One Summer

by David Baldacci

It's almost Christmas, but there is no joy in the house of terminally ill Jack and his family. With only a short time left to live, he spends his last days preparing to say goodbye to his devoted wife, Lizzie, and their three children. Then, unthinkably, tragedy strikes again: Lizzie is killed in a car accident. With no one able to care for them, the children are separated from each other and sent to live with family members around the country. Just when all seems lost, Jack begins to recover in a miraculous turn of events. He rises from what should have been his deathbed, determined to bring his fractured family back together. Struggling to rebuild their lives after Lizzie's death, he reunites everyone at Lizzie's childhood home on the oceanfront in South Carolina. And there, over one unforgettable summer, Jack will begin to learn to love again, and he and his children will learn how to become a family once more.

Genres: Fiction, Romance, Audiobook, Chick Lit, Drama, Family, Contemporary

335 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 14, 2011

About the author

David Baldacci has been writing since childhood, when his mother gave him a lined notebook in which to write down his stories. (Much later, when David thanked her for being the spark that ignited his writing career, she revealed that she’d given him the notebook to keep him quiet, "because every mom needs a break now and then.”)

David published his first novel, Absolute Power, in 1996; the feature film adaptation followed, with Clint Eastwood as its director and star. In total, David has published 52 novels for adults; all have been national and international bestsellers, and several have been adapted for film and television. David has also published seven novels for younger readers. His books are published in over 45 languages and in more than 80 countries, with over 200 million copies sold worldwide.

In addition to being a prolific writer, David is a devoted philanthropist, and his greatest efforts are dedicated to his family’s Wish You Well Foundation®. Established by David and his wife, Michelle, the Wish You Well Foundation supports family and adult literacy programs in the United States.

A lifelong Virginian, David is a graduate of Virginia Commonwealth University and the University of Virginia School of Law.

Reviews

[CC · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is a failure on about every level. There's not one authentic emotion, character, or line of dialogue in the entire book. Thriller writer Baldacci was channeling Nicholas Sparks for this one, there's no other explanation.

Thirty-five year-old Jack, a former 6' 2" pro football player, is dying of a mysterious -- un-named -- terminal illness. Then his wife dies, and he miraculously recovers. He gets his three kids from various relatives and they go to a beach house in the Carolinas they've all just inherited.

What accounts for this "miracle?" Nothing, apparently. He's not spiritual, he learns nothing. Just bam, he's dying and now he's not.

Yes, gee.

Forced melodrama continues with a "rebellious" daughter -- who of course is also a gifted musician -- and by the end of the book she of course aces all her classes, and gets a full ride scholarship to Berkeley. Sure she does. He's got two other kids, but apparently they need no parenting because they're hardly in the book. His mother-in-law decides (for no other reason that the plot neeeded "something else") to suddenly sue him for custody. The judge sides with her because he left the kids alone some nights to work on a lighthouse. On what planet? How? Where? What legal system would allow that? No abuse, no neglect, no nothing? AND THEN she decides she doesn't want them afterall, so he can just have them back. What the hell? I'm pretty sure a judge might have to be involved for that to happen.

I hate this book. I hate every character in it. And I hate myself for continuing to read it hoping it would get better.

[Alp · Rating 5 out of 5]

“When you love someone, you love them forever.”


One of the best tearjerker novels of all time!

There have been many books that made me cry. But none of them could make me sob my heart out almost throughout the entire story like One Summer did.

This was such a heartbreakingly beautiful story with plenty of poignant and heartwarming moments that left me with tears of both sadness and joy streaming down my face.

Reading Jack’s story tore my heart out. I felt as if I was right there with him, as if his feelings were swirling inside me, as though whatever happened to him actually happened to me too. I could feel his pain, anger, helplessness, despair, loneliness, and grief, and my heart went out to him. The author did a superb job of writing emotion-evoking scenes which had me crying like a baby countless times.

There were times when I had to stop reading because my tears blurred my vision and I felt like I was facing multiple emotions all at once. Why did no one warn me about this!

As a reader, I like to be moved and touched by the story I read. And I got exactly what I want from this book. It really spoke to me and touched my heart in so many ways. Even now, I can’t talk about this one without breaking down into tears.


