One Silver Summer

by Rachel Hickman

The thinking girl's summer beach read: A romantic, dramatic, sweeping story of first love and family secrets.

After a car accident claims her mother's life, Sass is sent to Cornwall to live with the uncle she's never met. All she wants is to be alone, to come to terms with the new Sass -- the girl who can't forget the screech of tires, the crunch of metal.

With its rocky beaches and secluded fields, Cornwall is the perfect place to hide. It gets even better when Sass glimpses a silver horse and starts sneaking off to spend time with the one creature who makes her grief feel manageable.

During one of her visits, Sass runs into Alex, the horse's owner. At first, he shows nothing but disdain for the trespassing American. But despite his brusque manner, he feels an affinity for the curious girl with the sad eyes, and offers to teach her to ride.

Sass never expected to feel anything again, yet soon she finds herself falling for Alex. But Alex has a secret -- a bombshell that could shatter Sass's fragile trust. . . and force him to abandon the only girl who made him believe in true love.

Genres: Young Adult, Romance, Contemporary, Teen, Realistic Fiction, Fiction, Royalty

277 pages, Paperback

First published April 26, 2016

About the author

Rachel Hickman is the co-founder of Chicken House, the acclaimed children's book publishing company. She lives in Hampshire, England. One Silver Summer is her first novel.

Reviews

[jv poore · Rating 5 out of 5]

Despite knowing full well that I was reading-for-review, I became so caught up in the very love story that little-girl-me always dreamed of, that I devoured this book like a starved Cookie Monster demolishes cookies. Even at this frantic pace, I was aware of the ‘something more’ to the story---hints were subtle, yet almost undeniable---perhaps somewhat subliminal.

One Silver Summer is more than the whole-hearted-head-over-heels love story of a shattered girl and a stunning, spirited mare. There are mysteries to be solved: what horrific happening has sent Sass across the pond to live with the uncle she only just learned of? Maybe that’s moot. Perhaps this was her path all along—the past has a tendency to come back, after all.

The guarded groomsman, Alexander, is a bit of a mystery himself. To Sass, his mannerisms don’t seem to fit his position, although understanding hierarchy is not her forte—no need for that in New York City. His moods shifts are also perplexing. Sometimes he seems relaxed and happy with company, while other times he’s oddly secretive and suspicious.

Sass and the silver horse are certainly central, but Alexander, his quite proper British grandmother, and affable artist, Uncle David, take the tome to another level. A love story in the broadest sense: fondness developing among family members just getting familiar; the unconditional, admiring adoration between grandparent and grandchild; forbidden love, lost in a flash (but with a lingering fondness); and love formed from empathy and nostalgia.

Also, this is a story of learning to separate who you are from a persona based solely on other people’s perceptions. A reminder of the need to be flexible, reflective and always open-minded. An understanding that even adults must continue to grow, to adapt---not to survive, but to thrive. A narrative of hope and heartbreak that is fantastically fabulous. Immediately after reading the very last words, Acknowledgements and About the Author; I turned to the first page read the entire book again.

This review was written for Buried Under Books by jv poore.

[Alice-Elizabeth (Prolific Reader Alice) · Rating 2 out of 5]

DISCLAIMER- Before I read this book, I was informed by the publisher that the copy of the ARC I received for being part of a book club was the wrong version. My thoughts are off this version since I decided to go ahead and read it.

The setting is in Cornwall and Sass, a girl from Brooklyn, USA is sent to live with her Uncle after her mother dies in a car accident. Forced to start afresh, her travels lead her to a silver horse and visits just to watch the horse end up being revealed when she meets Alex, the owner of the horse. He has secrets of his own and has no desire to become friends with Sass until the moment horse riding lessons change that. Both of them then start to experience strange feelings for the other person but a jealous student that Alex knows as well as an investigative journalist who writes celebrity and show biz stories for a national newspaper drop the ultimate betrayal.

I am interested to read stories that involve horses and equestrian topics in general so it was refreshing to see Cornwall landscape and horse riding together. However, I really struggled to connect with either Sass or Alex, the pacing at times was incredibly choppy and the ending was rather abrupt. Even though this was the wrong version, sadly I will not been interested in reading a new version. This simply was not for me and overall, I was disappointed.

