The Gin and Chowder Club by Nan Rossiter

Title: The Gin and Chowder Club
Author: Nan Rossiter
Publisher: Kensington Books
Published Date: June 1st, 2011
Source: Received a copy as part of Unputdownables Early Reader Group

What's the Story?: 

From Goodreads.com: "Set against the beautiful backdrop of Cape Cod, The Gin & Chowder Club is an eloquent, tender story of friendship, longing, and the enduring power of love…The friendship between the Coleman and Shepherd families is as old and comfortable as the neighboring houses they occupy each summer on Cape Cod. Samuel and Sarah Coleman love those warm months by the water; the evenings spent on their porch, enjoying gin and tonics, good conversation and homemade clam chowder. Here they’ve watched their sons, Isaac and Asa, grow into fine young men, and watched, too, as Nate Shepherd, aching with grief at the loss of his first wife, finally found love again with the much younger Noelle.
But beyond the surface of these idyllic gatherings, the growing attraction between Noelle and handsome, college-bound Asa threatens to upend everything. In spite of her guilt and misgivings, Noelle is drawn into a reckless secret affair with far-reaching consequences. And over the course of one bittersweet, unforgettable summer, Asa will learn more than he ever expected about love-the joys and heartache it awakens in us, the lengths we’ll go to keep it, and the countless ways it can change our lives forever…"

My Two Cents:

Oh my, I started this book on my plane flight from DC to Denver, continued it through the airport in Denver, and then didn't put it down until I finished the book on the flight from Denver to Montana. What I'm trying to say is that I couldn't put it down. You have Asa, a young man just on his way to college, falling head over heels for Noelle, a close family friend that he's pretty much grown up around. It's definitely intriguing.

Asa seems a little confused. He knows he shouldn't pursue Noelle but he does. Noelle knows that she has to be the adult in this situation but she's inexplicably drawn to Asa and doesn't do anything to stop their torrid love affair. I don't know if it was just the young man/older woman scenario that made me make this connection but this book definitely has the same flavor as The Graduate. It's forbidden love and with Asa's family and Noelle and her husband being so close, both Asa and Noelle know they're playing with fire.

On one hand, I found myself getting kind of angry about Asa and Noelle not realizing what the potential consequences could be if they got caught. On the other hand, them getting closer to each other seems to have somewhat of an otherworldly pull that you can see how they get so tied up in each other.

Bottom line, this book will keep you reading until you figure everything out. Make sure you set aside a lot of time before sitting down to read this book.

My Review:
4 out of 5 stars