The Island House

by Nancy Thayer

New York Times bestselling author Nancy Thayer evokes the shimmering seascape of Nantucket in a delightful novel that resonates with the heartache and hope of growing up, growing wise, and the bittersweet choices we must be brave enough to make.
Courtney Hendricks will never forget the magical summers she spent on Nantucket with her college roommate, Robin Vickerey, and Robin's charismatic, turbulent, larger-than-life family, in their gorgeous island house. Now a college English professor in Kansas City, Courtney is determined to experience one more summer in this sun-swept paradise. Her reason for going is personal: Courtney needs to know whether Robin's brother James shares the feelings she's secretly had for him.
Time with the Vickerey family always involves love and laughter, and this season is no different. Vivacious matriarch Susanna Vickerey is celebrating her sixtieth birthday, but beneath the merriment, trouble is brewing. The family patriarch, Dr. Alastair Vickerey, is quiet and detached, while unspoken tension looms over oldest son Henry, a respected young surgeon. Warm and witty Robin, the most grounded of the siblings, is keeping a secret from her parents. Iris, the colorful baby of the brood, remains rudderless and in need of guidance. And the sexy, stunningly handsome, untouchable James--to Courtney's dismay--may be in love with a beautiful and vibrant local artist. As the summer unfolds, a crisis escalates, surprising truths are revealed, and Courtney will at last find out where her heart and her future lie.
Weaving the trials and uncertainty of real life into a tapestry of passion, hope, and courage, The Island House is a beautifully told story about the ties that bind us--and how the blessings of love and family heal us in ways we never dream possible.
Praise for The Island House
-Thayer's latest should be filed under a Best Beach Reads of 2016 list. . . . The characters are complex and their struggles and concerns feel real. . . . Thayer has a really wonderful ability to showcase the meaning of family.---RT Reviews
-A perfect book to read while sticking your toes in the sand this summer!- --Bookish Devices
-A touching story about friendship, family, and the uncertainty of love.---Bustle
Praise for Nancy Thayer
The Guest Cottage
-A sweet book with romance, laughter, and love after loss . . . Thayer knows her Nantucket history, and it shines in this book.---RT Book Reviews
-It's a pleasant escape to a state of mind in which rebuilding a life is as simple as pitching an umbrella and spreading out a towel.---Kirkus Reviews
Nantucket Sisters

-Thayer obviously knows her Nantucket, and the strong sense of place makes this the perfect escapist book for the summer, particularly for fans of Elin Hilderbrand.---Booklist

-Thayer keeps readers on the edge of their seats with her dramatic story spanning the girls' childhood to adulthood. This wonderful beach read packs a punch.---Library Journal
Island Girls

-A book to be savored and passed on to the good women in your life.---Susan Wiggs

-Full of emotion and just plain fun, this novel is delightful.- --Romance Reviews Today

Genres: Fiction, Romance, Chick Lit, Beach Reads, Summer Reads, Summer, Contemporary

309 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 31, 2016

About the author

Nancy Thayer has published 35 novels, including Family Reunion and Secrets in Summer. She has lived on Nantucket Island year-round for 38 years with her husband Charley Walters. They have two children and five grandchildren.

Reviews

[Ang · Rating 2 out of 5]

Holy crap, this was terrible. Nancy Thayer has really lost her touch. I think it's either that she needs a better editor (though her editor for former books was fine...) or that she needs to stop churning books out so quickly.

No really, this was an AWFUL outing for an author that I normally really enjoy. I feel sad, because I know this means I'll be less likely to pick up Thayer's books in future summers.

[Nancyann · Rating 1 out of 5]

I am puzzled by all the four and five star reviews. The Island House was a really bad book even for a summer beach read. I was unfamiliar with Nancy Thayer's writing and picked up the book at the library because I liked the jacket art. Who doesn't enjoy a novel of Nantucket? It certainly works for Erin Hilderbrand and with Erin I shall stick. The Island House is the cutesy story of "summer children" and interactions over the years with the actual children of the local Vickereys. An elaborate birthday party is in the works for the matriarch of this extended family, all hands are on deck to help with the celebration, and all sorts of predictable lovers' misadventures ensue. Boring and insipid, the dialog between our two main characters Courtney and James appears to have been written by naïve eleven year old girls who think this is what lovers sound like. Seriously, it read like pre-teen angst. I was determined to finish the book (and I did) certain that it would get better. It did not.

