Published by: Gallery Books
Release Date: June 4, 2019
Pages: 352
ISBN13: 978-1501199684
Release Date: June 4, 2019
Pages: 352
ISBN13: 978-1501199684
Synopsis
For fans of Jodi Picoult and Kristin Hannah, a moving and heartfelt novel about a husband and a wife, a missing child, and the complicated family secrets that can derail even the best of marriages.
It’s been a busy—and expensive—few years for Matt and Elise Sorenson, and their young daughter Gracie, whom they affectionately call Little Green. Matt, a Manhattan lawyer, has just been offered a partnership, and Elise's equestrian ambitions as a competitive dressage rider may finally vault her into the Olympics. But her long absences from home and endless hours of training have strained their relationship nearly to the breaking point.
Now they're spending a few weeks in the Adirondacks, preparing to sell the valuable lakefront cabin owned by Matt's late grandfather, who raised him after his parents died. It’s been in Matt's storied family for generations, and both he and Elise agree it's time to let it go. But the cabin holds different memories for each of them. And as they navigate those memories--and come face to face with Matt's teenage crush, now an unnervingly attractive single mother living right next door--Gracie disappears without a trace.
Faced with the possibility that they'll never see their daughter again, Elise and Matt struggle to come to terms with what their future holds. The fate of the family property, the history of this not-so-tiny town, and the limits of Matt and Elise's love for each other—indeed, what both thought they knew of each other all these years--is inextricably bound up with Gracie's disappearance. Over the course of Cohen’s luminous novel, everything for the Sorenson family will change--the messy tangle of their past, the harrowing truth of their present, and whether or not their love will survive a parent's worst nightmare.
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What I thought about The Summer We Lost Her
What I thought about The Summer We Lost Her
Elise Sorenson is driven. She's been working years to make it to the big
time Olympics in her dressage event. Her sport keeps her away from
home, her husband and daughter, and when she misses her daughter's play
prior to a vacation trip to reconnect and sell her husband's family
cabin in Lake Placid, all the cracks in their relationship start to
widen.
Matt Sorenson is tired. He's been taking care of their daughter Gracie while Elise is training and competing. He's footed the bill for her sport, which is considerable and now has a chance to have his own career success if he can come up with the 150K required for being a partner. He needs the money from the cabin sale to secure his partnership. One problem though -- Elise comes closer to her dream than she's ever been, needing the extra cash from the sale to fund her next competition and so Matt sees his dreams go up in smoke again. He frustrated and wants his wife back...that is until he meets his Lake Placid neighbor Cass, the girl he lost his virginity to way back when. She's sown her wild oats and is now back home, ready and waiting to help Matt with whatever he needs. (wink wink, nudge nudge)
The first half of this book is a bit slow and gets into the heads of Matt and Elise. It's a portrait of a marriage in trouble but Elise doesn't see it until Cass shows her that she has no problem breaking up their marriage. When Gracie goes missing, all the cracks in Matt and Elise's relationship turn to breaks and a very bad time is made worse.
I really liked how this book portrayed the gradual breaking of the relationship. It didn't just happen in one big moment -- their estrangement grows bit by bit until Matt decides he can't take anymore. If only they could talk to each other, but as anyone in a relationship knows, that sometimes becomes impossible.
Elise is focused on getting her daughter back, while Matt totally loses the focus he's had on being a supportive father and husband. There are things from both their past that they must resolve first. Matt finds out some seriously nasty stuff about his revered grandfather and in the process starts to find his heart again. It's Elise's willingness to move beyond her past that opens a door to finding her daughter.
Overall, I enjoyed this story in spite of a slow pace and lots of internal monologue.There was a good bit of tension, especially after Gracie disappears. I liked Elise and Matt together -- I think they had a good relationship that was strained for obvious reasons. I would have liked to have had more about their recovery from their sins of omission and Matt's dalliance with Cass, but I did appreciate that they found their way back to what was important to them.
This was a new author for me and I'd read more of her work. I liked The Summer We Lost Her. It was a quick read and it hit all the right notes for me. Recommended if you are looking for a bit of thriller and a study of a marriage in trouble.
An ARC was provided for review.
Matt Sorenson is tired. He's been taking care of their daughter Gracie while Elise is training and competing. He's footed the bill for her sport, which is considerable and now has a chance to have his own career success if he can come up with the 150K required for being a partner. He needs the money from the cabin sale to secure his partnership. One problem though -- Elise comes closer to her dream than she's ever been, needing the extra cash from the sale to fund her next competition and so Matt sees his dreams go up in smoke again. He frustrated and wants his wife back...that is until he meets his Lake Placid neighbor Cass, the girl he lost his virginity to way back when. She's sown her wild oats and is now back home, ready and waiting to help Matt with whatever he needs. (wink wink, nudge nudge)
The first half of this book is a bit slow and gets into the heads of Matt and Elise. It's a portrait of a marriage in trouble but Elise doesn't see it until Cass shows her that she has no problem breaking up their marriage. When Gracie goes missing, all the cracks in Matt and Elise's relationship turn to breaks and a very bad time is made worse.
I really liked how this book portrayed the gradual breaking of the relationship. It didn't just happen in one big moment -- their estrangement grows bit by bit until Matt decides he can't take anymore. If only they could talk to each other, but as anyone in a relationship knows, that sometimes becomes impossible.
Elise is focused on getting her daughter back, while Matt totally loses the focus he's had on being a supportive father and husband. There are things from both their past that they must resolve first. Matt finds out some seriously nasty stuff about his revered grandfather and in the process starts to find his heart again. It's Elise's willingness to move beyond her past that opens a door to finding her daughter.
Overall, I enjoyed this story in spite of a slow pace and lots of internal monologue.There was a good bit of tension, especially after Gracie disappears. I liked Elise and Matt together -- I think they had a good relationship that was strained for obvious reasons. I would have liked to have had more about their recovery from their sins of omission and Matt's dalliance with Cass, but I did appreciate that they found their way back to what was important to them.
This was a new author for me and I'd read more of her work. I liked The Summer We Lost Her. It was a quick read and it hit all the right notes for me. Recommended if you are looking for a bit of thriller and a study of a marriage in trouble.
An ARC was provided for review.
Tish
Cohen is the bestselling author of The Summer We Lost Her, Town House,
Inside Out Girl, The Truth About Delilah Blue, and The Search Angel. She
has written four novels for younger readers: The Invisible Rules of the
Zoe Lama, The One and Only Zoe Lama, Little Black Lies, and Switch.
Town House, a regional finalist for the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize for Best First Book, is in development as a feature film. Her original short film, Russet Season premiered at the Toronto Jewish Film Festival in 2017 and screened at the San Diego and Ocean County (NJ) Jewish Film Festivals in 2018.
The Summer We Lost Her, Cohen’s newest novel, is already in development as a television series and Cohen has a teen/tween television series in development as well.
Town House, a regional finalist for the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize for Best First Book, is in development as a feature film. Her original short film, Russet Season premiered at the Toronto Jewish Film Festival in 2017 and screened at the San Diego and Ocean County (NJ) Jewish Film Festivals in 2018.
The Summer We Lost Her, Cohen’s newest novel, is already in development as a television series and Cohen has a teen/tween television series in development as well.
