Love the book! Thanks for the invitation to read it. Great character development! I loved that I didn’t have a hard time keeping characters straight. That often happens to me when I read a book with such a large cast of characters, but the author did a wonderful job here.

I was really excited when I saw Jennifer Weiner was coming out with another book as I thoroughly enjoyed Big Summer. I was hoping The Summer Place would be a sequel to it or something similar, so I was a little thrown off when it wasn't. That is my fault, as I didn't read the synopsis before I started.

However even with that being said, I thought that this book was not Weiner's best work. I thought that the story was trying to stay relevant with COVID, but the references and the "ugh, life" of it was just a little over the top. I appreciated that it wasn't a cookie-cutter "we fell in love and got married!" kind of story, and it ended up being more about a young woman figuring out who she is.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

THE SUMMER PLACE - So many bad choices, so many lies, so much cheating… makes for one BIGGGG family drama story, and I’m just not sure this one was for me. I felt it was just full of bad people, and I LOVE Jennifer Weiner, so that really pains me to write 😭

The drama was just too much and far too many coincidences and told from SO many different point of views, I struggled and found some parts repetitive 🤷🏻‍♀️

To be blunt this book was simply not a good fit for me.🤦🏻‍♀️

Ruby is about to marry her quarantine boyfriend. Thrown together through the Covid outbreak they came out the other side wanting a life together. But they’re quite young (early 20’s.) Are they really ready for this next stage in life?

Are their families happy for them? Well? On the surface…perhaps. But deep down each family member is dreading the day for their own reasons.

This family gave new meaning to the word dysfunctional!

All the characters were unlikable, shallow and selfish...except for the children. The adults (and I use that term loosely) all needed to take a step back and think of someone other than themselves.

This was my first book by this author, and likely my last. I can see we just weren’t meant to be.🤷🏻‍♀️
Other readers really enjoyed this book so please take a look at all the positive reviews before making a decision. I am very much alone on my outlier-island (once again!) Lol!😎🏝️

A buddy read with Susanne.

Thank you to Atria books via Netgalley and Goodreads Giveaway for a physical copy

Jennifer Weiner is an auto-read author for me and the only author who could get me to read about Covid while we are still in it. Like her other books, The Summer Place is the perfect book to escape with when you are dreaming of summer or to pack in your beach bag.

I was worried with a lot of characters in this book, it would interfere with the flow of the story, but it didn’t. I really liked getting the perspective of each character in their own chapter and the jumping back and forth through timelines.

All of the characters are hiding secrets from each other and as a content warning, there is a lot of infidelity in this book. Some of it comes to light and I feel like there needed to be a more consequences for those characters once it was brought to light.

Despite the infidelity, I liked how despite their flaws, this was a family that was there for each other, regardless of what was happening in their own life. I loved the bond between Sarah and her stepdaughter Ruby. I truly loved the epilogue and was sad to say goodbye to this family when the book was over.

The Summer Place is my favorite Jennifer Weiner novel yet. Partly because it’s my 5th, so I know what to expect and what mindset I want to be in to most enjoy it. But also because these characters are incredible works of art. They’re real, multidimensional beings, not just as a cast but standing alone too. Each character was my favorite character while reading from their perspective. Now that I’m done, I still can’t pick a favorite.

I can’t take about the characters without mentioning the house itself. The story includes a few brief interludes written in the voice of the actual house itself (The Summer Place!). These interludes are chalk full of powerful imagery and absolutely gorgeous writing, so I can’t say I didn’t love them. But they felt out of place with the rest of the story. But maybe that’s the point? I don’t know, jury’s still out on the anthropomorphic house.

Turning to the story itself, TSP is a multifaceted tapestry chronicling three generations of family life. It explores the meaning of “family” and unequivocally determines that it’s not biological. Family is what we make it and who we choose to call our own, regardless of what a DNA test might say. I love this.

One theme I wish JW explored more explicitly is forgiveness. The ending doesn’t make sense without it. I worry readers will find the ending unrealistically tidy since the humility and unconditional love that foster such deep forgiveness aren’t acknowledged. Minor point but I think the story would be stronger with it.