[Suzanne · Rating 3 out of 5]

I started off really liking this book - loved the Vickereys, loved Courtney and some of the other supporting characters. A little more than halfway through, I was ready for the book to be over. The arguments between so many of the main characters became wearying. And Robin's "super big secret?" Yawn. I mean, it was a cool thing, but I don't get the secrecy at all! Then again, I am a "landlubber" living in the Midwest, so maybe I'm missing something. I thought the book really fell apart when Monty came to Nantucket. Wouldn't someone who had been a lifelong friend understood when you said you weren't in love with him? And then the ending - everyone suddenly paired off, no matter how "new" the relationship - Monty & Pearl (really?!), Christabel and Julian, Robin & Callum. On the plus side, at least Courtney and James finally got together!

[Mayra · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book started out so promising. Courtney, a darling Kansas girl, goes to Smith and meets Robin from Nantucket. Courtney spends her summers on the island with Robin's family the Vickery's and quickly becomes one of the summer children. The author flashes back and forth between the past and present. We spend ample time understanding Courtney's rural upbringing with her outrageously handsome best friend Monty Blackhorse and we know that presently Courtney is in love with James, brother to current best friend Robin. Then the train derailed. Nothing tied together, it was quite unbelievable at times and the unimportant details were more than I could bear.
Also, the language was so old fashioned I had to keep reminding myself that this book was set in the present. I skimmed the last half of the book and found it to be a disappointing read.

[Peebee · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was bad bad bad. I don't even want to waste time explaining why, after wasting the time it took to finish the book. But one thing really annoyed me: every single time a certain character (Jacob) was mentioned, the author had to remind us that he was fat. There was no other character development, and in a book where everyone seems to end up with someone during the course of the book (not a spoiler, it's what happens in these kinds of books) it's no shocker that he lost the game of romantic musical chairs. Everything else, just banal, but that was offensive. That, and not distinguishing between Missouri and Kansas when Courtney lived and worked in Kansas City, Missouri.

[Judy Collins · Rating 3 out of 5]

A special thank you to Random House and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Nancy Thayer returns to the island of Nantucket with THE ISLAND HOUSE, with her summer beach installment-- the story of two best friends, Courtney and Robin. From children, loves, secrets, friends, and family and lots of summer drama. (a lot of players; not a lot of depth).

Meet the Vickerey Family, the Summer Children, the Family Friends, and the Cowboy.

• Vickerey Family: Alastair- father, Susanna- mother, Henry-oldest child, Robin-youngest daughter, James-second son, Iris-second daughter.
• Vickereys’ Summer Children: Valerie-Henry’s friend/love, Jacob-Henry’s best male friend, Courtney-Robin’s best friend, Callum Findlay-James best friend, Pearl-Iris’s best friend.
• The Family Friends: Quinn Eliot, Christabel-Quinn’s daughter
• The Cowboy: Monty Blackhorse

The summer children -what Susanna (now 60) called her four children’s best friends who spend every summer in the Vickery home, even though those children were adults and had been for years.

Courtney is returning to Nantucket for Suzanna’s sixtieth birthday. She had come to the island eleven years ago and every summer since. Nantucket was like her second home. James Vickerey was the real reason for returning. She had been in love with him since she first met him. After what happened to them, she knew she had to return to the island for one more summer.

However, Monty Blackhorse adds to her confusion.

From the Midwest, now an accomplished university professor, at twenty-nine, she is caught between two men and two different lifestyles. She is here in Nantucket to figure it all out.

From family, secrets, lovers, friends, mental illness, passions, romance, and relationships. A light fluff summer beach read.

Sorry guys you are reading this once again. As I have mentioned previously, I really enjoyed Nancy’s older books (have read them all)—was a huge fan; however, over the last several years, the author has steered away from her earlier absorbing, engaging, and suspenseful style. The same with Elin Hilderbrand. I keep reading and waiting, and it is not happening. Guess I need to move on. Please go back and find your earlier groove. It worked! Your fans miss your earlier work. I have read other similar feedback from fans. I keep hoping and waiting.

