About the Book
Three lifelong friends plus a dangerous, sexy new stranger in town add up to a scorching summer of manipulation, obsession, and murder, from the acclaimed author of The Hunting Wives.
A woman in the forest thinks she’s going to die.
I know he’s coming back for me.
Jen Hansen, Kittie Spears, and Cynthia Nichols have been friends since childhood. They are now approaching forty and their lives have changed, but their insular East Texas town has not. They stay sane by drinking wine in the afternoons, dishing about other women in the neighborhood, and bonding over the heartache of their own encroaching middle age and raising ungrateful teens.
Then Will Harding comes to town, moving into one of the neighborhood’s grandest homes. Mysterious and charming, he seems like the answer to each woman’s prayers. He’s a source of fascination for Jen, Kittie, and Cynthia, but none of them are ready for the way Will disrupts their lives.
As Will grows closer with each of the women, their fascination twists into obsession, threatening their friendships and their families. When he abruptly pulls away, each woman scrambles to discover the source of his affection. But what they’ll uncover is far more sinister and deadly than any of them could have ever imagined.
My Review
Addictive yet highly disturbing is how I would describe this one. From the moment I started reading I was drawn into the small town Texas clique of Kittie, Jen and Cynthia. Jen is newly divorced, while Kittie and Cynthia are both married with children. When mysterious yet sexy Will moves to town, all three women are drawn to him – regardless of their marital status or their own friendships. It was a bit challenging for me to pinpoint exactly what it was about Will that made all three of these women upend their lives, marriages and friendships for him, but that’s exactly what they did. It was hard not to be frustrated at times and even though it was obvious to me Will was playing all of them against each other, as the book kept getting more twisted, I couldn’t put it down. What exactly was Will up to – and with who? We know from the beginning there’s a woman in the forest who thinks she is going to die – but is it by Will or one of her own friends? Does she survive? And who is she?
This is a dark, psychological thriller that will make you sweat from not only the spicy scenes, but also from fear. And right when you think you have it all figured out – bam – a new twist that is truly jaw dropping. Even the ending had me grimacing, realizing that the games all the women were playing in this novel weren’t quite over yet. My Summer Darlings is sexy, seductive and the perfect summer must-read with your cocktail close by.
5 stars