I don't mind stories with some insta-love in but in One Silver Summer, it happened so quickly that even I got taken off guard by it.

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[Kirsti · Rating 2 out of 5]

What a sapfest! Don't get me wrong, I adore a bit of well timed angst, but this took it to the next level and beyond. Everything was FEELINGS and EMOTIONS and just...blugh. I also generally like romance and like Horse books, and although this is both of these it disappoints on all fronts. The romance happens far too quickly and for no discernible reason; even rich haughty Grandma thinks about it and realizes they have horses in common........and that's it? But Sass the Mary Sue is 'like no other girl before her' so there's that, I guess.

Can you tell I didn't like it? Mmm. I hope so. It gets two stars for the horse but not much for anything else. Not my cup if tea, I need more horses. Two stars.

[Kass Morgan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've had fictional crushes before, but I've never fallen head-over-heels in love with a character like I did with Alex! This gorgeously-written book swept me away to the English seacoast, taking me on a romantic adventure like no other.

[MichellemyBelle · Rating 2 out of 5]

A sweet YA. I struggled to get through this one, and did not finish at 39%. The premise sounded read worthy, yet the one dimensional characters fell flat for me. Their story had everything the blurb promised, but nothing more. There is an ornery prince who stumbles upon a down to earth commoner. He hides who he is, she finds out and becomes angry before confronting him. He reveals the truth, everything becomes right in the world as they continue to fall madly in love. . I lost interest, however the potential for a plot twist, big secret reveal, or the addition of more conflict with an antagonist seemed imminent.

[Emily Simpson · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't like this book very much because it was really boring and it dragged the story along and took a long time for it to get interesting.

[Louise · Rating 3 out of 5]

Synopsis:

Alex runs home to Cornwall – his parents’ divorce has hit the tabloids, and his Grandmother’s Cornish estate is the only place Alex feels able to hide. There he meets Sass.
Sass’s mother was killed in a car crash. Sass has moved from her native Brooklyn, to live with the uncle she never knew. Like Alex, she heads outdoors to take refuge from her feelings. The young couple bond over shared admiration of the silver mare, Bo.
Initially wary, Alex allows his feelings for Sass to develop. She is not the kind of girl his family would like him to marry, but the eyes of the world are on Alex, waiting for a juicy love story. At least … the eyes of the gossip columnists, who know how to exploit a young person’s feelings to get the story they are after ….
Will Sass ever stand a chance with Alex, or can their relationship only ever be confined to one silver summer?

It is difficult to talk about One Silver Summer in any depth without a spoiler. Not a major spoiler; there is something about Alex we learn a fifth of the way into the narrative. He is Prince of England. I guessed – the story is not about William or Harry, but the theme of press intrusion reminded me of things they have spoken out about. The storyline about Alex’s parents, too, is deliciously Di and Charles, right down to the Queen sloping off to Balmoral. Personally, I find the story more interesting in light of its real-life influences. The portrayal of Alex’s mother, Seraphina, is particularly interesting if she is a counterpart to Princess Diana. Seraphina – and don’t you love the name? An angel? – is superficially delicate, but knows how to work the press to her advantage. If she is a counterpart to Princess Diana, Seraphina challenges the angelic image popularised after Diana’s death.

The discussion of press intrusion is long overdue in YA, particularly when such major findings have been made. Again, it is the real-life aspect which works for me – how might it have been become ‘fair game’ to the tabloids at the age of 16? Why might a Prince like Alex prefer a girl with windswept hair to a Lady on the upper-class social circuit?

The most interesting character is Alex’s maternal Grandmother Helena. While the rest of his family are either busy with their own lives, or constructing an image for him to present to society, Helena wants what is best for him. She weighs up her ill-fated wartime romance alongside the reality of popular opinion, neither prejudiced towards Sass nor oblivious to the attention such a relationship might attract.
The story is told from multiple perspectives. I might enjoy this if it were limited to Alex and Sass, but there are times when character-development is delayed due to the deluge of voices. Upper-class opportunist Plum Benoist narrates, as does gossip columnist Cressida Slater, and stable girl Amy. And Helena, and Uncle David … The effect of this is none of these characters develop very much, and some storylines are left unresolved. Uncle David makes a major revelation at the end of the book, but we never see Sass’s reaction. As dramatic irony, I would like it earlier in the book. Otherwise, why not show the conversation between Sass and David? Why are we left only with David’s musings?

