Summer on the Bluffs
A Novel
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4.2 • 372 Ratings
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- $0.99
Publisher Description
New York Times Bestseller!
The View cohost and New York Times bestselling author Sunny Hostin dazzles with this brilliant novel about a life-changing summer along the beaches of Martha's Vineyard.
Welcome to Oak Bluffs, the most exclusive Black beach community in the country. Known for its gingerbread Victorian-style houses and modern architectural marvels, this picturesque town hugging the sea is a mecca for the crème de la crème of Black society—where Michelle and Barack Obama vacation and Meghan Markle has shopped for a house for her mom. Black people have lived in this pretty slip of the Vineyard since the 1600s and began buying property in the 1800s, making this posh town the embodiment of “old money.”
Thirty years ago, Amelia Vaux Tanner and her husband built a house high on the bluffs, a cottage they named Chateau Laveau. For decades, “Ama” played host to American presidents, Wall Street titans, and cultural icons. But her favorite guests have always been her three “goddaughters:” Esperanza “Perry” Soto, a beautiful, talented Afro-Latina lawyer with Ama’s strong, yet guarded personality; Olivia Jones, a gifted Wall Street analyst with Ama’s brilliant, logical mind; and Billie Hayden, a gifted marine biologist and rule-breaker with Ama’s courageous free spirit.
Growing up, these three goddaughters from different backgrounds came together each summer at Chateau Laveau. As adults, the cottage is a place this trio of successful yet very different women go to escape, to slow down from their hectic lives, share private time with Ama, and enjoy the gorgeous weather, cool water, and stunning views Oak Bluffs offers.
This summer on the Bluffs, however, will be different. An era is ending: Ama, now nearing seventy-one, is moving to the south of France to reunite with her college sweetheart. She has invited Perry, Olivia, and Billie to spend one last golden summer together with her the way they did when they were kids. And when fall comes, she is going to give the house to one of them.
Each of the women wants the house desperately. Each is grappling with a secret she fears will hurt her and her chances. By the end of summer, old ties will fray, new bonds will be created, and these three found sisters will discover they aren’t the only ones with something to hide. Ama has a few secrets of her own. What she has to give them is far more than property. Between Memorial Day and Labor Day, she will tell these surrogate daughters she fiercely loves and protects everything they never knew they needed to know.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
The entertaining but uneven first novel from The View cohost Hostin (after the memoir I Am These Truths) chronicles the relationship between Black power couple Omar and Ama Vaux Tanner and their goddaughters Perry Soto, Billie Hayden, and Olivia Jones, each of whom the Tanners began supporting as young children in New York City. In their late 20s, the three women continue to spend their summers at the Tanners' majestic house in Oak Bluffs, the affluent Black community of Martha's Vineyard. After Omar dies, Ama rekindles a connection with a former lover and plans to pass on the house to one of the goddaughters. Perry, who longs to have a baby, has a fling while she figures out whether to take back her often-absent doctor husband, who hangs out with his med-school party crowd. Olivia takes a chance on dating a white comedian. Biologist Billie debates whether to accept a job that would separate her from her girlfriend, Dulce. As Ama considers which goddaughter will receive the house, secrets are revealed about the Tanner marriage and how the couple came to take care of the three children. Some of the plot points hinge on avoidable misunderstandings, particularly between Billie and Dulce, but Hostin nicely captures the Vineyard's social nuances. This messy beach book packs plenty of drama.
Customer Reviews
Good summer read
This starts off a bit slow for my taste. But, once it got going, wow! I couldn’t put it down! I can’t wait to see what happens next….
Sagging on the Island
Wonderful summer read it took me two summers to read it lol that’s my fault Sunny. Thanks for writing a great book. I know you had some help a great job. Can’t wait to read the rest of the series.
Loved it
It was a great read, I can’t wait to read the other ones.