One Perfect Summer, Brenda Novak

4 family found stars!

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ebook, 400 pages

Expected publication: April 7th 2020 by MIRA

ISBN

1488055459 (ISBN13: 9781488055454)

Edition Language

English

Some families we’re born into

Some we find for ourselves

When Serenity Alston swabbed her cheek for 23andMe, she joked about uncovering some dark ancestral scandal. The last thing she expected was to discover two half sisters she didn’t know existed. Suddenly, everything about her loving family is drawn into question. And meeting these newfound sisters might be the only way to get answers.

The women decide to dig into the mystery together at Serenity’s family cabin in Lake Tahoe. With Reagan navigating romantic politics at work and Lorelei staring down the collapse of her marriage, all three women are converging at a crossroads in their lives. Before the summer is over, they’ll have to confront the past and determine how to move forward when everything they previously thought to be true was a lie. But any future is easier to face with family by your side

My Review…

This is a unique take on using a DNA testing system to find out more than what genetic markers you might have for hereditary traits.  These ladies have come across one another at quite a critical point in their lives, you would think it was almost fate and not a DNA test that brought them together.

Each lady is going through something quite different yet something almost relatable, except maybe Serenity. Coming to the cabin was Serenity’s idea so of course we start of with her in the book.  I did love her as a character, she does come off as the stronger of the three sisters, but she is just as vulnerable.  She instantly takes to Lorelei’s daughter which is super sweet.  It’s also nice how the whole way through the book she is worried that anything she discovers may upset her younger siblings that she already has.  That just shows how already compassionate she is.

Reagan while a corporate woman looking all sophisticated and posh really seemed naive. I do like how she stood up for her sisters when needed and became their backbone when needed.  Some of her decisions made me not like her so much, she was not my favorite sister. That may just be personal preference for me though.  She of course was spending her time building bonds and helping her sisters and those parts I absolutely loved.

Lorelei had such a complicated life I’m surprised she didn’t have her own book.  The crap shoot back home she was coming from wow, that’s just horrible.  Her daughter really made it so much easier to read her parts and yet harder sometimes. I would say her character is the one that evolves the most throughout the book, she really grows.  She also makes decisions I don’t agree with, but she also makes tons I do agree with. I cried more with Lorelei’s character than any other character.

All of the romantic interests in this book get a thumbs up for sure.  There were some points on this book where it did drag just a little bit but honestly there was so much to fit in such a small book, I can see why there was some information dumped into some spots.  I have loved all of Brenda Novak’s books and this wasn’t any different, I would suggest it for sure.

Thank you to NetGalley, Brenda Novak, and MIRA for a copy in lieu of my honest review.

About the Author…

It was a shocking experience that jump-started Brenda Novak’s bestselling author career.

“I caught my day-care provider drugging my children with cough syrup and Tylenol to get them to sleep while I was away,” Brenda says. “It was then that I decided that I needed to do something from home.”

However, writing was the last profession she expected to undertake. In fact, Brenda swears she didn’t have a creative bone in her body. In school, math and science were her best subjects, and when it came time to pick a major in college, she chose business.

Abandoning her academic scholarship to Brigham Young University at the age of 20 in order to get married and start a family, Brenda dabbled in commercial real estate, then became a loan officer.

“When I first got the idea to become a novelist, it took me five years to teach myself the craft and finish my first book,” Brenda admits. “I learned how to write by reading what others have written. The best advice for any would-be author: read, read, read….”

Brenda sold her first book, and the rest is history. Now a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author, she continues to publish two or three novels a year, in a variety of genres.

Brenda and her husband, Ted, live in Sacramento and are the proud parents of five children—three girls and two boys. Now that they are empty-nesters, she spends her free time babysitting her two grandchildren.

When she’s not with her family or writing, Brenda is usually raising money for diabetes research. To date, she’s raised almost $2.6 million. Her youngest son, Thad, has diabetes, and Brenda is determined to help him and others like him. She also enjoys traveling, watching sporting events and biking–she rides an amazing 20 miles every day!