Review: Nantucket Sisters by Nancy Thayer

** Disclaimer:  Book synopsis taken from Goodreads and actual names and character descriptions were different in the ARC I received**

Nancy Thayer, the New York Times bestselling author of Island Girls, tells the emotionally-charged story of two childhood friends on the tumultuous path to love and wisdom in this heartfelt ode to friendship.

When Maggie and Piper meet as girls on the Nantucket beach, they are instant best friends—even though Piper's mother would much prefer she play with the daughters of senators and statesmen than a seamstress's kid like Maggie. But after many golden summers spent building sandcastles and sharing their dreams for the future, Piper and Maggie grow apart. In her twenties, beautiful and spirited Piper worries she'll never amount to more than the glittering wife of a successful husband, while hardworking redheaded Maggie scrimps and saves her pennies, wondering if she'll ever have the luxury of a passionate romance. It seems they have little in common…until Cameron Chadwick appears on the island. A wealthy Midwestern charmer, Cameron takes moonlit walks on the dunes with Maggie and whisks Piper away to New York City for lavish nights on the town. When both women discover they're pregnant, it looks like the end of their already-distant friendship. But as Maggie and Piper struggle to decide what their lives will be, they realize more than ever before how very much they need a friend

Hardcover, 320 pages

Expected publication: June 17th 2014 by Ballantine Books

 

Terri's Thoughts

 

I received an advanced copy of this book from the publisher Ballantine Books via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.  The expected publication date is June 17, 2014.

 

What a great read this was.  A nice quick perfect for summertime girly read.  The storyline was entertaining with just the right amount of drama and yet light enough that it could easily be read in an afternoon. 

 

The story centralizes around Maggie and Emily who are best friends from different economical backgrounds.  It follows them from childhood to their twenties and the trials and tribulations that occur in their lives and with each other.  I have to admit I was more invested in Maggie than Emily.  Maggie was a gem of a character who had a heart of gold from beginning to end.  Emily was also interesting yet I found myself going back and forth on my opinion of her.  While her actions were never outright awful, I found that at times she seemed a little selfish.  It could have been a result of the circumstances she was in.

 

This story is about the ties of friendship and the events that cause these ties to drift apart.  Although somewhat dramatic circumstances in this story it is easily related to everyday circumstances as well.  While at times I thought some issues were resolved a little too easily and some not at all I really enjoyed this read.

 

I have not read any of Thayer's previous work however she has frequently shown up on my recommended list based on others that I have read.  Now that I have experienced her work I can guarantee this will not be the last.  If her other work is like this one then it is worth investing in her other stories for when I am sitting at the cottage indulging in some summer reading.

 

Thank you Ballantine for the opportunity to read this.

 

About the Author

Nancy Thayer has a B.A. and M.A. in English literature from the University of Missouri at Kansas City. Before settling down to write and have children she taught English at various colleges and traveled, living in Paris, Amsterdam and Helsinki. In 1981 she was a Fellow at the Breadloaf Writers Conference. She has lived on Nantucket Island year round for twenty-five years with her husband Charley Walters. They have two children and two grandchildren.

Nancy Thayer is the author of nineteen novels, including Summer House, The Hot Flash Club series, Moon Shell Beach, Stepping, and Three Women At The Water's Edge.

Her books concern the mysteries and romance of families and relationships and the humorous adventures of growing older.

In 2008, Redbook magazine chose her novel Moon Shell Beach for their "Hot Summer Read." Nancy's work has been translated into more than 14 languages, including Polish, Hebrew, Russian, and Serbo Croatian. Her novels have been condensed or excerpted in several magazines, including Redbook, Good Housekeeping, England's Cosmopolitan, Holland's Viva, and South Africa's Personality.

She has published a commissioned three-part mystery novella in Redbook, and short stories in literary reviews in the United States, Canada, and Spain. Her first novel, Stepping, was made into a 13-part series for BBC Radio. Her ghost novel Spirit Lost was produced as a movie by United Image Entertainment. Her novel Everlasting was a Main Dual selection of the Literary Guild in 1991.


Website:  http://nancythayer.com/