Review: All Summer Long by Dorothea Benton Frank

All Summer Long

by Dorothea Benton Frank

Publisher: William Morrow

Pages: 384

Format: book

Buy the Book: Amazon

Goodreads:  This is a story of people whose lives are changing—a southern gentleman returning home to lead a more peaceful life and his talented New York wife who is not quite sure she is ready to make the transition. They are moving north to south, fast pace vs slow pace, downsizing. And while they are doing this, they are getting glimpses into other people’s lives over the course of a summer, holidays that will amuse, shock and transform them.

This irresistible story is home to captivating characters as funny, complicated, and real as our best friends—husbands and wives, mothers and daughters, friends and family who wrestle with the complexities, pain, and joys familiar to us all.

Finally, we’ll come to recognize the face of love, the kind that deepens and endures but only because one woman makes a tremendous leap of faith. That leap changes them all.


Kritters Thoughts:  First, let me start by saying, I am a Dorothea Benton Frank fan.  I love her stories that take place in the South, they remind me of my years living in North Carolina and the people and the feel of the South.  

With the disclaimer out of the way.  I have to say I didn't like this one.  I think it was the characters and the plot.  I couldn't connect with the characters and what makes it more frustrating, I can't pinpoint as to why I couldn't connect.  Neither the main female or male struck a chord with me and even the secondary characters behind them, just weren't enjoyable.  

The plot.  I actually loved the idea of this New York couple uprooting and going South for a retirement and change in life.  The concept in the synopsis form intrigued me.  But it took a lot of pages for them to get to South Carolina and live there and have their lives change.  The vacation at the beginning felt like it came at a weird spot and I was ready from the beginning to see this Northern couple experience the South.  

I will still read Dorothea Benton Frank and will look forward to her next one, but if someone asked, I would say skip this one in her catalog.


Rating: enjoyable, but didn't leave me wanting more

Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one copy of this book free of charge from TLC Book Tours.  I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own.