disclosure: we were sent the item mentioned for the purpose of review
Life has been a bit hectic recently so I’ve really appreciated switching off in the evenings with a good book. One such novel is The Summer Party by Rebecca Heath which is published on 11th May. It’s a psychological thriller that has you guessing until the very end. I couldn’t put it down.
The Summer Party is set in the small coastal town of Queen’s Point, in southern Australia and the central character is Lucy Ross. Lucy lives in Adelaide, she’s recently been widowed, has had an issue at work, and has been told to take a leave of absence, so is using the time to return to her grandmother’s old cottage to clear it out ready to sell. The house and town hold memories from Lucy’s childhood and of a summer spent with the rich Whitlam children when she was sixteen, some nineteen years ago.
As a teenager Lucy was poor, her grandmother, Judy, had worked for the Whitlam family as their housekeeper, and she envied the family for what she perceived to be their perfect family life. Lucy was thrilled when Annabel befriended her and she saw behind the doors of their clifftop family home. She also spent time with Annabel’s siblings, Harry, a budding artist, and their older sister, Mae. It becomes clear that their lives aren’t quite as perfect as Lucy believed and that their mother is a force to be reckoned with.
As Lucy returns to Queen’s Point, there’s much talk in the town as there has been a discovery of a body part and a police investigation is underway to discover the identity of the human remains.
The Summer Party alternates between the present day, the winter of 2020, and the summer of 2000, as seen through the eyes of Lucy and the three Whitlam siblings. It’s clear that something happened at the Whitlam summer party and the whole story builds as the events unfold. It’s clear that Lucy has been attracted to Harry since the moment she met him as a teenager, and that they have crossed paths and beds, over the years. Annabel had dropped her like a stone after the summer of 2000 but why? When the corpse of Mrs Whitlam is discovered, the plot really does thicken, even more so when Lucy starts to think that someone would like to frame her for the murder.
I really couldn’t stop turning the pages of The Summer Party, there are a number of twists and turns and I had no idea what was really happening until the very end of the novel. It’s a very enjoyable thriller and one I can thoroughly recommend. You can pre-order from Amazon here! The characters are engaging and you want to discover their full stories.
I reviewed The Summer Party as part of a blog tour and you can find details of the others taking part below.
