The Days of Summer

by Jill Barnett

New York Times bestselling author Jill Barnett sweeps readers away to the sultry California coast in a profoundly moving story about the power of forgiveness.

One fateful night, a deadly accident at a Los Angeles intersection changes the lives and fortunes of three innocent women -- Kathryn, Laurel, and Julia Peyton -- destined to be caught in a tangled web of obsession, revenge, and unruly passion. Wealthy California oil magnate Victor Banning also lost his son and daughter-in-law that night, an accident caused by his own selfish actions and dark secrets. Afterward, Victor aspires to raise their sons Jud and Cale to be just like him: hungry predators in a dog-eat-dog world...until years later, everything changes when they meet Laurel Peyton.



Spanning thirty years and three generations of Peyton women and Banning men, The Days of Summer follows both deeply affected families as they recover from the emotional heartbreak of tragedy and loss -- only to cross paths once again in the most unexpected of ways. Provocative and lyrical, it explores the depth of blood ties, the mistakes we make in the name of love, and our ability to hope, forgive, and find the courage to change.

Genres: Romance, Fiction, Contemporary Romance, Contemporary, Chick Lit, Amazon, Family Saga

512 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published June 6, 2006

About the author

New York Times Bestselling Author Jill Barnett is master storyteller known for her beautifully-written love stories rich with humor, emotion, and poignancy. She is the winner of Lifetime Achievement Awards for Love and Laughter and Historical Romance and is a six-time Romance Writers of America RITA nominee and winner of both a Persie Award for Literature and a Waldenbooks Award. Her books have been named Best of the Year by Dallas Morning News, Detroit Free Press, and Kirkus Review and she was the first historical romance author to ever receive a starred review from Publishers Weekly. She stands alongside Judith McNaught as one of only two authors to ever receive a six-star review from Affaire de Coeur Magazine and her work has been published in 23 languages and appeared on numerous bestseller lists. She lives in the PNW with her family.

Reviews

[Nenette · Rating 4 out of 5]

Again, here's a book sitting for quite a while in my shelf. Most avid readers would know this familiar scene: browsing through titles, picking up and buying a book simply because of the cover art and the blurb at the back, then stashing it in your shelf to read later; bypassing it each time you choose the next book to read; finally choosing to read it in random, and finding out what a treasure it was.

I have not watched a TV series for quite a while, especially a local one. Not that they're not any good, but because I know I could not pull myself away once I started. This book is just as addicting, but one good thing is that I have full control over the time I spend on it, without the need to go online or push any button.

The story is about the saga of two families over the course of half a century, their lives intersecting at every generation, with a plot worthy of primetime TV, or even the big screen. The Banning men and the Peyton women, then later the Banning men and the King women. Explored in great detail are the complications in the relationship among men in a family without a woman, and among women in a family without a man. Throughout the highs and lows, underneath the secrets and the lies, the author brought out the worst and the best of human psych and emotions: the frailty beneath a steel exterior; the best intentions hidden under a mask of toughness; acknowledgment of one's weaknesses and mistakes; strength under pressure; and love that yearns to be expressed without regard to the passing of time.

I recommend this to readers who will not question realities and practicalities; who will not be over critical, but are ready to lose themselves in a story, enjoy a good read and breath a sigh of satisfaction at the end.

[Tuesday · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked up this book when it was a freebie for my Kindle. The Days of Summer is set in Southern California and spans three generations of women and how their lives are touched by one family. It's a dark read, but a quick one. I fell in love with all of the characters, and found myself touched by the turmoil they each had.
While the book is slightly predictable (which doesn't bother me that much), you still have some hold your breath and have to read just one more chapter moments.
If you are looking for a quick, summer, beach read, this is definitely a great beach bag stuffer.

[Debby · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted to give this 2.5 stars. I tried way too hard to like this book. I'm glad I got it for free. Laurel made horrible choices in her life. I was so mad at her. She never told her secret to Cale in the end. Or was it Jud's child? The author never raised that question. She was sleeping with both at the time! I wished for a character who made good, moral choices. None to be found. I wanted a great ending, with neat, tied up ends. No such thing either. So disappointing. Laurel NEVER told anyone. WHAT!? I am unhappy, much like opening a candy bar only to find ants in it!

