Goodreads Mobile | see what your friends are reading

Sep 28, 2011

CC rated it:

This is a failure on about every level. There's not one authentic emotion, character, or line of dialogue in the entire book. Thriller writer Baldacci was channeling Nicholas Sparks for this one, there's no other explanation.

Thirty-five year-old Jack, a former 6' 2" pro football player, is dying of a mysterious -- un-named -- terminal illness. Then his wife dies, and he miraculously recovers. He gets his three kids from various relatives and they go to a beach house in the Caro More...

3 comments like (10 people liked it)

Aug 30, 2011

Ginger rated it:

I don't know what the heck happened with this novel! I have purchased and read every David Baldacci book written. This is one of those sappy sweet lets make it a movie on lifetime network books! Hey, I know the economy is bad but I am afraid the day has come and Baldacci has sold himself out to the Hallmark Channel. Truly this is a sad day for me! Does anyone else find it absurd that Jack's miraculous recovery from a 100% fatal cancer,or that he seems to value more input from his friends than a More...

1 comment like (5 people liked it)

Dec 31, 2011

Daniel rated it:

Looking for a "read" the other day I noticed this book on the rack. A fan of Baldacci's for years, of his Camel Club Series and other titles, this book looked like a fun departure from what I've come to expect of him. Let me say this here: I'm pretty sure anything DB writes would sell well, even his grocery list, and this one should do well too.
"One Summer" is a heartfelt story of a guy, a decorated war vet, family man and all around decent guy - Jack Armstrong - who fi More...

2 comments like (2 people liked it)

Aug 16, 2011

Joyce rated it:

Have the tissues nearby. I think I went through two boxes by chapter twelve. It's a different book for fans, but a good book on grief and family .

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Feb 16, 2012

Paula rated it:

I picked up this book at the airport on my way to a vacation at a beach. The cover had a beach scene and it said “New York Times bestselling author.” Inside it showed a long list of previous books and mentioned international translations. It looked like a short read, and even though the title was boring, I thought it would be perfect. I wasn’t familiar with David Baldacci, but a lady on the plane said she liked his books and that he wrote legal mystery/thrillers. I had seen the movie “Absol More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Nov 30, 2011

Jinky rated it:

I have a confession. When I browse my library, I often don't read the blurbs before reading a book. I scan for key words and mainly go by author, the look of the bookcover, or thickness of the book. Maybe pretty shallow, but that's what I do. Usually more hits than misses ... here's an example of a hit. :)

Wow, what a heartwrenching story! I'm glad I didn't read the blurb because listening to it without knowing the premise gave an element of surprise and excitement to the experience More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Oct 21, 2011

Heather rated it:

I have been a fan of David Baldacci since I happened to pick up TOTAL CONTROL in an airport right before moving to Charlottesville, VA, where the book essentially takes place. Baldacci had me hooked, and I've been a fan ever since. I've met him at several of his book signings, and he's an incredibly likeable guy and an engaging speaker.

As an author in the women's lit genre, I was really happy to see Baldacci expose his softer side with ONE SUMMER - the side I knew was there from havi More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Oct 12, 2011

Lakis rated it:

This is not the first family drama written by the great crime author (read the excellent Wish You Well) and we sure hope it will not be the last.
Baldacci seems to be leaping from the one genre to the other without any apparent difficulty. On the one hand in his books we meet trained killers, read conspiracy theories, and enjoy scenes of fast paced action, and on the other we find ourselves enjoying stories full of love and tenderness and, yes, with a touch of melancholy at the top. How More...

0 comments like

Sep 28, 2011

Nada rated it:

One summer is true departure for David Baldacci. From the world of action, adventure, espionage, and thrills to the world of family story and romance. The book tells the story of the Armstrong family - Jack, Lizzie, and their three children. Christmas is coming. Jack is terminally ill and hoping to making to Christmas and hoping to complete his goodbyes. On Christmas Eve, Lizzie is killed in a care accident. Over the next few months, Jack miraculously recovers and tries to put his family back to More...

0 comments like

Aug 23, 2011

Kyle rated it:

I thought this book had a very interesting synopsis and therefore decided to listen to the audiobook. To start, I did not enjoy the fact that the audiobook uses different voices for the women vs the men (in terms of every single thing they say). I think it's a bit distracting and would much rather listen to one person who can "do" different voices depending on the characters.

As for the book itself, I was very disappointed. I felt the dad's illness was actually a bit pointless More...

