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Summertime

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Summertime

By: Vanessa Lafaye
Narrated by: Adjoa Andoh
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Florida, 1935, and the residents of Heron Key are preparing for the 4th July barbecue, little realising how much their world is about to change.

Domestic helps Missy and Selma are dismembering the alligator that tried to snatch the baby Missy was watching, before they can get ready for the party. Henry, a returned soldier from WW1, is hoping that his comrades in his construction team will not disgrace themselves in front of an already fiercely judgemental community. Hilda Kincaid, is squeezing into a frock, wondering how she will face another night of public humiliation as her husband toys with Doreen from the golf club. And Sheriff Dwayne Campbell - laughing stock since his wife gave birth to their mixed-race son - is squaring up to deal with any troublemakers and prove he can control the town, even if he can't control his wife...

Tensions simmer at the party and in the early hours of the morning, a woman is found half-beaten to death. As whites turn on blacks, the finger of suspicion points at one man. And while wild accusations are made, far over the Atlantic a tropical storm changes direction and turns towards Florida, increasing in speed by the second. As the hurricane beacons are lit along the Keys, the town folk prepare themselves as they always do, unaware that the approaching storm is beyond anything they have ever experienced. In one night, Heron Key will change forever.

Read by Adjoa Andoh

(p) 2015 Orion Publishing Group©2015 Vanessa Lafaye Fiction Historical Fiction Marriage Natural Disaster Florida
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Critic reviews

A storming debut novel [that] captures the racial and social tensions in southern America after the First World War. Part social history and part love story, this features the hurricane as a forceful, malevolent character in its own right, whipping through the pages.
'Powerful, beautifully written and simply unputdownable. If you can read this book and not be moved, you have a heart of stone.' (Cathy Kelly)
'I absolutely loved SUMMERTIME; it's rare to read something with such emotional intensity and such exciting pace. It is every bit as good as THE HELP, in my opinion.' (Elizabeth Noble)
1935. An Independence day BBQ simmers with racial tension and resentments. By morning, a terrible crime has been committed. Off the Florida coast, a hurricane is heading their way. So tense, I raced through it. (Fanny Blake)
part love-story, part eye-opening insight into a tumultuous time in American history - the years after the First World War, when veterans tried to rebuild their lives and racial tensions ran high
A small community is rocked by an attack on a white woman and suspicion falls on war veteran Henry in a story set against the backdrop of a catastrophic hurricane. Vanessa Lafaye's Summertime is being compared to The Help and To Kill A Mockingbird. (Charlotte Heathcote)
Lafaye has created a taut and powerful novel that I found deeply moving. A riveting piece of social history, it's also a love story and a devastating account of what it's like to experience such a disaster
Combining a moving love story with a fascinating slice of US history, this powerful novel is hard to put down
In one night nature changes this small town more than ever before ... If you love The Help, you'll love this
This is Vanessa Lafaye's debut novel, and what a writer she is! She has a talent with words that enables her prose to glide across the page, there are no superfluous words, and each paragraph eases the story along. She is a natural creator of atmosphere and suspense, and with a deft hand she creates credible, yet humanly flawed characters. She also creates a very palpable setting, the heat, the oppressive temperatures and the gurgling, sulphurous swampland all assault the reader's senses
It's only January but I can safely say that this is one of my Books of 2015. I just know that it's going to be really hard to beat because it had everything I look for in a novel, plus much more.
Mesmerising, powerful and heartbreaking, Summertime is such an exciting, frightening yet beautiful novel.
This novel is sublime and deserving of so many plaudits and for it to only be a debut novel... I'm very excited about what Vanessa Lafaye will bring us next. (Sophie Hedley)
This is a fascinating insight into American social history
a brave first novel, not least because of Lafaye's descriptions of the devastation wrought by nature
'Summertime was a compelling read, beautifully written and skilfully crafted to create a great sense of anticipation of the disasters that occurred.'
All stars
Most relevant
I found this book a little hard to get into, then I couldn't stop listening. As the disaster unfolds the listener is gripped by the events and totally involved in the characters and their fight for survival. The narration was excellent.

A moving fictional account

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This could well be one of the best audible books I have listened to so far. The story was so absorbing and well crafted, the characters felt so real , brought to life magnificently by this very talented narrator.

I found it moving and thought provoking. I really could not put it down and would highly recommend this to a wide age range of readers and to both genders.

I was so impressed by the narrator, I intend to choose my next read narrated by her.

The whole experience was just lovely.

Superb in every respect

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This was an unexpected pleasure. Although based on a true story, it was one I wasn't aware of & I found it very interesting. I also happened to be listening to this when Harvey, Irma, Jose & Katia were wreaking havoc, and living in Scotland, I was really interested in the descriptions of what it would be like. The loss of all your clothes during a storm and the disorientation & difficulty in finding safety due to loss of landmarks & buildings were unknown to me, so it was an education.
The characters were well drawn & I particularly liked the development of the police chief's nephew who was a favourite by the end of the book. The different treatment of ethnic groups & the refusal to give shelter at the height of the storm was shocking & unforgivable. The refusal to behave in the same disgraceful manner when situations were reversed was admirable. I doubt that i would have been so noble!

Excellent book

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Would you listen to Summertime again? Why?

I listened to it twice actually. It's a great story wonderfully narrated. I could picture the sleepy town in Florida: the lives and concerns of those living there at the mercy of an approaching hurricane.

What other book might you compare Summertime to, and why?

I liked it because it was an unusual story unlike anything that I have read before. I knew nothing about the hurricane or the plight of the returning WW 1 veterans.

Which scene did you most enjoy?

The scene with the 'gator.

If you made a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

Out of a clear blue sky

Any additional comments?

This book has everything: a good plot and wonderful well drawn characters. It is deeply atmospheric and it builds to an incredible climax.

a brilliant book.

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Would you listen to Summertime again? Why?

Oh yes, the setting was interesting - Florida Keys after the 1st World War. The narrator made the story live in your mind, you were rooting for the characters the whole time and the description of the hurricane was tremendous.

What did you like best about this story?

The story was totally believable and the great narrator added to the atmosphere. The author ended the story by stating which bits were taken from history and where she had taken liberties.

Which scene did you most enjoy?

It would be a long scene, but the build-up and arrival of the hurricane was incredible.

If you made a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

The Florida Keys, as you never imagined them before.

Any additional comments?

If you loved 'The Help', you will love this story!

Best book heard or read this summer!

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