Book Review: One Season of Sunshine by Julia London

Friday 23 July, 2010 By 2 Comments

Title: One Season of Sunshine
Author: Julia London
Publisher: Pocket
Publication Date: June 29, 2010
Paperback: 416 pages
ISBN: 978-1416547099
Genre: Fiction

From the Publisher:

Should some questions be left unanswered?

Adopted as an infant, Jane Aaron longs to know the identity of her birth mother and why she gave her up. Her only clue is the name of the small Texas town where she was born, so she’s come to Cedar Springs for answers.

Handsome ad executive Asher Price lost his wife, the beautiful, mysterious Susanna, in a terrible car crash eighteen months ago. When he hires Jane as the nanny for his two children, sparks fly. Jane finds herself falling in love with both Asher and his children, but begins to suspect that Susanna was not the perfect mother and wife the family portrays her to have been.

As Jane gets closer and closer to finding out the truth about both her own and Susanna’s past, devastating secrets begin to emerge that may be more than anyone can bear. Will the truth bring Jane and Asher closer together or tear them apart forever?

My Review:

Belonging and identity are central themes in Julia London’s novel One Season of Sunshine. Jane Aaron was raised in a warm and loving home and now as an adult she yearns to find answers to who her birth mother was and why she chose to give her up for adoption. Jane’s quest brings her to Cedar Springs, Texas and into the lives of widower Asher Price and his two children Levi and Riley. While One Season of Sunshine is a fairly predictable novel, it is a rather enjoyable one with well-developed characters with a bit of romance mixed with mystery in which Jane must sort out. I am not adopted and I could not understand the extreme lengths Jane went through and what she put her family through in her quest to find the birth mother who chose to give her up for adoption when she was a baby. I did feel for the Price family and for Susanna, whose death the reader learns about in the beginning of the book, quite possibly because I understand what it is like to be close to someone with bi-polar disorder and how dreadful it can be for all involved. All in all, London writes an intriguing novel, raising many questions that would make for excellent discussions in a book discussion group. I would recommend One Season of Sunshine to anyone looking for a good book to read over the summer or as a choice for a book discussion group.

About the Author:

Julia London is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of numerous historical romance and women’s fiction novels. She is a four-time finalist for the prestigious Romance Writers of America’s RITA Award for excellence in romantic fiction. A native Texan, Julia lives in Austin.

I received a complimentary copy of One Season of Sunshine by Julia London from Simon & Schuster to review. Receiving a complimentary copy in no way reflected my review of aforementioned novel.

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Book Review and Tour: Beachcombers by Nancy Thayer

Friday 23 July, 2010 By 8 Comments

Title: Beachcombers
Author: Nancy Thayer
Publisher: Ballantine Books; 1 edition
Publication Date: June 22, 2010
Hardcover: 368 pages
ISBN: 9978-0345518286
Genre: Fiction

About the Book:

Abbie Fox hasn’t seen her father or two younger sisters in almost two years, during which she’s jetted around the world and experienced life, if not love. But now Lily, the baby of the family, is sending Abbie urgent emails begging her to return home to BeachcombersNantucket. Their middle sister, Emma, has taken to her bed, emotionally devastated after the loss of her high-powered stockbroker’s job and a shockingly unexpected break-up with her fiancé. Also, Lily is deeply worried that Marina, the beautiful, enigmatic woman renting their guesthouse, has set her sights on the sisters’ widowed father, Jim. The Fox girls closed ranks years ago after the haunting, untimely death of their mother, but seeing their dad move on with his life forces each of them to take stock.

Over the course of the summer, the sisters’ lives grow as turbulent as the unpredictable currents encircling Nantucket. When Abbie encounters an incredibly appealing married man, she breaks her own rules in the name of love, fearing all the while that she’ll regret it. Meanwhile, type-A Emma learns a new definition of success, and strong-minded Lily must reconcile her dreams with reality. Even Marina, who has come to Nantucket to forget heartbreak and betrayal, faces an astonishing turn of events that will find her torn between fate and freedom. At summer’s end, these unforgettable women will face profound choices—and undergo personal transformations that will surprise even themselves.

My Review:

Beachcombers by Nancy Thayer is a funny, sad, warm, and uplifting story of one special summer on Nantucket. Jim Fox is struggling to make ends meet and his youngest daughter Lily does not know how to handle things when Emma moves back home after her investment firm downsized and her fiancé dumped her for another broker in the firm. Lily frantically reaches out to her oldest sister Abbie to take care of everything just as she has since the death of their mother. Naturally, Abbie flies home from her Au Pair job in London to assist and it is not long before she devises a way to get Emma out of bed and all of them earning some money. Jim too has ideas, his first being to lease out the Playhouse for six months to tourist Marina Warren a 40-year-old recently divorced, jobless, and deeply hurt, she has come to Nantucket to heal. Thayer weaves together the lives of Marina, Jim, Abbie, Emma, and Lily along with glimpses into the brief life of Danielle Fox along with a diverse and lively group of people who either live on or are visiting Nantucket for the summer. Beachcombers is a novel that is easy to get wrapped up in and wish to be a part of the joys and sorrows that fill the lives of the characters. My favourite characters were Abbie and Marina for their strength and maturity and their ability to see beyond the superficial in young 22-year-old Lily. While I have never been to Nantucket I felt as though I could visualize every part of Nantucket through Thayer’s beautiful, detailed descriptions. Thayer has a way of making her characters and their surroundings spring to life. Beachcombers is a wonderful, life-affirming, witty, and deeply enjoyable novel. I would recommend Beachcombers to anyone looking for a charming, feel-good book this summer.

About the Author:

Nancy Thayer is the New York Times bestselling author of Summer House, Moon Shell Beach, The Hot Flash Club, The Hot Flash Club Strikes Again, Hot Flash Holidays, The Hot Flash Club Chills Out, and Between Husbands and Friends. She lives on Nantucket. You can visit Nancy Thayer’s website.


Nancy Thayer’s BEACHCOMBER VIRTUAL BOOK TOUR JULY ‘10 will officially begin on July 6th and end on July 30th. You can visit Nancy’s blog stops at www.virtualbooktours.wordpress.com during the month of July to find out more about this great book and talented author!

I received a complimentary copy of Beachcombers by Nancy Thayer from Pump Up Your Book Promotion as part of the tour. Receiving a copy in no way reflected my review of aforementioned novel.

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