Summer Island, Kristin Hannah
Summer Island, Kristin Hannah
5 Rating(s)
List: $42.99 | Sale: $30.10
Club: $21.49

Summer Island

Bestseller

Author: Kristin Hannah

Narrator: Joyce Bean

Unabridged: 9 hr 59 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 05/16/2017

Categories: Fiction, Women

Synopsis

Thirty-four year old Ruby Bridge is a not-too-successful comedienne who uses her mother, a nationally-syndicated "moral and spiritual counselor" as the main fodder for her cynical, rather bitter humor. Her mother Nora, long divorced from Ruby's father, is a woman whose past is just about to catch up with her—in the form of blackmail by a former lover.After an accident (an attempted suicide?) Ruby returns to care for her stricken mother—bitterly resenting the fact that once again her mother's life has colonized hers. When she is approached by a publisher to write a biography of her mother, Ruby is desperate for the princely sum offered. Yet her research into her mother's past reveals a woman very different from the one Ruby expected. And what began as "mommy dearest" ends as a love story—not only between mother and daughter, but involving two very different men who play a key role in linking the past to the present.

About Kristin Hannah

Kristin Hannah was born in September 1960 in Southern California. At eight years old, her family moved to Western Washington. Kristin decided to become a lawyer and attended law school in Washington. While in her third-and final-year of law school, Kristin’s mom was in the hospital, facing the end of her long battle with cancer. Always knowing that her daughter was meant to be a writer, Kristin and her mother collaborated on a novel. After her mom's death, she packed up all those bits and pieces of paper and research they'd collected and put them in a box in the back of her closet. Kristin got married and continued practicing law.

Then, Kristin found out she was pregnant and was on bed rest for five months. It was during that time that her husband reminded her of the book she'd started with her mom. Kristin pulled out the boxes of research material, dusted them off and began writing. By the time their son was born, she'd finished a first draft and found an obsession.

After many rejections, Kristin finally got "the call," and in that moment, she went from a young mother with a cooler-than-average hobby to a professional writer, and has never looked back. In all the years between then and now, she has never lost her love of, or her enthusiasm for, telling stories. Kristin feels truly blessed to be a wife, a mother, and a writer. Her novel, Firefly Lane, became a runaway bestseller in 2009, a touchstone novel that brought women together.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Ashley on March 24, 2017

I was expecting this book to be a lighthearted easy read but boy was I ever wrong! This book absolutely destroyed me and had me sobbing by the end. I related so strongly to the main character Ruby, I felt like I was reading about myself at times and I think that's why I reacted so strongly to her st......more

Goodreads review by Meagan✨ on July 11, 2024

4.5 Stars I'm just going to stare at the wall and think about life. 🥹 💖 Quotes- 🔅“ no , but I loved him too much, and that can be as bad as not loving someone enough. I needed so much reassurance and love, I sucked him dry. No man can fill up all the dark places in a woman’s soul.” 🔅“I know how it fee......more

Goodreads review by Elisabeth on February 09, 2022

A nice mother-daughter reunion. Summer Island tells the story of Nora and her daughter Ruby who are on the outs. Nora left her husband and teenage daughters and is now a famous talk show host who gives others advice. Ruby is a struggling comedian who resents her mother. When Nora gets caught in a pu......more

Goodreads review by Brady on July 19, 2023

Starts off slow and is pretty slow moving throughout the entire book, but overall a great story about a mother/daughter relationship and a family full of secrets that all come to light. Throw in some romance and we have a solid 4 star book. Not my favorite Kristin Hannah, but still good!......more

Goodreads review by Jonetta on November 06, 2016

Nora Bridge finds her orderly world turned upside down overnight. She's a famous syndicated radio talk show host, dispensing advice about family and relationship. What the public didn't know was how far away her life was from what she preached. When that was inevitably leaked, Nora returns to Summer......more

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