In the tradition of Judy Blume’s Summer Sisters, The Summer List is a tender yet tantalizing novel about two friends, the summer night they fell apart, and the scavenger hunt that reunites them decades later—until the clues expose a breathtaking secret…Named a Best Book of Summer 2018 by PopSugar, Coastal Living, Family Circle, and The Globe & MailLaura and Casey were once inseparable: as … PopSugar, Coastal Living, Family Circle, and The Globe & Mail
Laura and Casey were once inseparable: as they floated on their backs in the sunlit lake, as they dreamed about the future under starry skies, and as they teamed up for the wild scavenger hunts in their small California lakeside town. Until one summer night, when a shocking betrayal sent Laura running through the pines, down the dock, and into a new life, leaving Casey and a first love in her wake.
But the past is impossible to escape, and now, after seventeen years away, Laura is pulled home and into a reunion with Casey she can’t resist—one last scavenger hunt. With a twist: this time, the list of clues leads to the settings of their most cherished summer memories. From glistening Jade Cove to the vintage skating rink, each step they take becomes a bittersweet reminder of the friendship they once shared. But just as the game brings Laura and Casey back together, the clues unravel a stunning secret that threatens to tear them apart…
Mesmerizing and unforgettable, Amy Mason Doan’s The Summer List is about losing and recapturing the person who understands you best—and the unbreakable bonds of girlhood.
“With a vivid sense of place and characters as real as your high school besties, this debut novel is sure to please fans of Kristin Hannah and Elin Hilderbrand.” —Library Journal
“The Summer List is a sparkling debut novel filled with nostalgia that will make you long for your childhood friends and carefree summer days.” —PopSugar
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A trip down memory lane becomes a hunt for long-buried secrets in Amy Mason Doan’s gripping and poignant debut about the bond between two compelling outsiders. The Summer List is an evocative tale of family, first love, and the unique and lasting gift of a friendship formed in girlhood.
This was a wonderful read perfect for a lazy summer day. The characters were warm and endearing, the twisting storylines across generations perfectly rendered, and the central friendship so real I felt as if I knew Casey and Laura myself!
What starts off as a weekend for old friends to mend a friendship ends with some twists you are never expecting.
I’m a sucker for summer secrets and best friend falling apart and finding each other again. A delightful summer read.
In her mesmerizing debut, Amy Mason Doan challenges everything we think we know about family and forgiveness. Readers will be swept up in this haunting story of buried secrets and lost love.
I was provided an advance copy of this novel from the publisher, Graydon House, through Netgalley.
The Summer List was the perfect summer read. The only think that could have made it better was if I had read it while relaxing in the mountains near a lake. This sweet story kept me turning pages, smiling, and even tearing up. At its heart, it’s a story about friendship, and how true friends can change your life. I was quite impressed with the author’s ability to weave such an intricate story. I didn’t want this one to end, and I will definitely be looking forward to reading more from Amy Mason Doan.
The Summer List is the perfect summer read. Beautifully drawn characters creating a page-turning mystery. I stayed up way too late to find out what happened! Impossible to put down!
The Summer List by author Amy Mason Doan is the story of Laura and Casey, two best friends during their teen years. The two girls have very different family backgrounds but spend weekends together and enjoy life and coming of age angst together in their small town. There are secrets in both girls families and later in life, these secrets become mysteries to solve. An event between the girls happens just before time to go away to college. Their friendship fails and now seventeen years later, Laura receives a letter from Casey inviting Laura to come back to the lake once more for a reunion.
I won’t post spoilers, but the story has layers of twists and secrets which unravel and come to light at the ending.
Personally, I thought the story was a bit slow in the beginning, but the story is well written and the ending has some surprises!
There’s not a word or plot line out of place in this fabulous debut about two girlhood friends from a small lakeside town who reunite as adults to try to salvage their broken relationship. Dive beneath the surface and you’ll find a complex and finely wrought story as full of mystery and vitality as the lake itself. These characters and their stories are going to stick with you for a long, long time.
Outstanding! The story of two best friends so realistically written that it brought back memories of my own childhood “bestie.” A wrong turn is suddenly and unexpectedly taken when heartbreaking words are overheard. Wonderful, in-depth realizations of many of the players, not just the two friends. This book will have you in tears, and re-affirm your belief in what people will sacrifice when they love someone.