Overall I really loved this one and am so excited for Jennifer Weiner fans to get their hands on this one. It won’t disappoint!

Thanks to Atria Books for the gifted copy!

I continue to be a fan of Jennifer Weiner and her writing. She really has this great way of pulling you into the story, introducing you to each character with thought. She builds them out in front of you while painting you a picture of Cape Cod. I appreciate that while Covid is mentioned in this book and is part of the overall plot, it isn't the main focus. It's a side piece of what is driving the story. I enjoyed seeing each character's cracks begin to form, and show just how human each of them is. The personification of the house, in gentle moments, really kept me drawn in. I just love how she writes.

Jennifer Weiner does not disappoint. This story is so relevant today. It deals with the pandemic in a way that doesn't make me want to curl up in a ball. The family dynamics are fascinating & get more so as the story progresses. First you have Sarah, a former pianist that chose not to pursue it professionally, is dealing with her step daughter's (Ruby) announcement that she & her pandemic boyfriend are going to get married & they are doing it at Sarah's mom's house on the Cape. Sarah is torn because she thinks they are too young & it's all too fast, but she isn't getting any back up from her husband (Ruby's dad) because he has become completely distant during the pandemic. Veronica, Sarah's mom, is thrilled to have everyone coming. Sam, Sarah's twin, is dealing with his own issues with a step son & life choices. Ruby & Gabe, the happy young couple, are getting ready for the big day. There are many twists & turns in this family's story that you need to read to enjoy.
Thanks to the publisher & NetGalley for advanced copy in exchange for my honest review

Well of course she does it again. A wedding brings everyone to the cape for the summer and that means a boiling over point for the secrets hidden, tensions brewing, and all the resentments and misunderstandings a family can have.
This is the first book I've read that sets us in the midst of the pandemic -- with Ruby the college student not wanting to quarantine without her boyfriend, Gabe- and all of a sudden a household is in an intense reconfiguration of husband, wife, two little kids, and one young couple. As the two young lovers are finding their way through a relationship that's been put on fast-forward because of the pandemic, quarantine-life has brought her usually blissful marriage to a screeching halt. The annoyances that brewed up were so relatable, but of course this is a Jennifer Weiner book, so what's going on with this family is a lot more complicated -and readers will peel layer after layer throughout the book to understand what is really going on.
Couldn't put it down.

The Summer Place by Jennifer Weiner is the perfect summer read! Taking place in Cape Cod, this is a story of three generations of a family getting together to celebrate the wedding of Rudy and Gabe. They are young and haven't known each other all that long but when you're stuck together during covid you get to know someone pretty fast! Everyone has a secret and they are all brought to light during the days leading up to the wedding. Some of them you will not believe until you read it!

A sweet Summer book!
Jennifer Weiner has thrown quite a few complicating factors into this extended family story and you will meet all of the characters as they gather in Cape Cod for a family wedding. It's a quickly planned short wedding week and there are multiple secrets to be revealed.

The house, itself, is a character along with stepmothers, estranged mothers, uncles, cousins, neighbors, and grandmothers. It's a long book, but I think that some of the interesting characters were left hanging with less description to bring them to life.

If you like Summer romances of all kinds, the magic of the Cape, or just love a sprawling multiperson point of view story then The Summer Place is for you! #Atriabooks #NetGalley #NetGalleyreads

I really tried to like this because I like Jennifer Weiner, but I just could not get into it.

Pros: I loved the interludes from the “special” character. They were so beautiful to me. I enjoyed Sam’s story the most. It was achingly sad but his journey was fascinating to experience along with him.

Cons: I hate the miscommunication tripe and this book is filled with them. I felt like it dragged on and on and I really just wanted to get the climax, which is the big gathering at the house. There was a lot of build up for little payoff, in my opinion.

Ruby’s first chapter, typo: “Ruby knew she wasn’t beautiful. She could loo cute, at best…”

This is the ultimate beach read. Romance and chick lit is not my preferred genre anymore, but I will always make an exception for Jennifer Weiner. Her characters are always likable, and her plots are never boring. The Summer Place was no exception, I loved it.

In exchange for a honest review from Atria book via Netgalley I was able to enjoy reading this book.
While I felt it had alot of character build up, I understood why near the end....what a shocker!!

