Tag: The Summer of Songbirds

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The Summer of Songbirds by Kristy Woodson Harvey

Robin’s Rave Reviews

Do you want to hang on to summer a little longer? Try The Summer of Songbirds by Kristy Woodson Harvey. It will take you back to fond childhood memories of going to summer camp. Even if you never went to summer camp, you will enjoy this story of three women who became friends as children and create a bond that lasts into adulthood.

The Summer of Songbirds novelCamp Holly Springs has a special place in the hearts of these three women since they first met there at age six. They continued attending every year, even becoming camp counselors in their teens. Now in their thirties, they learn the camp is floundering after Covid. The girls kick into high gear to help save it. Otherwise, Daphne’s Aunt June will have no choice but to sell out to a developer. While the three friends devise and carry out plans to save the camp, the story is complicated by their personal lives.

Mary Stuart is getting married. The guest list includes her friends Daphne and Lanier, and Lanier’s brother, Huff. Daphne and Huff were “a thing” a long time ago, and Lanier would like it to stay that way. Could seeing each other at the wedding reignite the flame? After the wedding, Mary Stuart has time to put her PR/marketing background to use to help save the camp.

Lanier, a bookstore owner, is engaged, but she isn’t as excited about getting married to Bryce as she should be. She senses he isn’t telling her something. When the girls throw her a bachelorette party at the camp, Lanier runs into Rich, the owner of the neighboring boys’ camp AND her teenage crush. What will come of this temptation?

Before Lanier’s bachelorette party, Daphne, a lawyer, is put into an impossible situation. She knows Bryce has multiple lawsuits against him that will tarnish his professional reputation and financially destroy him. As a loyal friend, she should tell Lanier before she marries him, but telling her would lead to Daphne being disbarred. As a single mother, Daphne has a son to support. To top it off, seeing Lanier’s brother Huff at Mary Stuart’s wedding was . . . interesting. Unfortunately she knows Lanier isn’t the forgetting type when it comes to Daphne’s past struggles.

Harvey uses Lanier’s, Daphne’s, and June’s alternating POV, so it’s important to keep the characters straight. Mary Stuart doesn’t have her own POV chapters, probably because her life is the most stable. She’s an anchor for the others.

♥ What I loved  ♥

*Camp Holly Springs reminded me of good times at the summer camp I attended as a child–the activities, the new friendships, and the sense of freedom.

*The entire story isn’t about the camp’s problems. Kristy Woodson Harvey included multiple complications going on in the lives of these women.

*Bryce’s poor decisions put Daphne into one of those situations where she just doesn’t have any good choices. That makes for great conflict.

*The women regularly sent each other emails asking the others to do the “hard things” for them. They each used their strengths to help in  areas where their friends struggled.

*Daphne had a great plutonic relationship with her son’s daddy, even though they never married.

*A strong storyline revolved around one character who experienced a challenging childhood. She makes her own mistakes in her twenties but learns to overcome. This past struggle still taints a friend’s perspective of her today. Will this friend truly forgive and put the past in the past? Will she support her friend now?

 

This isn’t just a summer book. The Summer of Songbirds is a wonderful choice for the fall as well. Kick the leaves on the ground as you take a walk to the campfire. Sit down and relax to the crackling of the fire, watch the firefly embers float off into the night sky, and indulge in a S’more. Lose yourself in watching three friends navigate their personal problems while also trying to do good for the camp, Aunt June ,and the community.

The Summer of Songbirds by Kristy Woodson Harvey hit the New York Times Best Sellers list shortly after its release.  It was also a Good Morning America buzz pick. Interested in other books by Kristy Woodson Harvey? Click on the title to go to other KWH book reviews I’ve written: The Wedding Veil, Under the Southern Sky, Feels Like Falling, or if you’re interested in a series, The Peachtree Bluff series.

Friends and Fiction authors

Also catch Kristy on the Friends and Fiction weekly podcast with co-anchors Mary Kay Andrews, Patti Callahan Henry, and Kristin Harmel. Every Wednesday at 7 PM the group talks about their books and interviews other authors with recent releases. It’s a great way to discover new titles and authors! Join in the fun by joining the Friends and Fiction Facebook group or go to their YouTube channel where you can watch live and catch up on older episodes.

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@author.robin.shelley

Netgalley Professional Reader

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Sneak Peek of Upcoming Book Reviews

It’s good to be back! And I’ve got some good stuff for you. I’ve returned with a sneak peek of upcoming book reviews! You see, I’ve been reading a lot. What else was a girl to do while recovering from surgery?Twisty road in Nevada desert

Life is full of twists and turns, valleys and mountaintops. Although I prefer the mountaintops, I’ve been traversing my way through the twists, turns and valleys for the last few months, including surgery for my rotator cuff and bicep. Although I had a similar surgery done two years ago on the other arm, this one has been a much harder recovery. So, three months later, I’m still having pain and I don’t have full range of movement, but I’m working through the PT to recover. I just couldn’t wait any longer to reconnect with you!

When I couldn’t hold my arm up to type yet, I read. So – I have some great book reviews coming up! I’ll spread them out so you don’t have to rush out to get them all at once. I found it interesting that I was picking a wider variety of books, some out of the genres I usually read. But that’s great! Maybe my venturing out will give you something new to consider, too. Some books are brand new and others have been out a few years.

A new book review will come out later this week. Make sure you watch your email for it! If you don’t get email notifications when I write a new blog, why not?  I promise I won’t stuff your inbox. (I normally only write 2-3 blogs per month.)  Don’t put it off. I know how it goes. If you tell yourself you’ll do it later, you probably won’t. You simply need to type in your email address. Sign up on the bottom of any page on my website or go directly to https://robinshelley.com/home/contact-info/.  Do it! Do it now!

And now… (drumroll please), here’s a sneak peek at some of the book reviews coming in the next few months ( in no particular order):

The Liz Taylor Ring by Brenda Janowitz, Beautiful Little Fools by Jillian Cantor (for The Great Gatsby fans), The Peachtree Bluff series by Kristy Woodson Harvey, This Close to Okay by Leesa Cross-Smith , Big Fish by Daniel Wallace, The Last Secret of the Secret Annex by Joop van Wijk-Voskuijl and Jeroen De Bruyn (for those interested in the Anne Frank story), The True Love Experiment by Christina Lauren, Perilous Times by Thomas D. Lee, The Paris Daughter by Kristin Harmel, The Summer of Songbirds by Kristy Woodson Harvey, and The Secret Book of Flora Lea by Patti Callahan Henry.

Just a reminder:

Mother’s Day is just around the bend. Wouldn’t Mom love a good book for her spring/summer reading? If you order at bookshop.org, your purchase supports small, independent bookstores. You can even pick which store you want to support! (I’ve been supporting MacIntosh Books as they recover from the hurricane that hit the Sanibel Island/Fort Myers area in Florida.)