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From the publisher:

At long last, the legendary New York Times bestselling author returns with a heartfelt novel of womanhood, a wild heart, and the healing power of love.

Run, run, as fast as you can!

When life throws her one setback too many, midwife and young widow Tess Hartsong takes off for Runaway Mountain. In this small town high in the Tennessee mountains, surrounded by nature, she hopes to outrun her heartbreak and find the solace she needs to heal.

But instead of peace and quiet, she encounters an enigmatic artist with a craving for solitude, a fairy-tale sprite with too many secrets, a helpless infant, a passel of curious teens, and a town suspicious of outsiders, especially one as headstrong as Tess. Just as headstrong is Ian North, a difficult, gifted man with a tortured soul—a man who makes Tess question everything.

In running away to this new life, Tess wonders— Has she lost herself . . . or has she found her future?

It has been way too long since Susan Elizabeth Phillips has graced us with a book, and the book she finally delivered is terrific, albeit different than her usual; no Chicago Stars, not much in the way of laughs either, but strong characters living their lives, no matter how complicated, and taking us along for the ride.

This is a small town romance of sorts. Tess has lost her husband quite young, and when she finds a cottage to rent on Runaway Mountain, she feels like it must be fate. She deals with her grief by blasting her music and dancing like a maniac, in the yard of her cottage. When Ian, the prickly artist living nearby complains, Tess somehow forms a friendship with his wife. Or at least the women who she assumes is his wife, especially since she’s pregnant.

In her former life, before she lost her husband, Tess was a certified nurse-midwife. She has no interest in doing that again so she takes a part-time job as a barista in the small cafe in town. There she meets the odd assortment of townsfolk, and that is where the little bit of humor is derived. But this is a more serious book, and it takes a dark turn. There are difficult subjects explored here; death, grief, abuse, survivalists, and more.

I don’t want to say much more and spoil it, just know that this is not a light and fluffy read in the least, even though there is a happy ending. I hope we don’t have to wait another two years for a new SEP book.

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From the publisher:

AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

A deliciously funny, remarkably poignant, and simply unputdownable novel about the power of friendship, the lure of frenemies, and the importance of making peace with yourself through all life’s ups and down. From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Good in Bed and Best Friends Forever, Big Summer is the perfect escape with one of the most lovable heroines to come to the page in years.

Six years after the fight that ended their friendship, Daphne Berg is shocked when Drue Cavanaugh walks back into her life, looking as lovely and successful as ever, with a massive favor to ask. Daphne hasn’t spoken one word to Drue in all this time—she doesn’t even hate-follow her ex-best friend on social media—so when Drue asks if she will be her maid-of-honor at the society wedding of the summer, Daphne is rightfully speechless.

Drue was always the one who had everything—except the ability to hold onto friends. Meanwhile, Daphne’s no longer the same self-effacing sidekick she was back in high school. She’s built a life that she loves, including a growing career as a plus-size Instagram influencer. Letting glamorous, seductive Drue back into her life is risky, but it comes with an invitation to spend a weekend in a waterfront Cape Cod mansion. When Drue begs and pleads and dangles the prospect of cute single guys, Daphne finds herself powerless as ever to resist her friend’s siren song.

A sparkling novel about the complexities of female relationships, the pitfalls of living out loud and online, and the resilience of the human heart, Big Summer is a witty, moving story about family, friendship, and figuring out what matters most.

I’m not sure why, but two of my most favorite and reliable summer beach read authors have thrown a murder into the mix. First Mary Kay Andrews did it in Hello, Summer and now Weiner has as well. Is this a new trend? Don’t get me wrong, there is nothing gory here, and no one in their right mind would think of this as a thriller, and I even have a hard time thinking of this as romantic suspense, but there is a body, (which the publisher neglected to include in their synopsis,) so I feel I’ve done my job.

Drue and Daphne were unlikely friends in school; Drue was the uber-popular rich girl, and Daphne was the overweight girl with a few societal outcast type friends. Like high school for many people.  Think “Mean Girls.” Except this is the age of social media, so when Daphne has a very public meltdown in a bar and finally stands up to the mean girl, someone videos it and it goes viral. Just like that Daphne has a new career path as a social media influencer for plus size girls. She also cuts off all contact with Drue.

Years later Daphne is shocked when Drue reaches out and asks her to be her maid of honor. Drue still has that pull over Daphne, and she reluctantly agrees, assuming she will get some great social media numbers if she is posting pictures from the society wedding of the summer. But then that pesky body shows up, changing everyone’s plans.

Weiner has once again given us a great story with believable characters and a typical beach read setting on Cape Cod. I must admit, as a plus-size reader, it is always fun (and usually quite rare) to find a protagonist who looks like me. This is a fast read, often funny, and yes, Daphne also is a romantic heroine who gets her happily ever after. If you are braving the beach, tuck this into your beach bag and enjoy! (I have turned into a complete agoraphobic, and I enjoyed it in my own backyard.)