All The Days Of Summer by Nancy Thayer: Book Review

All The Days of Summer is the story of a woman who moves to Nantucket for the summer following the breakup of her marriage and the life she builds for herself there.

From The Publisher:

Heather Willette has a good life in Concord, Massachusetts–complete with a husband who runs his own business and a son to take up his mantle one day. But now that her marriage has fizzled out and Ross, her only child, is graduating from college and getting serious with his girlfriend, Heather wonders if that life is the one she really wants. Ready to seek out her own happiness and discover herself again, Heather decides to leave her husband and rent a cottage on Nantucket. And her plan is going perfectly–until Ross announces he’s moving to Nantucket to work at his girlfriend’s family’s construction business instead of going back home to work with his own father, like he’d promised. Worst of all for Heather, this means having to get along with her.

Kailee Essex is thrilled that Ross is willing to move to her hometown. She has big hopes for their happily ever after, especially now that her parents are finally showing interest in her career. She’s less thrilled, however, about his mother living nearby. Kailee has clashed with Heather since the day they met. But anything is possible in the summer sun and sea breezes of Nantucket–even reconciliation. And when change comes sooner than either Heather or Kailee expect, they must learn to overcome their differences to fight for the future they want.

My Thoughts:

Summer wouldn’t be the same without reading a Nancy Thayer book. I love that her stories have older protagonists and are set in the beach setting of Nantucket.

In All The Days of Summer, we meet Heather whose son Ross has just graduated from college. Ross is in love with Nantucket native Kailee and he has decided to move there to work in Kailee’s father’s business. Heather’s marriage dissolves and she decides to start over in Nantucket by renting a summer beach cottage as she decides what to do next. Despite living on the same island, Heather is determined to give her son space as he builds his life on the island.

Kailee doesn’t want to share Ross with Heather and likes it even less when Heather becomes friendly with Kailee’s Mom. As the summer progresses, life changes for each of the characters and they begin to view each other differently.

The story is told from the perspectives of Heather and Kailee which worked well. I appreciated the growth in each of these women. The character development and backstories were well-written. The descriptions of Nantucket in summer did a wonderful job of immersing the reader in this resort area. The author does a good job of balancing the positives and negatives of living on the island.

I recommend this book to those readers who appreciate Women’s Fiction.

Other Books I’ve Reviewed Written by Nancy Thayer:

Summer Love

Girls of Summer

Let It Snow