When a baby is left on the doorstep of a Cape Cod beach house, an unlikely group of women risks all they hold dear to harbor and protect her in this “touching, nuanced summer yarn” (Publisher’s Weekly). Ruth Cooperman arrives in beautiful beachside Provincetown for her retirement, renting the perfect waterfront cottage while she searches for her forever home. After years of hard work and … After years of hard work and making peace with life’s compromises, Ruth is looking forward to a carefree summer of solitude. But when she finds a baby girl abandoned on her doorstep, Ruth turns to her new neighbors for help and is drawn into the drama of the close-knit community.
The appearance of the mystery baby has an emotional ripple effect through the women in town, including Amelia Cabral, the matriarch who lost her own child decades earlier; Elise Douglas, owner of the tea shop who gave up her dream of becoming a mother; and teenage local Jaci Barros who feels trapped by her parents’ expectations. Ruth, caring for a baby for the first time in thirty years, even reaches out to her own estranged daughter, Olivia, summoning her to Provincetown in hopes of a reconciliation.
As summer unfolds and friends and family care for the infant, alliances are made, relationships are tested, and secrets are uncovered. But the unconditional love for a child in need just might bring Ruth and the women of Provincetown exactly what they have been longing for themselves.
With heartfelt storytelling, Summer Longing is Jamie Brenner’s eagerly anticipated return to Provincetown; another unforgettable tale about motherhood, friendship, and finding your way home.
“Welcome to the gold standard of summertime escapism.”
–Elin Hilderbrand, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Summer of ‘69
more
Jamie Brenner is a new to me author, but she’s definitely one who I will read more work from. This novel was everything that I look for in women’s fiction novel. From the beginning, Brenner made me feel as thought the story was written just for me. I stayed up long into the night to finish this one, and when I reached then end, I was ready to hunt down more work by this extremely talented author.
I loved the feeling of a summer getaway with this one! Brenner used rich detail to make the reader feel like they were right in the middle of the story, seeing the beach town through the eyes of Ruth. Turning page after page, falling more and more in love with the writing style that Brenner uses. I loved Elise, Fern and that sweet baby! Seeing them all interact had me smiling and thinking of my own bonded friendship with the women in my life.
If you are looking for an incredibly written, page turning, hope building, summer escape read, then look no further. Summer Longing will leave you doing just that…..longing for friendship, longing for an escape, longing for something meaningful in your life. From page 1 to the very last page, Brenner will suck you in, twist you up, and throw you down in an unexpected place. Don’t miss this beautifully written novel of friendship and longing. I am now a fan for life and can’t wait to read another amazing novel by this truly talented author.
*I received a complimentary copy of this book from Author/Publisher and was under no obligation to post a review, positive or negative.*
Jamie Brenner
Jamie Brenner is an incredible storyteller. I have read all of her books and have loved each and every one. She’s so talented in incorporating the setting of the story — in this case, Provincetown — that absolutely brings the place to life and makes you wish you were there instead of wherever you are. She also is so skilled at making every character count in her stories – each plays an important role and all are memorable. A perfect summer read. Jamie Brenner has done it again!! P.s. I’m in love with Marco!
Ruth Cooperman has decided to retire to Provincetown. She is a single woman in her fifties who recently sold her successful cosmetics company. After dedicating her life to her work, she Is excited for a change of pace in a new community. On the first morning in her new home, she finds an abandoned baby on her doorstep. Ruth is confused about what to do and contacts Elise and Fern who are the owners of her house.
Elise and Fern run the local tea shop and have been trying to conceive a baby for many years. They can’t help but believe that this baby is a sign from above and was purposely left for them. Together they convince Ruth not to notify the authorities. Needing more space, they also convince Ruth to let them move back into the house. Ruth suddenly finds herself surrounded by people and love and her life changes in unexpected ways.
