery afternoon. A quick but detailed read, I enjoyed how Montgomery developed her characters and their level of nuance in such a short amount of pages.
While her story idea is not new, she gives a fresh take on Old Hollywood and summer adventures that lead to big life changes.
Thank you to the author, NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC!
Read if you like:
+ Elin Hilderbrand
+ Cape Cod
+ Old Hollywood
This story was very sweet and perfect for the summer. It held my attention but was still easy to pick up and put down. The family mystery woven with romance was done well. Though at times predictable, there was still a lot to uncover and piece together. I think this would be a great vacation read; especially if you are headed to the East Coast.
🥰liked \\ 💗low steam
🤟family secrets, love, friendship
📚Cancel the Wedding by Carolyn T. Dingman
🎶A Kiss to Build a Dream on by Louis Armstrong
When Frankie receives a mysterious package containing a photo of her late mother with famous movie stars, Glory Cartwright and her husband, the year before she was born, she begins to wonder if they would know who her father is. She sets off to the coastal film festival to seek answers. This was a fun story to read. Great character development along with secrets and romance along the way.
Thank you NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review.
Looking for a great Beach Read? Look no further. Such a cute story that kept me interested from the jump.
I look forward to reading more books by this author!
4 perfect summer read stars
We meet Frankie first at her Hollywood memorabilia shop. The shop was started by her mom and the two shared a passion for movies. Now her mom is gone and she’s not sure she can keep the shop open. Frankie stumbles across a photo of her mom with some famous stars (along with two sealed letters) at an annual film festival on Cape Cod. Her curiosity gets the better of her and Frankie books a trip to the festival.
There’s a bit of a mystery to figure out in this one and I enjoyed the way the author slowly unspooled the story for us. Throw in a bit of romance, Hollywood glamour, and Cape scenery and this one made for a perfect summer read. I liked the way this one ended.
This book is perfect for fans of old movies and Hollywood stars. One of my favorite parts is that much of it was set on Cape Cod, which always feels like a summer place for me. Maybe I can even make a trip there this summer! I enjoyed this one and I look forward to the next book from this author.
This is a nice summer read. It is about finding out about your past and moving forward. This book goes back and forth in time. I like the current story much better than the one from the past. Overall, I would recommend. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC copy.
The perfect summer read! I'm a sucker for family secrets and Cape Cod, so this book really delivered.
It isn’t often you are invited to revisit a section of your parents life before you were on the scene. Frankie Simon is given just that moment when a package arrives bearing a picture of her mother and two very famous stars from the ‘golden’ age of Hollywood. So begins a look into a world of fast cars and vintage drinks an unfettered youth. Frankie learns some hard truths about her life and the mother she assumed she understood. A great read for salty air and gentle breezes.
This book is the perfect read to drift away with on a summer day, or a spring afternoon when you're longing for the long days of summer. The story is full of love, family drama, and romance. I really liked all of the characters, they were super easy to relate to and well developed. The story also features enough mystery to keep me reading. Overall it was a great read and I really enjoyed it.
A Summer to Remember is a light, refreshing beach read perfect for the summer and for movie buffs. The book follows Frankie as she tries to give two letters found in her mother's personal items back to their rightful owners. Little does Frankie know the Pandora's box this journey and these letters will open!! Using alternating timelines to play out the story, we see a tale of romance, mystery, family secrets, grief and friendship all while trying to figure out what home means.
For a debut novel, I thought it was strong - solid storyline, great flow, enjoyable characters and she leaves the book open to being a stand alone book or a possible sequel. A win-win!
My thanks to Erika Montgomery, St. Martin's Press and netgalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Erika Montgomery’s A SUMMER TO REMEMBER soared to the top of my most anticipated list from the moment I heard of its existence and it didn’t disappoint. I have to say that I may have done a happy dance when I picked this one up. Luckily for me, no one was around to see it as it was enthusiastic but definitely not pretty.
Montgomery writes a story that transports you to the beach, wrapping you in memories as the characters navigate the past and the future, grief, family secrets, and memories, as they find connections, and each starts to make their peace with the past. I enjoyed being a part of the characters’ journeys to find their place in the world. I loved the way Montgomery wove in magic of movies and Hollywood into the story and how they impacted each of the characters’ lives.
There is so much to love about this beautifully written novel: from setting to story to character development, A SUMMER TO REMEMBER is the perfect summer read. Grab your favorite beverage and find your favorite summer reading spot and enjoy.
Thank you to the publisher for an advanced reader’s copy of this novel. All opinions are my own and freely given.
#ASummerToRemember #ErikaMontgomery #StMartinsPress #SummerRead #BeachRead
After her mother dies, Frankie receives a mysterious package containing pictures of her mother with the famous movie star, Glory Cartwright and her husband. Frankie is convinced that the picture will lead her to discover the identity of the father she's never known. Accordingly, she travels to the yearly film festival which Glory founded to find out about her mother's past. As a result of Frankie's journey, secrets are revealed and lives are changed. This book is a bit of a bait and switch. Although the main question of the novel regarding the identity of Frankie's father is answered within the book, the revelation is very hasty and has very little to do with the main plot. The story can also be somewhat slow-moving. It is full of very realistic characters, however, whom you can't help rooting for despite their flaws. If you enjoy books about found family more than real family, you especially may enjoy this book.
This was a beautiful story if loss, forgiveness, and memories. Frankie doesn't know her mom as well as she thought. After finding some letters and returning to a place Frankie never knew her mom had been to she finds more than she bargained for. This story was a fantastic summer read!
This was not my typical read, but it passed the time just fine. I can imagine a lot of people would like to read this on a beach. Free advanced copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review
A Summer to Remember was an enjoyable read. I would say this is a beach read, but for readers who like their fiction to be a little al dente, which I certainly do. I like to be able to sink my teeth into a book and think as I read.
I found it a bit convoluted at the start, but the plot and characters starting coming together a few chapters in, and I found my groove with the book. Enjoyable, well-developed characters, some beautiful writing, and an intriguing mystery set mostly in Cape Cod. Lots of escapism as well as old-Hollywood intrigue. Although there is a good bit of the romantic in this novel, I definitely wouldn't classify it as a romance novel.
Thanks to @NetGalley for the advance reader copy!