Summer of '69 was a good way to forget what is going on around the world.The story centers in one family: The Levins/Nichols (Although, Kate was a Foley at some point. She was married to Wilder Foley).Kate Levin is the mother. Kate is devastated that her only son, Tiger has been drafted to Vietnam. She's terrified he is going to die during this terrible war. She believes this is life paying her back for a secret she has been carrying for a long time. Kate knows she's drinking too much while

“People are people.”More than anything else, it’s the people Elin Hilderbrand brings to life among her pages that have me chomping at the bit for her annual (June and now October!) releases. And while many authors contribute to this genre space, for me it is Hilderbrand’s smart and often relatable approach to the “beach read” that has become synonymous with summer. Her work eliciting an eager reader ready to jump on a ferry to Nantucket for a dose of scenery, local eats, and unparalleled people....

Be sure to visit Bantering Books to read all my latest reviews.I think I have a like-hate relationship with Elin Hilderbrand’s novels.To put it bluntly - I like Hilderbrand’s stories. But I don’t like Hilderbrand’s writing.A year ago, I read her Winter Street series and found the entire experience to be similar to that of watching a B movie – not that great, not totally satisfying, but just engaging enough to lead me to read all four books in the series. I cut Hilderbrand some slack, however, as...

4 full, family drama, sisterhood, entertaining, amazing journey to the end of sixties while listening Man on the moon and singing “those were the best days of my life” as like Bryan Adams sang stars!You don’t have to be Marty McFly by driving a special car is invented by your Dr. Brown for time travelling. Elin Hilderbrand already takes us back to the end of sixties, a remarkable, memorable time for American and also human history: 1969This is the time of Beatles’ Abbey Road album releasing,Time...

Wow I just really loved this book, I certainly didn't want it to end. I rarely say that about a book as I am usually ready for it to wrap up, but not this one. I found myself completely immersed in their story and it felt so real.This is my first book I have read by Elin Hilderbrand and I was blown away. I love her style of writing and I truly felt like I wasn't reading, I got swept up and lost in the world of a summer in Nantucket. It probably does help that I love the whole idea of what it wou...

I can't stand books that don't respect the reader. If you have to explicitly state things or hint so strongly at something you're going to end up telling me about in five pages, why bother? Every twist and turn in this novel is so predictable.(view spoiler)[Angus's "affair" with Trixie (TRIXIE?!?) turning out to be his psychiatrist? Gasp!Pick's biological father being Kate's first, now dead, husband? Go figure!The alleged gun accident actually being a suicide? No way! (hide spoiler)]On top of th...

Evocative, entrancing, & absorbing!I have been meaning to read one of ELIN HILDERBRAND books for quite a while now and I am so glad that I finally followed through and read my very first book by her. This is some fine storytelling here. I totally loved the dynamics between the characters, was full-heartedly entranced by the setting, enraptured by the premise, and had a deep fondness for the whole story in general. SUMMER OF ‘69 by ELIN HILDERBRAND is a nostalgic, fun, touching, moving, and breez...

Summer of ‘69 is my first book I read by Elin Hilderbrand and I have to say it was the perfect one to start with. It’s already coming up to the end of summer and we haven’t had any summer weather and I really enjoyed being swept away to the sun in Nantucket. The cover alone took me to my happy summer place. Elin Hilderbrand weaves a historical fiction, family drama with a beach read that was the perfect summer read for me. She vividly creates the iconic American summer of ‘69 while capturing eac...

There’s a lot going on in Summer of '69. The three sisters in the Foley/Levin family are each embroiled in their own worries. The eldest sister is pregnant while her husband is emotionally unavailable and potentially unfaithful, the middle sister is striking out on her own but running into trouble, and the youngest is stuck in Nantucket with her unyieldingly conservative grandmother and her increasingly tipsy mother. Their brother is overseas fighting the war in Vietnam, and their mother is incr...

Fun in the sun in the summer of '69.(Let's see how many times I mention summer during this review).This was the embodiment of the feel-good summer read, without being sappy or melodramatic. I've been waiting all year for its release and it was everything I imagined, and more.The story centres on one family – the blended Foley/Levin clan. Every June they leave the stifling city heat of Boston for three months, to vacation at their grandmother's summer house on Nantucket – and this summer of ’69 i...

Well I’m an outlier again with this review. I've found that Elin Hilderbrand is a hit or miss author for me over the years. I've loved a few of her books...Barefoot, The Rumor, The Blue Bistro, and A Summer Affair but not loved many others as well. This one, unfortunately, falls into the latter category. ⠀⠀The set up was enticing to start off. We hear about Tiger, favorite son of Kate and brother of Jessie (youngest), Kirby (middle) and Blair (oldest) who's been drafted to Vietnam. Kate is devas...

It's not officially summer for me until I've read an Elin Hilderbrand book by the pool or sitting on the beach so luckily for me, I was able to read this one Memorial Day weekend, poolside, with a fruity beverage in hand. Hilderbrand's first historical novel was everything that I've come to expect from the queen of the summer novel and more. In classic Hilderbrand style, Summer of '69 revolves around the lives of several members of the Foley-Levin family and of course, Nantucket is the main sett...

Find all of my reviews at: http://52bookminimum.blogspot.com/ Maybe, just maybe, this summer will end up being one that people write songs about. ^^^^That’s what comes to mind for 99.9999% of you, right? It may have taken 370 pages, but at least the pink elephant in the room was finally addressed ; )Elin Hilderbrand don’t need homegirl’s help selling her books so why don’t we just get to the giffing????The story here is exactly what the title says – about the summer of 1969. The cover is a...

3.5 stars Thanks to Netgalley and Little, Brown and Company for a digital galley in exchange for an honest review. Elin Hilderbrand states that her twin brother has always encouraged her to explore the summer they were born in one of her novels. Summer of 69 is that novel and sweeps readers back to Nixon, Vietnam, Senator Ted Kennedy and the Chappaquiddick scandal, women's issues, Woodstock, racial equality, class differences, the Moon landing and summertime in Nantucket. The Foley/Levin famil...

AWESOME SUMMER READ!And what a trip down memory lane! Hilderbrand certainly did her research to bring the late 1960's to life. I know bc I lived it.With song lyrics from the music we listened to (minus ELVIS), the clothing we wore, vehicles we drove, sitcoms we watched on TV and, of course, the APOLLO 11 moon launch. There are also numerous books of the time referenced, and oh, the Bobby Kennedy scandal is also worked into the storyline. Aside from the Vietnam War, it was a wonderful time to be

I finally got around to reading my first Elin Hilderbrand novel and I really enjoyed it. I love how cultural moments of that summer of 1969 were interjected into the storyline. This was just a nice book to sit back and relax with and I look forward to checking out more of her books in the future.Every year the Levin family spends their summer on the island of Nantucket. However things are different this year as the only son, Tiger, has been shipped to Vietnam. His mother, Kate, is having a hard