Letters from Last Summer: A Novel

Set against the idyllic Rhode Island shore, two childhood friends reunite in the place where they shared unforgettable summers and discover that some loves—and some memories—never truly fade in this sweeping, heartwarming novel from the acclaimed author of The Wash-Ashores.

Ebb Tide has been in the Doyle family for generations, a rustic little respite tucked stubbornly among the big summer cottages on Rhode Island’s coastal bluff. It’s not much, but it’s theirs. For decades June Doyle has kept a painful family secret that began on their beach many summers ago; a secret even her adult children do not know. Now, at eighty-three, all June wants is to get her family together for one more idyllic summer. She can count on Amos and Liza--Isla remains the wild card.

Isla has good reasons for having missed their reunions at Ebb Tide. But this year she’s back, looking for a fresh start with her teenage daughter. After the year she’s had, a second chance at love is the last thing on her mind. But an encounter with a mysterious neighbor on the beach makes Isla begin to rethink romance. That is, until June finds out. None of the Doyle children can makes sense of their mother’s outrage.

Sam McLeod knows a thing or two about history. As a high school teacher and lifelong local, he’s looking forward to a summer off restoring his boat. But his father Cliff, a property caretaker, needs help. Working alongside his father, Sam finds himself reunited with the Doyles, especially Isla, the summer girl he’s never quite gotten over. When Isla turns to him for help, Sam reluctantly agrees. But the discovery of old letters hidden in a wall at Ebb Tide reveal a secret that threatens everything.

Can a dark secret from the past destroy a lifetime of happiness on the shore? With two men making very different promises, Isla has one last-chance summer to figure that out.