Family Reunion: A Novel

Nancy Thayer

May 2021 · Sold by Ballantine Books

About this ebook

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A longtime Nantucket resident is trying to make the best of a lonely summer. Her spirited granddaughter is learning what she wants out of life. Unforgettable surprises await them both in this magical, multigenerational novel from Nancy Thayer.

“Readers come to Nancy Thayer novels for the idyllic Nantucket beaches and lifestyle, but they stay for the characters.”—Mary Alice Monroe

Eleanor Sunderland loves living on Nantucket in a gorgeous cliffside home that has been in her family for decades. Yet this year she can’t help but feel a bit isolated, even as the island comes alive with summer travelers. Her best friend has skipped town, leaving Eleanor lonely and feeling nostalgic about her family’s weekend trips to the island, made less frequently in the years since her husband’s passing. Now her money-driven children complain and beg her to sell her beloved home for a steep payout. Hoping to kick the season off on a good note, Eleanor decides her seventieth birthday may be the perfect occasion for a much-needed reunion. 

Fresh from her college graduation, Eleanor’s granddaughter, Ari, has just ended an engagement. She longs for a change of scenery and to escape from her parents’ snobbish expectations. Taking advantage of her newfound freedom, she heads to Nantucket to clear her head before graduate school, moving in with her grandmother and taking a job at the local beach camp. As she watches Eleanor begin to form a bond with an old acquaintance, Ari herself becomes smitten with a friend’s charming older brother. But just as grandmother and granddaughter fall into a carefree routine, a few shocking discoveries throw them off course. 

Eleanor and Ari learn to lean on each other through every new challenge they face in life and love, in this tale filled with Nancy Thayer’s signature Nantucket magic. 

“Nancy Thayer’s Family Reunion is a wonderful slice of life.”—New York Times bestselling author Brenda Novak

Ratings and reviews

Coming of Age for Three Generations What a wonderful tale this is about an entire family going through catharsis at the same time. The story is centered around a seventy-year-old widow on her own in the family home on Nantucket. Over the course of the summer life changes for her, her adult children, and her adult granddaughter. It is a beautiful tale of how all of the assorted personalities deal with issues, become stronger and help the family become stronger. This is a fine story that I will enjoy reading again. I have enjoyed this author's work and this piece did not disappoint. I received this ARC book for free from Net Galley and this is my honest review.

This was a fantastic book about family and the special relationship between a granddaughter and her grandmother. Eleanor is the matriarch of the Sunderland family and she lives on Nantucket Island in a huge, beautiful house. Cliff her son is in real estate and he tells Alicia, his sister, Phillip, her husband, and Ari, their daughter, that he had lunch with Muriel Wheeler, the VP of the Gold Sand Resort Company. Gold Sand wants to buy Eleanor’s property for fifteen million dollars. Too bad, the property isn’t for sale. Alicia tells Ari she can work on her, since she’s going to stay with her this summer. I loved the secrets that are revealed while reading this book. I won’t leave any spoilers, but I will say I didn’t care for Alicia at all. That’s just my opinion, so grab your copy and see if you agree. I received an advanced reader copy of this book from NetGalley and this is my voluntary and honest review.

I've always enjoyed books I've read by Nancy Thayer. The book Family Reunion hasn't disappointed me. The character development and storyline was very well done. The setting was perfect. A perfect beach read.

About the author

Nancy Thayer is the New York Times bestselling author of more than thirty novels, including Girls of Summer, Let It Snow, Surfside Sisters, A Nantucket Wedding, Secrets in Summer, The Island House, The Guest Cottage, An Island Christmas, Nantucket Sisters, and Island Girls. Born in Kansas, Thayer has been a resident of Nantucket for thirty-five years, where she currently lives with her husband, Charley, and a precocious rescue cat named Callie.