3.5

This a beautiful story about love and forgiveness. While a bit predictable, it was an overall enjoyable read. Definitely heavy subject matter so check trigger warnings.

Thank you to Sourcebooks, Terah Shelton Harris, and NetGalley for the advance reader copy in exchange for my honest review!

Inspired by actual events in a different context, One Summer in Savannah by Terah Shelton Harris is a powerful story of family and forgiveness. Her debut novel tackles traumatic events with a very readable storytelling style.

At age 18, Sara is sexually assaulted by the son of a prominent family and becomes pregnant. When his trial ends, she leaves her family's home in Savannah to start a new life in Maine, telling only her family about the baby. Eight years later, Sara returns for the first time due to her father's failing health.

While working in her father's bookstore, she encounters Jacob, the twin brother of her attacker who's developed a unique bond with her father. Over time, her feelings toward him move from adversarial to neutral to friendship to more. Will Sara choose to rebuild her life in Savannah, surrounded by the people she loves most?

This contemporary character-driven plot has a lot going on, but that didn't bother me (like in another recent read). In addition to a deep exploration of forgiveness, another theme is motherhood and the lengths mothers will go to to protect their children. Sara's father has a very unique means of communication which led to many classic poems included in the prose. The forward movement of the plot relies on several convenient coincidences, especially at the end. This book is a meaningful illustration of the maxim that withholding forgiveness harms the "forgiver" far more than the "forgivee."

Thank you to Sourcebooks Landmark and NetGalley for access to a review copy of this novel.

The message, the message, the message.

If someone asked me why I would recommend this book, I would simply say because of the message. This seems like a story about love formed from unimaginable circumstances, but it’s so much more. Loss, love, grief, forgiveness, family, etc.I can admit this was a slow read for me, but it was so worth pushing through for the author’s message about love and forgiveness. I was snotting and crying the entire last half of the book.

Given some of the things mention on the book, I would not recommend trying to read through this in one sitting. To protect your peace, please check the trigger warnings before reading as there are some heavy things discussed.

What an absolutely fabulous debut novel. This is a story about forgiveness and redemption with a touching romance and I loved it. I particularly enjoyed the character of Alana, an 8 year old genius, who while important to the plot, also served to cut through the adult worries and voice what is important. The writing is beautiful and author's trick of having one minor character only speaking in well known poetry was effective in adding to the depth of the story. I look forward to this author's next novel. 5/5

This one was indeed a very timely novel. I couldn't put it down. It was a slow start but it quickly picked up.

This story is beautifully written and you will fall in love with most of the characters, especially Alana and Jacob. The subject matter is incredibly difficult: child conceived by rape and raised in secret by the mother, returning to the hometown where the rape and public trial happened to take care of a dying father, and forming a complicated relationship with the rapist's identical twin brother. This book is ultimately about families and forgiveness and while the story kind of wrapped up in somewhat of a too-tidy bow, it did tackle a lot of incredibly big feelings with some nuance. Was I crying by the end? Oh yes. Did it feel a little bit manipulative in the realm of Nicholas Sparks' The Notebook? Yeah, it did. Did I care? Nope. I couldn't put this book down, despite some of the unrealistic dynamics in the story. That's how much you really appreciate the characters. There is a also a lot of poetry in the book, used as actual dialogue. I'm not a poetry person...at all...but it worked really well with the story and the characters. I'm not about to pick up books by Whitman or Tennyson, but I didn't mind their part in the story. I really loved this book despite its imperfections so the 5-stars are based mostly on emotion and because of the gorgeous writing!

What a thought-provoking, beautifully written story that tackles some heavy subject matter. Definitely check the trigger warnings before reading!

The premise is that Sara (MC) returns to Savannah after being away for 8+ years after being sexually assaulted. In the interim, her attacker’s been in jail and she’s been raising her daughter (the product of this assault) in secret.

I personally had to suspend my disbelief for this next part—Sara befriends her attacker's identical twin brother Jacob and allows him to tutor her genius daughter, as long as he keeps her existence a secret from the rest of his family. Then Sara and Jacob's relationship starts to grow into something more. Identical twin though? Not sure about that.

Kind of ignoring that piece, I still found this story to be equal parts heartbreaking and hopeful and I was rooting for both Jacob and Sara. They’re just such GOOD people you can’t help but want the best for them. Sara's strength as she balanced protecting herself from her trauma while being a good mother to Alana and Jacob’s struggle with his own broken family were very messy, raw, and real.

