Family Reunion

December 1, 2020

It's not the summer widowed Eleanor Sunderland had expected, with her greedy children pushing her to sell her beloved home in Nantucket and shuffle off to a retirement center. Fortunately, 22-year-old granddaughter Ari proves to be an ally, moving in with her grandmother as she seeks to redirect her own life--and falling for charming local Cal.

Copyright 2020 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

March 15, 2021
An aging widow grapples with how to approach the next and final chapters of her life in this multigenerational tale. Eleanor Sunderland lives on Nantucket in the same home that belonged to her grandparents and her parents before her. Now that she's widowed, her adult children assume she will spend the next decade or two living alone before going quietly into the dark night. Her son, Cliff, learns a hotel chain wants to buy Eleanor's property for millions of dollars. Cliff thinks Eleanor should relocate to senior housing somewhere while he and his sister, Alicia, receive one-third shares of the sale proceeds. Eleanor's not having it, because she loves her home and the memories it holds. Moreover, Alicia's daughter, Ari, has just graduated from college and wants to spend the summer living on the island with Eleanor. As the summer begins, Eleanor's quiet island fills with all sorts of excitement. As Eleanor finds out that her young, single granddaughter is pregnant, discovers that her son-in-law might be two-timing Alicia, and develops a romantic relationship of her own, her head starts spinning. As Eleanor watches Ari tackle the challenges life throws at her, she wonders if she can follow her granddaughter's bold example. The third-person narration alternates between Eleanor's and Ari's perspectives, juxtaposing the different life stages at which these women find themselves but also illustrating the many parallels between the questions they face. There is perhaps too much emphasis on Eleanor's life being lonely and uneventful; the portrayals of many ho-hum moments of jigsaw puzzling and early bedtimes do slow down the pace. Even so, with the exception of Alicia, who feels like a caricature of a money-grubbing offspring, the characters are realistically rendered and their plights sufficiently engrossing that readers will want to keep turning the pages. As always, the author's love for Nantucket is palpable on nearly every page. A tidy Nantucket tale shows that baby boomers still have plenty of pluck.

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April 15, 2021
Eleanor Sunderland is thrilled when her family comes to visit her in Nantucket. She's less thrilled when she learns they are there to convince her to sell her house and move into a nursing home. She's only 70, and though the house is shabby, it's got a view she can't live without. Her granddaughter Ari, newly graduated from college and newly single, decides a summer on Nantucket will help her get her head together before she starts grad school. Eleanor and Ari understand each other, and their peaceful cohabitation is a respite from a summer of chaos. Ari's stressful but rewarding job at a summer camp, Eleanor's restlessness and worry about her two adult children, infidelity, and a rocky romance are just a few of the waves Thayer (Let It Snow, 2019) whips up for her grandmother-granddaughter duo in her latest. But she also throws in plenty of details about summer in Nantucket, from the unpredictable weather to flowy sundresses to yacht club meals. Fans of Elin Hilderbrand will enjoy this beachy escape.

COPYRIGHT(2021) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.