SUMMER BY THE SEA is going to make you want to run to the beach! The beautiful words Jenny Hale uses to describe the Outer Banks will have you feeling like you are right there sitting in the sand and smelling the salt from the ocean.

Faith and her family spent their summers in a vacation home right on the beach until a hurricane took out the cottage, but they always had their memories. For her 90th birthday, Faith's grandmother, who owned the cottage, wants to go back to the beach. Nan has a few secrets and eventually they will be told...but not until the end of their trip.

Jake, the handy man who is working on the cottage when they arrive catches Faith's eye. He takes the family on some wonderful trips around the Outer Banks and Faith finds herself falling fast. Jake comes with a past as we all do, and he is leery of becoming involved with someone and having his heart broken once again. Jake isn't who he appears to be, and soon Faith learns some things about him she has a hard time believing. While Faith is trying not to fall too hard for Jake, she is also reconnecting with her sister Casey who broke her heart when she fell in love with Faith's best friend and then married him. They are working through their issues and if you have a sister, SUMMER BY THE SEA is really going to touch your heart.

I have only read Jenny Hale's Christmas books and love them. SUMMER BY THE SEA is even better. Jenny is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors. She makes me feel so many different things while I'm reading her heart-warming stories. One minute I'm giggling and the next there is a huge lump in my throat. All of the characters are flawed in different ways, but you will find yourself cheering for them throughout the book. My heart melted while Jake tried to figure out what he really wanted. I tried not to rush through the story of Faith and Casey. I truly wanted the sisters to work out their problems and repair their relationship. I just wanted to reach in the pages and give them all hugs. I can't wait to read more by this wonderful author.