As a dreamy romance, it falls short. The main characters develop less because of the multiple narratives. As a consideration of tabloid intrusion in the lives of people in the public eye, it is worth a read.

[Autumn Keesling · Rating 4 out of 5]

This lovely book was exactly the fluff I needed! A fun story of young love that takes place in a far off place. It really set me in that summer reading mood.

[Brittany (whatbritreads) · Rating 2 out of 5]

I've read quite a few young adult contemporary romances and this one just fell flat to me.

Firstly, I think because it was so short it stunted character development so much that nobody really had a personality and ever character seemed the same. There were two background female characters in this that barely had a voice at all and were essentially useless and contributed little to the plot.

One of the most irritating bits of the book was the unnecessary elements of girl hate. All of the young female characters were either mean or bitter, because they were all obviously in love with the male protagonist. The mean girl vibe just felt off.

The ending felt rushed, there were several things that happened that were never acknowledged or resolved again which, leaving a lot of loose ends. Reading this all in one sitting made the insta-love almost irritating.

I think it had potential, the plot line was fine and there was a story there it just wasn't executed well unfortunately. Considering the characters were supposed to be 15/16, the writing was fairly juvenile and I can't imagine many teenagers this age acting like this. Not the worst book I've ever read, and something younger teenagers may enjoy but I think it is clear it was written by somebody proficient in children's rather than young adult fiction.

[Faith Wisniewski]

Student Name:Faith Wisniewski Date Submitted:4/2/19
Book Title: One Silver Summer Lexile:670L

Personal Response: Personally One Silver Summer was very boring to me. There was no real romance or action. The author also used very poor wording.

Book Summary: One Silver Summer is a book about a girl named Sass whose mom passed away so she moved from New Jersey in America to England. Sass faced lots of mourning problems trying to get over her mom's sudden death. She also misses her old friends that she lost all contact with when she moved. While in England she finally starts to trust her uncle and also the strange boy down the street. Sass doesn't realize that the boy is famous so Alex is very appreciative of her company since she doesn't want his money or to be famous the Alex ends up falling for Sass. Sass secretly likes the boy too. Sass and Alex end up as boyfriend and girlfriend in the end.

Recommendation: I would recommend this book to middle school kids who like romance. This book is very filtered. In my opinion, the book is very slow paced.

[Mara · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book One Silver Summer by Rachel Hickman would be named as a realistic fiction book and is not part of a series. One Silver Summer is about a girl name Sass which is short for Saskia Chapel. She had a rough life so far and has recently moved to a place in Cornwall. When she was here she got amazed by a horse which led Sass on a private property estate. The boy from the estate is named Alex. She got caught by him and he asked her if she would want to learn how to ride. She of course said yes. Then on Alex and Sass learned more about each other. Sass learned to trust him and he did as well. This book was so amazing to read that I would give it a 10/10 for rating. This is because it was so real but imaginary at the same time.

If you like Two Summers by Aimee Friedman you may also like One Silver Summer by Rachel Hickman.

[Catherine Pinkett · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovely romance with a very recognizable plot line.

[Sarah Bell · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was very excited when the publishing house let me receive an ARC of this book and I wanted to like it, even love it SO badly but I just couldn't. Let give explain why I didn't like it and give you a synopsis of this book.

A girl is living in Cornwall with her uncle because her mother has just died. She sees this beautiful horse and starts to secretly go see it even though she has no clue who it belongs too. Then a boy comes and he gets in a fight with this girl because he doesn't want her messing with his horse. Things start to ensue between them VERY FAST and they wind up forming a relationship. But they are both keeping secrets from each other the whole book.

