I wasn't a theatre kid in school - way too shy and introverted for that. Nor am I huge on watching live theatre - though I try to watch them when I can. Other than this year, I've been to the Shaw Festival, the well-known theatre in the next town over, once a summer for seven or eight years with multiple visits in the past two years. All that to say, the world Aimee Agresti created in her latest novel The Summer Set was pretty foreign to me. But I think that worked really well but I imagine it would be even better for those who are or have been in the theatre world. I didn't fall head over heels with this book but it entertained me all the way through and it's one I'll probably keep thinking about for awhile.
Here's the synopsis:
The real drama happens backstage in this juicy novel about an idyllic summer theater where hot stars, has-beens and hopefuls chase roles—and each other.I had some issues with the way the story was actually written. It was kind of choppy and there were a lot of teeny offshoots that went absolutely nowhere or didn't have enough explanation or resolution. The one that comes to mind first were the videos the four main characters make at the end of the novel. Maybe I missed something, but it was suggested, they were filmed, and then the impact of them was just sort of...lost. The personal impact I got, sort of and only for one single character, but the reason they were made was more professional and I didn't really get that. The novel also ended a lot more abruptly than I would have liked. I don't need every single little detail wrapped up (though I much prefer it, I'll be honest) but it felt a bit unfinished to me and that I missed out on how things would go for all the characters. There were a few other little things that kind of gave me whiplash and kept me from rating this one higher but they were more technical than emotional, if that makes sense. I still liked reading this one.
Charlie Savoy was once Hollywood’s hottest A-lister. Now, ten years later, she's pushing forty, exiled from the film world and back at the summer Shakespeare theater that launched her career—and where her old flame, Nick, is the artistic director.
It’s not exactly her first choice. But as parts are cast and rehearsals begin, Charlie is surprised to find herself getting her groove back, bonding with celebrity actors, forging unexpected new friendships and even reigniting her spark with Nick, who still seems to bring out the best in her despite their complicated history.
Until Charlie’s old rival, Hollywood’s current it girl, is brought in to attract theater donors, threatening to undo everything she’s built. As the drama amps up both on the stage and behind the curtains, Charlie must put on the show of a lifetime to fight for the second chance she deserves in career and in love.
I also think the book description is misleading. The arrival of Charlie's rival is a blip in the overall storyline. I also think it's important to note that the novel is told from four different perspectives, all in third person. Nick and Charlie are the veterans, the director and actor who have been around the block and are at the theatre to mentor the apprentices for the summer. Then there are Sierra and Ethan, both acting apprentices at the Chamberlain. I really liked that there were four of them telling their versions of the summer from their own perspective. And it was neat to see who Agresti chose to tell which part of the story, because there were no overlaps. Each perspective moves the story forward in time. You'd think it could get confusing but I loved it.
You may also think this story might veer too far off into gossip-y kind of fluff but Agresti kept all of the drama and all of the depth. Sure, there are divas and actors storming off set, and one amusing scene where someone's gorgeous face gets ever so slightly maimed from an errant sword, but even through all of that, you see the characters as real people who are all just trying to do the best they can. Sierra and Ethan are in college and their whole lives are before them and they're trying to do what makes their hearts happiest, which is acting. They're taking a leap of faith and hope that, by the end of the summer, they'll get noticed. (By agents and others in the theatre world but also, subconsciously, they want the other to notice them romantically...it's very sweet.) Whereas Nick and Charlie have not been able to have success, professionally or romantically, since they split so many years before and this summer should, ideally, be a way for them to wake up and realize what makes them great is the other.
The setting was an absolute delight. A small town in the summer with a gorgeous mountain range as a backdrop, plus a lake, and all the theatre shenanigans. Just...oh, I loved it. And I love the cover too! So gorgeous.
The Summer Set was a really lovely novel, even with the issues I had with the writing. Aimee Agresti has published a story that is full of heart - and drama - and I enjoyed the time I spent reading it.
Where to buy The Summer Set:
Connect with Aimee:
About Aimee
Aimee Agresti is the author of Campaign Widows and The Gilded Wings trilogy for
young adults. A former staff writer for Us Weekly, she penned the magazine's
coffee table book Inside Hollywood. Aimee's work has also appeared in People,
Premiere, DC magazine, Capitol File, the Washington Post, Washingtonian, the
Washington City Paper, Boston magazine, Women’s Health and the New York
Observer, and she has made countless TV and radio appearances, dishing about
celebrities on the likes of Access Hollywood, Entertainment Tonight, E!, The
Insider, Extra, VH1, MSNBC, Fox News Channel and HLN. Aimee graduated from
Northwestern University with a degree in journalism and lives with her husband
and two sons in the Washington, DC, area.
*An e-galley of this novel was provided by the publisher, Graydon House/HarperCollins Canada, in exchange for review consideration. All opinions are honest and my own.*
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