“I always saw Lizzie and me as one person whose halves got separated somehow, but they found each other again. That’s how lucky I was.”


This was my first time reading this author’s work and it was an absolute winner. I can honestly say that this is one of the books that I enjoyed every single page of it!

Highly recommended to everyone!

By the way, grab a box of tissues before reading this! You’re definitely going to need it!

[Lisa · Rating 2 out of 5]

Here's how I think it happened: Nicholas Sparks and David Baldacci were having lunch at a country club somewhere in the Carolinas. Nicholas said, "You know, Dave, you're a decent lookin' guy with a nice smile, so I'm gonna share my secret with you... With your name alone you can write a best seller using my fool proof formula. You should probably take notes.

It involves a family in crisis, promises made, sentimental letters written, a surprise tragedy, an angry teenage girl, meddling relatives, a move to a big house right on the beach in South Carolina, a divorced lady lawyer, the sullen daughter has something in common with lawyer's son making small town life more bearable, mean adolescent pranks, reluctant friendship develops between father and lawyer turned owner of hip restaurant, father's focus is on repairing a long broken lighthouse rather than fixing his obviously hurting family, more meddling from bitter mother-in-law, furious daugther runs off and gets swept away in ocean during worst storm in ages, desperate search ensues, father sees daughter surrounded by light after he miraculously figures out how to get lighthouse to work, a dangerous, near impossible swim out to daughter in storm tossed waves, he nearly gives up when at last minute angel of dead wife provides him with super human strength (whew!), daughter is okay, meddling relatives see error of their ways, daughter and lawyer's son settle for being best of friends while father and lawyer move in together and have many moonlit walks on the beach."

"Really?" David asks.

"It works every time," Nicholas replies with a smile. "Please pass the ketchup."

[Karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

“You should respect the past. You should never forget the past. But you can’t live there.”

This quote is this story, because this is what happens when grief takes over. The question being, how does one overcome it all to move forward with life?

So here is something different for me. I am watching this movie on my Hallmark streaming channel, and as I am looking at the credits, I discover that this movie is based on a book written by Baldacci. What?

Well, now it motivates me to get the book, and that is where you find me. A bit backwards, I realize, (seeing the movie before reading the book backwards). But I honestly didn’t know about either.

So, what was my reaction?

The movie was a good escape, and predictable, in a typical dramatic way, where the widowed carpenter father, Jack spends time fixing the lighthouse. And then, the lighthouse has its moment. (No spoilers from me.)

Of course, readers will expect that the lighthouse will play an important role, because it covets a place on the book cover. So, plan on finding out what the role is, in both the movie and the book. Because it does illicit the drama and climatic substance that readers and/or moviegoers would expect.

Now, on to the book.

The book opens with a dying Jack and his wife Lizzie heading out to get his medication only to be met with tragedy. What is going to happen to the children now? As extended family figure out how to manage, Jack rallies and lives.

Which allows Jack to take his children to his wife’s old beach house and lighthouse in hopes that everyone can heal.

Both the movie and the book were both heart-warming and heart-wrenching if not a bit overly dramatic, predictable and contrived. And, even if it brought on the tears, it also brought on the eye rolls, too. Still, both were a fun little escape. Kleenex will be encouraged.

Added note: The book was published on June 14, 2011. The television movie premiered on Sunday, October 3, 2021 and starred Sam Page, Sarah Drew and Amanda Schull. Movie Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RLGa0...

[Daniel Audet · Rating 5 out of 5]

