Join a book club that is reading These Summer Storms: A Novel!

Reading Not Required

Reading Not Required is a book(ish) club for women in San Diego.

Clayton Bookclub

Founded by two new Clayton newcomers, we are using this platform to meet others who love to read as well!

These Summer Storms: A Novel

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • From author Sarah MacLean, a razor-sharp, wildly sexy novel about a wealthy New England family’s long-overdue reckoning . . . and the one week that threatens to tear them apart.

“Deliciously impossible to put down.”—Jodi Picoult


“Addictive.”—Ali Hazelwood

“A gripping inheritance drama, wrapped around a swoony summer romance.”—The New York Times Book Review

Alice Storm hasn’t been welcome at her family’s magnificent private island off the Rhode Island coast in five years—not since she was cast out and built her life beyond the Storm name, influence, and untold billions. But the shocking death of her larger-than-life father changes everything.

Alice plans to keep her head down, pay her final respects (such as they are), and leave the minute the funeral is over. Unfortunately, her father had other plans. The eccentric, manipulative patriarch left his family a final challenge—an inheritance game designed to upend their world. The rules are clear: spend one week on the island, complete their assigned tasks, and receive the inheritance.

But a whole week on Storm Island is no easy task for Alice. Every corner of the sprawling old house is bursting with chaos: Her older sister’s secret love affair. Her brother’s unyielding arrogance. Her younger sister’s constant analysis of the vibes. Her mother’s cold judgment. And all under the stern, watchful gaze of Jack Dean, her father’s intriguing and too-handsome second-in-command. It will be a miracle if Alice manages to escape unscathed.

A smart and tender story about the transformative power of grief, love, and family, this luscious novel explores past secrets, present truths, and futures forged in the wake of wild summer storms.

BUY THE BOOK

Published Jul 8, 2025

400 pages

Average rating: 7.22

32 RATINGS

|

Community Reviews

Zoe E.
Aug 06, 2025
7/10 stars
I love Sarah MacLean's historical romances, so I was eager to pick up her first contemporary novel. This is a Succession-style family drama with a Steve Jobs-like pater familias and a dysfunctional cast of siblings. It features an inheritance game of sorts and a romance between the black sheep daughter and her father's fixer. It was a quick, easy read, and a page turner, but somehow lacked oomph for me. The deceased father felt more like a plot device than a character with any discernible motivations. The siblings and mother were not quite terrible enough to be interesting. It all just fell a little flat for me.
SarahA94
Aug 08, 2025
4/10 stars
Was really disappointed with this book. I wanted to love it.
Shigarachki
Aug 02, 2025
9/10 stars
Great book, kept me hooked from the first chapter and shocked me in the end. Great writing, great storytelling and great theme! Also, JACK DEAN!! <3
Tanja
Jun 25, 2025
10/10 stars
WOW, this book took me by surprise: inheritance games, a super rich, dysfunctional family with many secrets. The story takes place in a beautiful setting, a New England island estate. This is a mix of women's fiction, mystery, sprinkled with romance and dang, the romance plot was so so good! 4.5 stars rounded up to 5!!

This is my first book by this author, but I will 100% be checking out her backlist.

"Bad decisions abounded that day, and he could easily be the worst of all of them."

"Don't you ever let yourself feel ordinary again."

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for providing this E-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

See why thousands of readers are using Bookclubs to stay connected.