This book made me uncomfortable from the very beginning. From the fire on, I just knew that our main character Sera was doomed to struggle through the novel. I enjoyed the mysterious relationships and definitely wanted to read until the end. The familial relationships felt very real and truthful.

My feelings are a bit mixed on this one. I enjoyed the story and really wanted to know what everyone's secrets were. Especially Dee & Leo. A ton of wonderful build up during the entire book, but the ending just fell kind of flat for me. I did enjoy the meat of the story and the writing though. I would definitely check out another work by this author.

I haven't read anything by this author, and this book leaves me wanting more and more from her!

The story line was a bit predictable, but that didn't stop me from binge reading the whole thing in one night!

What’s good about this book: There are mysteries that I wanted to know the answers to, so that kept me reading. Sera has returned home with her four-year-old daughter after the death of her husband. Fifteen years earlier, her best friend Dee, Dee’s younger brother Leo, and their mother disappeared without a trace. Now living on the farm that Dee and Leo once lived on is a man named Henri with visible scars and a history he doesn’t want to tell.

So here are the mysteries: Why did Dee and Leo disappear 15 years ago, and, now that they’ve returned, what have they been up to for all those years? Who burned Henri’s farm? Who is Henri? There are some more, but I’d be giving stuff away if I mentioned them here (the others all begin in the first few chapters.)

However, I can only describe the writing as clunky. The author is constantly TELLING us how the character feels instead of SHOWING us by describing it. Something happens, and “I was thrilled.” Someone says something, and “I was irritated.” Also, the chapters are told from different points of view at different times in history, but each chapter begins with telling us who is narrating from the first person POV. Still, the author insists on writing “I noticed . . .” as in, “I noticed she was crying.” “I noticed her hair was wet.” When we know who is narrating something, we know it is from that character’s POV, and therefore every instance of “I noticed” should be deleted. The segues between scenes or times or setting are clumsy and awkward.

Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to review this novel, which RELEASES JULY 18, 2919.

The Darkest Summer has a great synopsis but I found the actual story lacking. I wouldn’t say I didn’t enjoy the story, it was just ok for me.

The Darkest Summer, set in today’s stifling summer, revolves around a different summer in the past where the lives of best friends Sera and Dee suddenly change. A missing family haunts the town and eventually we know what happened that summer when events change again in the current timeline. Plenty of surprises and twists keep you reading. My first novel by this author and looking forward to another.

This book deals with the small town mysteries in midst of a sweltering summer where Sera encounters her long lost friend Dee. Sera has been wondering what happened to Dee and her family and why they left so suddenly fifteen years ago.

The story is set mostly in the present with a few back and forth chapters that serve as a comparison for Dee and Sera's friendship between then and now. We notice the huge change immediately and, as the reader, you can't help but feel for Sera. This reunion clearly wasn't what she was expecting. During Dee's time back she is distant and far from the joyous girl Sera once knew. As soon as Dee was introduced I knew there was something fishy going on with her and her brother, Leo. Although I was able to correctly guess what they were hiding, it wasn't until the very end I was able to confirm it which meant that my nerves where through the roof for the whole book and I couldn't stop reading it.

However, uncovering Dee's tragic past isn't the only thing Sera wants to do. There is a new neighbor that Sera begins getting close to and he has secrets of his own. By far his secrets where the hardest for me to decipher but when you find out it all makes sense and the dots connect perfectly. I really liked the fact that there were no loose ends in the book; everything tied up wonderfully.

I think this is a perfect read for people who, like me, love trying to decipher the mysteries before they're revealed and who love to read books in one sitting. It gets quite fast paced once we are introduced to the characters properly and makes for a good summer read! I also liked the way it written because I could see it so clearly in my head, it was like watching a movie.

The Darkest Summer by Ella Drummond is a fast-paced read that virtually overflows with mystery, lies, and long-held secrets. This is a quick read that I devoured over the course of a single afternoon.

Sera and Dee have grown up together and are almost as close as sisters. But when Dee disappears with her family one hot summer day, Sera is left feeling abandoned and confused. Why has the family that Sera thinks of almost as her own suddenly vanished? A chance meeting with Leo, Dee's brother, reunites the two friends, but the closeness that they have always shared is missing. Dee is not the same fun-loving girl that Sera once loved, and seems to be angry and withdrawn. What could account for this change, and what, if anything, is she trying to hide?

There is no shortage of twists, turns, and bombshell revelations here, all making for a fun and compulsive read.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Hera Books for this ARC.

I really enjoyed this book. How true you never know people, not really.

I brilliant story of friendship through the ages, secrets and family.

I highly recommend this.

I’d never read anything by this author and this book was a pleasant surprise! It was a bit predictable but still had me wanting to read more and more. I would definitely recommend and read more books by this author! If you want to read a twisty book of secrets and lies, this would make the perfect summer read!

Having read My Last Lie by the author and loving it, I couldn’t wait to read her new standalone and it didn’t disappoint.

Set in the hottest season of the year, The Darkest Summer makes for at times, a stifling read. You get the sense of the heat and dryness that Sera is having to endure but that isn’t all she has to deal with!

