The Summer Place is a quintessential beach read. The summer after COVID lock-down, Ruby announces she’s getting married. She wants the wedding to take place at her family’s beach house on Cape Cod, and she wants it to happen quickly. The whole family knows that when Ruby makes up her mind to do something, she is a very determined young woman.

Most members of the Danhauser family approve of the wedding. Ruby’s fiance, Gabe, has been living with them for the past year during lockdown. He’s a quiet young man, willing to follow in Ruby’s decisive track. But the wedding is sending one family member into complete terror. Due to an indiscretion during his prior marriage, Eli is terrified he might be Gabe’s father. While worrying himself to death over this, he puts his own marriage in jeopardy.

I was swept away into memories of my childhood by this novel. My grandmother owned a house on Cape Cod for about a dozen years. My small, immediate family visited her for a week or two every summer. I have many vivid, pleasant memories of hunting for sand dollars, digging for clams, swimming in the freezing waters, gawking at the sights in Provincetown and eating at Moby Dick’s.

One of the modern technologies mentioned in the book is DNA testing. In addition to Eli’s worries, there are more secrets in the Danhouser family that might come out if testing kits are used. I could really relate to this part of the story. Because of DNA testing, my sister and I recently discovered that we have a fairly close relative that we never knew existed. Obviously, there are deeply hidden secrets even in my own family!

I listened to the audio edition of this book and enjoyed the narration by Sutton Foster.

My Rating 4.5 Stars, Grade B+