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Summer Storms
What sensible man would keep a pet pig?
Charlie had only 2 neighbours on Norman's Island: business tycoon Phil Atmor and Sam, his pet mini-pig - and she disliked them both with a pasion. Sam ate everything in sight - including Charlie's precious handmade violin case - and she'd ended up with a badly injured bow-holding hand after taking an angry swipe at Phil's chin. She wasn't going to be able to play for six weeks, or fend for herself, which meant moving in with Phil and his pig - could life for a world-class musician get any worse....?
Charlie had only 2 neighbours on Norman's Island: business tycoon Phil Atmor and Sam, his pet mini-pig - and she disliked them both with a pasion. Sam ate everything in sight - including Charlie's precious handmade violin case - and she'd ended up with a badly injured bow-holding hand after taking an angry swipe at Phil's chin. She wasn't going to be able to play for six weeks, or fend for herself, which meant moving in with Phil and his pig - could life for a world-class musician get any worse....?
- GenresRomance
187 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1991
1 person is currently reading
49 people want to read
About the author
Emma Goldrick
149 books33 followersEmma Goldrick is the penname used by the marriage formed by Emma Elizabeth Jean Sutcliffe, borned 7 February 1923 in Puerto Rico, and Robert N. Goldrick, borned on 22 March 1919 in Massachusetts, USA. They met in Puerto Rico, where married. She was a licensed practical nurse, volunteered with American Red Cross and she taught American Sign Language and he was a career USA military man. Thirty years and 4 children later they retired, and in 1980 they started to write in collaboration, and their first novel was accepted and published in 1983 by Mills & Boon. They continued publishing 40 novels until Robert passed away at 76, in 22 January 1996. After her husband death, she published her last novel and retired. Emma Goldrick passed away at 85, in 20 November 2008.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
March 5, 2018
Re Summer Storms - Emma Goldrick gets the second December 1993 HP Plus - this one is a tale of feuding neighbors on a tiny island who are brought together by the machinations of a pot bellied pig named Sam.
Sam is far and away the most entertaining character of the story, he has no pov, but the descriptions of him and his activities are hilarious. The h is a repressed concert violinist and the H is a playboy New England businessman. The H and h are the only inhabitants on a tiny 36 acre island in Massachusetts. The H objects to her 'fiddle playing' during hours long practices and the h objects to his cavorting naked with multiple women on the front lawn.
Sam, who has a great more intelligence than either the H or the h, has a huge crush on the h. So he invades her house to drool over her pretty regularly and eat her really pricey violin case. The H accuses her of pignapping and when his taunting punishing kisses go too far, the h breaks her finger and sprains her wrist while trying to smack him.
This results in her having to be in a cast for six weeks and the H, who decides that Sam has great taste in ladies, hires a housekeeper that actually IS a housekeeper and not a cute bed-warmer, tells the lady that he and the h are married, and moves the h into his house.
The usual EG hi-jinks ensue, with plenty of snarky comments and verbal ripostes, as the h explains to the very nice housekeeper, who is the cousin of the H's motherly secretary, that the H exaggerates a lot, and they are only semi-engaged. The H's theory is that close proximity will get the h into his bed and he plans to play for all it is worth.
That theory is put to the test when the H's long estranged mother and ex fiancee show up. The mother wants the H to finance her new husband, cause he is not the man that the woman dumped her husband and son for, that guy turned out to be unacceptable to her high finance requirements and she has been through more than few men since then.
The ex-fiancee jilted the H after his parent's divorce and his father's death. The H's family firm's share price went down and the H was on the verge of bankruptcy. Being poor was not in the ex-fiancee's game book, so she dumped the H for a millionaire 30 years older - but he recently lost his money and shot himself. So the lovely widow figures the H is gullible enough to give her a second chance, since he managed to turn the family business around and is now quite wealthy.
However, neither the ex-fiancee or the mother like Sam, the H's loyal companion for the last 13 years and that is of course a huge disqualifier in the getting the H to the altar stakes. The h is not too sure she wants the H either, especially when he announces they are engaged without even asking her.