This book has no emotional connection for me with the characters, the characters were annoying, the love story was insta love, there were way too many perspective changes in it (I love that with fantasy books not contemporaries), and these characters had no personalities! And I kept getting confused when a long stream of description was thrown at us. There was too much for a contemporary book to have. I feel so badly that I didn't like this book but it just wasn't for me. I think the only thing I liked about this book was the horse aspect it had and the grandmothers backstory. I would have loved to hear more about her story then Sass and Alex's. If you like insta love, cheesiness, and you are about 13 you will love this book. If you are my age who has read way better contemps before then you probably won't like this book.

1.5 STARS :/

(ALSO) I will be a doing a full review on my channel of this book really soon so you can know more of my thoughts I have! Look out for it! :}

[Kaitlyn Graf]

This book is about a girl from Brooklyn. And a boy from England. The boy's name is Alexander. But in the book people call him Alex.the girl's name is sass. They haven't said much about her real name. So sass goes to college up in England. Alexander is the prince of England. And sass doesn't know he is. So she treats him like a normal person. Until she is at a hair salon and she is looking in the mirror and sees a picture of Alexander on a magazine. So she runs out of the saloon and heads home. I am not done reading it so I can't and won't spoil the book. They first meet when sass is chasing after her uncle's dog. And she goes into a no trespassing zone. The place she went to was called trist. It is old castle. And who came riding up on his horse. Alexander that is who.He was riding on a silver looking horse its name is Bo. . Bo is an old racehorse in the story there is always this one girl that tries to come up on the story her name is Plum and she is one of the popular girls in one of the best looking ones of them all.she wants Alexander all to herself. and doesn't want anyone to have him.except for her.I really like this book because it shows the good and bad things about being a prince and growing up different than other people. The next time they saw each others when Sass was trying to get her uncle's dog and a bunch of bulls appeared and Alexander had to help her get away. Then she asked him to give her horseback riding lessons because she saw him galloping on the sand. Then she

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fifteen-year-old Saskia Emerson has recently moved from Brooklyn to Cornwall to live with her uncle, her mother's younger brother. Sass is still dealing with her mother's death and the guilt she feels over that death, and she is completely lost in her new home. When she wanders through the fields and sees a beautiful horse and meets a gruff young man named Alex, she is intimidated. But her fondness for the horse touches his heart, and the two become closer each day, riding together, and even sharing kisses as their romance buds. But before it can blossom, Sass realizes who Alex is, and their relationship is given much media attention with both of them feeling betrayed. There are all sorts of complications and intricacies, and even the memory of a scandal and a long-ago love shared by an American airman and Alex's maternal grandmother who lives nearby to Sass's uncle. Although most readers will adore Sass and fall in love with the prince who just wanted to be left alone, I loved Helena with her dignity and sense of history and the torch she carried for someone lost over the decades. Hers was the story that interested me most of all in this romance story.

[Juliana Mae · Rating 3 out of 5]

One Silver Summer is the second book I've won from a Goodreads giveaway! I love the idea, and it was a pretty good execution of the idea, but this book just didn't keep my attention as much as I would have liked. I had a bit of a hard time getting into it at first, and there were definitely times where I just wasn't really interested in reading it. Some points the story was confusing, like I felt there were transitional or describing sentences missing. Another thing is, I wasn't sure about their age. I don't remember it being mentioned until the end that Sass is about to turn 16, so I was questioning how old they were.
The characters were really likeable though, and like I said, I did enjoy the general idea of it. The ending was a bit rough and sad, but I particularly enjoyed the last few pages. Overall, One Silver Summer is a pretty good book.

[Judy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Saskia Emerson has been sent to the English coast to live with her uncle after the tragic death of her mother. Trying to deal with her grief, she decides to explore the countryside of Cornwall and stumbles across a silver horse in the meadow. She is drawn to the horse as it gives her a sense of peace but the horse's trainer, Alex, discovers her and doesn't approve of her trespassing. Alex has his own secrets for wanting her gone but he feels a connection to the curious girl and a friendship develops. This is a young adult novel sure to please and will entertain older readers as well. Interesting characters, a good storyline with a little mystery thrown in, and lots of good descriptions. I enjoyed it very much. I received the book for free through Goodreads First Reads.