Looking for a "read" the other day I noticed this book on the rack. A fan of Baldacci's for years, of his Camel Club Series and other titles, this book looked like a fun departure from what I've come to expect of him. Let me say this here: I'm pretty sure anything DB writes would sell well, even his grocery list, and this one should do well too.
"One Summer" is a heartfelt story of a guy, a decorated war vet, family man and all around decent guy - Jack Armstrong - who finds himself dying from a mysterious disease. Family members, including his darling wife and 3 kids, prepare for his departure from their lives and this world. He accepts his fate and makes his peace, though he doesn't want to go. What happens next could only be written this well by a writer of Baldacci's skill level. Written in 3rd POV with a direct plot, Baldacci spins a tale I'm sure he's been wanting to publish for a long time.
I'm maybe 200 or so pages in and though this type fiction is definitely a departure from what I normally read I'm VERY happy to have grabbed this book. For me, even as a writer, the hallmark of a great book, whatever the genre, is the effect it has on me as a person, not just a writer or reader. This book stays with me, the effect that is, even after I put it down. I'm thinking about things I never would have thought about, like Jack is forced to. Trust me, YOU WILL TOO...
Powerfully written, I can recommend "One Summer" to you without hesitation. I'm not sure when this book was written but DB had the goods from day one and this novel delivers. I won't give away any more than I already have but I will say this: Family drama, living on without loved ones, troubled kids and personal loss are dramas in life some of us, most of us, will go through. This book is just such a story told with compassion and great skill.Hopefully DB will give us more of this type fiction in the future.

[Kyle · Rating 2 out of 5]

I thought this book had a very interesting synopsis and therefore decided to listen to the audiobook. To start, I did not enjoy the fact that the audiobook uses different voices for the women vs the men (in terms of every single thing they say). I think it's a bit distracting and would much rather listen to one person who can "do" different voices depending on the characters.

As for the book itself, I was very disappointed. I felt the dad's illness was actually a bit pointless in terms of the story overall. Also, although I thought Mickey was a very realistic character at the beginning of the book, she changed way too fast and therefore became very unrealistic to me. I also thought it was strange that the first part is all from the dad's point of the view and then randomly, we start seeing things from Mickey's point of view. The switch was too abrupt and did not seem to flow very well.

This went from 3 stars to 2 stars for me because of the epilogue. If Baldacci had just ended the book without an epilogue, I would have said it was pretty good. Not great, but a decent read. However, I felt the epilogue tried too hard to give everyone a happy ending.

I would not recommend this book. I think there are much better books in the same genre.

[Anja · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jack ist unheilbar krank und versucht sich auf sein Ende vor zu bereiten,doch dann passiert das Wunder, es geht ihm von Tag zu Tag besser bis die Ärzte ihn als gesund bezeichnen. Das nächste Unglück lässt aber nicht auf sich warten und Jack muss um seine Familie kämpfen.
Eine dramatisch erzählte Geschichte, mit vielen tollen Herzens-Sätzen aber auch einigen Augen Roll Momenten. Ich finde es immer schwierig,wenn man eine unheilbare Krankheit erwähnt und dann nicht näher darauf eingeht,was da genau los ist. Ich brauche da immer Details, wahrscheinlich Berufskrankheit😉 und sonst war vieles vorhersehbar und auch teilweise unrealistisch. Daher gibt es wohlgemeinte 3⭐,denn die Dialoge und Charaktere waren toll gezeichnet.

[Ted · Rating 1 out of 5]

Just a syrupy sentimental mess of a story, full of cliched situations and stock characters. When the miracle that occurs in this book is the most believable part of the story, you know that something is very wrong with a novel.
Recommended only for Nicholas Sparks fans.

[Ashley Daviau · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had a major sense of déjà vu while reading this book but it was making me feel all kinds of feels so I kept with it. I'm really glad I did because despite having felt like I've read this before, it was an absolutely beautiful story. I felt so many emotions while reading this, I even shed a few tears. Okay okay, more than just a few tears. xD The story was truly moving and I feel like I grew along with the characters throughout. And the ending was just so perfect and touching! I'm still positive I've read it before but it was definitely worth a reread!

[Lynn · Rating 1 out of 5]

I kept asking myself throughout this entire book why I was still reading it. I don't like Baldacci's thrillers, not because they aren't well written but rather because they became too violent for me, personally. I have truly enjoyed his other departures from the genre but if this is the direction in which he is going, I'll just wave good-bye from here. I thought the premise was promising - a man dying and leaving his young family to cope, miraculously recovers and ends up being the one left behind to deal with a tragedy no one (except the reader) saw coming. I usually like the Carolinas as a setting, small town life, family stories. "How could I lose with this one?" I thought. Ugh. Just under-developed everything, trite, and predictable. There are way better ways to spend your summer reading time.