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

So, I almost stopped reading The Days of Summer by Jill Barnett, even though her Dreaming was one of my first and favorite "romance novels." It's a story with chapters/segments from the point of view from different characters, which isn't my favorite kind of story, and it quite obviously isn't a romance novel--although the cover's pretty cheesy. However, I'm now sucked in and can hardly put it down. Go figure.

[Beth · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't finish this one... maybe it was just a bad time to start it. I'll try again another day. Seemed more like it was going to be a teenage romance gone bad what with the daughter falling in love with the son of the man who killed her father....

[Jeanne (love2cook) · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting story of love, obsession, revenge, and passion a virtual tangled web. A deadly accident one fateful night in Los Angeles changed the lives and fortunes of three innocent women - Kathryn, Laurel, and Julia Peyton. That same night oil magnate Victor Banning lost his son and daughter-in-law in the same accident. This story spans 30 years and three generations of Peyton women and the Banning men. A very well-written story.

[Marianne · Rating 3 out of 5]

A book filled with immoral, reprehensible characters. The men were, for the most part, self centered, driven, win-at-all-costs obsessive compulsive jerks. The women were helplessly carried along by misplaced emotions, making absolutely terrible choices. Somehow, somehow, they all end up extremely successful, and filthy rich. I found something wrong with this picture.

[Lori Ferrari · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was one of those books that has been sitting on my bookshelf for quite awhile. It was an easy read and held my attention as I always wanted to know what was going to happen next. When I finished the book the first thing I did was check to see if there was a sequel because I felt there were too many loose ends. Very disappointed that there wasn’t.

[Kathleen O'Brien · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved it. Each character was fully fleshed out and even the antagonist was likable because you knew he was damaged. Loved the descriptions of the setting. I've never been to Catalina but the author put me there. Loved everything about this complicated multi-generational story.

[Stacey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great Book

Intense and thought provoking. Makes you re-think what family means. Well written and perfectly timed. Kudos. Will definitely read more.

[Melissa Rodacy Reynolds · Rating 5 out of 5]

Could not put this one down. I loved this story, as dysfunctional as this family is, and the fact that it's setting is where I'm currently living made this a fun read.

[Janice Kunst, Mrs. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love, Hate, Acceptance

This book held my interest from the beginning to the end
The title didn’t do it justice
Would highly recommend

[Penni Echeverria · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5

[Aleda Ellsworth · Rating 2 out of 5]

F word, some descriptive sex.

[Kelly Read · Rating 4 out of 5]

Forgiveness

Young love, first love and forever love. Making mistakes, accepting mistakes and moving forward. Forgiveness can be one of the hardest things to do.

[Julie Barrett · Rating 4 out of 5]

g read

[Bethann Whilden · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good

Good read! Enjoyed it very much! The days of summer! Excellent for the beach trips. I hope you enjoy it

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Started out slow, but ended up being very good.

[Josee · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book and I liked how it spanned 30 years, the Banning/Peyton saga. It reminded me of a soap opera that would play out over several years. It was a long book but not a tedious read, but every character has some issue with his parent or lack of love or lack of attention or lack of something.

I thought the author did a good job trying to write about such a long time span without bogging the story down. I felt for both sides, the Bannings (particularly Jud and Cale) and the Peytons (Laurel and Annalisa). It was hard to sympathize with Victor Banning and Kathryn Peyton though, but I did how enjoy how they developed a grudging respect and understanding for each other.

The story all along was Cale, Jud's and Laurel's. Matthew and Annalisa didn't really have a place in the last third of the book except to show that Kathryn had to let her pain go and let Annalisa love Matthew despite what happened 30 years ago. Beric King was also an extraneous character and I don't believe readers really cared about him or his personality. He kind of got in the way at some points.

The strongest characters were Cale and Jud. I felt as a reader I really got to know them, what drove them, why they loved and needed Laurel. I would have liked to see Barnett create a stronger connection between 17/18 year old Laurel and 26 year old Jud, I didn't feel like their younger love story was as believable as their older love story. Their younger love story seemed abrupt, I didn't feel any tension or longing there at all until they finally slept together. I felt more a connection between young Cale and Laurel than young Jud and Laurel.

