The Summer Holiday
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Narrated by:
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Tamsin Kennard
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Written by:
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S.E. Lynes
About this listen
One loving couple. One surprise guest. One week to destroy everything....
This holiday is the first time my husband, Jeff, and I have been on our own in years, and I want it to be a fresh start. We can walk along the beach, eat ice cream in the bright Spanish sun, and fall in love again.
Then I run into Coco, the girl we all wanted to be at university. She’s just like I remember: effortlessly cool with her blonde hair and her white linen dress. I can’t resist inviting her round to our clifftop villa with its pristine pool, to show off how much Jeff and I have changed.
But when Coco steps from the dusty street into the cool tiled hall, her face freezes in horror. I turn to see Jeff, his eyes wide, his cheeks pale.
They pretend nothing’s wrong, but I know they’re both lying. And when I catch them in whispered conversations, I’m determined to find out what they’re hiding.
But when I confront them, the truth is worse than I could have dreamed.
And when things fall apart, not all of us will walk away....
From the best-selling author S.E. Lynes comes a brilliantly gripping thriller that will have you gasping out loud at the twists. Fans of Paula Hawkins, Lisa Jewell, and Gillian Flynn will love The Summer Holiday.
©2023 S.E. Lynes (P)2023 Bookouture, an imprint of Storyfire Ltd.You may also enjoy...
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Great listen!!
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
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Loved it
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What listeners say about The Summer Holiday
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
- Maureen
- 2023-05-14
S.E. Lynes is a Cut Above
I love everything Lynes has written. She is clever, observant, confident, smart, intimate and quietly funny (her jokes are nuanced - like when your best friend leans in at a cocktail party and whispers something hilariously on point in your ear).
She crafts complicated characters who are believable and elicit a reaction from the reader (often a mixed reaction).
I can be a book snob. So many suspense/thrillers are poorly written and full of superfluous detail & predictable two dimensional characters and gratuitous romance. It’s like they are trying too hard.
In contrast, Lynes’ writing appears effortless and her stories flow quickly but naturally. She takes you to the location of her novel (smells, tastes and feelings) and provides the reader with an intimate look at the characters and the setting. Very sensory.
The Summer Holiday took me a little longer than usual to embrace because the protagonist Kate was such a wreck - insecure, weak, unhappy, lonely, frantically seeking belonging and love. I wanted to shake her and tell her to smarten up and not to “order the flipping oysters if you don’t like them!”. By the end however, I wanted to hug her and carry her around on my shoulders in triumph. I have decided that Olivia Colman should play the main character Kate should this book be adapted for the screen.
Lynes quietly explores themes that will resonate with many. She creates strong, confident, smart, thoughtful women (some of whom, as in this novel, just don’t know they are strong and confident yet).
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- Jakki Stephenson
- 2023-05-25
Exquisitely written
I was totally engrossed in these characters and the tortuous existence of poor Kate. Lynes has not disappointed with her latest!
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