0 comments like (4 people liked it)

Aug 05, 2011

Karen rated it:

Jack Armstrong is living with terminal cancer and just wants to make it til Christmas with his family. As his wife makes a last minute pharmacy run on Christmas Eve, she is killed in a car accident. His three children are divided up between family members and Jack goes to hospice waiting to die. Miraculously his health takes a turn and he gets a second chance at life. He reclaims his kids and moves to the South Carolina shore where his wife Lizzie grew up. It's a summer for all of them to learn More...

0 comments like

Jul 05, 2011

Janice rated it:

I could not put this book down and read it in a day sitting by the pool. It is not your typical David Baldacci read of non stop action or political intrigue, but more of a love store, tragedy and coping with the curve balls that life throws with a few miracles along the way. The book starts off with Jack Armstrong, 35 who is terminally ill and having difficulty letting go. He promises his wife he will hang on another week till Christmas as she prepares for his death and tries to cope with 3 ch More...

0 comments like

Nov 10, 2011

Becki rated it:

The first Baldacci book I read was the The Christmas Train. I think a sister-in-law recommended it to me…or maybe it was one of those random library picks. Who knows. Anyway, I loved it.
Then I got into reading his political intrigue books (of which there are many). I really liked them as well.
However, with One Summer David Baldacci returns his focus to relationships and a feel-good story. And I thoroughly enjoyed the return.
I enjoyed Jack and Micki’s journey through death More...

0 comments like

Oct 23, 2011

Darcy rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

0 comments like

Oct 05, 2011

Regina rated it:

David Baldacci does a 180 and writes the story of the Armstrong family - Jack, who is dying of a rare form of cancer and only wants to live through Christmas, his devoted wife Lizzie, who is caring for him at home, teenage daughter Mikki, who can't deal with Jack's illness, 12 year old son Cory, and Jack Jr. - still a toddler and unaware of his dad's impending death. As Jack's body continues to weaken, Christmas Eve arrives - but with more tragedy. Lizzie, on a last minute trip in her van to the More...

0 comments like

Aug 18, 2011

Ruth rated it:

Jack lay in bed in the den dying. His three children each reacted differently to his illness. Liz, his soulmate and wife, took care of him, the children, the house, and worked. He loved her with all his heart. His days were numbered and he was hoping to make it to Christmas when someone knocked on the door to give him bad news and he found himself burying the girl of his dreams rather than the other way around which he felt was the way that it should have been.

His in-laws place h More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Jul 10, 2011

Ashwaq rated it:

Nothing beats the feeling of reading the right book at the right times. It's a feeling this book made me live. One Summer is certainly one of those books that make difference.

In short, the story of One Summer revolves around Jack Armstrong. He is an ex-military who served in Afghanistan and ME and received many medals during his service. He's also a loving husband of Lizzie O'Toole and the father of three kids. Jack is diagnosed with a terminal illness that absolutely no one recovered More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Sep 17, 2011

Beth rated it:

This is a great beach read to finish out the summer with.

Jack Armstrong is dying of a terminal disease. He is determined to live through Christmas so he can spend one last Christmas with his loving wife, Lizzie and his three children, Mikki, Cory, and Jackie. Jack writes a collection of letters for Lizzie, to be found after his death. Right before Christmas, Lizzie is killed in a car accident while picking up prescriptions for Jack. Lizzie's parents come to make arrangements which in More...

0 comments like

Jun 30, 2011

Debbie rated it:

It’s days until Christmas and this year in the Armstrong home they aren’t waiting for Santa, they’re waiting for dad to die. Jack Armstrong gave it the good fight and in the end it’s the kids and especially Lizzie that he’ll miss when the light finally goes out. He spends his final days with what little strength he has to write Lizzie a letter a day in which to pour out his heart and his love. Then on Christmas Eve the unthinkable happens and Lizzie is killed in an accident. Left with no choice More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Jan 22, 2012

Andrea rated it:

Grabbed this book off the shelf at the library in haste, and only because I'd heard of the author before. This was a wonderful story about a man who, at a very young age, is very near death - just days from a final goodbye to his wife and three children.

It is Christmas Eve and his wife, Lizzie, rushes out on icy streets to get Jack's pain meds, only to run a red light and be broad-sided by a snow plow, killing her instantly. Lizzie's parents and family split Jack's family up, taking t More...

