Sarah MacLean, the reigning queen of historical romance who has gifted us with swoon-worthy series like The Bareknuckle Bastards and Hell’s Belles, ventures into uncharted waters with These Summer Storms—her first contemporary fiction novel. Known for her ability to craft utterly irresistible rogues and fierce heroines in Regency England, MacLean transplants her signature wit and emotional depth to present-day New England, creating a family drama that crackles with tension, secrets, and the kind of manipulative patriarch who would make even her most scheming historical villains proud.
The result is a novel that feels both familiar and refreshingly different, though not without its growing pains as MacLean navigates the transition from bodice-rippers to family dysfunction with varying degrees of success.
The Storm Family Tempest: Plot and Premise
At the heart of These Summer Storms lies Alice Storm, the black sheep daughter who fled her tech mogul father’s empire five years ago after a devastating confrontation that cost her everything she’d worked for. When Franklin Storm dies in a gliding accident, Alice reluctantly returns to the family’s private Rhode Island island for what she assumes will be a quick funeral and final goodbye.
Instead, she finds herself trapped in her father’s final manipulation—an inheritance game that requires all Storm siblings to remain on the island for one week, completing assigned tasks designed to humiliate and potentially heal their fractured family dynamics. The rules are simple: stay the week, complete the tasks, share the billions. Fail, and everyone loses everything.
MacLean’s premise is deliciously twisted, echoing elements of Knives Out meets Big Little Lies with a hefty dose of family therapy gone wrong. Franklin Storm emerges as a masterfully crafted antagonist—even in death, his presence looms large over every interaction, every revelation, every moment of potential healing or destruction.
Character Depth: Where MacLean Shines Brightest
Alice Storm: A Heroine Worth Rooting For
Alice serves as both narrator and emotional anchor, and MacLean succeeds in creating a protagonist who feels authentically damaged without being irredeemably broken. Her artistic sensibilities, hard-won independence, and complicated relationship with her family’s wealth provide compelling internal conflict. Alice’s journey from reluctant participant to someone willing to fight for the family she thought she’d left behind forms the novel’s strongest emotional throughline.
MacLean demonstrates her romance-writing prowess in how she develops Alice’s relationship with Jack Dean, her father’s enigmatic second-in-command. Their chemistry burns slow and steady, built on shared understanding of loss, control, and the weight of Franklin’s expectations. Jack emerges as a worthy romantic interest—complex enough to avoid the “too perfect” trap while maintaining the protective, competent energy that MacLean’s romance readers adore.
The Supporting Storm: A Mixed Family Portrait
The Storm siblings each carry distinct personalities and wounds, though some receive more thorough development than others:
- Greta, the eldest, suffocates under the weight of being Elisabeth’s “essential” daughter, trapped in a secret affair that threatens everything she’s built
- Sam, the golden boy son who reveals surprising depth beneath his privileged exterior, struggling with addiction and the pressure to be Franklin’s heir
- Emily, the youngest, whose apparent perfection hides family secrets that could destroy them all
Elisabeth Storm, the family matriarch, provides some of the novel’s most cutting dialogue while embodying the particular brand of WASP dysfunction that MacLean captures with surgical precision.
The Rhode Island Setting: Atmospheric Excellence
MacLean’s New England roots shine through in her vivid portrayal of Storm Island. The isolated setting becomes almost a character itself—Gothic mansion, private docks, hidden art vaults, and the constant presence of Narragansett Bay creating an atmosphere that’s both luxurious and claustrophobic. The hurricane that literally blows through the climax serves as perfect metaphor for the emotional storms battering the family.
The author’s attention to detail in depicting old money New England culture feels authentic and lived-in, from the guest lists requiring Secret Service clearance to the casual mentions of private helicopters and art collections worth millions.
Narrative Structure: Ambitious but Uneven
MacLean employs multiple POVs throughout the novel, shifting between Alice’s primary perspective and chapters dedicated to Emily, Greta, and Sam. While this allows deeper exploration of each sibling’s internal landscape, the transitions sometimes feel jarring, particularly when moving away from Alice’s compelling voice.
The inheritance game structure provides excellent pacing for the first two-thirds of the novel, with each revelation and completed task ratcheting up tension. However, the final act occasionally stumbles under the weight of its own complexity, as MacLean attempts to resolve multiple character arcs, romantic tensions, and family dynamics simultaneously.
Writing Style: MacLean’s Voice in Transition
Longtime MacLean readers will recognize her trademark wit, sharp dialogue, and ability to craft emotionally resonant scenes. Her historical romance background serves her well in creating tension and banter, particularly in scenes between Alice and Jack. The author’s skill with ensemble casts, honed through numerous series, translates effectively to family dynamics.
