JULY 2021 - AudioFile
Narrator Erin Bennett adds a bit of needed depth to the latest summer beach read from Elin Hilderbrand. When Nantucket novelist Vivian Howe is killed in a hit-and-run accident, she is allowed a few months to observe her family and village from “above.” With a perky brightness, Bennett portrays the almost-perfect Vivi as she awaits the release of her newest novel—a book that will reveal old secrets. Bennett’s characterizations of Vivian’s children add interest: Her daughter fears another miscarriage, her second daughter fights a drug addiction, and her teenage son makes life decisions that don’t include his clingy girlfriend. As the town police chief pursues the truth about who killed Vivi, Bennett’s steady narration keeps the listener engaged in the whodunit. N.M.C. © AudioFile 2021, Portland, Maine
Publishers Weekly
06/07/2021
Hilderbrand (The Beach Club) expertly tugs at the heartstrings with this fantastical story of an unexpected death. After Nantucket novelist Vivi Howe is killed in a hit-and-run, her family and friends are left reeling, among them her pregnant daughter, Willa; her hard-partying daughter, Carson; her son, Leo; and feckless ex-husband, JP. An Hèrmes scarf–wearing guardian spirit named Martha allows Vivi the chance to watch over them until the end of the summer, and allows her three “nudges” to keep them from harm. As the summer progresses and her loved ones struggle, Vivi learns her children’s secrets—and considers using a “nudge” to intervene on Carson’s relationship with an older man. She also watches as her ex-husband finally accepts that taking on a mistress was an epic mistake, and, with Martha’s help, begins to move on into the afterlife. Hilderbrand has a talent for creating characters that etch themselves onto readers’ hearts, and delivers a big, well-earned surprise with the hit-and-run driver’s identity. Strong supporting characters, notably a long-ago ex from Vivi’s past, add texture. Hilderbrand’s enchanting, emotional novel will delight her many fans. (June)
From the Publisher
"Hilderbrand’s latest, most philosophical and (I’m declaring it) best novel. . . . The story is a family saga, a mystery and a moving retrospective that manages to be clever without being coy."—Elisabeth Egan, New York Times
"It's not officially summer until Elin Hilderbrand drops her annual page-turner. In this one, novelist Vivi dies in a hit-and-run and ascends to the Beyond, where she learns she has three "nudges" to influence events on earth. In this touching, scenic story, we learn what it is to let go and let life go on."—Good Housekeeping
"It's almost summer, which means Hilderbrand's legions of fans will be anxious for her latest. . . . This is classic Hilderbrand. . . . hopefully, she has many more Nantucket tales in store."—Booklist
"It has suspense, beautiful beach scenes and inspirational anecdotes. You really can't do better than that."—Cosmopolitan
"Golden Girl is surprising, delightful and—dare I say?—quirky. . . . The book is filled with Hilderbrand’s trademark gorgeous scenes and delicious dialogue. But Golden Girl also explores the author’s own place in the literary pantheon, often with a wink and a nod to the reader. . . . It is funny and heartbreaking, and even though it’s in some ways a departure for Hilderbrand, the novel still offers plenty of that Nantucket air to keep you turning pages."—BookPage
"Beautifully uplifting . . . an emotionally powerful story. Faithful readers have come to depend on Hilderbrand's top-notch escapist fiction that puts lively, dramatic new spins on families challenged by love and loss. Golden Girl will exceed their expectations."—Shelf Awareness
"Hilderbrand’s writing is witty, spunky, fun and dramatic."—Book Reporter
PRAISE FOR 28 SUMMERS:
"Summer on Hilderbrand's Nantucket is never dull. This time she focuses on former lovers who now lead separate lives but share an island idyll once a year. Captivating and bittersweet."—People
"In her 25th novel, Hilderbrand gets everything right and leaves her ardent fans hungry for No. 26. Hilderbrand sets the gold standard in escapist fiction."—Kirkus Reviews
New York Times Book Review
This sweeping love story is Hilderbrand's best ever.”
Parade
Captivating and bittersweet.”
People
Summer on Hilderbrand's Nantucket is never dull. This time she focuses on former lovers who now lead separate lives but share an island idyll once a year. Captivating and bittersweet.
Booklist
This is classic Hilderbrand."
