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Summer With My Sister

Polly Johnson is een succesvolle zakenvrouw. Ze geeft geld uit als water, drinkt elke dag champagne in een exclusieve club en woont in een groot appartement in Londen. Dan slaat het noodlot Polly verliest haar baan. Voor ze het goed en wel beseft staat haar woning in de verkoop en is er niets meer over van haar luxeleventje.
Noodgedwongen trekt ze bij haar ouders in, die in een klein huisje op het Engelse platteland wonen. Als ze haar zus Clare weer ziet, wordt Polly voor het eerst geconfronteerd met haar afstandelijke en egocentrische houding. Ze begint zich te realiseren hoe eenzaam en kaal haar leven in Londen was. Maar net als ze zich eindelijk weer wat gaat openstellen voor anderen, komt ze haar jeugdliefde Jay tegen, van wie Polly niet voor niets voorgoed afscheid had genomen...

456 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2012

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About the author

Lucy Diamond

91 books1,492 followers
Librarian note:
There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name


First of all, a confession. My name isn’t really Lucy Diamond at all, it’s Sue Mongredien. I’ve used a pen name because ‘Diamond’ is a lot easier to spell and pronounce than ‘Mongredien’ and also because I’ve written lots of children’s books too and wanted to keep the genres separate. (There is actually another Lucy Diamond on Amazon who writes religious children’s books. That isn’t me, though.)

I was born in 1970 and grew up in Nottingham. I read English at Leeds University then moved to London and worked for various publishers before I packed it all in to go travelling around the world for a year and a half. When I came back to the UK, I worked in publishing again, then moved to the BBC. I now live in Bath with my husband and three young children and divide my time between writing and looking after them. You can have a look at my children’s books here.

Favourite things: beaches, holidays, chocolate, wine, reading, Green Wing, bubble baths, sunshine, hearing my children laugh, babysitters

Favourite books: The Magus (John Fowles), The Edible Woman (Margaret Atwood), The Secret History (Donna Tartt), The Colour of Memory (Geoff Dyer)

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5 stars
1,190 (33%)
4 stars
1,472 (41%)
3 stars
766 (21%)
2 stars
123 (3%)
1 star
27 (<1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 263 reviews
Profile Image for Marie-Claude Gagné.
693 reviews37 followers
March 9, 2026
J’ai beaucoup aimé ma lecture. Cette autrice m’a fait penser un peu à Virginie Grimaldi. On suit deux sœurs, une très carriériste qui vient de perdre son emploi et qui retourne chez ses parents, et une autre mère monoparentale qui se lance dans les affaires. Les personnages sont très attachants, c’est une lecture tranquille, mais qui fait du bien.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ : Beaucoup aimé
Profile Image for Ali Bookworm.
709 reviews42 followers
July 24, 2016
Not sure if I had read this before, or maybe because I have read too many similar summery reads in a row but after a good start I abandoned most of it and just read the end..not like me at all but I kept getting confused for some reason. Not my favourite Lucy Diamond story.
Profile Image for Émilie Mathieu.
399 reviews12 followers
June 5, 2024
Les hauts et les bas de Polly, que j’ai adoré suivre!
Ce roman donne un petit baume sur le cœur et fait du bien à l’âme!
2,023 reviews36 followers
August 14, 2015

You can't go wrong with a book that has been written by Lucy Diamond, her books are just utterly fantastic. The cover looks so inviting and gorgeous it just made me want to dive straight in. I really liked the plot for this story as always you feel like you can warm to the characters as they all have real life problems. I loved Polly and Clare's mum and dad they reminded me of mine which was nice. I loved the idea of Clare setting up her own business I felt really nervous for her but she came up trumps in the end. Such a lovely story with a lovely outcome.
Profile Image for Emma.
191 reviews
July 7, 2020
This was my first book by Lucy Diamond and it definitely won't be my last as I loved it.
I really liked both Clare and Polly's (eventually) characters and it was great getting to know them.
A lovely read that I didn't want to end. 😊
Profile Image for Clarabel.
4,005 reviews64 followers
May 3, 2020
Toujours en plein défrichage de mes rayonnages de livres, je mets la main sur ce roman de Lucy Diamond : frais, léger, délicieusement bucolique ! Et puis cette histoire de deux sœurs qui ne se comprenaient plus et qui se retrouvent le temps d'un été en parvenant à effacer les vieilles rancunes ne pouvait que me plaire ! #familyismycupoftea
Polly menait une brillante carrière à Londres et ne prenait plus le temps de voir sa famille, bien consciente du fossé qui se creusait entre elle et eux. Jusqu'au jour où Polly débarque avec ses valises chez ses parents pour “un congé sabbatique”. En vérité, elle a tout perdu : son job et son appartement. Elle a besoin de se mettre au vert pour rebondir. Seulement, elle est trop fière pour tout avouer. Sa sœur Clare est méfiante mais lui propose quand même de s'installer dans sa petite maison avec ses enfants. Elle est divorcée et ne s'entend plus avec son ex. Elle galère pour joindre les deux bouts. Par contre elle est extrêmement douée à concocter des produits de beauté bio qui vont séduire une grande chaîne d'hôtellerie. Entre les sœurs, la relation aussi va gagner en douceur et sérénité car un fantôme plane sur leur famille et nul n'a jamais eu le cœur d'avouer ce traumatisme.
Ce retour aux sources est non seulement bénéfique pour notre citadine un brin bêcheuse (qui va évoluer et s'adapter... merci Harry Potter !). Mais c'est aussi vivifiant à lire, en tant que confinée résignée sur son sort depuis deux mois : imaginez la campagne anglaise, les jardins verdoyants, le soleil qui cogne, le calme environnant, le bonheur de vivre en toute simplicité... Quel bien fou !
Voilà, merci le hasard d'avoir permis cette rencontre.
Profile Image for C.
734 reviews16 followers
September 13, 2022
Another great read by Lucy Diamond, an author that I have come to highly admire recently!

