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| Contemporary Fiction Cape Cod, Massachusetts – Present Day It’s Cecilia Lapthorne’s birthday and her daughter Kristen has planned a beautiful party that will also celebrate the life of Cecilia’s late husband (and a famous painter), Cameron. But Cecilia isn’t happy because her marriage to Cameron had been irretrievably broken for many years—and she recently learned that the cottage she thought he had sold was in fact…not sold. As Kristen flutters around and makes demands of her, Cecilia realizes that she needs to get away, especially after she is asked about a long-ago painting done by her husband. She tells Kristen the painting has been destroyed but fears that won’t be the last of the questions. Finally alone, she escapes in her car and heads to Cape Cod. What will she do once she’s there? Lily was friendly with the Lapthorne family and was enrolled in college to study medicine but felt like she could not hack it, so she quit. Her parents are unhappy with her decision and Lily has holed up in Cape Cod working as a house cleaner. With nowhere that she can afford to stay, she has been sleeping in a cottage that has stood empty for many years but is on the list to keep ready in case the owners show up. Late one night, she hears a commotion downstairs. Thinking it is a burglar, Lily heads down and discovers Cecilia Lapthorne destroying paintings and crying. The cabin belongs to the Lapthorne family. Lily doesn’t apprise the older woman of her presence. But the next day, it all changes, and she is invited to stay there with her. Kristen’s marriage appears solid on the outside but deep inside, there are flaws. Her husband is a successful surgeon and works long hours, but that means Kristen is left alone—and unhappy. She has fallen into a friendship with another man and is about to sleep with him when her husband suddenly needs her. The truce is temporary, and Kristen soon realizes that her marriage may be falling apart. Three women with different problems come together in the emotionally charged THE SUMMER SWAP by Sarah Morgan. Fifty years ago, Cecilia fell in love with Cameron despite her affection for another man, Seth. They married and had two wonderful children. The cottage was a refuge for them in those early days, but after she found Cameron sleeping with a younger woman one day there, she never went back and told him to sell it. He had told her that he complied with her request but a few days ago, she learned that it was a lie. They only stayed together because of Kristen, who had been in an accident after they told her they would be separating. Cecilia was never happy with Cameron after finding out about his infidelity. Lily has always had a crush on Cecilia’s grandson, Todd, but he is now engaged to her old nemesis. Meanwhile, Lily paints but doesn’t consider herself a saleable artist. A few days later, Todd suddenly shows up. He’s no longer engaged. Will something develop between them? In the meantime, Kristen is trying to make her marriage work but is Theo going along with it? As readers can see, there are three different protagonists in THE SUMMER SWAP. Kristen learns later in the tale where her mother is. Readers will wonder what drove Cecilia to come back to Cape Cod, other than to destroy all of her late husband’s paintings displayed there—except for one. It is the missing painting that Cecilia had said was destroyed. Will she do something about it? What is the story behind it? Lily and Todd are working together to remodel the cottage. Meanwhile, Cecilia contacts Seth, who is now a widower and living nearby. Will they reconnect? Will Kristen leave Theo and somehow show up at the cottage? That seems inevitable. THE SUMMER SWAP is a tale that is hard to put down once you start reading and that is the reason why I gave it a Perfect 10. You will enjoy the intriguing family history and travails that have changed their lives. Will everyone end up finding the change in their lives that they came to Cape Cod for? Find out by grabbing a copy. Patti Fischer |
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THE SUMMER SWAP – Sarah Morgan