Against the picturesque coastal Maine setting that she evokes so well, bestselling author Holly Chamberlin creates a heartfelt story of family bonds and new beginnings . . . It came as no surprise to anyone in Yorktide when glamorous Carol Ascher fled the little Maine town for New York City. While Carol found success as an interior designer, her younger sister, Bonnie, stayed behind, embracing … stayed behind, embracing marriage and motherhood. She even agreed to take in Carol’s teenage daughter during a tumultuous patch. Now both their girls are grown and Bonnie, recently widowed, is anticipating the day she’ll retire to Ferndean House, the nineteenth-century family home on the rocky Maine coast.
But forty-five years after leaving Yorktide, Carol suddenly announces that she’s moving back—into Ferndean. Bonnie is indignant. She’s the one who kept the homestead in order and tended to their dying mother. Now Carol expects to simply buy her out? As far as Bonnie is concerned, Ferndean is part of their heritage—not just another of Carol’s improvement projects, to be torn apart and remade according to her whim.
The entire Ascher family is in flux, uncovering secrets that upend their relationships. Carol’s longing to be welcomed home is fueled by a painful truth she’s carried for years. It will take an extraordinary summer—in a remarkable place—to lead these women back to each other, buoyed by the tides of friendship and forgiveness.
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Two sisters who was very different. One had a successful career in NYC and the other devoted to family. Very entertaining.
wonderful
All Our Summers
By Holly Chamberlin
All Our Summers is a family saga about the Ascher family centered on sisters Carol who left for New York and Bonnie who stayed behind. Carol lived the life of luxury while Bonnie took care of the home and family. Chamberlin wrote the characters well who are going through a lot of pain, hardships, regret and anger. A real saga of a book that I enjoyed reading about – domestic drama at its best.
I enjoyed the easy writing and a nice summer read.
3.5 Stars! Nostalgic, tender, and optimistic!
All Our Summers is a compelling, heartfelt tale that sweeps you away to Yorktide, Maine and immerses you into the lives of the Ascher family complete with all the heartbreak, secrets, smiles, tears, strength, loyalty, resentments, and compassion that surround them.
The writing is smooth and light. The characters are complex, hurt, and vulnerable. And the plot, including all the subplots, intertwine and unravel into an uplifting tale about life, love, loss, family, friendship, parenthood, infidelity, and the complex relationship that exists between sisters.
All Our Summers is a sentimental, warm, touching, family saga by Chamberlin that drags slightly in parts but overall does a lovely job of reminding us of what’s truly important in life.
This was a well-written book. It gives the perspectives of two sisters and their daughters, as they traverse their history, memories, and their complicated lives. By the end each has gotten to know the others and themselves better. I enjoyed it, though it didn’t “wow” me. I would be interested in reading other books by this author.
To me this is a great story about family. As I was reading, I would think, yep, I know someone that had those feelings or went through whatever the situation was. There is a lot of growing between the characters in this story and in themselves. Bonnie and Carol, even though sisters, are two very different people. Will they ever get to the point they really understand each other again? What about Julie and Scott? Haven’t all of us dealt with the forgiveness factor in our lives? I totally enjoyed this story and meeting these folks. I think you will too. I received this book from NetGalley, but my opinion is my own.
I received an ARC from NetGalley for my honest review. This is a family that has thought a certain way so long and with a lack of communication, things have just been getting worse. One summer the older sister, Carol decides to finally move back to Yorktown Maine where she grew up. She and her younger sister, Bonnie weren’t very nice when they met at the beginning of the summer. Carol’s daughter had moved to Maine when she was a teenager and they didn’t have a good relationship.
It would take a lot of communication and courage to do what is needed in order to repair the damage that has been done. Every family has problems and reading this book gives you insight on the journey of this family for one summer. I hope you read the book to find out if they will have the courage to open up and be honest with one another. There will be secrets that will come out, issues they will have to deal with, and they will have to choose to listen. It is a book worth reading to find out the answers. I enjoyed reading this story, I got a lot out of it, and I could understand the way they were feeling. There comes a time when you just know you have to try to make things right, even if you know it could fail. For me, that was what the book was about. Being from Maine made me love the location.