[Heather · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book made me smile, laugh and cry. My heart ached for the family as they went through life struggles. It’s a heart touching book about love, loss, family, friendship and forgiveness.

"When you love someone, you love them forever." (51)

"It's not so much that time heals all wounds, honey, as it is that the passage of the years lets us make peace with our grief in our own way." (102)

"It's action, not words, that really counts. That's what it really means to love someone." (216)

"It's sad when you realize the most important things in life too late to do anything about them." (250)

"This will sound really corny, but sometimes when a person opens their eyes, they can actually see." (254)

"No matter what you do, no matter how hard you fight, life sometimes just doesn't make sense." (294)

"Sometimes people can't see what's right in front of them, Jack. It's strange how that works. How often it happens. And how often it hurts people we're supposed to love." (313)

"Lizzie and Jack had been meant to be together forever if ever two people were. Only sometimes life doesn't match what should be. It just is. And people have to accept it, no matter how hard it may be." (319)

[Snotchocheez · Rating 1 out of 5]

If you ever find yourself driving on I-95 from North to South Carolina, you encounter garish billboards announcing the approach of one the kitschiest, tackiest, most embarrassingly banal totems to Americana ever conceived: "South of the Border". You can see the garish 100-ft neon'd sombrero'd "Juan" from several miles away from the N-S Carolina border, beckoning weary road travelers to its promise of, in full Las Vegas splendor, a slice of Mexican Nirvana in Nowheresville, SC.You pull off the interstate and discover what appears on the surface a Fantasyland: huge amusement park, several themed restaurants, hotels, souvenir emporia, etc. You take a walk through the amusement park and discover that despite its blazing neon, all of the rides (with the exception of the ginormous Ferris wheel, affording panoramic views of...absolutely nothing) are cast-off rejects from the touring carnival that comes through your hometown every year...the "magnificent 72-hole mini-golf course!" advertised on every billboard is nothing more than a brightly lit converted gas station repair bay with rickety 2 x 4s painted in Day-Glo and vaguely resembling something golf-like (if you have the imagination of, say, a really travel-weary 4-year-old entranced by the last 100 miles of billboards); the souvenir mall replete with Juan keychains, postcards, vuvuzelas, maracas, typical crap with a Mexicano flair. You choose the "world famous!" Mexican restaurant, with billboard-promised prandial delights like "World's Largest Burrito" and "World's Best Margarita", wait an hour for a gum-chomping, disaffected Nadine or Jolene or Peggy Sue to take your order for said burrito and maggie, dig in and slurp and experience the worst food you've ever deigned to shovel down your gullet, Mexican or otherwise. By the time you feel realize you've been completely taken for a fool, you've spent entirely too much time and money on what amounts to cleverly marketed roadside garbage.



Oh yeah...book review..."One Summer". David Baldacci's departure from the "legal thriller" genre, is his latest attempt at serious drama. This is, quite honestly, the worst book I've read in the last five years. With about as much subtlety as a root canal without anesthesia, Baldacci beats his readers over the head with faux tearjerkiness, slathers on heaping dollops of marmalade-soaked feel-good hoo-ha, strives to serve up a Paula Deen pecan-encrusted Blueberry-Bourbon Cobbler, and in fact delivers the literary equivalent of South of the Border's "World's Greatest Burrito": heartburn-and-headache-inducing pre-digested empty-caloried pablum, allowing him (like, no doubt, South of the Border's owners) to laugh all the way to the bank.



***shudder alert***



(gulp) The plot: Jack Armstrong (Iraq and Afghanistan vet, thrice Purple Heart/Bronze Star-decorated), a building contractor in Cleveland with a loving wife and three kids, is on his death bed with some mystery disease (never revealed...nice way to do your homework, DB); as Christmas approaches, Jack tries to reconcile his life and steel himself for the great beyond. To try to inspire Jack to keep on living his wife Lizzie tells him that he wants them all to take a Summer vacation to her childhood home on the beach in...ahem...South Carolina. Then, on Christmas Eve (this isn't a spoiler, mind you...this is all provided helpfully on the jacket blurb) Lizzie rushes out to get Jack pain meds...and *gasp* dies in a car crash. Then, miraculously, Jack recovers from his mystery disease, and takes his surly teenage daughter Mikki, tween son Cory, two-y.o. Jack Jr., and 60+ y.o. Vet friend Sammy down to SC to rebuild "The Palace" (Lizzie's childhood beachfront home, replete with lighthouse, as advertised on the book's billboar...er...cover) and, in effect rebuild his life, his relationship with his kids, and be closer to the memory of Lizzie. (ahhhh...the stuff made-for-Lifetime Channel-movies are made of) (blecch)



