Ned Birch has been tasked with increasing membership at the Mayhaven Beach Club, an exclusive Massachusetts resort. His daughter Darcy is working as a summer camp counselor at Mayhaven, having recently given up golf with no explanation. When his new neighbors arrive, bringing all-night parties & massive property-blocking RVs, Ned is aghast when the family applies to join the club. Following in his father's footsteps, he feels immense pressure to make Mayhaven the best it can be but obstacles continue to get in his way. Ultimately, Ned will need to decide whether to put Mayhaven first or his family.

I read this book in one sitting because I knew if I put it down, I wouldn't pick it back up. Written in a YA voice, with very little character development, this novel was anything but a beach read. Wrapped up in country club politics, teenage drama, and misconduct with minors...this was a hard no from me. Reminicient of Dirty Dancing, I think there really could've been something here...with more character development and maybe a content warning? It is definitely not what I would describe as a light, beach read.

Thank you NetGalley & Atria Books for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest feedback.

The Summer Club was the perfect summer read that you don’t want to put down. Perfectly written - summer camp, country club politics, mystery, and friendship. Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced read!

The Summer Club is a multi pov novel set at Mayhaven golf club in Massachusetts. I read The Darlings by Hannah McKinnon last summer and loved it, so I was eager to pick up this book. Unfortunately it was a DNF for me at 18% because the character development was not as deep and compelling as I expected and the plot was not moving. While this did not work for me, I highly recommend picking up The Darlings, an engaging family drama set on Cape Cod with characters that you will root for even in all of their humanity.

I loved the description so I was excited to start reading this! If you’re a fan of summer “themed” novels aka any of Elin Hildebrands novels you’ll enjoy this one. I felt like Darcy’s mystery reason for stopping golf was very obvious from the start, right down to the other person involved, so it was a bit disappointing that no one else was able to come to that conclusion until the end of the book. I felt like that was a fairly major plot line that was too obvious to have been missed by the other characters but other than that I really enjoyed this book and would love to follow Flick and Darcy if there’s more to the story!

This is the perfect summer read - country club, new neighbors, parents, teenagers, golf/tennis and the complicated relationships with money and power. This country club is in a well-to-do neighborhood in Massachusetts where the country club director's daughter Darcy has recently quit playing golf after a very successful run without any reason. Her high school crush, Spencer spends his summer causing a raucous while flirting with her and her new neighbor Flick is now working in the kitchen. Where does she go, who does she choose and how have the events of the past impact the choices she makes moving forward. Feel good, maturing and feeling the impact of the past and the anticipation of what's to come fill this book with smiles!

This is a rare did not finish for me. I really wanted to get invested in the characters, but there just didn’t seem to be much depth to them. I did find some of the class dynamics interesting, but ultimately not enough to continue. Also, while I don’t judge books by their cover, I think there could be a better choice for this one.

The cover of this book is one of the most beautiful to me. The synopsis grabbed my attention. The author ( Hannah McKinnon ) is one I have enjoyed before. So I was expecting great things. I got just okay things.

It was a very quick, easy read, but touched on some deeper subjects. It seemed to skim the surface of the deeper issues. Overall, it was predictable.

Love a good beach read? Then THE SUMMER CLUB should definitely be on your radar! The story transports readers to Mayhaven, a prestigious Massachusetts beach club, and the perfect summer escape for many. But there just might be some secrets lurking under its shiny exterior. The story focuses mainly on Ned (the club's president, who's attempting to balance his commitments to both his career and his family), Darcy (Ned's teenage daughter, who's struggling with the decision to quit playing golf, a sport she and her dad have loved for years) and Flick (their new neighbor, who's recently moved from New York with his family and is trying to find his footing in a new place). We follow these characters and the Mayhaven community through one unforgettable summer.

This is a great summer read! I personally really appreciated how it has something for everyone—mystery, drama, complicated relationship dynamics, complex themes, an immersive setting, and so much more. I thought the characters were well-developed and the story was easy to get invested in, but found the pacing to be a little bit rushed, especially towards the end of the book, and felt like something was missing overall, maybe partly because of that. Still, I enjoyed THE SUMMER CLUB, and would recommend it for anyone in search of a quick, entertaining read! Thank you to NetGalley and Atria/Emily Bestler Books for the ARC.

Mayhaven is an exclusive New England beach club. Ned Birch is the president of Mayhaven and is in charge of running the club and trying to grow its membership, even though his family couldn’t afford to be members there otherwise. Ned seems to be a very kind, caring man who is dedicated to his work. He loves everything about the club, especially the golf course where he learned to play and love the game as a young boy with his father. He seems to have passed on the love of golf to his daughter Darcy, who was winning all kinds of awards and trophies for her talent but has decided she doesn’t want to play anymore and everyone seems very confused in the sudden change of heart. Darcy is working at the club for the summer as a camp counselor for young kids. A bunch of kids from her high school also work there. Next door to the Birch’s house, new neighbors move in. Stan and Josie Crenshaw and Josie’s son Flick. Stan plays loud music at night and parks a huge RV right up to the Birch’s rose garden - both things setting up a rough start on neighbor relations. Flick applies to work at the club nd gets a job there. He is hard working and seems to care about people around him. We see a lot of the difference between “the haves and the have nots”- the wealthy entitled members and the staff trying to do their best to cater to them. The story moves along fairly well. Some characters are more likable than others and I thought the author did a good job describing the relationships between high school friends, family, loyalties, being outsiders, etc. The story was a bit predictable but I found it still entertaining to read - it was good, just not great. I give it 3 stars out of 5.

