Review: One Lucky Summer

One Lucky Summer by Jenny Oliver
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Ruben de Lacy has returned to his family's home Willoughby Hall for one final time before selling it. Shallow, wealthy and good-looking Ruben is surprised when his ex-girlfriend Jenny arrives with their twelve year-old daughter Zadie in tow - apparently he had agreed to look after Zadie while Jenny and her new husband Barry go on their honeymoon.

Looking after a young chubby daughter with dubious dress sense isn't Ruben's idea of a good time. Then he stumbles across a little plastic box which is part of a treasure hunt which had been set up years before and never took place. The treasure hunts were a very big thing in his childhood and he can't envisage doing this without the two girls who's father created the hunt in the first place; Olive and Dolly.

Olive has just been dumped by her very boring and respectable boyfriend Mark. Dolly has just been suspended from her job as a police officer for disobeying orders. For their own reasons they both return to Willoughby Hall for one last treasure hunt. But returning to Cornwall forces each of them to face what happened the night the treasure hunt was laid, to address feelings that have been suppressed for decades and to make peace. It's going to be a heck of a summer!

I've got to say that I thought this was going to be more of a romantic comedy, a la Katie Fforde, based on the cover. Whereas, this is more women's fiction. There's a lot of remembering the past and giving voice to past feelings, about owning emotions and letting them go. Nevertheless, it was enjoyable to watch all three of them finally lay the ghosts to rest and look forward to the future.

Recommended for lazy summer reading in the garden.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

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