The manuscript for this fluffy goo, without Baldacci's lawyerly fiction cachet, wouldn't so much as take up space in a third-rate publishing house's rejection pile. Evidently, Baldacci's trying to expand his horizons (like fellow lawyer-cum-novelists Grisham and Turow) but his effort drowns its unsuspecting victims in a vat of "World's Greatest Margarita" festooned with floating detritus and Mexican tchotchkes at a glorified South Carolina rest area. Simply gawdawful.

[Heather · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have been a fan of David Baldacci since I happened to pick up TOTAL CONTROL in an airport right before moving to Charlottesville, VA, where the book essentially takes place. Baldacci had me hooked, and I've been a fan ever since. I've met him at several of his book signings, and he's an incredibly likeable guy and an engaging speaker.

As an author in the women's lit genre, I was really happy to see Baldacci expose his softer side with ONE SUMMER - the side I knew was there from having met him all those times.

Jack Armstrong is on his deathbed doing the unthinkable - saying goodbye to his family as he counts his last breaths. Jack's goodbyes are in the form of the love letters he writes to his wife, Lizzie, handling the emotional turbulence of each of his three children who run the gamete of too young, still innocent, and hardened teenager, and coping with in-laws whom you want to hate, but you almost can't.

The tragic event of Lizzie's sudden death shocks them to the core and the unexpected recovery of Jack creates a new reality for the Armstrong family beyond the realm of what any of them could have expected. I found Jack to be much like Baldacci himself - a likeable guy whom you want only the best for. As Jack rebuilds his life from his deathbed to now raising three children as a widower, they uproot and move to South Carolina to begin anew. The relationship with his daughter, Mikki, becomes the foundation of the story. Yet, each side story - Jack's new and tentative love interest and Mikki's adaptation to southern living - weave back and forth, while stitching their own relationship back together. The in-laws remain a force throughout the book, and the mother-in-law is someone you want to hate, but just can't. There are several characters, including Jack's best friend and the new friends of Mikki, who add depth to their characters by virtue of their interactions. Young adults would enjoy this book just as much as adults due to the many high school characters that come into play.

I very much enjoyed ONE SUMMER and hope that Baldacci continues to write in this genre. I think a lot of the feedback I've seen for this book stems more from people not being used to him writing in this genre than it does from a fair criticism of the book itself.

Full review: http://heatherhummel.blogspot.com/201...

[Joyce · Rating 4 out of 5]

Have the tissues nearby. I think I went through two boxes by chapter twelve. It's a different book for fans, but a good book on grief and family .

[EZRead eBookstore · Rating 3 out of 5]

Honestly, if I wasn’t so cold-hearted that it takes a volcano to melt the ice in my veins, I would have been bawling through more than 50% of this book. There is tragedy from beginning to end! There are happy parts in the middle, of course, but there are such dark travesties in the first and last chapters that I wondered if I would ever see the light. Was it worth the heart-ache? In a way, I did appreciate having my heart ripped out and then flung back in my chest again, but not masochistically speaking.

Despite the tear-drenched pages that readers will end up with, there are sweet lessons exhibited and ideas to ponder once readers can see through their blurry tear-vision. Appreciating life, spending time with family, accepting things you can’t change, fighting for what you love – these all seem like our typical life lessons that are all somehow balled into one story. Death, whether pending or definite, has a way of making people study life differently, which is exactly what Jack and children go through.

Sorry for the philosophical tone, but reading “One Summer” can rub off on a person. The book didn’t just show how Jack struggles to reconnect with his children or deal with mourning his wife; it gave perspective to a lot of issues that so many of us struggle with, like forgiveness and acceptance.

