A Summer to Remember by: Erika Montgomery

Reviewed by: Jennifer S. Smith

Immediately upon starting this debut novel by Erika Montgomery, I felt that Old Hollywood feeling of glamour, movie stars, and movies seen in historic theatres. The writing style is beautiful and flows smoothly. I was fully captivated by the story of family, memories, romance, and mystery.
Thanks to Net Galley for an ARC of the book, in exchange for a fair and honest review of this delightful book.

Frankie never knew who her father was and the only family she had was her mother. It was only after her mother died and she found a photograph of when her mother was much younger, that she decided to find her father. Leaving Hollywood for Cape Cod, what Frankie finds is a lot more than a father. A novel of the world of movie stars, long buried secrets, yearning to belong and finally finding peace.
Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for an advanced copy of this book. The comments and review are my opinion.

“𝒜 𝒮𝓊𝓂𝓂𝑒𝓇 𝓉𝑜 𝑅𝑒𝓂𝑒𝓂𝒷𝑒𝓇” 𝒷𝓎 𝐸𝓇𝒾𝓀𝒶 𝑀𝑜𝓃𝓉𝑔𝑜𝓂𝑒𝓇𝓎
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Book 78 in 2021
Release Date: 5/11/2021

Thank you Netgalley for the Arc of this book. This met all my expectations and some. I absolutely loved this book! A super fast read and lots of feels!

Frankie has been wondering her whole life who her father is and why her mother was so secretive of his identity. When Frankie’s mother passes away she decides to head to Cape Cod to locate the man’s son in a photo with her mother. What she discovers is her mother had a life she never knew about. She was an assistant to a famous Hollywood star Glory Cartwright and spent the last year of Glory’s life by her side. When she went to the Cape she met Louise and Russ. They were best friends with the Cartwrights and knew her mother. They told her that her mother mysteriously disappeared from Cape Cod without a word. She wants to find her father, but she learns about her mother, finds a couple that make her feel like family, and mets a man.

This was so good. So so good.
Thank you for the opportunity to read it early I’ll be passing the word around not to sleep on this one and to check it out

This new author was a pleasant surprise. This book was a fun read, part sweet romance, part mystery and drama. Looking forward to more books by this author.

This was an extremely enjoyable and romantic novel. It’s fast pace, engaging characters and dual timelines made it fun to read. What I was not expecting was the depth of emotion the author conveyed so beautifully in several different ways. My copy of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is the endearing story of a young woman searching for her father. Her mother has recently passed and in cleaning out her place, the woman finds letters. She travels from California to Cape Cod where she finds people that knew her mother. Did they also know of her father?

"A Summer to Remember" is an awfully generic-sounding title, but it does evoke Hollywood classics like "An Affair to Remember" and "A Summer Place." Considering that this novel deals with movie memorabilia and a film festival, it seems appropriate.

Frankie and her mother Maeve co-own a store in the heart of Hollywood selling props, costumes and other collectibles. Her mom's sudden death causes Frankie to make some discoveries about Maeve's past, before Frankie was born, which had never been shared with her daughter—namely, her job working as a personal assistant to a bona fide movie star, Glory Cartwright.

In an attempt to learn more about her mother, Frankie travels to Cape Cod, where Glory founded a prestigious film festival, and meets the group of people her mom knew all those years ago. She learns that Maeve left abruptly without saying goodbye. Glory and her husband are both long dead, but their son Gabe still lives on the Cape and is defiantly uninterested in anything having to do with Hollywood—including Frankie.

I've read a lot of enemies-to-lovers romances, and I felt that Gabe's turnaround happened a bit too quickly and never quite rang true to me. My favorite parts of the book were the flashback scenes highlighting Glory's relationship with her best friend Louise. All in all, a pleasant light read, but when I come across the title in my reading journal a few months from now, I doubt I'll remember much about it.

A Summer to Remember by Erika Montgomery is an interesting summer novel about Frankie going to a place to find out who her father might be in a place after she finds a photo in her mother’s things after her mother passes away.

I know very little about old Hollywood and am not a movie buff but I just loved all of the movie references in this one. Frankie receives something that unearths a mystery in her life. What happens next is good, bad, exciting and sad. This was a cute, well written read. Some parts were a little cliché but I love clichés so I did not mind. This could have only been better if I were able to read it on a beach.

Book Info
Hardcover, 320 pages
Expected publication: May 11th 2021 by St. Martin's Press
Original Title A Summer to Remember
ISBN 1250274087 (ISBN13: 9781250274083)
Other Editions (3)
Source:Netgalley EARC
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BOOK BLURB

"An unforgettable tale of love, loss and finding your place that glitters as brightly as the golden age of Hollywood." - Kristy Woodson Harvey, USA Today Bestselling author of Feels Like Falling

For thirty-year-old Frankie Simon, selling movie memorabilia in the shop she opened with her late mother on Hollywood Boulevard is more than just her livelihood—it’s an enduring connection to the only family she has ever known. But when a mysterious package arrives containing a photograph of her mother and famous movie stars Glory Cartwright and her husband at a coastal film festival the year before Frankie’s birth, her life begins to unravel in ways unimaginable.

What begins is a journey along a path revealing buried family secrets, betrayals between lovers, bonds between friends. And for Frankie, as the past unlocks the present, the chance to learn that memories define who we are, and that they can show us the meaning of home and the magic of true love.

