Monday, April 19, 2021

Book Review: Summer on the Bluffs by Sunny Hostin

It's not possible to read any book about Oak Bluffs and not think of Dorothy West's The Wedding or the movie The Inkwell or the Obamas. When you hear about Martha's Vineyard you think of an overly white, extremely upper class of people. We don't typically get stories of wealthy black people in fiction, at least not in this kind of fiction. It's refreshing. 

 Sunny Hostin invites readers to a world of wealth and class in the form of Amelia Vaux Tanner. I really like that Hostin doesn't overtly name drop, but she does drop artist names and brands that you definitely want to bookmark so you can go back and look them up later. The secrets that Ama is keeping took me back to 80s dramatic sagas like Lace or the Thornbirds. Like I knew something was coming but I never figured out what was coming, so I gasped as each secret was revealed. 

How hooked was I? When I started reading the book, I was about a quarter ways through and didn't turn on the TV or my computer until I was done four hours later. I loved the characters, I loved their backstories. I do wish she'd delved a little deeper into some relationships, but overall I just really enjoyed this book. 

Summer on the Bluffs is out May 4th. Thanks to the publisher for sending the book and this cute tote my way!



No comments :

Post a Comment