Family Reunion focuses on 70-something Eleanor, who lives in her family home on a Nantucket beach. The home has been in her family for generations and she now must decide to move on, but that decision comes with the ire of her two entitled children, Cliff and Alicia. Her granddaughter, a recent college graduate comes to live with her for the summer.

I loved Eleanor and Ari's storyline as it reminded me of summers spent with my grandmother. Oh, how I long for those days and cherish those memories.

Family Reunion, in my opinion, could have been a better story had Alicia not been such an awful character. Yes, she was the book's protagonist, but there wasn't any redeeming qualities to her. I think the book could have been a 4 or 5 star had it focused primarily on Eleanor and Ari with much less of Alicia's storyline.

Nantucket is a great place to escape to for an easy summer read.

Many thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!

Family Reunion by Nancy Thayer was an enjoyable summer read. Thank you NetGalley. I can't say I liked any of the characters though. They were materialistic, selfish, pushy or just plain unlikeable. None of them treated their mother/grandmother with respect and all seemed to have major hangups. They took important life decisions lightly and acted unemotional and uncaring. All that being said, I still wanted to keep on reading and give the story 4 stars. Yes, I would recommend this book.

Eleanor Sunderland loves living on the Nantucket cliffside, in a charming home that has been in her family for decades. Now widowed, she looks forward to the arrival of her children and grandchildren for an annual family reunion, eager for the life and laughter that will soon fill the air. But Eleanor’s island idyll is shattered when her money-driven children suggest she sell the house and move to a retirement community. She finds a lone ally in her twenty-two-year-old granddaughter, Ari, who moves in with her for the summer. Ari longs for a change of scenery, to stray from the path her parents have set for her. What she does not expect is an electric romantic spark with a Nantucket local, Cal, whose kind heart and charisma have her absolutely smitten. This summer may bring some surprising connections, old and new. review: Nancy Thayer is another author who writes a quintessential summer book. Her books always transport me to Nantucket and they’re a breeze to read. I loved the multigenerational aspect of this book and really appreciated the realistic look into the Sunderland family. review: Nancy Thayer is another author that always writes quintessential summer books! I always look forward to reading her latest once the weather warms up. Usually her books and the characters hook me from the very start, but I had a bit more trouble with this one. I couldn’t connect to the characters and found some of them to be unlikeable and lacking any redeeming qualities. I really enjoyed the storylines of Ari and Eleanor, but the others felt a bit… forced? Of course, I did enjoy the setting on Nantucket 0 it was the perfect landscape for a summer read. Although I have liked many of Nancy Thayer’s books, this one isn’t one of my favorites. This would be a good book to toss in your beach bag since you can read without paying *too* much attention! rating: 3 out of 5 ⭐️

What can I say about this book? First of all, I'm a little prejudiced. Nancy Thayer is one of my favorite authors! However, each book is different, but I have to say I devoured this book as quickly as time would let me.

The first thing I noticed was the cover! It wowed me. Secondly, I was drawn to Eleanor, a 70 year old woman who has lived a good portion of her life in her home on Nantucket. Her problems begin with her children who want her to sell the house so they can get their inheritance. Hm, I didn't think that was a good idea, so I was intrigued! The story continued as well as the conflicts. I loved the back and forth of the unfolding plot.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for the opportunity to read and review this book. It's a great summer read!

Taking place in Nantucket with family trying to get their mother to sell her home for a large payout while leaving their mother to make a place for herself. That summer her grand daughter comes down before heading to grad school. Newly out of a broken engagement and unsure of where she wants life to take her she dives into a fun summer on the island. As summer takes hold secrets and information comes out that neither of them knew of.

I always look forward to Nancy Thayer books and this was no different! It definitely didn’t disappoint!

This story of multiple generation tells such a good story! I wasn’t sure at the beginning if I would love the characters- but I did! (Except for the ones you are supposed to hate)

I would 100% recommend this one!

Family Reunion was a great read by Nancy Thayer. Eleanor Sunderland has always loved living on the cliffside of Nantucket. The home has been in her family for decades. She cant wait to see her children and grandchildren for their family reunion. Everything gets shattered when her money driven children suggest she sell the house and move into a retirement community. Her granddaughter Ari is twenty two years old and becomes her ally. She asks her grandmother to move in with her for the summer. I loved reading this story and cant wait to read more by the author.

