THE DAYS OF SUMMER

THE DAYS OF SUMMER  by Jill Barnett

From Amazon.com:

In 1957, the Banning family leads a life of privilege, wealth and domestic unhappiness.  At the head of this California dynasty is oil magnate Victor Banning, a man of great power and even greater obsessions, who is determined to teach his son and grandsons to be predators in his dog-eat-dog world.  Jimmy Peyton is a rising star in the music business, a young man with a bright future and no connection to the Bannings, until the fateful night their cars collide on a Los Angeles street, changing the lives and future of two innocent families.  Laurel Peyton, Jimmy's daughter, has lived her entire life in the shadow of grief.  Though her mother, Kathryn, struggled to keep her daughter safe and secluded after the terrible accident that ruined their family, she cannot guard against the one danger she never expected:  Love.  In 1970, Victor's grandsons, Jud and Cale, meet the beautiful and spirited Laurel, and these two families cross paths once again, this time on a passionate course that pits brother against brother and mother against daughter - a class of wills that gradually draws them all closer to the truth of their tragic connection.  Spanning thirty years and three generations of Peyton women and Banning men, THE DAYS OF SUMMER is an epic drama that explores our deepest ties to family, the mistakes we make in the name of love, and is a reminder of our ability to hope, to forgive and to find the courage to change.

Another pretty good freebie for the Kindle, although by the description of the book, I thought it would be better.

I had a little problem getting involved with some of the characters.  I didn't like Kathryn at all - I felt she lived too much in the past.  Victor Banning was a cold man, and some of his actions were excessive.  Laurel, Jud and Cale - I didn't understand her choice and felt she went for the wrong man.  There was one part about a secret that Laurel carried with her that seemed unnecessary and was never resolved.

Reading what I just wrote, it sounds like I didn't like the book.  I liked the story for the most part, but just wasn't thrilled with some of the characters.  And I don't really understand the title of the book - I didn't see any connection between the title and the plot line.

A book I'm not sorry I read, but one that I'd hesitate to recommend.