Ann Brashares

On alternating weeks, Sasha and Ray vacation in the beach house their parents refused to give up after their divorce, but they never meet until one summer when their lives and those of their siblings intersect in ways none of them could have imagined.

The Whole Thing Together

A beautifully written novel about love, class differences, and betrayal playing out over the course of a fractured American family’s Long Island summer from #1 New York Times bestselling author Ann Brashares, author of the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants series. “A gorgeously written novel on love, loss and family.” —NICOLA YOON, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Everything, Everything Summer for Sasha and Ray means the sprawling old house on Long Island. Since they were children, they’ve shared almost everything—reading the same books, running down the same sandy footpaths to the beach, eating peaches from the same market, laughing around the same sun-soaked dining table. Even sleeping in the same bed, on the very same worn cotton sheets. But they’ve never met. Sasha’s dad was once married to Ray’s mom, and together they had three daughters: Emma, the perfectionist; Mattie, the beauty; and Quinn, the favorite. But the marriage crumbled and the bitterness lingered. Now there are two new families—and neither one will give up the beach house that holds the memories, happy and sad, of summers past. The choices we make come back to haunt us; the effect on our destinies ripples out of our control . . . or does it? This summer, the lives of Sasha, Ray, and their siblings intersect in ways none of them ever dreamed, in a novel about family relationships, keeping secrets, and most of all, love. ★ “Masterful.” —PW, Starred ★ “A continuous, consistently engrossing narrative . . . deeply moving.” —The Bulletin, Starred “A gorgeous exploration of family, secrets, and love.” —Teen Vogue “You absolutely must read it.” —PopCrush An Amazon Best of the Month Selection A Teen Choice Book Award nominee!

Martha F.

Sweet

Perfectly Ann Brashares. I swallowed it whole in one afternoon and enjoyed it. Feels a little infused with a David-Levithan-style of near misses and perfectly contrived connections. Strong, honest female characters.

victoria

3.5 stars!
This book left me with very controversial opinions so I think it's better point it on a list.

Strengths: 
• The writing is light and even poetic 
• Iwas really interested in the plot of the two families
• I got attached to most of the characters, especially Mattie, Quinn and Emma 
• I found Mattie's story very interesting
• The reading was kinda immersive, I even wanted to work on the farm with Matthew
 • I loved Jamie 

Negative points:
• I didn't like what happened to Quinn and even though it was a turning point for the book, I think she deserved better
• The writing, although good, is in third person and never warned which of the brothers was narrating so sometimes it can be a little confusing
• I know Sasha and Ray are not related by blood but they literally have the same sisters, for me it was super weird that they were attracted to each other so even though I liked some of the interactions, I didn't like that part of the romance and what they do in the end yet

Talia Dominguez 

The book is about two families that are sharing the same beach house... Lila and Richard were married LONG TIME AGO. THEY HAVE three daughters and a very ugly divorce TOGETHER. as a result of this, they share a beach house. Later, Lila And Richard marry other people and have : Sasha and Ray.
 so S and R share three big sisters, The same room at the beach house, and a job, but have no biological connection...all living a very dysfunctional existence.
 This book is filled with love, secrets, courage and strength. The two families can't be together until an unexpected tragedy brings them all together..
this was definitely a character driven book, with very well-developed characters/ One thing i did not agree with i guess is : that the author shouldn't have made S and R have sexual desires towards each other! I think she should have focused just in the family drama and no love/sexual thoughts encounters between S and R. 
Anyways, good read though!
so while this book was not light and fluffy it really was a good book with a lot of depth and character.I learned that we need to all love and care for each other because tomorrow isn't promised.

Julie D.

didn't even get past the first 50 pages because it's seriously problematic trash lmao

oA gorgeously written novel on love, loss and family.o -NICOLA YOON, #1 New York Timesbestselling author of Everything, EverythingSummer for Sasha and Ray means the sprawling old house on Long Island. Since they were children, they've shared almost everything-reading the same books, running down the same sandy footpaths to the beach, eating peaches from the same market, laughing around the same sun-soaked dining table. Even sleeping in the same bed, on the very same worn cotton sheets. But they've never met. Sasha's dad was once married to Ray's mom, and together they had three daughters- Emma, the perfectionist; Mattie, the beauty; and Quinn, the favorite. But the marriage crumbled and the bitterness lingered. Now there are two new families-and neither one will give up the beach house that holds the memories, happy and sad, of summers past. The choices we make come back to haunt us; the effect on our destinies ripples out of our controlaor does it? This summer, the lives of Sasha, Ray, and their siblings intersect in ways none of them ever dreamed, in a novel about family relationships, keeping secrets, and most of all, love.

Elena Garcia Navarro

Just your average YA contemporary, didn´t really bring anything new to the table. 

Liked the family dynamics and siblings interactions but I couldn´t get on board with the romance.

Patty M.

Excuse me while I go cry myself into oblivion at the perfection of this book.

laura

** spoiler alert **
           I like the concept of this book. But i wish the story was stronger. All the voices and POV did add to my confusion. I was happy that it stayed a family story and did not really develop the romance between Ray and Sasha. It was a super quick read. Somewhat heartbreaking at points. I just wanted more of the family bonding. We had so much drama and just wanted a little bit more happiness and love at the end.

Alexis 

2/5 stars 

I am not a fan of this book.... in any way. I didn't like the execution at all. Basically we have two parents who can't get over each other for the happiness of their kids. we also have two characters who have the same siblings but have never met- which seems very unrealistic given the circumstances of this book. And to tie it all together it takes a death to bring people together. I wasn't a fan of the writing or the plot nor were the characters that great.

Emily C Peterson

Hayley 📖🌈💜🌸

3.5 stars. 

I mostly enjoyed this, it was nice to step back into Ann Brashares' writing, all these years after the Sisterhood ended. 
Vague spoilers ahead:
But I didn't really connect with some of the characters (i.e. Ray) and found some of the story a tad convoluted. And I really wasn't a fan of the Ray/Sasha "romance" if you can call it that.
The good: I loved the siblings' relationships with eachother and I especially loved Quinn and Mattie. I loved the weird relationship between Mattie and Matt, and wish there was more after the hailstorm night with the blueberries (I was sobbing). 
I saw the Mattie twist coming a mile off, and the Quinn twist was just upsetting, but I guess it made the rest of the book happen. 
I did enjoy this, but I think I would have liked it better with no Ray/Sasha romance (CAN'T THEY JUST BE FRIENDS?) and a bit more on Matt & Mattie, because that girl deserves to be happy too.

The Whole Thing Together

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