Summer Longing delves into issues surrounding motherhood, relationships, and family. Enjoy your summer as Jamie Brenner takes you to Provincetown.
Another fantastic story by Jamie Brenner. It’s a story about family, mother/daughter dynamics, love, loss and revival set in Provincetown. A perfect summer read on this fall day!
I love books that are set in Cape Cod! Such a wonderful environment and one of my favorite vacation memories. But this book was missing something. I felt like it was a little too lightweight and needed more oomph to make me invested in the story.
This is truly a family-based drama that would make a good summer read. Not deep, not a great plot, and too many coincidences that I couldn’t believe. But others may enjoy a book that ties everything up with a big red bow at the end!
Thank you to NetGalley and Little, Brown and Company for my advanced review copy. All opinions and thoughts are my own.
Sweet summertime means sweet books!
Thank you Jamie Brenner and Suzy Approved Book Tours for a copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review.
Ruth just wants a quiet summer. That’s all she’s asking for as she treks to Cape Cod in search of a new home. While staying in this idyllic community, Ruth rents a home from Amelia and Fern, who harbor their own desires. Just when Ruth felt like she was settling in, a baby is dropped off on the porch with no explanation as to who she belongs to. This story follows a group of women who try to make everything work and find a home for a new addition.
This is my second novel by Brenner, who also wrote the entertaining, The Wedding Sisters. When I heard about her new novel, I knew I would enjoy a beautiful mix of breezy and meaningful in her story. Summer Longing delivered. This novel is filled with such cozy setting and characters that you just want to crawl into the story and stay a while. Ruth and her counterparts were well-developed and lovable. The book feels like an old friend who always makes you feel the right emotions.
A solid 4 stars!
Add Summer Longing to your beach bag now!
Summer Longing by Jamie Brenner has all the elements of a fantastic summer read. It begins with a baby being left on the doorstep of Ruth Cooperman’s rented house in Provincetown, Massachusetts. Without giving away any spoilers, the author did an excellent job in creating characters that were likable and realistic. This was a heartfelt, easy read that took me on a captivating emotional roller-coaster ride from page one. It definitely deserves a five star rating.
This is a must-read this summer! A baby left on a doorstep will forever change the lives of several women in Provincetown. This book explores the complex relationships that exist between mothers, daughters, friends, and spouses. I loved getting to know every character and found myself wanting the story to continue!
Summer Longing is a story about the struggles between mothers and daughters, chasing dreams, relationship difficulties, obstacles and, ultimately, joy, all set in the charming tourist destination of Provincetown.
The story opens with Ruth Cooperman’s arrival in town. At the age of fifty-eight, Ruth has sold the successful cosmetics company she established, and decided to spend her retirement years in Provincetown, where she enjoyed one youthful summer with her parents. In fact, it was in Provincetown that she met her husband, Ben, and began her life with him. However, the marriage faltered because of Ruth’s work ethic and singular determination to build her cosmetics empire. Having abandoned his dream of being a playwright, Ben became an anesthesiologist and Olivia’s primary caregiver following the divorce.
Living in New York City, Olivia is as obsessed with her career as her mother was, as evidenced by her most recent failed relationship and firm belief that it is impossible to balance one’s personal and professional lives. Employed at Hotfeed, a celebrity social media-management company, her last boyfriend told her, “I hope you and your phone will be very happy together” as he exited her life. Ouch.
Elise Douglas has reluctantly agreed to rent the beautiful cottage she shares with her wife, Fern, to Ruth for the summer so that they can live upstairs from and focus on their tea shop. After several miscarriages, Elise had no choice but to give up her dream of becoming a mother when Fern refused to carry a child. When Ruth finds a beautiful baby girl on the doorstep one morning, Elise insists that she and Fern care for her rather than inform the local authorities, who will undoubtedly place the infant in a foster home. Elise is supported by Amelia, a widow, who declares that Provincetown folks take care of their own. Naturally, Elisa becomes attached to the little girl she names “Mira” because she deems her appearance a miracle.