The story is set mainly in the present with some chapters in the past. We get to see the difference in Sera and Dee’s friendship between then and now. In the past, Dee and Sera were the bestest of friends and carefree and loving life. Fast forward to present day and whilst life has obviously hit both of them hard, Dee is far from the person she was when they were younger.

As soon as Dee comes on the scene my senses were going through the roof. It was obvious her and her brother Leo are not telling Sera everything and I was desperate to know more. What I love most about this authors books is how she gently draws you into them and slowly reveals things along the way. Usually I would struggle with books that do that to me but not this authors! They are so compelling and when I pick her books up, I swear I can’t tear myself away as am so fixated on the story and characters and to how it will end for everyone involved.

The Darkest Summer is an addictive read that totally absorbs you. Whilst I had managed to work out some of what was in store for us, I certainly hadn’t anticipated all of it and when it came to light, it literally blew me away. Ella Drummond without a doubt is vast becoming one of my favourite authors in this genre.

This was a great quick summer mystery. Sera had her best friend disappear from her life suddenly when she was a teenager and after giving up and both women going on to live their lives the mysteriously become reacquainted and the mysteries of their past become unraveled. It did start off a bit slow with probably the most entertaining parts being in the last quarter of the book. However the characters while initially a little mild kept me interested and I like how the author brought the story together by linking the three different storylines. There are some parts I would have liked to have been expanded on, for instance their mothers story but all and all a good read.

This is a book that I devoured in a few hours. There are multiple mysteries and plot twists and I couldn't put the book down, which is the highest compliment I can give a book.

I want to thank NetGalley, Ella Drummond and Hera Books for an Arc of the darkest summer. I am always really intrigued by thrillers with a story line where someone disappears and then many years later they return. I love the mystery and trying to find out what actually happened to them all that time ago. This boom was a wild ride for me and I could not stop reading. I just had so much anticipation wondering what all of the secrets were.
One hot summer, Dee disappeared now she's back but she's not the girl you knew. Sera returns to her hometown with her five year old daughter after the death of her husband and 30 years after the disappearance of her best friend Dee and her brother Leo one summer day. Suddenly Dee and Leo return and Dee has a daughter but Dee won't talk and won't say what happened to them all of those years ago. There are so many twists and turns including things you find out about both Sera and Dees mom.
This book kept me on my toes and I wanted to know what happened and who did what and what the heck was up with Dee. I was happy with the ending and this book was super thrilling and I recommend for all of my psychological thriller fans.

I feel torn as I write this review. There are many things I like about The Darkest Summer, however, the ending seemed abrupt and many of the plot lines seemed too unrealistic.

The Darkest Summer by author Ella Drummond is a fast paced and easy to follow thriller that did not disappoint! I absolutely loved this book! Releases next month!

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This thriller is a MUST read!

Dee and Sera were best friends until Dee's family "disappeared" when Sera was 12. Now, after her husband had died 3 years ago, Sera returned to her mum's house to live. Sera's daughter, Katie, is 5 and precocious. One day, Sera runs into Dee's younger brother, Leo, and later on he returns with Dee and her nearly silent daughter, Ashley. Dee has changed for the worse and is downright nasty. What happened to her? Handsome and seemingly wealthy, Leo sparks minor interest in Sera. She had already met Henri, a Frenchman, who has recently bought the farm Dee and Leo had lived on as children. There is a real spark between Henri and Sera.

We find out that Mimi (Sera's mum) and Hazel (Dee's mum) had been flat mates, once, and how their relationship had been affected by this. The reader wants to know what happened between the two of them.

We also learn more about Henri and why he has extensive scarring. But the real twists are yet to come!

A superb read - don't miss this one!

A Thank you to Hera Books and NetGalley for a great suspense/thriller !

I found reading this book a mixed experience.

On the positive side, I enjoyed the various twists and turns as everyone's secrets were uncovered. I liked the character of Henri in particular. It was a quick and easy read.

On the negative side, I found the writing very flat. The characters felt like puppets being manipulated by the author, acting inconsistently for the sake of the plot. It was all tell and no show, meaning that the story never came alive on the page. And the revelations at the end were very rushed, without ever bringing certain characters' threads to a conclusion.

Overall, a lot of potential but needed more polish.

When the first few pages bangs you with interest you know what's lying ahead. The book surely made me stick till the end especially to know what and why Dee and her family fled away one summer.
The storyline:
Dee and Sera were two best of friends .They shared their childhood together, but suddenly Dee and her family which included her brother Leo disappeared one summer without giving anyone any clue.
Years after Sera who is an adult now and have a daughter katie 5 years old., shifts to her old home to live with her mom. Her husband die due to an accident. Little did she imagine that her stay would dig up some mystery about herself and her long lost friend Dee.

With added mystery man Henri in Sera's life, the new neighbour, it made the story more unpredictable.
I totally kept reading and reading just to know about Dee's daughter Ashley's peculiar behaviour and also a connection between Hazel and Mimi.
Did the book satisfy my thriller craving ?I would say yes somewhat .

Nothing in this book for me was believable... it was one strange thing after another... to the point I only kept reading to see what else COULD happen.
It was an easy read,a lot of it was quite predictable....
It might yet be the biggest beach read of the summer.