0 comments like

Dec 15, 2011

Snotchocheez rated it:

If you ever find yourself driving on I-95 from North to South Carolina, you encounter garish billboards announcing the approach of one the kitschiest, tackiest, most embarrassingly banal totems to Americana ever conceived: "South of the Border". You can see the garish 100-ft neon'd sombrero'd "Juan" from several miles away from the N-S Carolina border, beckoning weary road travelers to its promise of, in full Las Vegas splendor, a slice of Mexican Nirvana in Nowheresville, SC.You pull off the More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Feb 01, 2012

Judy rated it:

A well written novel by Baldacci about family life and the importance to be involved (easier said than done). I'd picked this up from the library's "new book" shelves and Gary read it first and said it was good (although at first he wasn't going to read it because of the description on the cover). He shed tears at the end. I, got weepy a couple of times during the reading, but not at the end. The novel opens with the father/husband on his deathbed at home with just a very short tim More...

0 comments like

Jan 22, 2012

Kristie rated it:

Read this one on vacation; it was a quick read--read it all in one afternoon. Not exactly sure how I feel about this one... The fact that it was a quick read was the major benefit, but something just felt missing to me. The main character's miraculous recovery was an obvious gimmick, with no beleivable explanation (that said, most miracles can't be explained, but to go from death's door to complete recovery in 8weeks was a bit of a stretch). I did enjoy seeing how Jack's relationship with his da More...

0 comments like

Feb 01, 2012

Jennifer rated it:

"Only sometimes life doesn't match what it should be. It just is. And people have to learn to accept it, no matter how hard it may be."

David Baldacci, who normally writes political thrillers, gives us a dramatic change with "One Summer." Jack Armstrong is a dying man--has an terminal illness and expects only to make it until after Christmas. Except the hub thinkable happens--his darling wife Lizzie dies in a car accident picking up his medicine.

Separated f More...

0 comments like

Jun 29, 2011

Jill rated it:

This is a definite detour from Baldacci's usual legal thriller genre in the same vein as was James Patterson's Suzanne's Diary for Nicholas (2003). I almost forgot that I wasn't reading a Nicholas Sparks book at times. And, as I enjoy Baldacci in his most edge-of-the-seat thriller, I also enjoy Nicholas Sparks, so this was a fun combination and I enjoyed this as a change of pace. The characters were well-drawn, but could you really expect less from an author who has had 15 number one best sel More...

1 comment like (2 people liked it)

Sep 06, 2011

Denise rated it:

What a great read! I am generally not a David Baldacci reader but this book intriqued me. It is completely differen that any of his other reads. It is the story of a man who is diagnosed with a deadly disease and how after a horrible event, he regains his health. The book struck many heart strings as the main character fights to rebuild his health, his family, and his future. It was again one of those novels that float along and make you think of the question...."What would you do if More...

0 comments like

Aug 19, 2011

Angie rated it:

Two hundred and twenty-eight .
Two hundred and twenty-eight pages .
I actually read two hundred and twenty-eight pages before the first tear drop fell . I don't know how .

I love my trips to the local library - I think for most avid readers that goes without saying . I enjoy the typical things about a trip to the library , but the real highlight for me at the library is chatting with the gals that work there . They are the BEST bunch - smart , funny , sweet , s More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Aug 05, 2011

Joanne rated it:

As many know David Baldacci normally writes legal/spy thrillers. This was a far cry from that - a story of a family ripped apart by illness and other circumstances and then made whole again. From almost the first page I started to cry, first tears, then sobs. From there the story became a story of a family trying to rebuild with a few laughs and a few tears as their story leveled off. Then as I got closer to the end the tears once again built up to sobs. The book was slightly reminiscent to More...

0 comments like

Jul 11, 2011

Sue rated it:

This is a very quick novel by an author who is known primarily for mysteries and thrillers; I had never read anything by him before. However, I was immediately drawn into the story of a man who lays dying from an incurable illness, his wife and caretaker and his three children who will have to cope with his iminent death. Then suddenly and inexplicably, the unexpected and unbelievable happens, and Jack is left a widower, his children left motherless. Miraculously he is cured of his illness and t More...

0 comments like

Jun 17, 2011

EZRead rated it:

Honestly, if I wasn’t so cold-hearted that it takes a volcano to melt the ice in my veins, I would have been bawling through more than 50% of this book. There is tragedy from beginning to end! There are happy parts in the middle, of course, but there are such dark travesties in the first and last chapters that I wondered if I would ever see the light. Was it worth the heart-ache? In a way, I did appreciate having my heart ripped out and then flung back in my chest again, but not masochistically More...

1 comment like (3 people liked it)

reviews