Luke Devlin is a history teacher working on his thesis. When school vacation starts, Luke buys himself a new journal and is determined to record his days in the summer. Living in Denver, he can’t wait for the outdoor adventures to begin. But life has other plans when Luke’s brother, Matt, becomes ill with a difficult diagnosis. Luke also meets Jeffrey, a Wyoming cowboy, and quickly falls in love, but Jeffrey has some big secrets he is keeping hidden.

The easy days of summer become unfulfilled wishes as Luke’s love life and family life become completely overwhelmed as he confronts life’s harsh realities under the summer sun.

I really enjoy books that have this framework—almost a story within a story as a character records their journey over a particular time frame. That is the case here somewhat and Luke has a story to tell, but the narrative offered too much and then not enough almost simultaneously.

The book opens at the end, in the month of December, and we know upfront one major event that happens. The story then moves back to the month of June and is divided into parts over the next four months. Luke is close to his brother, but when he spends time with Matt at the lake, he knows something is off and encourages him to see a doctor. This sets off a good portion of the story as Luke deals with Matt’s diagnosis. Luke also meets an older man and gets caught up in a love affair and falls in love in a few weeks.

The journal entries are woven into the story, but they had the same tone as the rest of the book and didn’t offer much different information then what we were given in the main part of the book, so the part that was supposed to hook me fell flat. Luke also starts a relationship with Jeffrey, but they don’t spend all that much time together as they live in different states, and some of their interactions are off page and alluded to and we are told more than we are shown. This didn’t offer any of the emotion I was supposed to feel as Luke was falling in love and then watching this new relationship crumble. The relationship arc is also left open and we aren’t told what the status will be for the men at the end of the story.

There are also many, many (so many) social issues packed into this book and some are mentioned only briefly and remain on the surface. There is reference to nature conservation, clean energy and fracking, environmental protection, animal rights as it pertains to cattle ranchers, religion and existentialism, philosophy and literature, homophobia, single parents, death, family, life, love, and loss. It was too much for me in one novel and, since I am not an expert on all the things, I cannot attest to the authenticity or appropriateness of each and every point raised.

I would not go into this book looking for a romance, as Luke’s relationship with Jeffrey is on the periphery of this story, so it would be a better choice for general LGBT fiction. The ending felt incomplete and unsettled and while life sometimes is that way, as this particular novel came to a close, I was looking for that spark that would have made the journey more worthwhile.

An interesting story that I think could have been so much more. It's a jumble of this and that but I stayed with it because I enjoyed the writing and I did want to see what happens in the story.. Check it out and see if it's something you would enjoy. Happy reading!

An interesting and complex story that while it kept me turning the pages as I wanted to reach the conclusion, the journey and pacing that got me there was a little slow going.

This book is a tough one for me to review. I’m a bit unclear on who the intended audience of the book is as the description varies quite a lot from what the actual book is about. Let’s jump right in!

The book description reads as though this book may be a summer of discovery, loss, and love. I wouldn’t use that description for this book. I can get the “love” aspect out of the way right off the bat. The main character Luke does meet an older man, Jeff. They get together extremely quickly… then after a single meeting with a complete stranger who passes on some information … Luke is done with the relationship. There’s really no indication any further in the novel if the two men continue to be connected. I’m not even certain this relationship was necessary at all for the novel to be a complete story.

The book is taken up with a variety of issues that, at times, seem to overwhelm the plot. The author goes into elaborate detail about philosophy, vegetarianism, anti-meat eating, environmentalism, existentialism, infidelity, coming out late in life, homophobia, religion … I’m sure there are more that I’m forgetting. I thought the author did a great job of writing about all of those things and making it accessible…but there was a bit too much of it. There are parts of the novel that read more like a textbook than fiction.

The main relationship in the book is that of Luke and his brother Matt. Their relationship is lovely and I really enjoyed the times they were together. I loved how the author managed to convey the way in which brothers can be extremely close. Luke and Matt were really well-written. I think I almost enjoyed Matt’s characterization more as he struggled with his entire life-changing. There was a kind of subtle bravery and steadfastness to Matt that seemed very authentic.

I think this was a recounting of a summer in which some terrible things happened but some of the emotion got lost because of the many issues that were being covered by the author. The downward spiral of a main character's illness is the primary plot in the story and it’s a bit bogged down in the rest of the issues that are peppered throughout the story.

I can't say that I enjoyed this book, after all, there's little to enjoy about losing a family member. There's an audience for every book though... and I believe that.

Thank you Net Galley for the free. Contemporary story of two brothers who were each others best friend and the summer that disease took one of them away.

This story had an interesting premise but never really went in depth anywhere. The plot was engaging and emotional and the characters well written and likeable but it felt rushed and nothing really had the time to breathe or develop unfortunately.

‘Every Summer Day’ by Lee Patton is many things - riveting, complex, devastating, even at times a little preachy - but it is not at all the story I had expected to read based on its description.

While the novel speaks to many things, “a love affair that’s as fast-moving and possibly as fatal as his brother’s diagnosis” seems at best ancillary to the rest of the narrative.

The greatest strength of ‘Every Summer Day’ is the wonderfully conceived main character, Luke Devlin. Patton has also created several other fascinating and important supporting characters.

The great weakness of the book is the extraordinary number of contemporary issues the author has chosen to raise, many with just the briefest of exposition. The only thing missing is a pandemic.

‘Every Summer Day’ is presented as a a diary chronicling Luke Devlin’s 29th summer.

Luke Devlin is an openly gay Denver high school history teacher who is working on his master’s thesis in American history. He’s spent his entire life idolizing his older brother, Matt. Matt created and currently owns Book Cliff Cyclery and Horsethief Adventures, a Colorado bike and river tour company.

Matt’s fiancé, Jenn, is an aspiring actress who tends bar and does TV commercials for the Clean Energy Council, a front for gas and oil companies.

Mr. Patton has populated his novel with a host of additional characters including Drs. Ted and Kathy Devlin, the Devlin brother’s parents who are world renowned experts on endangered species in the Amazon; Damien, a gay male nurse who is Luke’s best friend; and Emily, Luke’s best female friend. Emily’s husband was killed in Afghanistan leaving her to raise their son, Marco. Marco, now 11, is going through an unexplained homophobic phase, suddenly rejecting Luke who had been a former mentor and father figure.

There are even more characters, many of whom appear only briefly, who significantly impact the story line.

Finally, there is “the fast moving-love affair”. It’s just that - fast.

Luke meets and rapidly falls in love with Jeffrey Douglas, a 40-year old Wyoming rancher with a summer home in the Black Hills of South Dakota.

Both Luke and Jeff are interested in history and philosophy. Despite their age difference, they quickly fall in love. <spoiler> That love grows until an unidentified gay man comes up to Luke in a Denver bar and tells him that Jeff isn’t the person he pretends to be. Luke confronts Jeff, and following that brief confrontation, he severs their relationship. From that point on, until nearly the final pages of the novel, there is no further contact between Luke and Jeff. </spoiler>

‘Every Summer Day’ raises numerous contemporary issues. For me there were far too many issues to adequately address them all. Among those mentioned are: the beauty and fragility of nature; the health and environmental problems created at major Superfund site, environmental protectionism, environmental ethics, climate change, animal rights, philosophy, religion, existentialism, faith, death, loss, racism, homophobia, bigotry, the educational and health care systems, income inequality, the benefits of a stable home, and the healing love of family and friends.

I received an Advance Review Copy of ‘Every Summer Day’ from NetGalley and Bold Strokes Books in exchange for an honest review. #Every Summer Day #NetGalley