Cosmopolitan
It has suspense, beautiful beach scenes, and inspirational anecdotes. You really can’t do better than that."
New York Times Book Review Elisabeth Egan
This sweeping love story is Hilderbrand's best ever. . . Her stories are relatable in an aspirational way, but her attention to detail is what makes her characters feel like living, breathing people you want to know. They would never skimp on citronella candles; they would save the least creaky rocking chair for you.
Good Housekeeping
In this touching, scenic story, we learn what it is to let go and let life go on.”
BookPage (starred review)
Hilderbrand is commercially successful but doesn’t always get her due as an immensely talented writer. Golden Girl will help change that. It is funny and heartbreaking, and…offers plenty of that Nantucket air to keep you turning pages.”
Library Journal
06/18/2021
With almost 30 novels under her belt, best-selling author Hilderbrand (Troubles in Paradise) has produced another summer read with a twist. Vivian Howe is a famous novelist who lives on Nantucket (same as Hilderbrand, which raises the question of how autobiographical this book might be). But the plot veers away from Hilderbrand's life when Vivian is killed by a hit-and-run driver. In death, she goes to "the Beyond," where she is allowed to watch her family for one summer and is granted three "nudges" to influence their behavior from afar. Vivian now learns her family's secrets, such as her youngest daughter's affair with a much older in-law. Flashbacks to her early life show Vivian as a whole person and reveal how she and her family arrived at their pre-crash lives. A thread of mystery—who is the driver who killed Vivian?—runs throughout; her son's best friend had been the one to find her dying at the side of the road, so many on the small island suspect him, especially because of his subsequent odd behavior. Like Hilderbrand's other books, this title focuses on friendships and family, as well as women rivals and enemies. VERDICT Another great read from Hilderbrand, sure to please her many fans and new readers alike.—Jan Marry, Heritage P.L., New Kent & Charles City, VA
JULY 2021 - AudioFile
Narrator Erin Bennett adds a bit of needed depth to the latest summer beach read from Elin Hilderbrand. When Nantucket novelist Vivian Howe is killed in a hit-and-run accident, she is allowed a few months to observe her family and village from “above.” With a perky brightness, Bennett portrays the almost-perfect Vivi as she awaits the release of her newest novel—a book that will reveal old secrets. Bennett’s characterizations of Vivian’s children add interest: Her daughter fears another miscarriage, her second daughter fights a drug addiction, and her teenage son makes life decisions that don’t include his clingy girlfriend. As the town police chief pursues the truth about who killed Vivi, Bennett’s steady narration keeps the listener engaged in the whodunit. N.M.C. © AudioFile 2021, Portland, Maine
Kirkus Reviews
★ 2021-05-05
From the greenroom of the afterlife—make that Benjamin Moore "Parsley Snips" green—a newly dead Nantucket novelist watches life unfold without her.
In her 27th novel, Hilderbrand gives herself an alter ego—beloved beach-novel author Vivian Howe—sends her out for a morning jog, and immediately kills her off. A hit-and-run driver leaves Vivi dead by the side of the road, where her son's best friend discovers her body—or was he responsible for the accident? Vivi doesn't know, nor does she know yet that her daughter Willa is pregnant, or that her daughter Carson is having a terribly ill-advised affair, or that her son, Leo, has a gnawing secret, or that her ex is getting tired of the girl he dumped her for. She will discover all this and more as she watches one last summer on Nantucket play out under the tutelage of Martha, her "Person," who receives her in the boho-chic waiting room of the Beyond. Hermès-scarved Martha explains that Vivi will have three nudges—three chances to change the course of events on Earth and prevent her bereaved loved ones from making life-altering mistakes. She will also get to watch the publication of what will be her last novel, titled Golden Girl, natch, and learn the answers to two questions: Will the secret about her own life she buried in this novel come to light (who cares, really—she's dead now), and will it hit No. 1 on the New York Times bestseller list (now there's an interesting question). She'll also get to see that one of her biggest wrongs is posthumously righted and that her kids have learned her most important lesson. As Willa says to Carson, "You know how she treats the characters in her books? She gives them flaws, she portrays them doing horrible things—but the reader loves them anyway. Because Mom loves them. Because they’re human.”
If novelists are auditioning to play God, Hilderbrand gets the part.