As the summer progresses, Elise and Fern quarrel over whether to surrender Mira so that her parents can be located, especially given that residents are suspicious about her sudden appearance in town and questioning Elise’s contention that she and Fern are in the midst of adopting her. Olivia arrives to visit her mother under false pretenses and ends up staying longer than she anticipated, which forces her and Ruth to examine their fractured relationship. Olivia reaches out to her father for support and he, too, proceeds to Provincetown to render her aid, setting up an impromptu reunion with Ruth.
And young Jaci agrees to assist Elise and Fern by caring for Mira, in part to escape her brother’s demand that she assist him in running the family oyster business. Jaci insists that she wants no part of the enterprise, and plans to return to college in the fall.
Brenner creates vibrant, interesting characters who could be readers’ own neighbors. Ruth, Elise and Fern, and Olivia are all struggling as they navigate major life transitions. Ruth now realizes how putting her business ahead of her family’s needs caused her to miss spending time with Olivia as she grew up, a point driven home every time she cares — reluctantly, at first — for little Mira. She desperately wants to heal her relationship with her only child. Olivia faces a career crisis that requires her to reweigh her priorities and reconsider her options, and the arrival of Ben presents complications for Ruth because being around him stirs old feelings of affection and, perhaps, more. Elise and Fern’s relationship is tested by Elise’s reluctance to accept that Mira’s abandonment must eventually be reported to the authorities and unwillingness to accept that she may never be able to raise a child. Meanwhile, Jaci is a loving caregiver to Mira, providing critical assistance to Elise and Fern as they strive to make their business a success.
Brenner credibly causes the lives of the characters to intersect and intertwine much, initially, to Ruth’s chagrin. She arrives in Provincetown craving solitude in a beautiful home as she writes the next chapter of her life, but instead winds up frustrated by the presence of unwanted housemates, as well as Olivia’s preliminary resentment and reluctance to move past the pain of childhood. Olivia becomes involved with the locals, as well. Throughout it all, there remains the mystery of Mira’s parentage and, more particularly, why someone decided to leave her on the front step of the cottage owned by Elise and Fern. After all, that individual could not have known that Ruth had only just taken up residence in the home temporarily.
Summer Longing is precisely the type of engrossing tale that makes for a perfect “beach read.” Brenner compels the story forward with the arrival of additional characters to the picturesque community and the additional complications they bring with them. The story is no less enjoyable because it is predictable, largely because of her endearing characters’ revelations and the growth they experience as they come together in solidarity around Elise and Fern, and work out their relationships with each other. Brenner believably portrays the emotions her characters experience during the various stages of motherhood, from Elise’s unrelenting desire to be a mother to Ruth’s significant regrets about all the ways she could have mothered Olivia differently. She also demonstrates that second chances can present themselves and provide the opportunity not to change the past, but to create a more satisfactory future because of the lessons learned through failure and disappointment. And after all of her characters’ secrets come to light, including the identity of Mira’s mother, Brenner provides a conclusion to each character’s story that is logical and satisfactory. That is extremely important because, by the conclusion of Summer Longing, Brenner’s characters feel like next-door neighbors for whom readers only want the best outcome.
Fans of the genre expect a “beach read” to be entertaining, engaging, and heart-warming, and transport them to a luscious setting where they can escape from their real lives for a time. Summer Longing succeeds on all counts.
Thanks to NetGalley for an Advance Reader’s Copy of the book.
This book was the perfect balance of dark and light, love and loss. It was filled with strong women who actually supported one another through their struggles. It was the kind of book that makes you emotional but leaves you feeling happy.
I loved the ease of this book and wanted to be a part of this amazing community. I appreciated how Brenner actually drew on her own experiences in that community. I loved the part I really didn’t see coming that made my heart soar. I loved that everyone got a “happy ever after” but it may not have been what they envisioned.
