She has thrown herself into the life of a small-time chicken farmer, balanced by relaxed dinners with her former colleagues and even a book group (my own group does not hold a candle to these serious drinkers). The appearance of a dead body in her driveway jolted Maggie from her modest existence, plunging her and her neighbors into a desperate attempt to locate a hidden enemy.
A protagonist has to survive in order to have a series, and I was eager to read more about Maggie, so I was pleased when Gerritsen’s publicist offered me a copy of the second book. It has a different feel from The Spy Coast, which had international settings and unrepentant villains but was also very entertaining. This book takes place in Maggie’s back yard and focuses on a group of families who merely summer in Maine. Is the murder of a police officer in 1972 related to a corpse found in the pond outside the Conovers’ sprawling summer residence? When Ethan Conover’s new stepdaughter disappears after spending the afternoon with Maggie’s neighbor, Callie Yount, Maggie hears Luther Young was the last person to see the girl. Out of loyalty to Luther and Callie, Maggie gets involved, pulling her friends into the investigation with her, somewhat to the annoyance of Jo Thibodeau, Purity’s Police Chief. Jo wishes Maggie and her Martini Club friends would stay out of her investigation but she has to admit they always see or find things she has missed:
We know Jo will ultimately relent once she realizes she needs their help but I like the realism here – of course, the local police don’t want these senior citizens swanning around their crime scene, especially as they have been very secretive about their pasts and actual expertise. Once she accepts that Maggie, Declan, Ben, Lloyd and Ingrid have expertise that can help her find the missing girl, Jo reluctantly relents:
I don’t know how long it will take Gerritsen to write book three (although I sense that she is really enjoying these characters): I may need to go back and read her Rizzoli and Isles series while I wait; I think I read Gerritsen’s first book, Harvest but I don’t remember any since. The Summer Guests included a short story called Over Easy written by Gerritsen and Lee Child, featuring Maggie and his primary protagonist, Jack Reacher. I’ve never read Child’s books but he is very popular; I wondered if they were teasing a future collaboration as she cowrote a book in 2021 with a lesser-known writer, Gary Braver.
This is my thirteenth book for the Cloak and Dagger Reading Challenge. Gerritsen is doing an event at the Westwood Public Library in August, which I hope to attend. Join me!
Title: The Summer Guests
Author: Tess Gerritsen
Publication: Thomas & Mercer, hardcover, 2025
Genre: Mystery/series
Source: Thank you to MB Communications and the publisher for this copy in return for an honest review. I should have saved this to be one of my 20 Books of Summer but I couldn't wait!
A protagonist has to survive in order to have a series, and I was eager to read more about Maggie, so I was pleased when Gerritsen’s publicist offered me a copy of the second book. It has a different feel from The Spy Coast, which had international settings and unrepentant villains but was also very entertaining. This book takes place in Maggie’s back yard and focuses on a group of families who merely summer in Maine. Is the murder of a police officer in 1972 related to a corpse found in the pond outside the Conovers’ sprawling summer residence? When Ethan Conover’s new stepdaughter disappears after spending the afternoon with Maggie’s neighbor, Callie Yount, Maggie hears Luther Young was the last person to see the girl. Out of loyalty to Luther and Callie, Maggie gets involved, pulling her friends into the investigation with her, somewhat to the annoyance of Jo Thibodeau, Purity’s Police Chief. Jo wishes Maggie and her Martini Club friends would stay out of her investigation but she has to admit they always see or find things she has missed:
“ . . . Now if you could all please leave and let me do my job?”
“Apropos of your job, this might prove relevant,” said Ingrid, thrusting the paper evidence bag at Jo.
“What is this?” Jo asked.
“An empty beer bottle we found near the top of this driveway. Heineken. Original. It appears recently discarded, and you can probably pull off usable fingerprints and DNA. That’s what I’d do, anyway.” Ingrid looked at her husband. “Come along, dear. It appears we’re being evicted from the crime scene. I’ve thought of other avenues we can pursue.”
Jo huffed out a breath and pulled herself straight. “Okay. Okay.” She shoved back the strands of hair that had fallen loose from her ponytail. “You will stay right here in your vehicle. Don’t leave the road, don’t try to interfere, or I swear I’ll have you all in handcuffs.” She turned and walked away.We know the characters now, and it is a more relaxing read than the first book, with plenty of time for humor but significant tension as Maggie (and her friends, to a lesser extent) deciphers secrets buried in the past to find the missing teen before it is too late. Fans of The Spy Coast won’t be disappointed but while this book could work as a standalone, it makes more sense to start at the beginning of the series!
“I don’t think she’s serious,” said Lloyd. “Who carries five pairs of handcuffs?”
I don’t know how long it will take Gerritsen to write book three (although I sense that she is really enjoying these characters): I may need to go back and read her Rizzoli and Isles series while I wait; I think I read Gerritsen’s first book, Harvest but I don’t remember any since. The Summer Guests included a short story called Over Easy written by Gerritsen and Lee Child, featuring Maggie and his primary protagonist, Jack Reacher. I’ve never read Child’s books but he is very popular; I wondered if they were teasing a future collaboration as she cowrote a book in 2021 with a lesser-known writer, Gary Braver.
This is my thirteenth book for the Cloak and Dagger Reading Challenge. Gerritsen is doing an event at the Westwood Public Library in August, which I hope to attend. Join me!
Author: Tess Gerritsen
Publication: Thomas & Mercer, hardcover, 2025
Genre: Mystery/series
Source: Thank you to MB Communications and the publisher for this copy in return for an honest review. I should have saved this to be one of my 20 Books of Summer but I couldn't wait!
3 comments:
I haven't read this book or the first one but I am planning to, and I think I will enjoy them.
I just finished reading Star of the North by D.B. John, which you encouraged me to read sometime in the last year. I loved it and should have read it much sooner.
So glad you liked it. I really enjoyed Star of the North, which I remember fairly well for something I read about nearly seven years ago. It was recommended by Nick Kristof, my classmate who writes for the NYT. I had never noticed him commenting on fiction previously so I got it from the library almost immediately. I had certainly never read anything about Korea before so I found it very interesting.
I was a bit 'so-so' about The Spy Coast and I'm not sure why, too many books on a similar theme maybe, although there really hasn't been that many... Anyway, I like Gerritsen's writing, read a lot of her R & I series, so I may give this new one a go as it sounds better.
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