I was surprised that Laurel made the trip to Seattle to see her adopted son, it seemed out of the blue. I also think it was ok for her not to tell Cale (it seemed pretty clear that it was Cale's since the morning after she slept with Jud she threw up, but maybe I'm just assuming). They seemed to both have come to terms with what passed between them -- they understood what they needed from each other at that time in their youth and moved up. (Cale needed someone to believe in him and Laurel wanted a boy to love her).

I also wasn't surprised that Victor was harder on Cale than Jud, it was foreshadowed very well that Victor and Rachel were Cale's parents, while Rudy and Rachel were Jud's parents. (gross). I wish we would have found out what caused Rudy to be so mad at Rachel -- basically what caused this entire story to happen, but we're left in the dark about that.

[UnusualChild{beppy} · Rating 2 out of 5]

synopsis:
on a fateful night, three people are killed and several lives are affected. rudy and rachel banning's two sons jud and cale are raised by their grandfather to be tough and mercenary. laurel is raised by her bitter mother and grandmother. flash forward several years, and laurel runs into jud while on a ferry to her home. they have an immediate attraction until jud finds out how old she is (17). then cale and laurel meet, and because they are more of age, they start dating. they date for quite a while, and then break up because of differences of opinion. jud is there when they break up, and this time age is not an impediment. unfortunately, laurel is pregnant, so she runs away, giving up the child that she and cale created. thirty or so years pass, and jud and laurel cross paths again. cale married to a woman whom he loved dearly and has two grown sons. one of those sons is interested in laurel's daughter. jud has never married; there really only was one woman for him. when the grandfather dies, it is revealed that he was actually cale's father through an affair that he had with his son's wife. that is what rudy and rachel were arguing about and what caused the accident with far reaching consequences.

what i liked: cale's sons and laurel's daughter. also, the fact that laurel was it for jud.

what i didn't like: it read more like a soap opera than anything else, so nothing seemed really developed.

[GW · Rating 3 out of 5]

Such a long book! There were definitely some good parts and hilarious parts. But, honestly, I liked Cal and Laurel better together. Not really feeling Laurel and Jud. :/ I felt so bad for Cal, and the fact that his later wife died as well. But he became a doctor! And he's good at it. What about Laurel's son? I don't know if I just skimmed over it, but do we ever find out who's the father of Laurel's son? It was Cal, wasn't it?

And it's sorta messed up how the two families are always intertwined with one another. Like Laurel's daughter, Annalise, and Cal's son, Matthew. Guessing there's something deep down between Laurel and Cal.

Honestly, this book is so predictable. We all knew Laurel wouldn't end up with Cal. She just wasn't "feeling" it anymore afterwards, and Jud saw Laurel first...... And then Laurel, throws up, the night before she leaves. Daaaang, she's pregnant! No way, didn't see that coming at all. And how Laurel just lets Jud walk in? I honestly can't see that happening.

And of course, Laurel's surgery would come out perfectly! It's not like she would...die. Then what would the story be in that?

And, gosh, I didn't think this book could get any longer. But, yea, I was wrong...

Eh, it was alright. Got this free on my kindle a while ago, and finally picked it up to read!

[Denise · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book follows the multi-generations of the Peyton and Banning families. The story begins in the late 1950's when Rudy and Rachel Banning are killed in an alcohol-fueled crash that also takes the life of an up-and-coming rock singer named Jimmy Peyton. From that point onward, the families are deeply connected.

Harsh, remote and manipulative, the patriarch of the Banning family wields cruel power over his grandsons as he raises them following their parents’ death. In the Peyton family, the Peyton grandmother and mother also become bitter and cling to their pain, damaging Laurel, the daughter.

The new generation becomes acquainted as young adults on the island of Santa Catalina in 1970. Laurel meets Jud and their mutual attraction is stymied by her age (she is only 17). She begins an intense relationship with the younger brother, Cale, an aspiring medical student. Eventually a love triangle develops and ends badly, all three are emotionally damaged.

Fast forward to 2002, the families reconnect and the old rivalries, intense feelings and unresolved issues surface once again extending to the next generation as well. Great character development, unexpected twists and a theme of learning to forgive all make this book worth reading.

