The Edge of Summer

Viola Shipman

Jul 2022 · Sold by Harlequin

About this ebook

Bestselling author Viola Shipman delights with this captivating summertime escape set along the sparkling shores of Lake Michigan, where a woman searches for clues to her secretive mother's past

Devastated by the sudden death of her mother—a quiet, loving and intensely private Southern seamstress called Miss Mabel, who overflowed with pearls of Ozarks wisdom but never spoke of her own family—Sutton Douglas makes the impulsive decision to pack up and head north to the Michigan resort town where she believes she’ll find answers to the lifelong questions she’s had about not only her mother’s past but also her own place in the world.

Recalling Miss Mabel’s sewing notions that were her childhood toys, Sutton buys a collection of buttons at an estate sale from Bonnie Lyons, the imposing matriarch of the lakeside community. Propelled by a handful of trinkets left behind by her mother and glimpses into the history of the magical lakeshore town, Sutton becomes tantalized by the possibility that Bonnie is the grandmother she never knew. But is she? As Sutton cautiously befriends Bonnie and is taken into her confidence, she begins to uncover the secrets about her family that Miss Mabel so carefully hid, and about the role that Sutton herself unwittingly played in it all.

“The minute I finished The Clover Girls, I ordered copies for all my friends. It’s that good.” —Kristy Woodson Harvey, New York Times bestselling author

Don't miss bestselling author Viola Shipman's charming new novel, THE WISHING BRIDGE—where an ambitious executive rediscovers the magic of family, friendship, home...and Christmas!

Other books by Viola Shipman:

• Famous in a Small Town
• The Secret of Snow
• A Wish for Winter
• The Summer Cottage
• The Heirloom Garden
• The Clover Girls

Ratings and reviews

I thought The Edge of Summer was well-written with developed characters. The pacing is slower than I prefer as Sutton deals with her grief, moves, and remembers special times with her mother. The Edge of Summer is an emotional story. We join Sutton on her quest for information and, hopefully, to find a family member. The Edge of Summer is a story about secrets, grief, family, truth, acceptance, friendship, and romance.

About the author

Wade Rouse is a popular award-winning memoirist and internationally bestselling author of twelve books, which have been translated into twenty languages and selected as Today show Must-Reads, Indie Next Picks and Michigan Notable Books. Rouse writes fiction under his grandma’s name, Viola Shipman, to honor the woman whose heirlooms inspire his writing. He lives in Michigan and California, and hosts Wine & Words with Wade, A Literary Happy Hour, every Thursday.