[Mary Q · Rating 1 out of 5]

Struggled to finish this book and I wish I hadn't bothered. I have enjoyed this author in the past, but this book is dreadful. Basically just variations of the same 4 conversations over and over again until it stops. Right before it finally stops, add some whales. Not sure what editor was thinking. Will likely put me off this author for good.

[Jessica · Rating 2 out of 5]

A disappointing read not up to par with her other work. I only finished it as quick as I did because I was home sick.

[Toni · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read this in a few days after looking for a light read. This certainly fit the bill. Interestingly though, in addition to all the typical characters you would expect in a beach read, the members of the primary characters of one family, struggled with mental illness. This part raised the level up a notch, since it was developed quite well.
However, the drama of everyone else in the novel drowned out that little story. Doesn't it always seem to work that way?! Not bad.

[Suzi (Lil Bit Reads) · Rating 1 out of 5]

I rarely leave a written review these days, but I can't not say something about this book. I have read many of Thayer's other books... she'll never be considered great literature, but she can usually be counted on for a nice, fluffy, Nantucket-based beach read. This book was based in Nantucket, but the story was dreadful and not up to Ms. Thayer's usual standards. Completely unrealistic and insipid dialogue, shallow characters and relationships, and lots of telling rather than showing. Ms. Thayer's treatment of a serious mental illness was cavalier and insulting, referring to it as an eccentricity, quirk, kink, oddity, etc. The book's attitude toward women seemed stuck in the 1950s. I can't recommend anything about this story.

[Eva • All Books Considered · Rating 3 out of 5]

Review originally posted at All Books Considered: 3 STARS

I feel like summer requires books by Elin Hilderbrand, Nancy Thayer, etc . . . probably because they all release a new book every summer and it's usually set in the summer. How I long to visit Nantucket and see if it really is as amazing as these authors describe. This book, once again, sets us right in the heart of Nantucket and in the midst of a fun and sprawling family. The matriarch, Susanna, has always had "summer children," the name she gives to the best friends of her four children that have spent a lot of summers living in the family's huge house on Nantucket. This summer it's her 60th birthday and all her summer children return for the party, each with their own secrets. What worked me was the setting and the family but the first half of the book (before the real conflict) was so much better than the second half. Still an enjoyable read and I'll add it to my beach reads shelf for that particular mood!

Pick this one up if you want a contemporary beach read although I much preferred Nancy's release last summer, The Guest Cottage. I also always have to recommend Elin Hilderbrand's backlist for the BEST Nantucket settings.

You would think, Courtney, thought, that a woman as versed in literature as Courtney would not be surprised by anything that happened between a man and a woman.

You would think that any woman, no matter what she did, couldn't be shocked by any man if she had grown up with a father, a brother and a male best friend.

[Olivia Sickelka · Rating 1 out of 5]

Ughhhh I almost DNF this book. It was such a slog to get through! A lot of the dialogue was just not realistic. What 27-year-old woman is saying phrases like “I would like to make love to you” ???? PLEASE. Not one of Nance’s best. Sorry boo.

[Kristen · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. Enjoyed a lot for a beachy read.

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good solid read about a family living in Nantucket. Liked it because not everyone was perfect. There were some ups and downs that dealt with mental health issues.

[Susan Crowe]

I gave this 2 (long) chapters and I just can't get into it. I usually don't let reviews of others influence a book for me but when I was having a hard time with this book grabbing me, I glanced to see what my other goodreads Buddies thought. I see I'm not alone. the only thing being, I'm not going to suffer through. I have too many others on my TBR list to just settle on ok. Sorry, but I'll definitely try her earlier books because it seems those are so much better. no star rating for this one.

[Morgan Schell · Rating 3 out of 5]

Provided by NG in exchanged for an honest review.

  This book took longer than I anticipated to finish, and that is because I would lose interest at times. My mom is a fan of Nancy Thayer and I wanted to give her books a try, but this one at least moved far too slowly to keep my attention. The story lines were good and held some interest, but not often enough personally.

