READ THIS: Rules of Summer by Joanna Philbin Our Coverage Sponsored by Paul Mayer Attitudes
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What could be better in a snowstorm than being all cuddled up and reading about summer? It's the next best thing to it actually being summer, and Joanna Philbin has a winner with her entertaining novel, Rules of Summer. Set in the Hamptons, Rules of Summer paints a tale of two unlikely friends that don't start off that way. Contrasts in personality, background, responsibility levels and more lend themselves to vivid interactions all along the sandy shores that will be sure to warm you up. This is our first Joanna Philbin book and we hope it won't be our last.
Surely most of you know what the Hamptons are like, and similar to Manhattan there are unique standards applicable to all areas of life that apply. Argentinian Polo Players included. Rules of Summer reminded us of the Carrie Diaries and Sex & the City, so if you liked those you are bound to love this. It has a fun banter going and the story is weaved expertly. Characters say what they think (p. 227) and we love it. Our friend Amy will be thrilled at the Delta Delta Delta mention.
Dialogues, descriptions, and details all punctuate this pageturner and the strongest aspect we found to be character development and how each reacts to conflict. Whom You Know Recommends Rules of Summer! Crack it open by the fireside this weekend, and Bravo Joanna.
(and unlike her dad, she did not need to win a bet to earn the review. Just kidding-he had the positive review coming to him earned before his Holy War victory!)
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There are two sides to every summer.
When seventeen-year-old Rory McShane steps off the train in East Hampton, it's as if she's entered another universe, one populated by impossibly beautiful people wearing pressed khakis and driving expensive cars. She's signed on to be a summer errand girl for the Rules -- a wealthy family with an enormous beachfront mansion. Upon arrival, she's warned by other staff members to avoid socializing with the family, but Rory soon learns that may be easier said than done.
Stifled by her friends and her family's country club scene, seventeen-year-old Isabel Rule, the youngest of the family, embarks on a breathless romance with a guy whom her parents would never approve of. It's the summer for taking chances, and Isabel is bringing Rory along for the ride.
But will Rory's own summer romance jeopardize her friendship with Isabel? And, after long-hidden family secrets surface, will the Rules' picture-perfect world ever be the same?
- See more at: http://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/joanna-philbin/rules-of-summer/9780316212052/#desc
Joanna Philbin was born in Los Angeles and raised in New York City. She holds a BA from Brown University and a JD and an MFA from the University of Notre Dame. She is the author of the Daughters series, and lives and writes in Los Angeles.