But she and Sam have a great bonding time together as they rescue a gull, try to re-caulk a row boat to make it seaworthy and tell the conniving ex-fiancee horror stories about how the H broke her fingers and later sprained her knee badly enough to put the h in hospital.
The H meanwhile sends investigators to prove that his mother's new husband is a con artist, conveniently making his mother believe that he and his money will soon bail her out of her now financially reduced lifestyle. She is very eager to return to Spain and start enjoying the fruits of the H's labors and soon disappears into the HP mists, never to be heard from again.
The H also encourages the ex-fiancee to hang around and flirt. He is hoping the h, who is currently living with him because she has a cast and is on crutches, will become jealous of his attention to the ex-fiancee and that will make her do the 'fight for your man' drama while she recovers.
It does work to a certain extent, the h recovers enough to move back to her house, goes out to eat with her agent-driving the H nuts with jealousy. Then the h sends the ex-fiancee off the island in the dubiously water worthy row boat.
Sam has a great time paddling around in the sea and there is a huge H rescue of the ex-fiance as she starts to sink in the row boat and the H conveniently rescues her to the opposite shore across from the island.
The h has managed to fall into the water in the meantime and she can't swim. However Sam keeps her afloat and the H tows her in, so another roofie kissing moment ensues and the H and h are now marooned on the island. The temporary bridge that has been in place for the last fifty years gets sunk by a tanker truck coming to replenish the H's heating oil, so only thin planks are available for the H and h to walk across.
Then the h finds out from the H's secretary and office staff that the H only proposed marriage to punish her and since she doubts he loves her, she goes ahead and gets a restraining order to keep the H away from her. Sam moves into the h's house - even tho she put him on a diet, cause the vet said he was twenty pounds overweight for a mini-pig. He doesn't mind eating healthily if he can be around his adored h.
The H decides to play things out caveman style and he carries the h off over his shoulder to demand that she marry him because he loves her. The h spends half an hour thinking about it before she finally agrees because she loves him back. Which was a good thing, because the H rounded up a minister and got his office staff to be the wedding party attendants and they get married on the island.
Then there is a little build up where the h is uncertain of proper wedding night procedure and the H writes her a little story telling her to get undressed, leave a shirt on the end of the bed in case of fire and then get under the covers to await her husband.
Sam gets summarily ejected to the rug outside the bedroom door and he has trouble sleeping as the H and h are making too much noise in locked room behind him and all is presumably well that ends well for another EG campy HP outing.
This one was okay and Sam was absolutely hilarious in his antics. The h was fairly feisty and the H was the usual EG pushy, snarky H. I don't think EG was up to the expanded page count tho.
A lot of scenes seemed to be inserted as a flashback , probably because they needed more words to fill the quota for the HP Plus qualifier and it was sorta obvious that they had been added in later - they interrupted the story flow and it made for some disjointed reading.
The ending wasn't the strongest either, there is no big lurve mojo scenes in the book, just some H gropey moments and there were a few things like the H's mother and the h's career that are left hanging. Still, Sam made up for a lot of the lacks, so give this one a try when you are in the mood for a lighthearted and campy day in the HP office.
Sam is far and away the most entertaining character of the story, he has no pov, but the descriptions of him and his activities are hilarious. The h is a repressed concert violinist and the H is a playboy New England businessman. The H and h are the only inhabitants on a tiny 36 acre island in Massachusetts. The H objects to her 'fiddle playing' during hours long practices and the h objects to his cavorting naked with multiple women on the front lawn.
Sam, who has a great more intelligence than either the H or the h, has a huge crush on the h. So he invades her house to drool over her pretty regularly and eat her really pricey violin case. The H accuses her of pignapping and when his taunting punishing kisses go too far, the h breaks her finger and sprains her wrist while trying to smack him.
This results in her having to be in a cast for six weeks and the H, who decides that Sam has great taste in ladies, hires a housekeeper that actually IS a housekeeper and not a cute bed-warmer, tells the lady that he and the h are married, and moves the h into his house.