Admittedly, it could have been interpreted as slightly didactic to some readers, but I appreciated the sentiments and words of wisdom between fictional characters. No, the story does not drip with preachiness. I call it, good old advice and perspective.

So yes, have your heart smashed to pieces and then glued back together again with this book. It may be a rough ride, but sometimes the scariest roller coasters are the most fun.

- EZ Read Staffer, Amelia

Note: watch Amelia discuss the book online at http://vimeo.com/24892585

[Becky · Rating 2 out of 5]

Baldacci should stick to what he writes really well ... the thriller. I know authors like to change up their genres, but this book was a mess. It's a hash of emotional drivel. It tries to evoke the emotion of Patterson's Letters to Jennifer and Sparks' Last Song, but fails. Sparks' writes this type of genre very well. Even Patterson does a decent job with Letters, but Baldacci's attempt is stiff and awkward at best ... and annoying ... really, can anyone write a realistic teenager?!

[Behrokh · Rating 5 out of 5]

تابستان آن سال، یک درام خانوادگی ست بدون هیچ زایده ای. قصه ای شسته و رفته و سرشار از عواطف و روابط انسانی. نویسنده با تبحر و چیرگی قابل تحسینی، بر ساختار داستان مسلط است و اثری خلق کرده که جهش قابل توجهی نسبت به ادبیات عامه پسند دارد.
تابستان آن سال كتابي است كه تا ساليان سال در ذهن ميماند و بسيار با روح و روان بازي ميكند مخصوصا در صد صفحه اي اول .
💯✅

[Moonkiszt · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was a perfect read for when I needed it. . . .some say this is too predictable, and once upon a time I might have been just such a sayer. . .

But for this day when my bucket was empty, this was just the read for me. Hope replenished enough for now.

[ɑƨħŵɑɡ ♥Team Magnus Damora FOREVER♥ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nothing beats the feeling of reading the right book at the right times. It's a feeling this book made me live. One Summer is certainly one of those books that make difference.

In short, the story of One Summer revolves around Jack Armstrong. He is an ex-military who served in Afghanistan and ME and received many medals during his service. He's also a loving husband of Lizzie O'Toole and the father of three kids. Jack is diagnosed with a terminal illness that absolutely no one recovered from, so the expectations of his recovery are non-existent. Soon, everyone starts to accept that. However, their lives take a dramatic turn when Lizzie died in a car accident. And soon afterward, Jack miraculously is healed. One Summer is how long it takes for the family to get over their tragic past and appreciate life as it is.

Since I started the first page, I can say I was glued to it. I think it has something to do with the style of writing that made the story float so smoothly and very lightly. But after few chapters I've come to related to every character. They were real and vivid in my imagination. And not even once I had the desire to put the book down. Emotionally, I couldn't have read this book in a better time than this. It was somehow therapeutic and kind of reassuring in its own way. I stopped at some lines and reflected some of what I read on my own life and got new insights.

One Summer is a story to celebrate new beginnings and new chances. Frankly, who wouldn't like to celebrate both.

[Sue · Rating 5 out of 5]

"One Summer" by David Baldacci is a novel that I was totally gripped from the first page. I couldn't put it down.This is a story of a guy, a decorated war vet, family man and all around decent guy - Jack Armstrong - who finds himself dying from a mysterious disease. Family members, including his darling wife and 3 kids, prepare for his departure from their lives and this world. He accepts his fate and makes his peace, though he doesn't want to go.

For me, the hallmark of a great book, whatever the genre, is the effect it has on me as a person, not just a writer or reader. This book stays with me, the effect that is, even after I put it down. I'm thinking about things I never would have thought about, like Jack is forced to.

Powerfully written, I can recommend "One Summer" to you without hesitation. I'm not sure when this book was written but David Baldacci had the goods from day one and this novel delivers. I won't give away any more than I already have but I will say this: Family drama, living on without loved ones, troubled kids and personal loss are dramas in life some of us, most of us, will go through. This book is just such a story told with compassion and great skill.Well worth the read.