Nancy Thayer’s idyllic setting of Nantucket gives the reader the feeling you are a part of this town. Engrossed from the very start you are transported to this coastal setting, quickly becoming your summer vacation spot. Her characters are very relatable and experience life as many of us do. At a crossroads with pressure from family members to sell the family beach home Eleanor must make a decision. Ari her granddaughter visiting for the summer has just called off her wedding and is trying to figure out what comes next in her life. Her vivid descriptions give a good depiction of what you might encounter on a visit to this picturesque place. If you love beach reads pack this one in your beach bag. #NetGalley#FamilyReunion Thank you for the ARC all opinions Nate my own.

Enchanting beach read by Nancy Thayer with everything you need for a quick summer read - a family matriarch who owns a decades old house on Nantucket that has been in her family for decades invites her children to the beach to celebrate her birthday. Throw in some drama, some likeable characters, and unlikeable ones to spice it up, and of course the beach and the island of Nantucket itself, and you have a beach book that will transport you to Nantucket and into the lives of Eleanor and her family. Nancy Thayer weaves the story along steadily, and I thorough enjoyed and recommend this book to anyone looking for a good summer read. Thanks to NetGalley for an advanced copy.

Family Reunion is another lovely offering by American author Nancy Thayer. Set in the author’s beloved Nantucket, this intergenerational story focuses on the very impactful summer when Sunderland matriarch Eleanor turns 70. It is at the family gathering to celebrate this milestone that her children, Alicia and Cliff, start in on why she should sell the coastal family home and property that has been in her family for many generations. They also greedily want her to split the proceeds with them.

Alicia is a social climber who spends money about as fast as her orthopedic surgeon husband can make it. Their only child, Ari, has just graduated from college with a degree in early childhood education and plans to begin her master’s degree at Boston University in the fall. Ari, nothing like her mother, is down to earth with a very altruistic bent with long term goals of opening her own preschool for underserved children.

When the family travels to Nantucket for Eleanor’s birthday celebration, Ari does so with the full intention of spending the summer with her dear grandmother and finding a job for the summer while there. She could not have imagined finding a better fit for her than the nonprofit Beach Camp, which is a free safe place for families in need to place their children while they work during the summer. She also meets up with a former college acquaintance, Michelle Hathaway, whose family is spending the summer on the island, but rather than Michelle it is her older brother Beckett that really interests Ari. Meanwhile, widowed Eleanor is making new connections of her own.

A well crafted plot line with numerous twists, Ms. Thayer has offered her readers another well done story with an elder protagonist, something I greatly appreciate. I did enjoy this book and I do recommend it!

Review will be posted on 5/28/21

Eleanor lives in a beautiful cliffside home on the island of Nantucket. It's been in her family for generations. She is a widow, so the winters on the island can be very isolating. This has her adult children, Cliff and Alicia, worried about her. They want her to sell her home to developers who have been chomping at the bit for her property for years. It doesn't hurt that her children will receive one-third of the sale money, which thrills her children, especially Alicia who is obsessed with money despite never having worked a day in her life. But Eleanor doesn't want to sell her family home. She's happy on Nantucket and things become even more exciting for her when her one-and-only granddaughter, Ari, decides to spend the summer on the island with her. Ari just graduated college and could use some time to clear her head. Where better to do this than on beautiful Nantucket? Well, things aren't so calm this summer. Ari's parents hits some major bumps in the road, Eleanor's son, Cliff, can't seem to settle down with one woman, and Ari finds out some life-changing information this summer. Eleanor can kiss her boring life goodbye since this summer there's plenty of family drama including some of her own. Nancy Thayer's Family Reunion is a decent family drama set on idyllic Nantucket. All of the drama is nicely balanced out, so it's a refreshing story about family and taking the next step to a new chapter of life.

Eleanor is a charming character in Family Reunion. I did find some of her daily routines to be a bit boring as she is retired and doesn't have much going on, but it was balanced out nicely by the chapters focusing on Ari. Once Ari visits, Eleanor has a lot on her plate including a new love interest. I like how Thayer juxtaposed the characters of Ari and Eleanor. Even though they are many years apart, they still have to deal with a lot of the same problems in life. Ari and Eleanor helped each other through some difficult days and I liked that aspect of the novel. It made me miss my grandmother!

