From the New York Times bestselling author of the Beach House series comes a heartwarming and evocative novel about the bonds and new beginnings that are blessed from natural disasters and how, even during the worst of circumstances—or simply because of them—we uncover what is most important in life.

Late August is definitely a beautiful time around the Southern coast—the peach trees and shrubs are ripe, the ocean is warm, and the special tea is certainly icy. A perfect time to enjoy the rocking seats for the porch. But beneath about THE SUMMERTIME Guests the relaxed surface area bubbles a threat: it’s also peak hurricane period.

When a hurricane threatens the coasts of Florida and SC, an eclectic band of evacuees flees for the plantation of their friends Sophistication and Charles Phillips in North Carolina: the Phillips’s child Moira and her save canines, famed equestrian Javier Angel de la Cruz, makeup designer Hannah McLain, horse breeder Gerda Klug and her girl Elise, and isle resident Cara Rutledge. They bring with them only the few treasured possessions they can easily fit into their vehicles. Strangers to all but the Phillips, they must ride out the storm together.

During the course of perhaps one of the most challenging weeks of their lives, interactions are put towards the check as the evacuees are forced to confront the unresolved problems they have with themselves and with one another. But as the storm passes, they realize that what really matters isn’t what they brought with them to the mountains. Rather, it’s what they’ll consider with them after they leave.

With Mary Alice Monroe’s “usual resplendent storytelling” (Patti Callahan Henry, NY Moments bestselling author), THE SUMMERTIME Guests is a poignant and compelling story of self-discovery, like, and redemption.