[Ana · Rating 3 out of 5]

Este livro descreve as dificuldade de um pai solteiro para sustentar e manter a sua família junta.
Após a morte inesperada da mulher, Jack, vê-se envolvido numa luta com a família de Lizzie para não perder a custódia dos filhos.
Esta é a história de uma família que tenta se reerguer depois de uma tragédia. Uma história de superação, de milagres que só o amor de um pai pelos seus filhos é capaz de fazer.

[Bruno · Rating 4 out of 5]

Link: http://livrolico.blogspot.pt/2013/04/explodido-nao-quero-dizer-te-adeus-de.html

Depois de ler "Os inocentes" do David Baldacci, fiquei fã deste autor, bastante bom em thrillers.

Apesar de este livro, escrito pelo mesmo autor, ser romance, suscitou-me curiosidade. E não me deixou desiludido, muito pelo contrário, fui surpreendido!

Trata-se de uma leitura bastante leve com capítulos relativamente curtos que nos leva a devorar num ápice, mas a simplicidade das descrições e dos diálogos carrega sentimentos intensos capazes de nos deitar lágrimas.

O Jack encontra-se numa fase terminal, próximo da morte devido a uma doença rara que não tem cura, e prepara-se para a despedida da sua mulher Lizzie e dos seus três filhos que se encontram na faixa etária dos 3 aos 14 anos. No entanto, o destino dá uma reviravolta e é a mulher que morre num acidente de viação...

O que irá então o Jack fazer? E os três filhos, prestes a ficarem órfãos, para onde vão?

Gostei bastante do desenrolar da história que me manteve agarrado e absolutamente cativado com os personagens. Há surpresas comoventes ao longo do enredo. O farol da Lizzie é a verdadeira luz do livro, um ponto fulcral para todos, esta iluminação que irá dar nova esperança e força à união familiar.

O amor pode realmente fazer milagres.

[Amy J · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars rounded up. This story was a little melodramatic and far-fetched at times, but a real good pick for a fast summer weekend read. It had some real touching moments with the letters and chats and profound statements on life when Jack thought, “I’m done running” away from fears/truth/duties as father, etc. I enjoyed the character development of both the dad (Jack) and his daughter (Mikki) and the suspenseful ending with some surprises, too. This was my first “buddy read” with my friend Tamara (not on Goodreads).

[Maryam M.Gh · Rating 5 out of 5]

چه زود بزرگ میشوند -
بله همین طور است. ولی بزرگ شدن که اشکالی ندارد؛ چیزی که ما نمیخواهیم این است که همان قدر که بزرگ می شوند، از ما دور شوند -

تابستان آن سال، دیوید بالداچی

[Steve · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first 12-20% of the book is a big downer. But if you hang in there are keep going, the story becomes much more upbeat and is well worth the time

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well, this was a tear jerker. Forumla, but enjoyable.

[Debbie · Rating 5 out of 5]

It’s days until Christmas and this year in the Armstrong home they aren’t waiting for Santa, they’re waiting for dad to die. Jack Armstrong gave it the good fight and in the end it’s the kids and especially Lizzie that he’ll miss when the light finally goes out. He spends his final days with what little strength he has to write Lizzie a letter a day in which to pour out his heart and his love. Then on Christmas Eve the unthinkable happens and Lizzie is killed in an accident. Left with no choice Jack agrees to go into Hospice care while the children are whisked away and split up between family members far away while he’s left to die alone. With only breaths left Jack makes his peace only to find that the universe has something entirely different in store for him.
David Baldacci is in a class by himself when it comes to telling a story, from the first paragraph he has his audience right in the palm of his hand and in this case with tissues. He takes us on an emotional ride with his plot of death, illness, regret and despair and just when all faith is gone he gives us that ultimate emotion, hope. The narrative is so exact that you can feel the salt breeze on your face and the brightness of the lighthouse in your eyes. The author then goes one step more and conveys his characters emotions so well that you can feel the anger the hurt and the joy in equal measure. He gives us remarkably unforgettable characters, not celebrities but just everyday Joe and Jills that put one foot in front of the other to make it through another day. Mr. Baldacci does an amazing job with his protagonist Jack, portraying a realistic picture of a man in crisis. His other characters are imperative to his story, from the children to Jack’s in-laws, Jenna and Liam to the petty villains.
Be prepared for a memorable journey, a journey from the abyss back to the living, from the heartbreak of loss to the spirit of renewal, from the terror of loosing love to the elation of finding it again and maybe the most important lesson we’ll learn is that blind faith is blind for a reason. Take this journey with your eyes open so you don’t miss a stop on the trip because with every destination you’ll learn something important.
This is a love story, a family drama, and an important piece of literary fiction, it’s also the first must read of the summer and a title you’ll find yourself going back to time and time again.