Experience the salty breeze of a Cape Cod summer as it sweeps through this sparkling, romantic, and timeless debut novel tinged with a love of old Hollywood.

“The perfect read for summer. A novel with depth, real emotions, lyrical writing, and flawed characters with whom to fall in love.” - New York Times bestselling author Karen White

My Thoughts

Frankie Simon’s grief over her mother’s death still dictates her way of life even though she actually feels it is no longer one she wishes to continue.

A spur-of-the-moment decision takes Frankie back to where her life was started, a place that reveals more than just her birthright once she stays long enough.

A picture is painted of people, places, times long gone and the things that are available keeping memories of it all alive years after the fact.

For someone who is into movie memorabilia and the movie stars they used to belong to this is going to be a truly enjoyable reading experience from start to finish.

For those like myself that part of the story is truly only a backdrop for the actual truths that Frankie unearths makes this a book that can be enjoyed on that merit instead, as I did.

Past and present finally explained, secrets revealed plus new beginnings for Frankie explored.

[EArc from Netgalley]

On every book read as soon as it is done and written up for review it is posted on Goodreads and Netgalley, once released then posted on Amazon, Barnes and Nobles as well.

Frankie is a Hollywood memorabilia dealer who recently lost her mother. She never knew who her father was and has never stayed in one home to long. When she receives some unopened letters left in her mother’s belongings by a deceased actress, Glory Cartwright, made out to her husband and son. Frankie also finds a picture of her mother with Glory and her equally famous husband.

She takes herself to a coastal town to give the letters to someone who was close to Glory. She ends up on a journey of discovery to uncover some hidden secrets.

This book was incredibly well written. I love the characters and the story is beautiful and bittersweet. Definitely a great read.

4.5🌟 stars
I thoroughly enjoyed A Summer to Remember. There were so many things to appreciate in this story and memories to sustain, particularly the memory of loved ones gone too soon. The writing is engaging and the relatively small number of characters made it a focused read. The whole premise of a decades-long piece of family drama to be revealed kept reeling me in and the revelations were, for the most part, total surprises. The romantic elements were just icing on the cake!

Add to this a really strong feel for the setting. Montgomery has described the scent, feel and look of the New England setting so well that I could smell the salt tang of the sea and feel the humidity of the coastal summer days. And I loved the inclusion of famous movie quotes in this story that, after all, revolves around people closely tied to the romance of movie making.

Thanks to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for providing a complimentary advance copy of the book; this is my voluntary and honest review.

Frankie has inherited her deceased mother’s Memory Shop business and one of a kind historical collections acquired while working on film sets. Frankie’s father is a mystery, never revealed by her mother. One day a few old letters and a photo of her mother standing alongside a man named Mitch are brought to her attention, Could this be her father? Frankie sets out on a quest to find out. Mystery and romance, a captivating dual timeline, and characters who jump off the page..

A feel good summer story that uncovers buried family secrets and betrayals. Frankie owns a movie memorabilia store and receives a package with a photo of her late mother. What happens after that is a search for truth and Frankie discovering things about herself that will change her life. Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and author for a arc in exchange for an honest review.

I really liked this book. I really appreciate the lyrical language. The concept of the vintage Hollywood memorabilia shop is quite interesting. Also, the mystery behind Frankie's father kept my interest. A great summer read.

I adored every bit of this book -- from Erika Montgomery's amazing descriptions, the nostalgia of old movies, and characters who instantly felt like old friends. The perfect vacation read, whether you're on the beach or only dreaming about going to the beach.

I received this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. I fell in love with this story and these characters. Frankie is in search of answers. Answers for her life and her mother's mysterious past. It leads her on a road she never thought she would be on. Incredible. Unputdownable! Highly recommend!

Likable characters, complex relationships, and family drama with an engaging mystery – you have me sold!
Erika Montgomery, in her debut novel, has masterfully crafted characters and places you can’t help but love and want to learn more about. I spent much of the read visualizing what the story would look like on the big screen – perhaps a result of the strong classic Hollywood theme but more likely a result of the wonderful details and seamless dialogue.

The story follows Frankie, 30-years-old and recently orphaned after the death of her mother with whom she ran their Hollywood memorabilia shop. She never knew her father and never expected she’d find clues to his identity when a package arrives at her apartment. From her mother’s personal collection, it includes letters from deceased movie star, Glory to her fellow film star husband, Mitch, and son, Gabe – letters just about as old as she is – accompanied by a photo of her mother with Mitch.

Is Mitch Frankie’s father? Frankie is determined to find out and when Gabe refuses the letters, she decides a trip to Cape Cod is in order. She’ll hand-deliver the letters, investigate the mystery of her past, and dig up old memories and family secrets.

Highly recommend A Summer to Remember for lovers of sweet beach reads, light mystery, old Hollywood, and family drama. If you liked Beach Read or The Vanishing Half, this might be for you!
The more I think about this book, the more I fall in love with it. It is a subtle, beautiful, and reflective story of true friendship, deep love, and the complexity of relationships of all kind.

I absolutely love this book, it had it all the, old Hollywood glamor, mystery, family secrets, love stories, a little bit of everything I don't know how you couldn't love it!
Thank You to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.