The usual EG hi-jinks ensue, with plenty of snarky comments and verbal ripostes, as the h explains to the very nice housekeeper, who is the cousin of the H's motherly secretary, that the H exaggerates a lot, and they are only semi-engaged. The H's theory is that close proximity will get the h into his bed and he plans to play for all it is worth.
That theory is put to the test when the H's long estranged mother and ex fiancee show up. The mother wants the H to finance her new husband, cause he is not the man that the woman dumped her husband and son for, that guy turned out to be unacceptable to her high finance requirements and she has been through more than few men since then.
The ex-fiancee jilted the H after his parent's divorce and his father's death. The H's family firm's share price went down and the H was on the verge of bankruptcy. Being poor was not in the ex-fiancee's game book, so she dumped the H for a millionaire 30 years older - but he recently lost his money and shot himself. So the lovely widow figures the H is gullible enough to give her a second chance, since he managed to turn the family business around and is now quite wealthy.
However, neither the ex-fiancee or the mother like Sam, the H's loyal companion for the last 13 years and that is of course a huge disqualifier in the getting the H to the altar stakes. The h is not too sure she wants the H either, especially when he announces they are engaged without even asking her.
But she and Sam have a great bonding time together as they rescue a gull, try to re-caulk a row boat to make it seaworthy and tell the conniving ex-fiancee horror stories about how the H broke her fingers and later sprained her knee badly enough to put the h in hospital.
The H meanwhile sends investigators to prove that his mother's new husband is a con artist, conveniently making his mother believe that he and his money will soon bail her out of her now financially reduced lifestyle. She is very eager to return to Spain and start enjoying the fruits of the H's labors and soon disappears into the HP mists, never to be heard from again.
The H also encourages the ex-fiancee to hang around and flirt. He is hoping the h, who is currently living with him because she has a cast and is on crutches, will become jealous of his attention to the ex-fiancee and that will make her do the 'fight for your man' drama while she recovers.
It does work to a certain extent, the h recovers enough to move back to her house, goes out to eat with her agent-driving the H nuts with jealousy. Then the h sends the ex-fiancee off the island in the dubiously water worthy row boat.
Sam has a great time paddling around in the sea and there is a huge H rescue of the ex-fiance as she starts to sink in the row boat and the H conveniently rescues her to the opposite shore across from the island.
The h has managed to fall into the water in the meantime and she can't swim. However Sam keeps her afloat and the H tows her in, so another roofie kissing moment ensues and the H and h are now marooned on the island. The temporary bridge that has been in place for the last fifty years gets sunk by a tanker truck coming to replenish the H's heating oil, so only thin planks are available for the H and h to walk across.
Then the h finds out from the H's secretary and office staff that the H only proposed marriage to punish her and since she doubts he loves her, she goes ahead and gets a restraining order to keep the H away from her. Sam moves into the h's house - even tho she put him on a diet, cause the vet said he was twenty pounds overweight for a mini-pig. He doesn't mind eating healthily if he can be around his adored h.
The H decides to play things out caveman style and he carries the h off over his shoulder to demand that she marry him because he loves her. The h spends half an hour thinking about it before she finally agrees because she loves him back. Which was a good thing, because the H rounded up a minister and got his office staff to be the wedding party attendants and they get married on the island.
Then there is a little build up where the h is uncertain of proper wedding night procedure and the H writes her a little story telling her to get undressed, leave a shirt on the end of the bed in case of fire and then get under the covers to await her husband.
Sam gets summarily ejected to the rug outside the bedroom door and he has trouble sleeping as the H and h are making too much noise in locked room behind him and all is presumably well that ends well for another EG campy HP outing.
This one was okay and Sam was absolutely hilarious in his antics. The h was fairly feisty and the H was the usual EG pushy, snarky H. I don't think EG was up to the expanded page count tho.