This one dealt directly with two sisters, Polly and Clare, both of whom are estranged when the book begins. Through various circumstances, such as Polly's relocation and career change, along with Clare's stroke of luck and dealings with her ex-husband, the two become close once again, giving us all hope for our own family relationships.

Polly and Clare are very different characters at the start of this novel however I wasn’t particularly loving their personalities until the end when they develop into a nice middle. Polly was always over the top stressful as her life revolved around work and then she loses her job and realises she gave her life to a company that just see her as a number. As for Clare, she’s a bit stuck up with the whole ‘poor me’ attitude instead of seeing what she already has and should be more grateful, which her inner voice did realise at least.

I loved how Diamond wrote about the two sisters and their struggling relationship, making us believe in the difficulty that they faced as a result of their lives, which were vastly different in more ways than one.

I felt as though the plot was believable, especially in regards to the raw emotions expressed by both Polly and Clare. Such a great read that made me want to know more about what happens a few years down the road!

Review: https://clife.blog/2022/09/26/book-re...
Profile Image for madame Gabrielle.
796 reviews661 followers
August 16, 2021
coup de cœur pour cette auteure que je suis heureuse d’avoir découverte cet été. encore une fois, j’ai été charmée par les personnages, par l’écriture et j’ai eu l’impression de voyager avec Polly et de vivre — avec elle — ses hauts et ses bas.
Profile Image for Ulrika C:.
73 reviews
October 30, 2024
4.5⭐️
Summer with my sisters follows the two sisters Polly and Clare. Unfortunately the two sisters are estranged since Polly choose her job and a glamours life in London while Clare choose family and love and stayed in their childhood village Elderchurch. Clare is divorced with 2 children, Leila and Alex, and is struggling to make ends meet - a stark contrast to the single Polly with a super-high salary.

Things would likely have continue like that but suddenly Polly is called into a meeting. She was expecting a promotion but is instead made redundant on the spot from her job in London! Too proud to ask for help or claim unemployment benefits Polly tries to find another job to sort her situation. With a tough job market and bills pilling up, Polly is forced to put her luxury apartment on sale and move back home to her parents. This change of environment is made even harder as going back to Elderchurch makes Polly reminded of her younger brother Michael who passed away when she and Clare were teenagers. After Michael's death, Clare stop swimming and Polly broke up with her then boyfriend Jay.

What I like about Summer with my sister is the topics of estranged family relationships, grief and death, dealing with ex-husbands that have not limit on how much pain and emotional stress they put on their ex-wife, finding one's purpose and meaning as well as new beginnings. While some topics could be heavy at times, the book also had its funny moments as well.

I also like the dual point of view and the fact that I can relate to both Polly and Clare. I can relate to Polly being ambitious and making work the highest priority to the extent that the work becomes a part of her identity. Unfortunately her work did not appreciate Polly that much as she was made redundant on the spot when they work faced financial difficulties, taking zero account on how much time and effort Polly had put into that job. I also relate to Clare, caring about other people and feeling insecure. Clare had to step in when Polly treated her parent's home as a hotel visit, not making any effort to help out. Her parents even had to tiptoe around Polly in their own home! Clare cared so much about her parents so that she offered Polly to stay with her and her kids instead.

