Review: The Summer List

The Summer List

Amy Mason Doan

Laura hasn't been back to her lakeside hometown of Coeur-de-Lune, California in years. Many years later as an adult, she receives an invitation to return for a reunion with her once best friend, Casey. When she arrives, both she and Casey reluctantly take on a scavenger hunt designed by Casey's mother, Alexandra. These hunts were famous during the summers they spent on the lake as teenagers. But this treasure hunt, which requires them to find ten things that relate to their past will lead to long-held secrets that may change their relationship. The past may not have been the way they had assumed.

The Summer List is an enjoyable and entertaining novel. I think what makes it so is the structure that alternates between past and present. This submerges the reader into Laura and Casey's childhood friendship and gives glimpses into Alexandra's years as a child. This provides the story with an element of suspense as the details of the circumstances of their lives slowly emerge. The tension that exists upon Laura's return is keenly felt. The prize at the end of the hunt may not be what they had imagined, but it just might bring Laura back to Coeur-de-Lune.

Thanks to Graydon House Books for allowing me to read this book in exchange for an honest review.