28 Summers – Elin Hilderbrand
100-Word (or Less) Synopsis: Mallory Blessing and Jake McCloud have been in each other’s orbit for as long as they can remember, but after a fateful Labor Day weekend in 1993, they realize they might be soulmates. They soon make a commitment to spend the same weekend together every year regardless of personal circumstances.
Expectation: A sappy romance about forbidden love that normalizes and celebrates infidelity.
Reality: A smart, engaging story with well-written leads and ancillary characters that help bring forward the consequences of Mallory and Jake’s actions.
Recommended For: Fans of star-crossed lovers.
Why I Read It: My husband named it one of his favorite listens of 2020.
My Take:
I didn’t want to read “28 Summers,” and my reasons were simple.
First, I don’t particularly care for stories about hetero romance (don’t we get enough of that in every other medium?). Second, I don’t like infidelity as a central plot.
However, my husband loved this novel, so I viewed it as my Great 2021 Reading Compromise. I make him read a lot of books outside of his comfort zone — spoiler alert: he dislikes most of them — so the least he could do was return the favor.
After delaying this in my library queue for four months I finally decided to dive in. Since I was already on a roll with mediocre and disappointing books, I expected the same from “Summers,” so imagine my surprise to find I really liked it!
It’s not without flaws by any means, but I was completely enraptured with the breezy and conversational quality of Elin Hilderbrand’s writing, and how she allowed more than our two main characters an opportunity to shine and, in turn, provide a broader view of the implications of the annual clandestine affair.
The premise isn’t new, in fact Hilderbrand makes many references to “Same Time, Next Year,” but she modernizes this telling with the right amount of pop culture, political intrigue and family drama to keep you engaged in more than the three days Mallory and Jake spend together each year.
After a slightly rocky start — the first 100 pages (2.5 hours) are full of fourth-wall breaking narration, too many characters and Nancy Meyers movie wish fulfillment — the last half finishes strong and ties up most of the loose ends.
Here are things that surprised me:
The structure – we start knowing how it will end, which helps you understand this will be a contained narrative with a definitive ending. Also, the “what are we talking about in X year” was a great nostalgia trip for those of us old enough to remember key events starting in 1993.
The tonal shifts – the story starts as an almost fairytale complete with a meet-cute and inheritance that allows Mallory to live a life on her own terms, but as the years pass we see the darker realities of adulthood, making this feel more grounded in reality than you’d think.
I was okay with the plot – I really expected to hate Mallory, Jake and their adulterous ways, but I ended up feeling sorry for them. They thought the annual rendezvous made them whole, but I’d argue it held them back.
Ursula – Initially a character you hate, she slowly evolves into the most interesting part of the story. The 2001 chapter with her reliving the 9/11 attacks was the strongest, and the political elements were a lot more interesting and realistic than expected.
A couple things I didn’t love:
The structure - Each chapter jumping from year-to-year sometimes leads to a lot of expository prose where it’s difficult to track where we are in the story, but Hilderbrand always found her way back, usually once Mallory and Jake finally connect.
Genre elements – I know this squarely fits in the beach read genre of (mostly) women’s fiction, which means there are overly detailed descriptions of food, clothing and décor that I really could care less about.
Wholly unbelievable – could two people madly in love only interact three days a year? The plot twists Hilderbrand throws in to get them to break the pact (multiple marriages!) became a little laughable, but I also appreciate how she made even throw away characters matter in the end.
All-in-all, this will likely be one of my most surprising reads of 2021. I would 100 percent pick up another novel by Hilderbrand, and I recommend this to anyone looking to do some new genre exploration.
As an audiobook, Erin Bennett does a completely passable if unremarkable job. Truthfully, it probably would be best to tackle this while soaking up sun (with protection) on the beach.
Rating (story): 4/5 stars
Rating (narration): 3/5
Formats: Audiobook (library loan)
Dates read: March 28 – April 6, 2021
Multi-tasking: Good to go.
