These Summer Storms
by Sarah MacLean
5 out of 5 stars
I didn't fully know what to expect from Sarah MacLean's first contemporary novel, having loved her historical romance work, but These Summer Storms is an absolutely assured pivot, and I think I might love it even more than some of her historical work.
The premise: the Storm family converges on their private island off Rhode Island for one week after the patriarch's death, following a will that sets them against each other in a final, humiliating inheritance game. Alice Storm, the family's prodigal daughter who built her own life outside the family's name and influence, is the heart of the novel; and MacLean writes her with wonderful complexity.
What makes this book work is how viciously sharp MacLean is about wealth, family dysfunction, and the stories we tell about ourselves. The sibling dynamics are rendered with forensic precision, each character distinctly recognizable, and the island setting builds a sense of claustrophobia that suits the novel's escalating tensions perfectly.
The romance is present but not the primary focus, which surprised me given MacLean's genre background. It's woven in with a light touch that, for once, felt like the right call.
My one note is that the final act wraps slightly faster than the wind-up warranted. But this is an excellent contemporary debut that made me read with genuine delight.
🫖 Tea Pairing: Chilled Oolong. Sophisticated, a little stormy
🎵 Soundtrack: "Patricide" by Fiona Apple
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Sarah MacLean brings her signature sharpness to contemporary fiction and it suits her perfectly — These Summer Storms is a glittering, thorny family drama I couldn't put down.