[Christine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jack is terminally ill with three children that need parental guidance at home. Knowing his time on earth is limited, he agrees with his mother-in-law as he watches his children being separated to live with various family members, while he lies alone in a hospice center just waiting to take his last breath. He ends up spending a lot of time in the hospice center when he not only lives longer than expected, but suddenly seems to recover. When he is finally given a clean bill of health months after his admittance, the doctors are amazed at the miracle that Jack seems to have spun.

At the hesitance of his family members, Jack is able to get his kids back together again and living with him. Not long after their reunion, when life seems to be getting back to some form of normalcy, the kids maternal great-grandmother passes away and leave a South Carolina beach home to Jack and his family. Jack is surprised that he was chosen to inherit this piece of property, but as a carpenter she figured that Jack is the one who would give the home the care that it needed.

So Jack, his kids, and his best friend Sammy, pack up all of their belongings to go investigate the beach property, that the family has always called 'The Castle'. When they arrive at the castle they are astonished to find The Castle is basically a dilapidated beach house, but the kids have hope that this will not be their permanent residence. Although things look rough on the surface, Jack sees the beautiful home that this could be once again.

A lot happens to Jack and his family during that summer at The Castle. For a bit Jack seems to lose himself in the construction projects, while his kids drift further away from him. When he finally realizes that his priorities are out of whack they all make some changes that bring them back to a family level. The only problem is that it may be too late for these changes.

This was a great audiobook, one that I think I enjoyed more than if I had actually read it. With themes of love, miracles, and family obligations, you will want to hear every word that is spoken. I do not hesitate in recommending this selection in the audioversion.

[Ruth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jack lay in bed in the den dying. His three children each reacted differently to his illness. Liz, his soulmate and wife, took care of him, the children, the house, and worked. He loved her with all his heart. His days were numbered and he was hoping to make it to Christmas when someone knocked on the door to give him bad news and he found himself burying the girl of his dreams rather than the other way around which he felt was the way that it should have been.

His in-laws place him in hospice to await his death and the children are given to three different family members. Once again, he waits but this time he is alone. But miracles do happen and amazingly Jack finds himself getting better and stronger. The doctors can't believe what is happening.

Is Jack getting a second chance at having his family back? Will he be able to overcome the things that he regretted about his life before he knew that he was dying? Can they find their way back together as a family again or is it impossible to recover without their beloved Lizzie?

I have read several thrillers by David Baldacci. They are excellent. Then when we had a community read in CNY which featured his book Wish You Well, I decided to try that. It was a memoir based on stories from his family who had grown up poor in the Appalachain Mountains. It was well written and enjoyable. This book although not his typical suspense thriller had a lot of action and at the close of the book had you sitting at the edge of your seat. The true hallmark of an outstanding storyteller!

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a very emotional and yet inspirational. Baldacci (the author) got me grabbing for tissues the very first page of Chapter 1. It’s a touching story about a father with a deadly illness and a mother who’s trying to take care of him, a teenager, a middle schooler, and a toddler all at once. She is holding on hope and trying to help her husband while still trying to be “mom.” This novel has a twist in the story line and becomes very inspirational. For anyone who needs a book just to have a good cry, to be reminded God really does have a plan, or just need a little uplifting this book is for you.

It was very hard for me to put down this book. Baldacci made each Chapter just a few pages long and at the end of each you just want to keep reading more to see what will happen next. It normally takes me a full month to read a book because I just read for 10-15 minutes each night before falling asleep but I read this novel in less than 2 weeks, finding myself heading to bed early just to keep reading to find out what will happen next.