The Longest Day of the Year

by Kim Wright

It’s the summer solstice and at a small beach on the Carolina coast four women fall into conversation while sitting at the edge of the water. On the surface they would seem to have little in Clio, a 22-year-old waitress at a nearby seafood shack, torn between the son of the owner and the sexy but penniless farmboy who delivers produce to the restaurant; Amy, 36, the wife of an ambitious developer whose plans to build highrises will change, and some say ruin, the vibe of sweet little Elliott Point; Josie, 59 and just off breast cancer surgery, ignoring her children's worried advice in order to flee back to the place where she last was happy; and finally Cully, 81, a seascape artist of some renown, considered an eccentric by the locals because she chooses to live alone in a tumbledown cottage. But they all do share one thing and that's how much they love this particular beach.The Longest Day of the Year celebrates the timeless quality of life on the Carolina coast, where a woman could be forgiven for not only forgetting what day of the week it is, but sometimes even forgetting what year it is. As the sun rises and sets on this single perfect summer day, each woman will chase her dreams and attempt to run from her fears, but there’s one thing they’re all sure the salt water of Elliott Point has a certain magic and will always be there to baptize a woman into her own personal second chance.

163 pages, Kindle Edition

Published June 13, 2020

About the author

When I was a kid I was so obsessed with books I used to check out four at a time from the library - that was the limit in the small NC town where I was raised - then walk down the street, sit under a tree, and read them as fast a I could so I could go back to get four more.

Now I am the author of Love in Mid Air, The Unexpected Waltz, The Canterbury Sisters, and the most recent, Last Ride to Graceland, all published by Gallery Books, an imprint of Simon and Schuster.

I also write the City of Mystery series which includes City of Darkness, City of Light, City of Silence, City of Bells, City of Stone, and the Christmas-themed novella, The Angel of Hever Castle. This series is set in the Victorian era and deals with another of my obsessions, the founding of the first forensics unit in Scotland Yard. My chief detective, Trevor Welles, struggles to be a modern man in an antiquated system.

I am the mother of two grown children and recently became a grandmother for the first time. (I highly recommend it!) My hobbies include ballroom dance, travel, and dogs.

Reviews

[Beverly J. · Rating 5 out of 5]

It made me **gasp**...is there anything more to say? Quite possibly one of the best novellas I have ever read. Excellent writing. I want to read it again. (I NEVER say that)

[Anna Kraft · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I first began reading this book, I wasn’t sure at all where it was going. I was baffled as to how the four main characters even came to know each other, let alone spend time together daily on the beach. However, due to the author’s beautiful writing, I was willing to keep reading, and I’m so very glad I did. Kim Wright’s book can perhaps best be summed up by quoting her own words from early in the novel: “... a woman’s first and truest calling is to fully live her own life.”

[CL · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am so glad I picked this up!

I expected a light, summery read and while I read this quickly, I attribute this to the author's ability to evoke setting and the total relatability and believability of the characters. It went in a direction I didn't expect at all, which surprised me and completely delighted me. Gorgeous and heartbreaking, and atmospheric. I can just about guarantee any woman would see herself in one of these characters, and will be taken back to one point or another in their lives. This really surprised me, and I love when books do that. One to recommend and re-read for sure.

[Lynn Lewis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Clever story of summer at the beach

This story is the perspective of four women at very different ages and how different their lives are at the same beach. The youngest is carefree, another woman has children and she has little free time, another woman is nearing senior age and the last is an elderly woman. The story provides the perspective of the beach and life from each woman. The story carefully intertwined the stories and the ending took me to a place I didn't know I was going until right before I got there.

[Barbara Bryant · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the women's comments early on resonates: no matter what my age, my essential self always lives within me. That made it easy to slip into each of their experiences, whether it's 22 year old Clio, 30something mother Amy, the nearly 60 Josie healing from cancer, or 81 year old Cully, the artist. Over the novel's single day at the beach, the summer solstice becomes an eternity. And the unexpected outcome is unforgettable.

[jane mccarter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Comforting and Surprising

This was a sweet read that was comforting in that it shared the magic of beach life and yet the story took quite a twist that I certainly didn’t see coming. May everyone that reads this book come to understand what beach time can do to build, mend, repair, and cultivate the soul. I highly recommend reading Kim’s beach story as well as finding your own special spot on the surf! A very interesting take on the many facets of a woman’s life!

[Natalie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a good book with a nice twist. It would be the perfect vacation read because I was able to get through it fairly quickly. I read the free version from Prime Reading and some of the punctuation and formatting was funky on my phone, so that was a bit distracting at times.

[Mona · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved it and hated it. I was frustrated when I got to the twist in the book, I felt deceived- but then a few days later thinking about it I thought it was quite clever.
It’s a quick read and interesting.

[Matilda Pferdchen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love! It was a bit hard to get into at first, but something happens in the middle that ties everything together and makes it so fascinating you’ll want to read it again.

[Diana Barnett · Rating 2 out of 5]

Never pulled me in... may try again at another time

[Larry&Sara Moore · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review of The Longest Day of the Year

I loved this book. It was so well written and so inspiring.
I plan to read more of Kim Wright’s books.

[Mindy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very clever concept for the story...

[Cathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

excellent story of 4 generations of women celebrating summer solstice at a NC beach