I also felt very much for Clare when the idea of her making a business of her hobby came into mind. Initially Clare doubted that she could do it (and struggling Polly was envious that her younger sister had better job prospects than her) but her friends, naming themselves Team Clare, made it happen. Everyone would like to have a Debbie and a Roxie in their lives! Eventually Polly realized that her life in London may not be want she wanted and makes some changes and new efforts to reconcile with her family and her ex-boyfriend Jay, help Clare with her business and bastard to ex-husband who tried to put Clare into troubles by making up accusations so he could take Leila and Alex with him and new girlfriend to Liverpool.

The main reason I did not give this book 5⭐️ instead of 4.5⭐️ is because the scene when Clare and Polly both confessed their "guilty" about Michael's death felt too rushed and too quickly resolved. I am very happy that Clare started swimming again and that Polly gave Jay and love another go, but it felt too quickly considering that the sisters have had the guilty for decades only to be resolved so quickly. I would not have wanted Clare to be upset when Polly confessed, as Polly feared, just some more time and conversation to feel that they have truly overcome their past trauma.
Profile Image for Rea Cobb.
441 reviews694 followers
June 23, 2012
I loved The Beach Cafe by Lucy Diamond last year and so it didn't take much persuading for me to buy her recent release Summer with my Sister.

It is quite clear from early on in this book that the two main characters Polly and Clare are two polls apart and they clearly do not get on and yet they are sisters! Polly has been living away from the family village and her parents are very prod at what she has achieved in her high powered job. Soon Polly's world is turned upside down when she is unexpectedly made redundant and with no other option she has to head back to live with her parents but she can't bring herself to tell her parents the truth.

Sister Clare is bringing up her tow children alone and is trying to hold a part time job down at the local surgery but it is getting harder to try and make ends meet. When she finds out her sister is coming back to stay with their parents she is less than excited about seeing her and instantly is curious as to the real reason of her sisters stay.

Will the sisters be able to put their differences aside and help each other out of their current situations?

When I first met our little workaholic Polly I have to say I didn't like her character and this was a little worrying as one of the most important parts of a good book is having a likeable character, but luckily as the book progresses and Polly returns home her character begins to change and I started to warm to her character. I instantly warmed to Clare who was a very realistic character struggling to juggle work and family life whilst trying to make ends meet something the majority of us can relate to.

The storyline wasn't too challenging and made for a great light hearted read, there were only a handful of characters which I love as there was no problem trying to remember who was who. I loved the build up the author created around the situation involving the girls brothers death this is what kept me turning the pages eager to find out what had happened.

This story is full of heartache, romance and family secrets which all rolled into one created a great sentimental read. I really enjoyed this book and it is well worth a read, but I still say The Beach Cafe is my favourite by this author!
Profile Image for Eve L-A Witherington.
Author 175 books53 followers
August 8, 2017
Polly loses her job despite success and is forced to return home from her lavish London life and moves back in with their mum and dad but memories haunt her of her brother suffering in her care...

Clara is Polly's sister with her son and daughter, Alex who's eight and Leila as well as their dog, Fred. She works one day in the reception of the medical center and can't afford much but cares so much for her little family even when bad things happen or the kids dad arrives out of the blue and things get a bit stressy.

Clara is about to see her sister isn't as perfect as she thought and maybe they are more alike when hard times come, family is always there.

Debbie's Claire's best friend who is very rich and also despite her husband being Leila's dad her life isn't all roses...

