A sweet coming of age story, blended with mystery, the tragedies of abuse, and lives grown apart, Linda Watkins’ Summer Girl is an evocative tale of island life, literary aspirations, deep hurts, and the coincidences that reunite the lost. Are first-love bonds unbreakable? What about marriage bonds, and bonds of love between a parent and child? And what about those broken bonds that wound and separate…

Andi had a secret that she never told. But she was only a summer girl, a sunshine visitor to an island where Jake lived a tough young hard-working life. The reader watches their growing attachment with the same sense of joy as adults on the island, reminiscing “about their first loves.” But darkness invaedes this sweet romance, and Andi is suddenly gone.

Summer Girl is not an easy tale, but it’s a beautiful, evocative and absorbing read. Dark and light are perfectly balanced. Past and present loves play out convincingly, with their attendant joys and pains. And characters and place both become real. A well-told tale of lives, loves and romance.

Disclosure: I won a copy and I really enjoyed reading it. ( )