[Susan • BryantParkBooks · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have loved most of Nancy Thayer's books, but this one was such a dud. Horrible discussion of mental health, native Americans, and women's roles. Absolute pass.

[Mary Clare · Rating 1 out of 5]

No. Just no. Amazed I finished this.

[Mary Jackson _TheMaryReader · Rating 5 out of 5]

My first book by Nancy but not my last I am on the hunt for more of her books. I loved the family and the island life. This was a really good read.

[Bernadette Chappell · Rating 4 out of 5]

My first book by Nancy Thayer but, it won't be my last.

[Morgan M · Rating 1 out of 5]

I mean.... this book is pretty bad.... I’ve never only given 1 star before. If it weren’t for my pride of having to finish what I start, I wouldn’t have kept reading this one. But hey somehow I got through it!

[Lynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

A light summer read. Great characters. terrific setting on Nantucket Island. Very predictable plot and ending. Just what you want to read on a lazy summer afternoon. I love these books for pure mindless escapism .

[Maha · Rating 2 out of 5]

I picked The Island House as my first summer read to welcome the lovely summer. I was prepared to immerse myself in the beautiful lines and enjoy.
The Island House starts with Courtney, a 29 years old young woman, taking the ferry to Nantucket to spend the summer months at her friend’s house. As she reflects back, we know that she’s been doing that every year since she first met her best friend Robin in college. Robin’s mother, Susanna Vickerey, has always welcomed her children’s friends at her home calling them her summer children. That house has always fascinated Courtney with its lifestyle that is different from hers. She was always welcomed as part of the family. There, she used to work for the summer. Though the pay was very rewarding, that was not the only reason for her to go there. She has always felt something special for Robin’s younger brother, James.
Now, Courtney is no more a student. She has a career but still she feels the urge to stay at her friend’s summer house. Courtney reflects on her past and through those reflections and the present time the story unfolds. Everyone have their own little secrets, but at some point each needs to make his own decision when secrets are no more secrets.
Well, I am sorry to say that The Island House didn’t live up to my expectations. I kept reading hoping for the story to unfold. However, Courtney kept reflecting on her past. I almost reached half the book empty handed with nothing actually happening. The story wasn’t moving on as if we were locked in the past. It wasn’t even like those novels when some chapters are in previous time. No, it was just scattered here and there. I had to go back to Amazon and Goodreads to check if this book was a part of a series or something because that’s how it felt to me. I felt like the author had to fill me up on some old events in previous books in the series. Because, if that is not the case, why not have those old events as the main story in the first place?! I was distracted and frustrated.
To add up to my frustration, some of the “big” secrets were not that big. To be honest, they were so trivial. They were no secrets at all unless you can call loving to watch wales in the sea in the middle of the night a “Big Secret” that you have to think a zillion times before telling anyone about it!!
Finally, I really tried to love this book. I usually think a lot before giving a low rating for a book. I don’t even quit any book unread. That said, I have endured the book till the end. I believe that the author has a good writing style but something went wrong in this book. I think I can try some of her other books later before deciding on that.

**Special thanks to NetGalley & Ballantine Books for supplying my copy of this book in exchange for an honest and unbiased review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. **

For all my reviews please visit http://www.meshascorner.net

[Marta · Rating 2 out of 5]

After thoroughly enjoying The Guest Cottage, I was looking forward to another great beach read from Nancy Thayer. Sadly, this was not great.

The story centers of the Vickerey family of Nantucket - a well-off medical family, with each family member having their own issues. Henry, the eldest child, has bipolar disorder; Robin is attached to the island but a bit aimless; James is terrified of the bipolar disorder running in his family genes; and Iris, the youngest, is figuring out what she wants to do next.

Courtney is a “summer child,” the college best friend of the second eldest child, Robin, who comes to visit the island each summer and lovingly cared for by matriarch Susanna (while patriarch Dr. V, a world-renowned surgeon is a bit detached but afford the family a lovely lifestyle). Courtney lives primarily in Kansas City, remaining close to her childhood best friend Monty Blackhorse, but is drawn to Nantucket and a certain someone who lives there.