This is my first book by Brenner, but I will definitely be catching up on her past work soon. I recommend this one when you’re looking for a book with heart and depth but also a happy ending.
I received an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.
Ruth Cooperman is ready to retire, and because of her fond memories of the beachside town, Provincetown, she rents a house there while looking for a place to buy. When a baby is left on her doorstep, her plans for a quiet retirement are upended, and she’ll turn to the eclectic group of women she’s met on the island for help. This may not be what she wanted, but could it be what she needs? Summer Longing is Jamie Brenner at her best: an emotionally honest story about motherhood, friendship, and belonging.
This book has the perfect combination of hardship, love, longing, and happiness that we need at this very trying time we are in. Jamie delivers an amazing story, characters that have numerous challenges and depth that makes you keep reading till well into the evening.
I found myself connecting to many of the characters on so many levels. Jaci was strong and I commend her for her bravery. Olivia had a tough past to move through but her growth and acceptance is commendable. Ruth really has had a rough path to walk but she is learning to live, laugh and find love again.
This book will give you all the feels and have you wanting to know more of their stories in the very near future. I highly recommend picking up a copy today.
Jamie Brenner does it again!!
This time, with fabulous women and a baby in beautiful Cape Cod! Everything I need for a fabulous summer easy breezy read right is right here.
Brenner transports us to picturesque small island town, Provincetown in a summer rental. We are introduced to some intriguing characters that you will absolutely love and get immersed in and that is how Jamie Brenner does it – with amazing dialogue, plot twists and backstories you will absolutely inhale. I feel like Brenner’s characters come to life and jumps out from the pages. I absolutely adore this.
I really needed a great palate cleanser and this book came in the right time to escape from. Anyone brooding in this quarantine, please pick this book up for a lovely P’town Escape.
Charming, engaging, and breezy!
Summer Longing is a warm, cosy tale that takes us to Provincetown, Cape Cod and into the life of Ruth Cooperman, a retired cosmetic entrepreneur whose retirement becomes a little more hectic than she expected when a newborn baby is abandoned on the doorstep of her rental house, the owners move back in to care for the mysterious bundle of joy, her estranged daughter arrives and decides to stay for an unspecified amount of time, and her ex-husband also pops in for a day or two.
The prose is light and fluid. The characters are multilayered, inclusive, quirky, and endearing. And the plot is a delightful mix of relationship dynamics, friendship, introspection, parenthood, support, forgiveness, love, drama, family, community, and new beginnings.
Overall, Summer Longing is another scintillating, satisfying, enjoyable treat by Brenner that once again highlights her innate ability to delve into all the psychological and emotional entanglements that exist between family members and friends.
Wow! I loved everything about “Summer Longing” by Jamie Brenner. The genres for this book are Fiction and Women’s Fiction. The story is written in the author’s present and goes to the past when it pertains to the characters or events. The story takes place in Provincetown. The author describes her colorful cast of characters as complex, and complicated. I love the author’s written descriptions of the characters and events in the story. I also appreciate the vivid descriptions of the scenery, homes, beach, and water in this novel.
Ruth Cooperman, recently retired has returned to Provincetown to purchase a home by the water. She is currently renting a beautiful house there and is looking for some peace and quiet. That doesn’t seem to be in the cards. A newborn baby is left at the doorstep and Ruth finds herself turning to the owners of the house to help. The women in the community all are willing to help out. There are suspense and mystery as to whom is the child’s mother.
Feeling emotional, Ruth reaches out to her estranged daughter Olivia. Ruth had a lucrative and productive career, at the expense of missing out on many of her daughter’s activities. Ruth’s ex-husband often has been there for Olivia. I appreciate that the author describes mother-daughter relationships, the importance of community, family, friends, love, and hope.
I would highly recommend this intriguing, captivating, emotional, entertaining, and memorable novel for those readers who enjoy a thought-provoking novel.