Thank you to the publisher and to NetGalley for this digital ARC in exchange for my honest review. The book is set to e published on July 23, 2024.

There was so much narration at the beginning instead of action and dialogue, that I had a really hard time getting into this one. I also had a really really hard time connecting with the characters, although the storyline was good. It was also a bit predictable.

Thanks to NetGalley, the author and publisher for an advanced reading copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you NetGalley for the early copy to read and review. I feel the title and cover is very deceiving. It is definitely not a light beach read which is what I thought this was going to be. It was a very serious matter..

An interesting look at country club life and how secrets can cause damage to many people. Just because people have mo ey doesn't mean they don't have problems.

A quick read, great for a beach read or a summer read. Not my favorite however, the characters feel underdeveloped and the plot is a bit repetitive and not totally flushed out.

The Summer Club revolves around Mayhaven, the golf course, and the people that belong to the club or work there. The club is struggling and needs new membership to keep it afloat.
Told from several points of view, the book tells the story of Mayhaven golf course. I think it is listed in the description as a beach club, nothing at all happens at the beach. It is all about golf. I had a hard time getting into this book. The characters were very flat and I couldn't identify or care about any of them. Flick is new to town and doesn't fit in. Darcy quit playing golf; a game she has played since she was little. Ned runs Mayhaven and needs new membership to keep his job. Phoebe is planning her wedding at Mayhaven and is driving Ned crazy. How many changes can be made?!
Even though The Summer Club wasn't for me, I appreciate the advanced digital copy NetGalley, Atria/Emily Bestler Books, and Hannah McKinnon send me in exchange for my honest opinion. 3 stars for me.

I enjoyed this light summer novel. The author kept the plot moving along and I thought the characters were well-developed. Lots of typos will hopefully be resolved before publication. Thank you for the advance copy!

The Summer Club was the perfect summer read for me. It's an excellent portrayal of the intricacies of life where we get to witness a family who each has their own personal struggles and how they try and work through those. The golf club setting of Mayhaven is a great backdrop and never feels overdone or repetitive.

The father and manager of Mayhaven, Ned Birch, is a very committed man both to his career as well as his family, but we see the struggles that come with wanting to be there for his wife and kids as well as not fold under the pressure of making Mayhaven better for the community and retaining new memberships. His wife is also starting to get back into the swing of things of being a realtor after spending time at home caring for their son Adam, who is noted to be on the spectrum but is now at a point where he can start being more and more independent, but the family is struggling to appreciate each other fully, and we see some great examples of independence as well as learning to be selfless.

Darcy, their teenage daughter is another focal point of the story. We see her grappling with the decision to leave golfing even though she has so much potential and has such a strong family history with it, but we can tell she has her reasons behind leaving that she isn't comfortable sharing with her family. We soon meet Flick who is Darcy's age and just moved in next door to the Birch's. As a newcomer to a tight-knit community, he's facing his own challenges including being thrown into a predominately white environment where he feels a bit like the odd one out.

There is truly so much character growth and development in this story between all the characters that is done very subtly which makes it feel even more believable. Their stories weave together so well, and there were many quotes throughout the book that I saved to come back to later because they were so poignant. I will definitely be reading this author's work again!

I loved the flow of the story in this book and the fact the author didn’t need to add extras to enhance the plot. I couldn’t wait to keep reading to find out what happened next.

This novel explores a variety of emotionally charged topics with sensitivity, if not depth. From the tone of the first few pages, it became apparent that the writing my best be appreciated by a YA audience. Much of the tension focuses on class distinctions, among both adults and teenagers engaged in activities at a private golf/tennis club in rural Massachusetts. In that regard, the storyline is predictably peppered with bullies, entitled members, and well-intentioned souls.

Amidst all the drama is plenty of teenage angst over not fitting in as well as the challenges of supporting an autistic family member and the shame and secrecy associated with sexual harassment. This was an okay read and may provide solace to teenage readers facing some of the same issues.

My thanks to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for the privilege of reviewing this book. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

This review is being posted immediately to my GoodReads account and will be posted on Amazon upon publication.

This is the first book I've read by Hannah McKinnon (who is not the same as Hannah Mary McKinnon, FYI) and it was an okay summer beach read. It came off as a somewhat YA to me in tone and story, with the focus on the teenaged daughter and next door neighbor. And there is a huge, unresolved plot hole at the end, which was kind of abrupt, even with an epilogue.

This was such a fun summer read! I flew through the story and will be recommending it to my book club for our July/August pick!