[Merrilyn Tucker · Rating 4 out of 5]

After her mother dies, American teenager Sass is sent to live with her artist uncle in England. As she is out walking one day, she finds a beautiful horse behind a locked gate. Sass makes it a habit of climbing over the gate to visit with the horse daily. One day, she meets a young man there who later turns out to be the Prince of Wales. They fall for each other and overcome a number of obstacles to be together. This is a fun and fluffy story, perfect for middle grade and up readers who want to believe in modern fairy tales.

[Kendra Lee · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was such an entertaining, teen beach read. Not that I read it on the beach, but that's what it falls into. England, horses, a prince, summer love, what's not to enjoy?

If you like all those things, you'll enjoy this.

[Jen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I LOVED this book. Of course, it has all my favorite elements: romance, foreign love, and all around awesomeness!!!!! And, I like horses, and want to ride one really badly!

[Carlie Sorosiak · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really delightful. A great book to read on a summer afternoon. Full of swoon-y romance and horses; what else could you want?

[V.E. · Rating 4 out of 5]

A sweet summer read with a delicious forbidden romance. I really liked this one!

[Kalindee · Rating 1 out of 5]

I just didn't really like it as much as I wanted to :(

It was cute though

[Valary · Rating 3 out of 5]

romance that deals with serious issues like loss, social media, horses...

[Jayda Elizabeth · Rating 1 out of 5]

“it is so bad, i would give you a 0, but thats not possible so i give you a 1.”

[Olivia Bancroft · Rating 3 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️

“One Silver Summer” by Rachel Hickman

My inner horse girl was so, so happy with this cute, sweet read! Sass has just gone thru an unimaginable loss and has been shipped off to England to leave with an estranged uncle. Besides losing her mother, now Sass is in a whole new place and completely lost. Alex has his own worries, including his parents’ divorce and trying to live a somewhat normal teenage life - except he’s a prince. Alex escapes to his ancestral home for the summer with his grandmother, hoping the sea and the family horses will help his mood. Along the way, these two run into each other and initial skepticism is quickly abandoned. Sass doesn’t know who Alex is, Alex doesn’t know what Sass is running away from. But, they share a love of horses and the outdoors. The bond between these two is sweet and sincere and I enjoyed following their young love story!

[Lenni Jones · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was VERY disappointed with this book. I was constantly trying to find time to get to read this because it has sounded SO amazing. But I ended up hating this book. Maybe I would've liked it better if it took place in older times. I would've also liked it if it went a little slower. One second Alex was the guy who yelled at Sass and next they were all friendly with each other. I didn't like that.

I made some connections between this book and other books. I thought that Cressida or whatever her name is reminded me a lot of the reporter lady from the last School of Fear book by Gitty Danshvari. And also, if you liked this book, you may like Beastkeeper by Cat Hellison which I gave a one star rating to.

I hope this review was helpful!

[James · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really wasn't sure a teen romance was going to be my thing at all - but within the first few pages I was so caught up with the characters and the secrets and the setting OH BOY - well I was entirely swept away with Rachel Hickman's lovely writing and her gorgeous world building that just whisked me back to Cornwall.

By the end I was ready to run away with a horse.

A perfect summer book or a book to make it feel like summer when it isn't. Fab world building, memorable characters and a gentle story that still manages to knock the wind out of you a couple of times (just when you least expect it!)

[Cadence T · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book because as you read through the book its like a wild adventure and then you get hit with a dramatic twist, that makes you want to quit reading but at the same time read on to find out what happens. This book gives many emotions to both the characters and the readers. Throughout the book their are many secrets and events that you find out about that get you hooked. In the end everything all works out between to the two main characters Sass and Alex, however Bo, Alex's horse and a very important part of Sass's life, dies from the flood leaving Alex and Sass with her foal.

[Ashley · Rating 1 out of 5]

I'm sorry but I had to DNF this book. I made it halfway. I got the UK version and whoever edited the book did a very poor job of it (or didn't even bother). There is missing punctuation everywhere and the page/paragraph formatting of dialog is very confusing and so is views, such as first and third being in the same sentence. There are also many problems with the characters, emotions and personalities are all over the place, the story has holes, and it's hard to follow all the unnecessary character perspectives. I just couldn't continue. This book is more for middle grade age, but even I wouldn't really recommend this book to them.