SUMMER'S END
Author: Kathleen Gilles Seidel ISBN: 9780062004673 (REPRINT 1999) 5/2011 FICTION Publisher: WM MORROW

To their respective families, Jack Wells and Amy Legend are outsiders. A free-spirited man-of-all-trades, Jack takes life as it comes—not at all like his supremely organized mother, the admiral’s widow, and his methodical lawyer sister. Amy, a professional athlete with exquisite taste and golden beauty, has a glamorous career a world apart from her bookish older siblings and college professor father.
When Jack’s mother marries Amy’s widowed father, they invite all the children to spend the summer at the Legends’ retreat in northern Minnesota. They never imagine just how well Jack and Amy are going to get along—as affection unexpectedly flares into a burning attraction that threatens to damage already fragile familial bonds. Agreeing to deny their desire until the vacation is over—caught between long-simmering conflicts and clashing personalities—Jack and Amy find, nonetheless, that they are falling deeply in love. And passion this strong couldn’t possibly wait until summer’s end . . . no matter what the consequences. |
RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS: 
SUMMER'S END is a tale of interpersonal relationships and family ties. It brings two surviving spouses together and shows what happens when second-chance love is brought front and center into a diverse cast of characters.
Amy and Jack don't seem to be ideally suited, but then love doesn't always follow the rules, does it? She is a skater. The descriptions of her life at the rink, its ability to bring joy glowingly apparent and a huge part of who she is, make her character a knockout. A woman who is unafraid and adept at overcoming, Amy is a champion in more than one sense of the word. Her relationship with Jack does not sizzle. Rather, it grows slowly and emerges naturally.
I enjoyed this book, not really for the romance, but for the way it showcases families. The ties that bind make for interesting reading, and this book kept me turning the pages well into the night. Well done!
Kay James |