Written well, kept my interest. Jennifer Weiner has written another fun "summer read"

One of her best! With characters that you get to know well enough that you feel that they are friends, this book is not to be missed. When Sarah’s daughter announces that she is getting married her family is shocked. Not only has Ruby not known this young man very long, but she wants to get married quickly. When Ruby’s father figures out that he may have a connection to this young man that no one else is aware of, it sends him into a depression that he is unable to talk about and pushes him away from his wife and beloved family. Told from several characters point of view, this book is wonderfully written and impossible to put down.

I'm disappointed to say that this Jennifer Weiner novel didn't work well for me. I really love her writing, but this one was not for me. I really didn't like the multiple POVs. There were so many people telling the story, and it was exhausting to keep up with. I had to keep track of the people and the different timelines in the story because it bounces around, and it just didn't flow. It felt like work to get through.

I think maybe we should stop calling all of her books beach reads. This one and the one that was published last year are not very light. They are heavy topics, and it's okay for the story to not revolved around a beach setting to just call it a beach read.

Overall, this was disappointing for me. The story was slow-paced and hard to follow.

Jennifer Weiner has a way of sweeping you up in characters' lives, and The Summer Place displayed this talent. This novel focuses on a summer house, and Cape Cod, as a special place for the Levy-Weinberg family, yet they realize its significance too late. Ronnie is the matriarch of the family, and urges her twin daughter and son to bring their families to her beloved summer house to spend more time together. Yet Sam and Sarah are busy with their spouses and children to make the time to come see their mother. A layer of bitterness for their mother's focus on her writing career during their childhood also creates distance in their relationship, yet the family is brought back together with the impending wedding of Ronnie's step-granddaughter, Ruby. As the family prepares for Ruby's wedding, a trunkful of secrets are revealed that have the potential to alter Ruby's relationship, and break other ties.

This book was hard to put down as each character's betrayals and discoveries unfolded. I loved getting to know each character, and appreciated the depth that Weiner created in each one. I felt that Annette and Rosa's characters were slightly less developed, but I was able to understand their motivations during their short chapters. Parts of the story were quite dramatic and the interconnectedness of each poor decision was perhaps beyond belief. However, I found these details to be part of the book's allure, and I was hooked on the story. This book is the perfect escape from reality!

I really enjoyed this book! It really describes the pandemic in such a relatable way. The family dynamic really pulled at my heart strings, i was laughing with them and crying with them. This book had me from the first page then i slowly i found myself struggling to focus on certain characters POV. But i'm glad i made it through! This is the first book I read around the pandemic and it's made me what to read more.

Typically I enjoy Jennifer Weiner books but this one was not for me.

I found the multiple points of view repetitive and at times annoying. I would have preferred a single or even dual point of view but I think there was 4+ characters telling the story at once if I remember correctly. As well the timeframe isn’t chronological, which makes it hard to keep track of what happened to who and when.

I found the story dragged on and really didn’t feel like a summer beach read to me., unlike her other novels which are light and more fun. This was definitely more on the serious side.

Like other reviews I have read I felt that this book had a lot of sexual content and infidelity. I’m okay with a bit but not every single relationship in the book has to have one of the partners cheating! I would have appreciated some trigger warnings for everything.

Thank you to Simon Schuster and NetGalley for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

OK, so… about Jennifer Weiner’s books: I loved Big Summer. I enjoyed That Summer. I barely liked The Summer Place. Barely.

Maybe this book is for people who absolutely love character driven stories. There are lots of characters and we dive into each of their lives in detail. Like, really, it takes five pages to describe one thing about each character (and maybe that’s why this book is over 400 pages)

Don't get me wrong, I like details. I just dont need to know where each of the twenty people in the story went for high school.

Also, another thing that bothered me in this book: redundancy in events. It takes ten chapters for one simple event to be concluded. I’m officially taking a break from draggy family secrets contemporary fiction. And by family secrets I mean adultery. Lots of it. I rolled my eyes many times and just wanted to scream “Just keep your reproductive organs in your pants, people!”

The one good thing about this book (and Weiner’s books in general): the setting. It makes me want to go to Cape Cod sooo bad!