Ari comes to Nantucket to take a break, but things get complicated quickly in Family Reunion. I don't want to give away her secrets, but they are definitely life-changing. Thankfully, she has her grandmother to lean on as her mother, Alicia, is a flake and has her own problems that preoccupy her. While on Nantucket, Ari gets a summer job at a children's camp and meets someone new. Cue the summer romance.

The secondary characters in Family Reunion could have been developed a bit more. For example, Eleanor's family is the worst with the exception of Ari. Alicia is a horrible human. I couldn't stand her. She is a money-grubber and I felt like she was a caricature at times. I would have liked for her to be fleshed out a bit more as she seemed over-the-top. Every time she spoke, I rolled my eyes.

So, if you are a fan of Thayer, I don't think you will be disappointed by Family Reunion, especially if you like multi-generational tales. The descriptions of Nantucket were what readers have come to expect from Thayer and the family drama was nicely balanced. While it wasn't my favorite of Thayer's novels, I still enjoyed it.

So, are you a fan of Nancy Thayer? Have you read Family Reunion? Is it on your summer TBR list? Let me know in the comments below.

Reading a book set on Nantucket is always enjoyable and for me it signifies the start of summer! I'm a longtime fan of Nancy Thayer's books so I couldn't wait to read family reunion 😊 A multi-generational story begins with an is centered around Eleanor's 70th birthday in her huge and beloved home on Nantucket. Eleanor's children want her to sell the house. The reality is, for her daughter Alicia at least, she just wants the money. Her granddaughter Ari would be just as happy to see her stay in the historical family home. The story that in folds is a journey for each member of the family in a different way. I loved following each of their paths over the course of the summer. How it highlighted their individuality as well as their strong family ties and connections to one another. A story about family, overcoming obstacles and adversity, finding their own path, and then finding their way back to one another resulting in mutual understanding and respect. Although I am not as old as Eleanor, I'm closer to her age than Ari and I really felt like I could connect with and understand much of where she was coming from. The book is written beautifully, the story told so well! I truly enjoyed this book, another fabulous hit from literary icon. Thank you Nancy Thayer for a beautiful family story 💕

I enjoyed this multi generational tale. Eleanor is the family matriarch and she is a pip. I really liked her grand daughter Ari and the relationship that they have. Ari's Mom was a piece of work however and I really did not care for how vapid and self centered she was. I feel like she could have been toned down some. I know it is meant to show how the values of each generation are different but I felt she was over the top. Still a good story though.

A nice, light and lovely read. I very much enjoyed watching as the family grew and overcome the obstacles of life. Just enough drama to keep anyone entertained.

I loved this annual installment of Nancy Thayer set in beautiful Nantucket. Eleanor has moved into their family summer home year round. As she approaches 70, her son Cliff and her daughter Alicia try to convince her to sell the home so they can split the money. Eleanor’s granddaughter has just graduated college, with her goal to become an early childhood educator starting as she becomes a counselor at a camp for needy kids. The family reunion opens up old and new wounds, as they experience a summer that will change everything. Highly recommended, and thanks ti NetGalley for the ARC
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Four stars from me! It's not summer until I've read Nancy Thayer's latest book, so thank you NetGalley for my ARC copy. Overall, I enjoyed the story- definitely lots of family drama- but a fun book to get lost in for a bit. Alicia's character made me cringe so much (although I think that was the author's intention, ha!). Definitely recommend if you enjoy typical beach reads!

What a delightful story. Eleanor is an independent woman that loves her family and tries to make them all happy. Each family member has something going on that makes their life difficult including Eleanor, and Eleanor is trying to help them all. The Island of Nantucket sounds like a fabulous place to be in the summer. I really enjoyed this book.

A great summer read A grandmother and granddaughter bond through family challenges over the summer. I could not put this book down.

Unfortunately, I did not like this book as much as I thought I would. Usually, women's fiction ends up being disappointing for me, mainly because the characters are insufferable. That was the case here too. I liked Elanor and Ari, but the rest of this crew are awful people with very few redeeming qualities. It was hard to get through the book for that reason.

The positives were the Nantucket setting and how sweet Elanor was.

Wasn't a huge fan of this one. There were times that it seemed like an old lady wrote this Some of the things she would have a 20 year old say were things someone old would say. The writing was so different than her normal books.