However, the transition to contemporary fiction sometimes shows. Certain plot conveniences feel forced, and some emotional revelations arrive with the mechanical precision of romance novel beats rather than the organic development literary fiction demands. MacLean occasionally oversells emotional moments that would benefit from subtler handling.
Themes That Resonate
These Summer Storms succeeds most when exploring themes of family obligation versus personal autonomy, the corrupting influence of extreme wealth, and the possibility of healing from generational trauma. MacLean handles the complexity of loving someone who’s hurt you with particular skill, especially in Alice’s relationship with her deceased father.
The novel also examines how controlling personalities continue to exert influence beyond death, and whether it’s possible to break free from patterns established in childhood. These themes feel particularly relevant in our current cultural moment of examining family systems and inherited trauma.
Where the Storm Loses Force
Despite its strengths, These Summer Storms suffers from several significant weaknesses:
- Pacing Issues: The middle section occasionally drags as the inheritance tasks pile up without always serving character development
- Resolution Convenience: Several major conflicts resolve too neatly, with solutions that feel more wished-for than earned
- Secondary Character Development: Some siblings receive superficial treatment compared to Alice’s deep characterization
- Genre Confusion: The novel sometimes can’t decide whether it wants to be literary family drama or commercial women’s fiction, leading to tonal inconsistencies
Romantic Elements: MacLean’s Comfort Zone
The Alice-Jack romance provides the novel’s most successful element, showcasing why MacLean has dominated historical romance for over a decade. Their relationship develops with the perfect balance of sexual tension, emotional intimacy, and conflict that makes readers invest deeply in their outcome.
MacLean writes their physical chemistry with her characteristic blend of heat and emotion, proving that her romantic sensibilities translate seamlessly to contemporary settings. Jack’s character—protective yet vulnerable, competent yet haunted—fits perfectly into the archetype of MacLean heroes that have captivated romance readers for years.
Cultural Commentary: Wealth, Power, and Dysfunction
The novel provides sharp commentary on how extreme wealth warps family relationships and individual development. MacLean effectively illustrates how money becomes both carrot and stick in Franklin’s manipulation of his children, and how economic dependence can trap people in toxic dynamics long past childhood.
The insider’s view of New England elite culture feels authentic and appropriately critical, though MacLean sometimes pushes the privilege commentary too hard, particularly in scenes involving Sam’s ex-wife Sila.
Comparison to MacLean’s Romance Work
Readers coming from MacLean’s historical romances may find These Summer Storms slower-paced and less immediately gratifying than her series work. The complex family dynamics require more patience than the straightforward romantic conflict of her Regency novels. However, fans will appreciate seeing MacLean’s character development skills applied to a broader canvas.
The novel shares DNA with her romance work in its focus on found family, the healing power of love (romantic and otherwise), and the theme that people can overcome their past to create better futures.
Similar Reads: For Readers Who Loved This
If These Summer Storms resonated with you, consider these similar titles:
- “The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo” by Taylor Jenkins Reid – for family secrets and complex female characters
- “Big Little Lies” by Liane Moriarty – for wealthy family dysfunction and dark secrets
- “The Silent Patient” by Alex Michaelides – for psychological manipulation and unreliable narrators
- “Little Fires Everywhere” by Celeste Ng – for class commentary and family drama
- “The Arrangement” by Ashley Warlick – for literary fiction with romantic elements
For MacLean fans specifically:
- “Beach Read” by Emily Henry – contemporary romance with emotional depth
- “The Hating Game” by Sally Thorne – workplace enemies-to-lovers with wit and heat
Final Verdict: A Promising but Imperfect Storm
These Summer Storms represents an ambitious and largely successful genre transition for Sarah MacLean. While it doesn’t achieve the effortless perfection of her best historical romances, it demonstrates her ability to create compelling characters and emotional stakes beyond the romance genre.
The novel succeeds as a family drama with romantic elements, offering complex characters, gorgeous setting, and themes that linger long after the final page. MacLean’s trademark wit and emotional intelligence shine throughout, even when the plot occasionally stumbles under its own ambitious weight.
Readers seeking a beach read with more substance than typical summer fiction will find much to appreciate, as will those interested in seeing a beloved romance author stretch her creative muscles. While These Summer Storms may not convert literary fiction purists, it offers enough depth and sophistication to satisfy readers looking for intelligent commercial fiction.
This isn’t MacLean’s masterpiece, but it’s a confident first step into new territory that promises exciting possibilities for her future contemporary work. Like the storms that batter Storm Island throughout the novel, this book is tumultuous, occasionally overwhelming, but ultimately cleansing—washing away what no longer serves to make space for something new and potentially beautiful.
These Summer Storms earns its place on summer reading lists as a novel that entertains while it challenges, offering both the comfort of MacLean’s reliable storytelling and the excitement of watching a talented author explore uncharted creative waters.