Favorite Quotes:
I had a journal my dad gave me when I was seven, a puffy pink thing with A Girl’s First Diary on the cover in gold script. I hid it inside a hollowed-out copy of Silas Marner on my bottom bookshelf, and concealed the key in a mint tin in my third best church purse.
I could take the most direct route to the exit—hurdle over the blue-carpeted half wall in front of us and run straight across the crowded rink. I’d shove aside toddlers, the gang of tough-looking older women zooming past in matching black satin jackets that said Hell on Wheelz, whoever. But I was an adult now so I only smiled harder.
“You can tell my age in our high school pictures by the thickness of my eyeshadow.” Like figuring out a tree’s age by the rings in the trunk.
Soggy heart. I’d read that on some blog. The not-so-technical name for when you get tipsy and accidentally tell the truth.
Women’s Studies 201. Sophomore year… Modern religion is an institution created by men to police women’s sexuality. Discuss. Oh, the hands that had shot up that day. Not mine, though. I’d kept my own hands, twisting and fidgeting, in my lap, too overcome by the bell-like simplicity of the professor’s statement, too angry at how long the world had waited to articulate it to me clearly, to speak. By the end of the fifty-minute class my palms were wet.
My Review:
This cunningly paced and well-crafted book resonated for me like the thrum of a well-struck tuning fork. It sucked me right in and held my rapt attention as I felt I knew and understood these endearingly flawed characters inside and out. Cleverly and deftly narrated by two women over three timelines, I never felt confused or lost but held suspended in an eager and avid state of curiosity. I was engaged, engrossed, and intrigued by the characters, their history, and the prickly unfolding story of their present.
I over-identified with the character of Laura at every age, but I took great pleasure in her clever stealth and ingenious efforts to carve out a modicum of privacy for herself, away from her stridently religious mother’s stifling control. Laura devised secret hiding places for her diary and prized possessions and an intricate level of subterfuge was required for even the smallest acts of rebellion such as using lip gloss, eating pizza, and having a true friend in the real world who would not meet her judgmental mother’s stringent expectations. I wanted to fist pump when Laura finally spoke up.
I was frequently awed by this intensely talented author’s insightful and deft handling of the characters thoughts and observances, as well as their understanding or misunderstandings of the unusual events at various ages and levels of assimilation. The storylines were unique, beguiling, and captivating as were each and every one of the characters. I now need to sleep for a week as I had a hard time putting this one down. The writing was extraordinary, intricate, and arresting. I was more than satisfied by the ending but would have happily read another 384 more pages. Amy Mason Doan has crazy good word voodoo.
I loved this book! Read it twice. Characters were well-developed and believable. People I would like to know in “real” life. Would love to read more by this author.
Truly enjoyed this book.
I usually read mysteries or thrillers. I won this book and welcomed it as I was looking for something refreshing while still with a bit of mystery. Great storyline and really enjoyed the author’s style. I will read more of her books.
Enjoyable story. Good characters with an ending that was different than I anticipated. Overall liked the book and would read this author again.
With its exquisite detail, The Summer List wouldn’t let me go, and the unexpected ending gave me chills. An irresistible novel of friendship and home.
BOOK REVIEW: A debut novel of The Summer List by Amy Mason Doan
The time period is 1996 – 2016. Soon-to-be best friends, Laura and Casey, their families, a tiny little lake town with deep secrets, a funky lake house and an unraveling of family trusts will intrigue. As they sprout from young girls into adulthood, Laura and Casey’s lives become more entwined than they could’ve ever imagined. The discovery of secrets and lies as they try to stitch all the unanswered questions and all that’s gone wrong, back together again, is what brings the uniqueness too this story. A story of love, friendship, loss and a bit of craziness mixed in, will keep you turning the pages to the very end! The characters are well developed and loveable. The writing; beautifully constructed and executed. Thank you #AmyMasonDoan and #GraydonHousePublishing for this wonderfully mesmerizing summer-read.
Well developed characters who will make you fall in love and break your heart. Original twists and turns in a plot that will keep you guessing right up until the end.
I loved this book it was well written with characters that were realistic. I was lost in a few spots but it all came together in the end.great beach book.