Book Review - Summer by the Sea by Jenny Hale

Amazon UK

Title: Summer by the Sea

Author: Jenny Hale

Format reviewed: Ebook

Source: Netgalley

Publisher: Bookoutre

Publication Date: 12th June 2015

Rating: 4 Stars

Summer by the Sea is a beautiful, heart-warming summer read about sisters, first love and not always getting what we want – but sometimes ending up with exactly what we need. 

They say there’s always one summer that changes you.

For Faith the one summer she can’t forget is when she fell in love as a teenager – only for her sister, Casey, to steal her man. Now, at the request of her beloved ninety-year-old Grandmother, Faith has agreed to a family holiday – at their childhood beach house, where it all began. 

Faith hasn’t seen her sister in years but is finally ready to forgive and forget, enjoy the sunshine and relive happy memories. What she’s not ready for is meeting Jake Buchanan – the owner of the beach house – or the long-forgotten feelings he ignites in her. 

Can Faith overcome the hurt of the past, rekindle the close bond she had with Casey and make this summer THE ONE to remember? 

Having loved Jenny Hale's Christmas books, when I spotted an opportunity to get a review copy of her latest summery book, I couldn't resist requesting it. And I wasn't disappointed. This is a lovely summery book, that made me reminiscent of simple family holidays along the coast of America (despite never even having experienced one myself). 

Faith and her family are returning for one last summer holiday, to Outer Banks. When they were younger, they used to spend every summer in Outer Banks, until a hurricane destroyed their old cottage. Now they are returning to celebrate Nan's 90th Birthday. Faith however has been slightly estranged from her sister for the past few years, after Casey stole her man one summer.

As a result Faith needs to let the past go, and to be more comfortable within herself and her family dynamic, and she finally gets to know her niece Isabella, who is now 5. 

What she hadn't counted on was meeting Jake Buchanan, who seems to be everywhere, and who she is clearly attracted to. 

It is lovely seeing Faith reconnect with Casey and for them to try to get to the bottom of their underlying issues, and try to be supportive of each other like real sisters again. 

Faith's nan is lovely, she seems to know everything that is going on in her family, whether she is expressly told or not. She is the real matriarch of the family, and all she wants is to have one last summer holiday in Outer Banks, and get the whole family to be less fractured and back to a whole family. She has an uncanny knack of knowing what others are thinking, or what she can say to hint to others what they should be doing.  

Summer by the Sea is a lovely summery read, about a family summer holiday, memories of many summers gone by, and a story of romance and forgiveness.

Thank you to Netgalley and Bookoutre for this review copy. This was my honest review.