This was a fun book with so much drama in each woman's life it kept me hooked and reading on. The writing was fun and witty and drew me in to read it all in a day, many of the women are in relatable situations too.
Profile Image for Nicola Clough.
879 reviews43 followers
July 27, 2015
A really enjoyable summer read I found I just wanted to keep reading more to find out what was going to happen next. Excellent characters and well written Lucy Diamond never lets you down. Polly is a career girl and has reached the top and works really hard her sister is a single mum and is trying to juggle working at a Drs as a receptionist. Polly looses her job and decides to come home to live with her parents but she tells them and her sister that she is working on some work at home and needs peace and not living in London in fact she has to sell her London flat as she can't afford it. She moves home and tries to avoid everyone as she doesn't want the past catching up with her and she can't understand why the family have stayed in the little village. She lost her brother at a young age and she blames herself and the sister Clare also blames herself can they come to terms and build he bridges between the family and it all work out well for them. A excellent read.
434 reviews4 followers
June 6, 2012
Polly Johnson lives in London she has a good job she is a workaholic with an excellent salary, however all that changes and Polly has to move back home to Elderchurch in her mother and Fathers spare room. She hasn’t told her parents and sister the real reason for her return but why?
Polly’s sister Clare is the opposite of her sister she is a single mum she works part time at the local surgery she struggles with money and has no maintenance from her ex Steve.
The two sisters are not close and don’t talk Clare is not pleased with the news of her sisters return, however Polly and Clare end up staying under the same roof for the summer.
But does Polly stay in Elderchurch or return to London?
I loved this book I couldn’t put it down, I would definitely recommend, I read this book in one day in work on a rainy quiet Friday.
Profile Image for Ximena Iglesias.
186 reviews5 followers
July 24, 2015
This was a light breezy ready perfect for when on holidays. Polly and Clare are sisters with very different lives who haven't spoken for years. Polly has a fast paced life working in finance in the city while Clare is a single mum living in the country struggling to make ends meet. After being made redundant unexpectedly, Polly has to move back to the village where she grew up while she takes stock of her life and what she wants to do next. Both sisters have to face a buried family secret and in the process become closer to each other.
Profile Image for Kim.
2,146 reviews63 followers
June 13, 2012
I'm so glad that I picked this book up- I really felt like a nice comforting read. I loved this one from the start. Polly wasn't a likeable character to start with- but she was really interesting! She's a high flyer who gets made redundant and loses her high risk investments and her London Pad. She's forced to move back in with her family over the summer. She resists family life for a while- but is gradually drawn into their lives.
Profile Image for Nessa.
1,954 reviews71 followers
December 17, 2015
Absolutely wonderful book, truly enjoyed reading this from start to finish. A nice easy read which I finished in two days. Love Lucy Diamond books, can't wait to read them all.
Profile Image for Maria.
382 reviews
April 26, 2018
Another great read by Lucy Diamond, an author that I have come to highly admire recently! This one dealt directly with two sisters, Polly and Clare, both of whom are estranged when the book begins. Through various circumstances, such as Polly's relocation and career change, along with Clare's stroke of luck and dealings with her ex-husband, the two become close once again, giving us all hope for our own family relationships. I loved how Diamond wrote about the two sisters and their struggling relationship, making us believe in the difficulty that they faced as a result of their lives, which were vastly different in more ways than one. I felt as though the plot was believable, especially in regards to the raw emotions expressed by both Polly and Clare. Such a great read that made me want to know more about what happens a few years down the road!
Profile Image for Jennifer.
495 reviews16 followers
March 4, 2021
I had tried to read this book previously but didn’t even make it past the first page. I abandoned it but I’m so glad I came back to it. It definitely surprised me and I really enjoyed it. Polly is very work oriented, working in London in finance. When out of no where she’s been laid off or made redundant. She tries so hard to find a job but no one is hiring and then out of no where the fancy apartment that she owns, she can no longer afford.

Claire is Pollys older sister who stayed near her parents and raised her two children with her ex Steve (who quite frankly was really sexist and just your plain average ex husband, not nice at all). Anyways Polly ends up having to move home and the two sisters who are estranged start to bond when Polly moves in with her. They start to open up and realize that they were meant to be friends and not enemies and help each other out. I had mixed emotions on Polly as I felt like she was just floating along taking advantage of people but then she started to change as the book progressed and it changed my opinion on her. Overall it was a lovely book and I can’t wait for summer!
Profile Image for ForticheKty.
444 reviews3 followers
March 4, 2026
J’ai eu un peu de mal à entrer dans l’histoire : la working girl en tailleur et talons de 12 cm qui vit à Londres, et « qui a gravi, un à un, à la force des poignets, les barreaux de l’échelle professionnelle » et qui « pour rien au monde n’aurait sauté du train de la réussite » j’avais un peu le sentiment de déjà lu depuis les années 90 et les premiers Sophie Kinsella… Mais l’intrigue prend un tournant intéressant avec les deux sœurs qui se retrouvent dans leur village d’enfance du Hampshire. Le roman devient alors impossible à lâcher.
Profile Image for Jas Shearsmith.
63 reviews
July 28, 2018
A relatable and heartwarming journey of two sisters. A great read, especially during summer!
54 reviews
December 1, 2019
Really enjoyed the story and the relationship that builds between the characters. I definitely wasn't disappointed. 4.5 stars
Profile Image for Lisa.
111 reviews2 followers
April 1, 2023
Une très belle lecture, qui donne du baume au cœur.
Profile Image for Elise Porter.
67 reviews1 follower
August 2, 2024
Very easy read which I really enjoyed! The sister relationship felt super authentic and very well written!
Profile Image for Beth.
16 reviews
August 23, 2024
Lovely wee book enjoyed it but nothing crazy and probably won’t think about it too much, but nice wee read all the same
Profile Image for clair Keller.
214 reviews1 follower
May 6, 2025
A lovely story the cover I’ve read is different
Profile Image for Helena Wildsmith.
478 reviews8 followers
May 21, 2024
I absolutely love Lucy Diamond's books and this one was no exception! The perfect book to curl up on the sofa and read with a hot chocolate - fantastic characters and a gorgeous plot.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 263 reviews