Narration by Therese Plummer
If you’re looking for a women’s fiction title full of stories that remind of you of the ties that bind sisters and mothers and daughters, as well as family in general, with a good dollop of romance, then I recommend that you give The Summer That Made Us a listen. There were a number of great things about this listen, but perhaps the most important is to let bygones be bygones before it’s too late, it’s just too easy to stew in resentment and forget what’s really important in life. Adding to this great story is the talented narration by Therese Plummer. This is definitely a title best enjoyed in audio format.
I will caution you that there is one very sad element to this story, as one of the characters is battling cancer–so if this is a trigger for you, this may not be a story for you. But in the end, it’s that finality of battling something that may very well mean the end that forces everyone back together again, to dissect what went wrong, and ultimately with the wisdom of time to see what is truly important.
This is the story of a large family. Two matriarchs (sisters Lou and Jo) and their daughters form the backdrop for this story. Lou’s three daughters are Charley, Meg, and Bunny; and Jo’s are Hope, Krista, and Beverly. We begin the book with Charley who has just lost her job as a famous talk show host. She has a live-in “boyfriend” for 20+ years who she has a college-aged son with. Her sister Meg, who is battling cancer, invites her to their childhood summer home (a lake cottage in Minnesota) that neither has visited since they were kids–back then, both Lou and Jo used to spend the entire summer with their daughters at the lake home. These were some of the best times of the cousins’ childhood. They did this every year until a tragedy befell the family, when Charley’s youngest sister Bunny died while the family was vacationing there. After that summer, Lou and Jo, who were once attached the hip, no longer speak to one another and the cousins’ lives all take different forks in the road.
Knowing that this might be Meg’s last opportunity to visit the lake, Charley of course agrees even though she is not sure what one last summer at the lake may bring in the terms of closure or affirmation of the divide that split this family apart. Though the sisters’ and cousins’ lives are all very different from one another (Krista has just been released from prison after 20+ year in jail, Hope is suffering grand delusions, and Beverly now lives on a farm) no one can resist sweet Meg’s plea for one last visit. Ultimately, little by little, we are introduced to each one of the members of this dynamic cast as they make their preparations for and ultimately go back to the lakeside summer home to visit.
Adding further fuel to this already charged story, two women’s experiences at the vacation home will help them finally realize their HEAs, and one will make peace with letting go of hers.
Just what caused this monumental rift? Moreover, what will they learn from this experience? Who will find their HEAs? Is there ever a way to set back the clock on life altering rifts?
Therese Plummer did a fantastic job of narrating The Summer That Made Us. Unlike the typical romance which is typically focused on two main characters (one male and one female), it has to be incredibly difficult to narrate a book with so many main/substantial characters that are all female. But Ms. Plummer took on this challenge and delivered a performance where I never once questioned who was speaking in any particular dialogue.
To that effect, she employed techniques to distinguish the characters based on their backgrounds/stations in life and general personality types. For example, she uses a heavier Minnesota accent to help differentiate the two matriarchs of the family (with Jo, who has had a harder life from a social economic station, speaking in a heavier local accent, while Lou’s is more muted). Meg and Charley also have different intonations, with Meg having a sweeter overall sound and Charley being more authoritative as you would expect of a take-charge talk show host.
Ms. Plummer also does a good job with enunciating clearly and varying her pace to the mood of the scene. All these factors allow the listener to enjoy the story
All in all, The Summer That Made Us kept me intrigued and invested throughout the stories of these varied women’s lives. I was also happy to see two of them get their much deserved HEAs. I will definitely be looking to listen to more of Ms. Carr’s and Ms. Plummer’s works in the future!
BJ
Buy The Summer That Made Us by Robyn Carr on Amazon