[Beth · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a story of two families torn apart by tragedy, yet the survivors find comfort and joy with each other. When young Laurel Peyton loses her father at the hands of a drunk driver, she grows up without really understanding what her father meant to others, especially her own mother. The other driver, multimillionaire businessman, Rudy Banning kills himself and his artist wife, leaving their two young sons to be raised by a tyrant of a grandfather. In a strange twist of fate, Laurel and the two boys meet 13 years later for a love triangle that will melt your heart. The story continues on into a third generations of Peytons and Bannings, and still they cannot escape each other.
I loved the descriptions of southern California so much it made me feel I was truly there. The story of lost love and difficult decisions happen to us all, and this one carries the reader through an adventure.

[Raquel Auriemma · Rating 4 out of 5]

I very much enjoyed this story which spanned generations and would have given it 5 stars if it wasn't for a few minor details. First, the math was off. If I recall correclty, in 1970, Laurel turned 18, but in 2002 she was only 48 and her mother's age at the end was revealed as 65. I understand that the story was about their lives over the course of their lives, but I'm not sure she gave herself enough time. Perhaps not indicating the years would have been best. The also felt that she left the story of Laurel's baby too open. We never found out for certain who the father was. It seemed that when it was first revealed that she'd had a baby that she believed it could be either Jud's or Cale's, but later in the story, only Cale was mentioned as the father and I'm just not sure I liked that neither of them ever learned that she'd had a baby who she'd put up for adoption. I would have thought that the truth would have been important given everything else.

[Ballerina60 · Rating 1 out of 5]

this is a bit like reading a soap opera instead of watching one. it's sad and depressing. basically all of the characters lack any moral fiber or moral compass of any kind. they are so concerned with instant self-gratification that you just cannot like them. anyone who would steal another person's child is despicable, NOT brave. these are constant immoral deeds based totally on selfishness. no one has principles, self respect, respect for others, or any other socially redeeming attribute. these totally self-serving people keep referring to their morally bankrupt deeds as "mistakes". i'm sorry, but those are not just "mistakes"; they are not just "oops". the disgusting actions by the characters (almost ALL of them) go WAY beyond "mistakes". and i really HATE discussion questions at the end of a book. what are we, 12?

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

An accident that killed several people has effects in the life of two families for generations to come. One drunk person was responsible for the accident. Victor, a cruel tyrant, raised his grandsons, Cale and Jud . Katherine, and daughter, Laurel, move in with the mother in law. She's a controlling, possessive woman who lived her life for late son.

Meanwhile Laurel and Katherine move to Santa Catalina island and convenient coincidences bring the families together

The story makes major jumps in time and then the reader has to figure out what happens in the meantime. It took me a while to get into this book but I wanted to see how all the coincidences turned out.

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I ended up really enjoying this book, after a shaky start. However, I felt like it was meant to be a sweeping family saga, 800 pages long, etc. etc. and was severely edited down. It suddenly jumped 30 years, which could have been interesting to read about, and some of the story lines seemed crow bar'd in as a result. (i.e. the baby given up for adoption). So overall, a good book but I wouldn't have minded a more complete timeline.

[Sue · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was my first Jill Barnett book, and I must say, I really enjoyed it. If I could give it 3.5 stars, that would be about right. It begins with a car accident caused by anger and drunkenness that took that took the lives of an up and coming musician (the innocent party) and a famous artist and her wealthy husband (the guilty party). The book evolves as the younger generation of both parties meet, start relationships, etc. Interesting story line. I would recommend this one.

[Sally Trabulsi · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really tried hard not to like this book, because I find myself wanting to be a snob about romance novels. But I determined to read this among three books with "summer" in the title I picked up on one day in the library and I found myself weeping by the end. Does weeping mean it's a good book? Well, it certainly means it touched me in some way or other. So thank you, Jill Barnett. This was a good read.

[Betty Beck · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! This is a great book. I couldn't put it down. After getting through the first few pages I knew I had a winner. I admit the coincidences in the book were kind of unrealistic, but hey, that's why I read fiction. If I wanted realism I would just turn on the news. I am trying to find other books of her in this same genre.. she writes so much history which is kind of boring to me. I found the book at goodwill of all places. Glad I picked it up.