One Summer in Savannah

3.75 Stars — Though beautifully written, this was a tough book to read, as it tackles some heavy subject matter. Given the circumstances, I think you need to suspend disbelief in order to appreciate the story’s message of forgiveness.

The main character Sara was sexually assaulted at 18, and she gives birth to a daughter as a result, whom she raises in secret, far away from her imprisoned assailant and his wealthy family. Eight years later, Sara and daughter Alana must return to Savannah when her father falls ill.

"Being a mother is a lesson in impossible love."

Here’s where the tricky part comes in: Sara befriends her attacker’s identical twin brother Jacob, and she allows him to tutor her genius daughter, as long as he keeps her show more existence a secret from the rest of his family. Then Sara and Jacob’s relationship starts to develop into something more. Identical twin? Hmm.

This was a heartbreaking story that’s able to leave readers with a sense of hope. I was in awe of the strength of Sara’s character as she struggled with her trauma and her role as mother to Alana. My heart went out to Jacob as he tried to put the pieces of his broken family together.

One part of the writing I did not care for was how Sara’s father would only speak in poetry. When asked a question he would recite lines of his favorite poems, which unfortunately annoyed me after a while. It slowed down the pace trying to decipher what his answers meant, and there was a lot of poetry in this book.

Aside from the poetry, I found myself easily absorbed in this emotional story. I struggled a bit with the redemption parts, but I feel the author did a beautiful job with this uncomfortable and unique debut novel.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me a digital review copy of this book. Opinions are my own. show less

“Trauma changes you, hardens you, leaves its scars.”
I have been waiting for a book that I can’t put down, that would take my breath away, One Summer in Savannah is it.
A woman wronged viciously, in turn protects the outcome of that savagery with all she has. Running, hiding, then finally fighting and trusting someone other than herself takes a lot of work.
Don’t let the cover fool you, this is not a trivial piece. (Sorry, a better cover is needed please!) Harris’ novel is heavy then light, with poetry, astrophysics, mathematics and genius, rape, victim shaming, fear and forgiveness, One Summer in Savannah gives you all the feels, in so many ways.
Wholly unique in its plot and delivery, artfully executed and heartbreakingly show more real, I was not expecting the breadth of this story and that made it all the better.
*I received an arc from the publisher through NetGalley for an honest review show less

Sara Manchester was raped at 18 years old by a son of a prominent and wealthy family in Savannah, Georgia. Daniel and David Welty are twin brothers with a younger sister, Naomi who was killed at 15 years old in a car crash. Sara takes Daniel to court and he is convicted of rape with the help of David, getting ten years in prison. Eight years later Sara is in Maine with an 8-year-old daughter, Alana. When she discovered she was pregnant, she left town as soon as possible with no intention of ever coming back due to the animosity of the town people and the twins' mother, Birdie, who refuses to admit that Daniel raped Sara. David also left town to become an astrophysicist. One night in Alaska he thinks he sees the ghost of his sister, show more Naomi, telling him to go back home. Sara is also drawn back to Savannah because her father, the proprietor of the bookshop, Poetry and Prose, has an aneurysm with 3 to 6 months to live. Daniel and David, who has now renamed himself Jacob, are both extremely smart and Alana is a genius. At 8-years-old, she is trying to solve "unsolvable" equations. When Jacob sees Alana, he recognizes her as part of his family since she bears a strong resemblance to his sister. Sara had told no one she was pregnant, fearing interference from Daniel's family. At this time Daniel is going to be released on parole, but he is also battling cancer. The rest of the book deals with Sara, Jacob, and Alana's relationship and the journey to forgiveness by Sara and Jacob. show less

Sara was raped 9 years earlier by Daniel Wyler, son of a wealthy family, who is now in jail for the crime. Sara left town and had her daughter, Alana. Alana inherited her father's traits, and is a genius at math. Sara's dad is ill, and his companion has called Sara to have her return home. She does reluctantly, as she has never told the Wylers about Alana.
Sara's dad, Hosea, owns a bookstore. Jacob has been helping renovate it. Sara finds out that Jacob is David Wyler, twin brother of Daniel. She wants to hate him. However, through her father's love of poetry, and Alana's need for family, she slowly lets Jacob into her life.
This is a tale of forgiveness and love.

A story with an interesting premise falters in the details. Teenager Sara is raped by Daniel Wyler, scion of a wealthy family, gives birth to a daughter, and flees her home in Savannah to live in isolated Down East Maine. When daughter Alana shows signs of mathematical genius at age eight, and when the health of her father fails, Sara returns and encounters David's identical twin brother Jacob, who had testified against him at the trial. Negatives: plot sounds like a Colleen Hoover. Sara is gorgeous and Jacob is incredibly handsome. Sara's dad only speaks in poetry. It's too long at 453 pages and the denouement is predictable. Positives: all the main characters are of mixed race and are treated as if this is NBD. The descriptions of the show more lowlands and islands are glorious. show less

I could not out this one down and want to reread it. A rape victim pregnant with the rapist’s child leaves her home to live in Maine for 8 years because laws there protect her daughter from the father. When her own father becomes deathly ill she returns to Savannah for him and must learn to forgive and trust again.

I enjoyed the book and the plot line, but the father who only speaks in stanzas of poetry was totally annoying. I had to remove one star.
After she is raped and discovers she is pregnant, Sara leaves Savannah to start her life over in Maine where she has some legal protection from her rapist and his powerful family. As her daughter grows older, Sara finds she needs to return to Savannah as her father faces a terminal illness. She discovers that her father has befriended her rapists twin brother and allows him to fund his book store renovation where he continues to work. Both David and Sara develop feelings for each other.