28 SUMMERS by Elin Hilderbrand

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From the publisher:

A “captivating and bittersweet” novel by the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Summer of ’69: Their secret love affair has lasted for decades — but this could be the summer that changes everything (People).

When Mallory Blessing’s son, Link, receives deathbed instructions from his mother to call a number on a slip of paper in her desk drawer, he’s not sure what to expect. But he certainly does not expect Jake McCloud to answer. It’s the late spring of 2020 and Jake’s wife, Ursula DeGournsey, is the frontrunner in the upcoming Presidential election.
There must be a mistake, Link thinks. How do Mallory and Jake know each other?
Flash back to the sweet summer of 1993: Mallory has just inherited a beachfront cottage on Nantucket from her aunt, and she agrees to host her brother’s bachelor party. Cooper’s friend from college, Jake McCloud, attends, and Jake and Mallory form a bond that will persevere — through marriage, children, and Ursula’s stratospheric political rise — until Mallory learns she’s dying.
Based on the classic film Same Time Next Year (which Mallory and Jake watch every summer), 28 Summers explores the agony and romance of a one-weekend-per-year affair and the dramatic ways this relationship complicates and enriches their lives, and the lives of the people they love.

Elin Hilderbrand writes stories that just drag you in and keep you turning pages. Her characters feel as real as the people you know. I stayed up late into the night to finish this book, had a good cry during the last chapter and beyond, and finally fell asleep curled up with my husband. He slept through all that, which was just as well. He hates seeing me cry, even over a book.

The book starts off at the end, the 28th summer, then moves to the beginning. If you haven’t seen the movie, Same Time, Next Year, it may not have the same resonance. You can watch it after, too, but there are some spoilers in the novel. This is not a retelling of the movie, but a decades-long romance based on the same premise. Mallory and Jake meet, have a long weekend fling, then repeat every year on the same weekend.

In the meantime, Jake marries his childhood sweetheart. He loves Ursula, but he can’t give up Mallory. On the other hand, Mallory has a few long term relationships, has a child from a one night stand, but always comes back to Jake, year in and year out. Intellectually, I really detest the premise of a married man cheating annually, but somehow Hilderbrand had me rooting for them to keep it going.

The book is divided into parts by decade, then each chapter is a new year, a new summer. I loved how each chapter started with a page or so of what was happening that year; all of the major headlines of the year, the hot books and TV shows, cultural references, and more. And I especially loved that there a completely fictitious president elected in 2016. Thank you, Elin!

28 Summers is a completely engrossing, beautiful summer read. I loved it.

6/2020 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

28 SUMMERS by Elin Hilderbrand. Little, Brown and Company (June 16, 2020). ISBN 978-0316420044. 432 pages.

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This entry was posted on Saturday, June 27th, 2020 at 8:00 AM and is filed under Book Reviews, Fiction, Women's Fiction. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.

4 Responses to 28 SUMMERS by Elin Hilderbrand

  1. Maureen B Carter says:
    June 27, 2020 at 9:02 AM

    Great book so far!

  2. Nicky says:
    July 10, 2020 at 1:36 PM

    I cried so hard! I totally agree, the people all felt so real. All of them, the main characters and the side ones. Incredible.

  3. thebrowneyedbookworm says:
    July 19, 2020 at 2:49 PM

    I have this one on hold at the library, it will be my first Hilderbrand novel and I’m excited.

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