The characters, plot, and writing are clunky. I don’t feel like I got to know any of the characters beyond their relationships to each other. Courtney, the main protagonist, is the most fleshed out, but I’m still unclear why she’s in love with James. The book alternates (at random) with Robin’s POV, and it did not seem necessary - just that Thayer really wanted to work in a (also unnecessary) plot device that I won’t spoil here... (even though it’s kind of lame, honestly).

There was a ton of repetition and extraneous verbosity that could have been addressed with a solid editing session. Numerous times, I thought “didn’t I just read that on the last page?” and I had!

I found myself rolling my eyes at the purported drama. I didn’t root for the characters, really. They aren’t bad - just blah.

I just kind of wanted this one to be over. The book does a good enough job drawing out the “secrets” and twists enough to make you keep reading, but when the secrets were revealed, I kept asking “Is that all? That’s what we’ve been waiting for?”

This was not a book worth waiting for.

[Brandi Walker · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was about a quarter of the way through this book when I nearly gave up and tossed it to the DNF pile. Then realized it would be prime snark material for my first ever Goodreads review.

I’ve often thought of Nancy Thayer as the poor man’s Elin Hilderbrand. Reading one of Thayer’s books is much like drinking generic soda: it’s somewhat familiar yet you can tell, oh you can tell, it’s not the real thing. And this book? It was akin the picking up some bootleg/ fake Diet Mountain Dew. Bad, bad, so bad.

The main female characters are simpering and stupid. The male characters are just plain stupid. No one is likeable and nothing is close to realistic or relateable. And the way Thayer addresses mental illness can only be described as, well, just plain gross.

If I could give this book negative stars, I certainly would. To be honest, I feel like Nancy Thayer owes ME for the time I lost while reading this mess. The best thing I can say about it is that I only rented it from the library and was out nothing but time.

[Piepie | The Napping Bibliophile · Rating 3 out of 5]

To me, this book sounded more promising than what it really was. At the beginning, I was confused by all the characters and flashbacks, but at about the 30% mark, when we found out more about Robin's lover, the story grew more interesting.

There were no "earth- shattering" moments in this story. Nothing shocked me. Everything was fairly predictable. I did like the New England summer setting, and the end with the whales. However, Robin's new love interest seemed to come out of nowhere, and I felt as if I didn't really know him.

In the end, this story did have its good points, but it wasn't outstanding. The biggest issue I had with it was the emphasis on having children. WHYYYYY. I felt so sure that James would bring Courtney round!

(crossposted to netgalley)

[Mary · Rating 2 out of 5]

I don't think this book deserved the scathing reviews it received from some. However, it is the definition of a light summer read. A young woman who spends her summers with her college roommate's family on Nantucket has loved the roommate's brother from afar. She returns for one more summer to find out if he feels the same. All the Vickery children and their summer friends have relationship issues. There is a warm earth mother who watches over everyone and a gruff father whose facade almost cracks at one point; and what is with the ridiculous thing with the whales? There was no real suspense and no couples you could really like. I soldiered on and finished it. It wasn't awful, but it wasn't that great, either.

[Megan · Rating 2 out of 5]

I started off really liking this book and the Vickery family but I hated how each character in the book was basically having the same exact story as the next, with just a little twist put in. Henry and Valerie? Want to get married, but Henry has bipolar. Robin and Quinn? Want to get married but no one knows about their secret relationship. James and Courtney? Want to get married but don't want bipolar kids. This one irritated me the most. They weren't even dating, yet instead of discussing dating, they go right into discussing children!? Definitely disappointed with this one.

[Emily · Rating 2 out of 5]

Meh. This was my first Nancy Thayer book, and I suspect it will also be my last. It’s packed with cliches and stereotypes, some bordering on offensive, but mostly just annoying. Cloying at times. Characters I couldn’t relate to and didn’t really care about. Silly, implausible plot twists, and too many subplots. There were some parts that were cute and fun, and I did warm up to Courtney and Robin’s friendship, but I can’t think of many other pluses. Passed the time on a lengthy train trip.

[Jackie Stanton · Rating 2 out of 5]

Such a disappointment. I usually love Nancy Thayer's summer novels, set in Nantucket, but this one was so utterly predictable, repetitive and filled with cliched characters that I could barely finish it without wondering if an editor ever got his/her hands on the manuscript before it was published.