I found the use poetry in the book interesting and unique (Sara’s dad only speaks in poems) but it ultimately felt like it broke the flow of my reading. 9 times out of 10, i’m not choosing to read poetry just for fun so it just felt like extra work having to slow down and figure out what her Dad meant

All in all, Shelton did a beautiful job with an uncomfortable topic presented in a unique way. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the e-arc!

One Summer in Savannah is the debut novel by Terah Shelton Harris. Sara is faced with returning home to Savannah to care for her father. A place she said she would never go back to. Sara was raped when she was 18 by the son of a very powerful family. She decided to have the child and is keeping her daughter a secret. But she meets up with Jacob who happens to be the twin brother of the man who raped her. Can she trust him to keep her secret? This is a story of what it means to be part of a family through good times and bad. Also explores the power of forgiveness which at times may be a very hard thing to grant to someone that maybe doesn't really deserve it. One of my favorite books I have read this year! Highly recommend!

This is a beautifully written story about love, healing and the power of forgiveness. Some of the choices the main character makes are hard for me to imagine, like her decision to be with the twin brother of the man who sexually assaulted her. Yet I have never been in her shoes, so who am I to judge? The author writes in her note, "In writing this novel, my goal was to challenge readers on the definition of forgiveness and what it truly means to forgive." There is no doubt that I was challenged while reading and that is certainly the mark of a good book if you ask me. @terahsharris writes with compassion while tackling some truly difficult topics.

One thing to note is that the character of Hosea speaks only in poetry. At first this was a little frustrating as it broke up the flow, but as the book went on, I grew to appreciate it and it made for a very memorable read.

One Summer in Savannah is a must read., a thought provoking story of family, unconditional love, and forgiveness that will touch your heart. The main characters Sara, Jacob, and Alana are so well developed, they come alive on the pages.

One Summer in Savannah by Terah Shelton Harris

This book dealt with themes of forgiveness and understanding that I really appreciated. I will say I almost didn’t pick it up when I saw that a major part of the plot is that the main character, Sara, was raped by a prominent person in her town. While the rape itself is mentioned, most of the book focuses on how both the person who is raped as well as the family of the rapist move on with their lives.

The story follow Sara and her daughter Alana, who was conceived from the rape, as well as Jacob, the brother of the rapist. As Sara moves back to the hometown she swore she would never visit again to help take care of her dying father, she comes to grips with how her life changed in ways both good and bad from her assault. Coming back home forces both her and Jacob to deal with issues that they had been able to keep buried when living other places. And in facing those issues head-on, they are both able to learn more about themselves and their capabilities for forgiveness.

A note that the father in the story only spoke in poetry – leaving the other characters to try and interpret his meaning. Sometimes this was a nice way to communicate but other times it was a lot.

#onesummerinsavannah #terahsheltonharris

This is one of the best books I’ve read this year. The powerful story of grief, trauma, forgiveness, and love. It was so deep and emotional and so well written. The characters were so deeply developed and I loved them all. I was both angry and sad and happy (at the same time) for each of the characters throughout.

When Sara was 18, she was raped by the son of a wealthy family in Savannah. He is sent to prison, despite his family's attempt to prevent this. She moves to Maine, to protect the child from the rapist and his family and to try to provide a normal upbringing.
However, when her father's companion calls her and tells her that her father may have a short time to live, Sara returns to Savannah to spend some quality time with him during his last few months.
The child, Alana, is a genius, who excels in math and who Sara tries to provide a normal childhood for her.
This is a love story - with unusual circumstances - and completely predictable. I felt that the family of the perpetrator were one dimensional.
It bothered me that Sara's father only spoke in verse -not his own words- and I never felt that he was a real person in her life with thoughts and feelings of his own. He never expressed his fear of dying (although he knew that it could happen at any time), nor did he have any interaction with the Alana.
I received a free ARC of this book from NetGalley and the publisher and the opinions expressed are my own. I would rate it 3.5 stars

✍️ BOOK / REVIEW ✍️

Gahhhh @terahsharris - why did you have to make me ugly cry like that?! 🥹 #onesummerinsavannah was an utterly AMAZING novel, and despite its length, I was able to read this one in less than 48 hours.

I simply adored everything about this book. The writing was absolutely beautiful. The characters were real, raw, and honest. The amount of love, respect, and forgiveness that was woven into these pages was a treasure. I can absolutely see why folks are RAVING about this book - it was such a well written and thoughtful read.

The reader is treated to both Sara and Jacob' POV - and while I normally prefer one protagonist over multiple, I found myself obsessed with each person's perspective. And while this lacks "spice," this love story was incredible. I think that writing it any other way would have ruined the purity.

