Release date: June 6, 2023
Publisher: Berkley
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Synopsis:
A kid walks into your bookstore and… Guess what? He’s your son. The one you put up for adoption eighteen years ago. The one you never told anyone about. Surprise!
And a huge surprise it is.
It’s a huge surprise to his adoptive mother, Monica, who thought she had a close relationship with Matthew, her nearly adult son. But apparently, he felt the need to secretly arrange a vacation to Cape Cod for the summer so he could meet his birth mother…without a word to either her or his dad.
It’s also a surprise— to say the least—to Harlow, the woman who secretly placed her baby for adoption so many years ago. She’s spent the years since then building a quiet life. She runs a bookstore with her grandfather, hangs out with her four younger siblings and is more or less happily single, though she can’t help gravitating toward Grady Byrne, her old friend from high school. He’s moved back to town, three-year-old daughter in tow, no wife in the picture. But she’s always figured her life had to be child-free, so that complicates things.
When Matthew walks into Harlow’s store, she faints. Monica panics. And all their assumptions—about what being a parent really means—explode. This summer will be full of more surprises as both their families are redefined…and as both women learn that for them, there’s no limit to a mother’s love.
Review:
Every single time I finish one of the authors books I think, what am I supposed to read now? She gives me a serious book hangover but it’s worth it because her books are always some of my very favorites and I so look forward to her releases every year. This time around she tackled adoption and all it’s many facets and I think she did an amazing job at looking at the situation from every angle. You hear from three woman in alternating chapters. Harlow, who placed her son for adoption when she was just a kid herself, Monica who adopted Harlow’s son and Cynthia who has her own secret connection to adoption. So you really get the perspective of people dealing with adoption from all angles and it was such a wonderful representation. The theme of family is obviously so strong here and how that can look in many forms and it was touching, poignant and heartwarming. I’m not an emotional person for the most part but this did make me tear up a few times but it also made me laugh so much and was ultimately such an uplifting and delightful read. This is a must read for sure and will be one of my favorite reads this year no question.
Overall rating: 5/5
Thanks to the publisher for my review copy.
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