The Summer of Good Intentions

Our Review

THE SUMMER OF GOOD INTENTIONS is a tale of three grown sisters, and their families, brought together for a family vacation at Cape Cod.

Maggie and Jess are twins who can usually read one another’s thoughts. Maggie is the organizer whose family gets to Cape Cod first to open and air out the summer house. Maggie has to have everything running smoothly in the house before she can relax and enjoy the vacation.

Jess is a few minutes younger than Maggie so she is considered the middle daughter. She loves her job as a school principal, but her marriage is suffering because of it. Jess has always told Maggie about her problems, but she is not sure she can reveal her infidelity.

Virgie is the youngest daughter, and has always been her father’s favorite because she is a writer like him. She lives in Seattle, so she doesn’t get back to the east coast often.

The girl’s parents have been divorced for a while so when their mother calls and informs them that she is coming to the family vacation, and is bringing a friend, the sisters are distraught for their father, who has made plans to be with them as well.

Maggie starts worrying about how her dad will react, Jess tells her husband about her fling with their neighbor, and Virgie falls and ends up in the hospital. All these things add to the family crisis and takes away from the vacation’s simplicity. When a tragedy occurs that devastates the family and leaves them wondering about the future, it tends to bring them all together as one to overcome adversity.

Wendy Francis has written a compelling story of family and their unity through adversities. This story will make you do a lot of deep thinking about your own family.