I loved all of the poetic references in this novel, too - the fact that this was Hosea's way of communicating was absolutely beautiful.

Thank you, @bookmarked, for allowing me to be a part of the @booksparks #src2023 challenge - I am forever grateful for the opportunity 🙏. #booksandrec

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Sara hasn't had an easy route in life. Raped as a teenager, she's left Savannah for Maine, where she's raising her daughter, Alana, the child born of the worst day of Sara's life. When she gets a call that her beloved father is dying, she hesitantly gathers Alana for the trip back to Savannah. Once home, Sara accidentally meets, Jacob, the twin brother of, Daniel, the man who raped her. Can Sara forgive and go on to lead a happier life? One Summer in Savannah is truly a beautiful book. The writing is beautiful, the poetry Sara's father communicate in is beautiful, the story of forgiveness and love is beautiful, and the characters are beautiful in spirit and physical being. This book will break your heart, while giving you joy as you finish it through your tears.

Just an incredibly written story on forgiveness. Though I was nervous about the content of the book (TW: rape, sexual assault), it is actually not the main focal point of the book. Instead it focuses more on the aftermath and how each of the characters who were affected have struggled to move on. A bit cheesy at times, especially the ending, but moving nonetheless. An amazing debut.

This story is an exercise in forgiveness. Sara shows the hesitation to forgive but opens the possibilities. Alana's relationship with Jacob shows her precociousness and intelligence. There is some insight about the prison system that I would like to have read more about. This book reminded me of the film Gifted.

There are a lot of uneven parts. I don't believe Sara being raped was handled well. It did not have the impact. It read as just something that just so happened to happen to her. Her pending relationship with Jacob was off putting. The ending was rushed.

I believe this story could have been a compelling look at family, love, and complicated relationships.

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher and the author, for an ARC of this book, in exchange for an honest review.
The premise of the book drew me in but once I started reading it, I just couldn’t get into it at all.
I wish the author, publisher and all those promoting the book much success and connections with the right readers.

Note: This book deals with sensitive topics such as sexual assault, pregnancy, suicide, death of family members, illness, cancer, and more. Please take care to make sure you are in the right headspace to read this as it could be potentially triggering for some readers.

It took me about a month to read this book, mostly due to the fact that it covers many heavy subject matters. I recognize the privilege I had in being able to put this down and take a breath when I needed to.

I appreciate the journey both Jacob and Sara go on in this story on their path to forgiveness. There were a few instances when Sara in particular was quite honest with herself about some difficult things she had to face and I'm not sure I would have been brave enough to admit those things had I been in her shoes.

I think it was a really interesting choice for the author to make Jacob and Daniel identical twins. I'm still not sure what to think about it. I read some of the author's notes in the back of the book, and I can see her reasoning for making this creative choice. It is just making me think about what I'd do in that situation as Sara. That alone would have been a major obstacle for me.

Alana was such a great character and I loved how fleshed out she was. Sometimes kids in books can just be add-ons, but Alana was very much her own full character.

I'm not sure this review makes any sense, but there it is. This book won't be for everyone, but I think it brings a lot of difficult things to the forefront for discussion. I think it would make a good buddy or group read. There's a lot to discuss here.

Sometimes suspension of disbelief is as important in a realistic novel as in fantasy. One Summer in Savannah by Terah Shelton Harris is such a recently released book.

The first line in the book sets the scene, “It’s difficult to pinpoint the moment I started loving my daughter.” Sara Lancaster had to get past the appalling way Alana was conceived by rape before love for the girl could enter the picture. But love and protection came and Sara has lived in Maine for eight years, never returning home in order to keep Alana safe and her very existence unknown to those who could not be trusted. Her father’s illness brings her back to care for him and run his bookstore.

The book is engrossing, but belief may be hard to come by. Could any child be as brilliant as Alana? Would any person, even a bookstore owner converse only by repeating someone else’s poetry? Could anybody be as blind to her son’s bad behavior as Birdie? Would the biracial marriage of the Wylers have been accepted, even with their wealth and power in Savannah? Does the rapist, now in prison, deserve either accolades for the good he has done as a model prisoner or sympathy as he faces death with cancer? Then perhaps the biggest question of all, could Sara form a bond with the twin brother of the man who raped her? Even as the reader may struggle with disbelief, the story compels another page turn and after the book is closed will leave wonder and thought about forgiveness and redemption.

One Summer in Savannah would definitely bring on discussion as a book club selection. Terah Shelton Harris will be on a panel at the Mississippi Book Festival on August 19 for those who would like to question her approach to this tough topic.