A lot of scenes seemed to be inserted as a flashback , probably because they needed more words to fill the quota for the HP Plus qualifier and it was sorta obvious that they had been added in later - they interrupted the story flow and it made for some disjointed reading.
The ending wasn't the strongest either, there is no big lurve mojo scenes in the book, just some H gropey moments and there were a few things like the H's mother and the h's career that are left hanging. Still, Sam made up for a lot of the lacks, so give this one a try when you are in the mood for a lighthearted and campy day in the HP office.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 14, 2025
“Summer Storms” is the story of Charlie and Phil.
A businessman hero, a violinist heroine, his overweight and loving pet pig, and loads of adventures. This started out well - bickering main couple, a pig causing chaos, a screeching accident prone heroine and a tolerant hero, situational comedy.. but the book stretched a bit too long and we kept circling to the leads fighting and making up, in good humor ofcourse.
It could have been so much better, and the rating is ONLY for the adorable pig Sam.
Safe
2.5/5
A businessman hero, a violinist heroine, his overweight and loving pet pig, and loads of adventures. This started out well - bickering main couple, a pig causing chaos, a screeching accident prone heroine and a tolerant hero, situational comedy.. but the book stretched a bit too long and we kept circling to the leads fighting and making up, in good humor ofcourse.
It could have been so much better, and the rating is ONLY for the adorable pig Sam.
Safe
2.5/5
March 12, 2017
Although I quite enjoyed this book l ft the end was a bit of a damp squib! So much more could have been done with the end of the story which is why I've dropped a couple of stars. I wanted more of a love declaration and her triumphant return to stage having discovered passion with the hubby so her "art" was amazeballz but nope just a bit of an abrupt ending which we take for the HEA. I forget that these golden oldies hardly every have epilogues
December 26, 2013
Not even 1 star.
I feel sorry for Sam, the main male character mini-pig, but I didn't and couldn't like this story.
It could've been a nice read but instead it was a boring, annoying, pathetic book.
I feel sorry for Sam, the main male character mini-pig, but I didn't and couldn't like this story.
It could've been a nice read but instead it was a boring, annoying, pathetic book.
pback-to-read
November 25, 2021What sensible man would keep a pet pig?
Charlie had only 2 neighbours on Norman's Island: business tycoon Phil Atmor and Sam, his pet mini-pig - and she disliked them both with a pasion. Sam ate everything in sight - including Charlie's precious handmade violin case - and she'd ended up with a badly injured bow-holding hand after taking an angry swipe at Phil's chin. She wasn't going to be able to play for six weeks, or fend for herself, which meant moving in with Phil and his pig - could life for a world-class musician get any worse..
Charlie had only 2 neighbours on Norman's Island: business tycoon Phil Atmor and Sam, his pet mini-pig - and she disliked them both with a pasion. Sam ate everything in sight - including Charlie's precious handmade violin case - and she'd ended up with a badly injured bow-holding hand after taking an angry swipe at Phil's chin. She wasn't going to be able to play for six weeks, or fend for herself, which meant moving in with Phil and his pig - could life for a world-class musician get any worse..
February 21, 2020
I usually love old Emma Goldrick books but this one was so all over the place I kept getting confused about what was going on and who was speaking.
July 17, 2025
What did I read? Apart from Sam, the pig, it was a confusing and illogical story.
Read
November 19, 2025Cover review:
I cannot read this book because the h on the cover looks exactly like a young Michelle Duggar.
IYKYK
I cannot read this book because the h on the cover looks exactly like a young Michelle Duggar.
IYKYK
May 24, 2011
I was in need of some lighter reading and saw this book mentioned in a post at amazon. Emma Goldrick almost always provides lighter/amusing reading. When I saw that this book involved a pot bellied pig with a crush on the h, and an annoying neighbor, (the H, who owns the pig), I couldn't resist checking it out. Altho Goldrick's dialogue is somewhat stilted and her humor borders on "I Love Lucy" slapstick, I still usually like her books. This is a goodbook for a day when you just want some light entertainment
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews