The weekenders

by Mary Kay Andrews

Paper Book, 2016

Publication

New York : St. Martin's Press, 2016.

Collection

Call number

Fiction A

Physical description

viii, 451 p.; 25 cm

Status

Available

Call number

Fiction A

Description

"Some people stay all summer long on the idyllic island of Belle Isle, North Carolina. Some people come only for the weekends-and it's something they look forward to all week long. When Riley Griggs is waiting for her husband to arrive at the ferry one Friday afternoon, she is instead served with papers informing her that her island home is being foreclosed. To make matters worse, her husband is nowhere to be found. She turns to her island friends for help and support, but each of them has their own secrets and the clock is ticking as the mystery deepens. Cocktail parties and crab boil aside, Riley must find a way to investigate the secrets of Belle Island, the husband she might not really know, and the summer that could change everything"--… (more)

User reviews

LibraryThing member shemsu
On the brink of divorce, Riley Nolan sets out for Memorial Day Weekend on Belle Isle, a vacation island for wealthy North Carolinians. She is struggling to keep a wrap on her emotions in order to ease the transition for her pre-teen daughter. The mother and daughter spend a tense ferry ride to the
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island, anticipating the arrival of Wendall Griggs, their husband and father, respectively.

As soon as they step foot on the island, things begin to fall apart. When Wendall’s body washes up on the island the next morning things turn to chaos. Riley soon finds out the man she was married to was barely more than a con artist. His death makes her see that she had long given up control and that she let her husband run and ruin her life.

The Weekenders is a look at a wealthy and, supposedly, happy family, whose money cannot shield them from life’s problems. They are a family imprisoned by their secrets and by always working to deceive each other, they allow themselves to be deceived.

It was a little weird to read about a woman in 2016 that had absolutely no control over her life. She seemed a little naïve and unrealistic. As I read, I struggled to believe that she was a former journalist for a successful morning show, yet she let her husband keep her in the complete dark about her own finances. However, I also know that women can make bad decisions when it comes to men, so it was sort of understandable.

Mostly, reading it was like gawking at a car accident or watching a gossip news show. Humans cannot help but to be interested in the drama of other human’s lives, especially the lives of those we think have it easier than us. Therefore, it was interesting to watch as this wealthy family fell apart, then worked to rebuild themselves.

It was a light and easy read. It is billed as a summer beach read and that’s what it is, breezy. Mary Kay Andrews is an established writer, with several New York Times bestsellers and she knows how to write for entertainment. The Weekenders is not going to make you contemplate the meaning of life, however, it will make you laugh. It is a good companion for traveling or laid back afternoons with sangria and sunshine.
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LibraryThing member beckyhaase
THE WEEKENDERS by Mary Kay Andrews
The plot is tissue paper thin. You have met all of the characters before. BUT – the plot hangs together, the characters are likeable, there is no “bad language,” the sex isn’t raunchy, it is well written and there is sufficient humor and pathos to make an
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enjoyable read.
For the genre, this author knows how to entertain and does it well. Altogether this is a fun book that doesn’t insult the intelligence of readers who will read and then look forward to MKA”s next book.
4 of 5 stars
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LibraryThing member Twink
Summer reading has officially begun when Mary Kay Andrews releases her latest book - and it's here! The Weekenders has just released - and I have a copy to giveaway to one lucky reader. I always love her covers - doesn't this one just shout beach!

Riley Griggs' family is one of the oldest on Belle
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Isle, North Carolina, developing summer homes and managing others. It's Riley's 'happy place.' Riley and her daughter Maggy are headed over to the island to open up their home on the Memorial Day weekend. Riley's husband Wendell is supposed to join them, but he's a no show and the ferry leaves without him. But, when Riley arrives there's a foreclosure notice on her door.....

The Weekenders is a little bit heavier in tone than previous releases. There's murder, family problems, health concerns, financial woes and lots of secrets. But all of that is accompanied by Mary Kay's trademark romance and overall 'chick lit' feel.

I liked Riley as a character and empathized with her plight. A wee bit of me was angry with her for not being a bit more proactive when it came to her own finances. No chick lit romance is complete without some push/pull, yes/no, back and forth before - well, you know. Loved the love interest in this book. And of course there needs to be a best friend sidekick, who's a little brash, but who would do anything for her bestie. And Parrish is all that. Daughter Maggy is a handful - and Andrews depicts that teen 'tude very well. The rest of the supporting cast is just as well drawn and explores other social and family issues.

That murder? Well, there's lots of suspects to choose from - and whodunit wasn't quite who I expected it to be at all!

Mary Kay's settings always leave me wishing I lived there. And Belle Isle was no exception - descriptions of weathered wood, whitewashed walls and the sound of waves sounds absolutely perfect to me.

The Weekenders was an engaging, entertaining, satisfying escapist read to start off my summer. (Pack drinks and snacks in in your bag too - it's a delicious 450+ pages.)
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LibraryThing member lauriehere
Who can go one summer without reading a Mary Kay Andrews chick-lit summer read? Not I! She does it again with this book as her characters head over to Belle Isle, North Carolina. This book even includes more mystery than what she has been adding in lately! I was in my element! She also always finds
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a way to add some humor in all the right places, too. It’s always nice, too, for a little romance! That made this book even all that much better for my liking! Grab your copy of this book for your summer reading today! You won’t be disappointed at all! I look forward to these every year!
I want to thank St Martin’s Press and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for a review of my own opinion.
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LibraryThing member ethel55
The fact that a body appears on beautiful Belle Isle in no way takes away the fast-paced, summer-y read I expect each year from Mary Kay Andrews. Riley Griggs may be a little off balance, but she maintains most of her southern manners, even when dealing with an almost teen, overbearing mom and a
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change in financial situation. Everyone on the island, from those that live there, to the summer 'weekenders' have secrets that seem to encroach into Riley's situation. It seemed completely plausible given the small size of this small island. The hurricane may have been a bit much, but all in all, I was pleased to see how everything worked out.
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LibraryThing member BrendaKlaassen
What a cool, summer in the setting book. I do enjoy this author's writing style. There was enough mystery in the book to make the reader keep reading to solve the mystery. The romance was sweet and the adult relations were not graphic. This was a story that assisted me in escaping life. I will be
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encouraging library patrons to read this book.
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LibraryThing member mchwest
CLASSIC MKA! Not much more to say then get the book, read it on vacation, or on your stay vacation at home. It is one of my annual feel good about reading summer books!!! I was reading it thinking I had a hundred more pages left, and then it was done!!(
LibraryThing member jbarr5
The weekenders by Mary Kay Andrews
Like these books as they portray real life of today's women's struggles and goals and accomplishments.
Wendell had first started dating her during high school and he promised her a lot. He has a hard time of making them complete.
Riley heading to Belle Island with
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her daughter, Maggie and her puppy Banks waiting for him to show up for the weekend and she's afraid he's not going to make it.
She realizes her daughter is growing up so fast, she'll be a teen soon. Wendell is working lots more hours and he spends lots of money on handbags for Riley and other expensive things for his daughter.
Full Moon party sounds like a blast. Although I vacationed and lived on an island I didn't go to the parties as there was more drinking and smoking than what I wanted to partake.
Chapters alternate from the past to the present so we can get more clear picture of Riley and Wendell during their teen years.
Hard getting used to all the female friends and all their kids at the first. She's served on the deck of the ferry-he is asking for a divorce!
When the girls arrive at the house they notice a foreclosure on the front door. Their remote controls won't work now....they have nowhere to go but her parents house... Sheriff shows up she hopes to clear up the locked doors but that's not the news he's there to tell her!
Lots of questions ....Why had her husband emptied all bank accounts even her $6 million trust from her family...Wendell had helped her drunk brother with many events and they were entwined in the family development business...
Book also follow Nat, the ferry captain among other jobs. love how he looks after Riley and Maggie. Riley hopes the family can help with finances but there are so many that hold secrets from one another.
Lots of twists, great book of mysteries, secrets, bit of romance, sex and family holdings and dwelling into it all.
I received this book from National Library Service for my BARD (Braille Audio Reading Device).
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LibraryThing member gail616
Very typical. Not very satisfying.
LibraryThing member janismack
Pretty ordinary predictable story of a husband cheating a wife out of her inheritance and family business. What bothered me alot was how the main character was a victim of blatant sexism from her own family. The son also was a victim of the father's homophobic views.Everyone in the family was
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robbed of their inheritance because the family patriark left the son in law in charge of the fortune instead of a family member. This really made me angry. Not recommended.
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LibraryThing member pennykaplan
Chick lit romance with a bit more to it. Riley is divorcing her husband who was also her family's golden boy. He turns up death and investigation shows that he misspent all the family fortune. Of course there is romance in the wings, and an obnoxious preteen daughter to contend with as well.
LibraryThing member cherybear
Fun, easy read. Family drama, old flames, with a murder mystery thrown in.
LibraryThing member lexxa83
This book is exactly what I would expect it to be. A summer time, loosely plausible romp around an exclusive, upscale island. It has moments of mystery, romance, and the vaguest sensation of emotional growth. Very much typical of the Chic-Lit genre. I did actually like Riley, the main character,
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and many of the supporting characters. Maggie, the daughter of the main character, was laughably entitled throughout, and when not being entitled was verging on obnoxious and downright horrible. I would recommend this to those who like the genre, however, if your tastes run more towards literary fiction I would probably keep looking for something a bit less vapid and more substantially written.
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LibraryThing member lhaines56
main character is a bit squeaky clean for me but her murdered husband was anything but that!!! He was absconding with all sorts of money, etc. with her best buds help she helps solve the mystery and falls in love. a bit predictable but light.
LibraryThing member AnnaBastos
Review based on an ARC provided by Netgalley.

Retired journalist Riley is already furious at her husband for not fulfilling his promise with their daughter to meet them at the ferry for start of summer, when they were supposed to go to Belle Isle, where the family always spent the season, and tell
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tween Maggy of her parents' intentions to get divorced. Receiving a foreclosure notification on their house and learning the mistake wasn't on the notice but on her choice for a spouse didn't improve her holidays in the least. Penniless, Riley has to investigate by herself what her husband has done to get even the FBI after him while dealing with Maggy's tantrums and the rencounter with her old flame Nate.

The narration is in third person but mostly from Riley's point of view. I found that a good main character. Even though she probably had everything while growing up and was surely spoiled by her crappy husband to make up (and cover up) for all else, she's down to earth and never got on my nerves. In truth, all characters felt the same. I mean, not always down to earth but real enough given their backgrounds and not hard to like. Maggy did get to me sometimes, then again that was her purpose in life being 12.

At the same time, this was one book hard to classify. It is undoubtedly women's fiction but I couldn't tag it as a romance because it is pretty much in the background, and drama sounded too heavy for such a lighthearted story. I should say I always almost put it as a mystery because that was what really made me turn the pages at the speed of light.

Despite also being the wrong genre for the general mood, and the "big revelation" being far from big point the author wanted to make, as a mystery novel would require, the mystery had me puzzled in a good way. Think of Liane Moriarty's Big Little Lies. Well, The Weekenders is much more of a romance than Moriarty's works are, but it still vaguely resembles. We have a family drama going on and behind it one big puzzle for you to solve and find the culprit. And in this book, anyone had a good motive to do the deed. Unfortunately, Andrews doesn't have the thrill Moriarty brings, her style would be more to a sweeter side, I'd say.

Why not grade it higher? First, this was long. Too long. Had I noticed the length, I wouldn't have "wished" for it on Netgalley. Also, even though entertaining, it's probably close to forgettable. Andrews got very close to earning the one-of-a-kind points but I feel the story still lacked. It's a nice read for the beach, not much else.

Nonetheless, compared to those in the same category as this authors, she does stick out. I appreciate her main characters and how, even on the verge of losing all, they take matter in their own hands instead of being saved by Mr. Right, in a subtle, not "men suck and I'm the best" way. If you find yourself with some extra time for a nice story, this is the one.

3.5.
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LibraryThing member KMT01
This is a complex story of love, mystery, murder, loss, betrayal and family. Riley Nolan and her family have been coming to Belle Isle, NC for the summer, forever. Not everyone comes for whole summer. The “weekenders” do just that: they come in on the ferry on Friday and leave on Sunday. Riley
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is not one of the “weekenders”. This summer evening, the Friday before Memorial Day, Riley is at the ferry dock waiting for her husband Wendell to arrive—but he never does. Riley is mystified at how he could miss the trip and miss seeing her and their young daughter Maggie, not to mention the endless summer days and nights on this enchanted island. As time goes on, however, Riley finds she has far bigger things to worry about: what happened to Wendell, who never did show up on the ferry, what is going on with her family’s business, of which Wendell is CEO, what is going on with Wendell, who suddenly has become a man of total mystery—a man Riley thought she knew after years of marriage. This is the story of how Riley pieces together what has happened during the past several months as this couple trudge on, full steam ahead, toward divorce. The story moved along at a good clip and was filled with exciting events and moments when I had to resist the urge to just read ahead to see how things would turn out. There were many twists and turns until the end, when everything falls together in an interesting and somewhat surprising climax. Like the author’s other books, this one is well done, with a good, solid plot and well-developed characters. I enjoyed reading it and so will anyone who enjoys a good mystery and sorting through the myriad of clues that are presented to figure out what happens or happened. I received this from NetGalley to read and review.
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LibraryThing member wearylibrarian
Mary Kay Andrews has always been one of my favorite authors. I felt I was part of the Belle Island crowd. Riley and her daughter arrive on Belle Island without her husband. This was suppose to be the weekend they tell their daughter, Maggie, that they are divorcing. But her husband never shows up
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and Riley discovers a tangled web of lies cast by her husband.
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LibraryThing member whybehave2002
This was a nice light mystery with Mary Kay Andrews wit stirred in.
LibraryThing member marciablnc
I liked the story but the murderer was hard to imagine.
LibraryThing member Maydacat
Riley and her husband are on the verge of divorce, and plan on breaking the news to their daughter at their summer home on the island. But before that can happen, Wendell is found dead, apparently murdered. There are twists and turns galore in this novel which mixes light romance with weighty
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subjects. The daughter has Type 1 diabetes and while she copes well with it, the disease does factor into the story. There are some strong females characters and some that are more typical of the rich southern lady. It is interesting to see what the rich expect, and what happens when things go awry. A well written and entertaining novel.
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LibraryThing member Carlathelibrarian
I am not sure how to classify this book. I guess it is chick-lit, but it is also family drama as well as a murder mystery. Riley Griggs has her life turned upside down. In the past year her daughter was diagnosed with juvenile diabetes and she and her husband are getting a divorce. She has sold her
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house as she knows finances are tough, but she has no idea. When she and her daughter Maggy arrive at the Summer Home, it is locked up tight with a foreclosure notice on the door. That is just the tip of the iceburg. When her husband, Wendell, does not show up on Belle Isle as promised, she assumes her is ducking his responsibilities once again. When he does not answer Maggy's calls or texts, they grow a bit concerned. When Wendell's body is found in the marina and it is determined that he was murdered, the story gets interesting. Who killed him and why? What does Riley's family have to do with everything? Who else was involved in the bad investments? Was Wendell having an affair?

We meet Riley's family, her mother Evelyn, her Aunt Roo, and her brother Billy. Billy is married to Scott and has always been a bit of an outsider. He is a musician and an alcoholic. The family is basically living off trust funds that were left by Riley's father and grandfather. When she finds out that she is broke, she is not sure what to do. Maggy is a bit much even with what she is going through. She says some terrible things to her mother that should not have been tolerated, I don't care if her father just died. Thankfully, she changes by the end of the story. Billy is a typical alcoholic some of the time. He knows it, but doesn't seem to have the willpower to end it. He is usually pretty good around his niece, but as the story progresses, he seems to not care anymore. Nate Milas, an old friend of Riley's seems to be a saint. He is patient and understanding and puts up with a lot of crap. I don't know how he does it, but seems to win the family over, even though he did not come from "old money". This was one of the most dysfunctional families I have read about in a long time. I was glad to see the bright spots in their relationships. Riley's friend Parrish was a hoot. She did not want to get involved in Riley's schemes, but usually was convinced. She stuck by her side like a loyal friend should and pulled her butt out of the fire a few times.

Overall, I enjoyed this book. The beginning was a bit slow for me, but once I got into it, I flew through it, if only to find out who actually killed Wendell and why. If you enjoy family drama geared to women, this is a book for you.
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LibraryThing member LyndaInOregon
I was happy to win this through Goodreads; I'm a major Andrews fan.

While not her best work (that has to go to "Hissy Fit"), it's not a bad summer read -- a romance / mystery / family drama with well-drawn characters and many situations to keep the reader guessing.

When Riley Griggs arrives at her
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summer home on one of North Carolina's off islands, she's dreading the confrontation with her estranged husband, when they will tell their pre-teen daughter that they are divorcing. Her husband doesn't show up, but he has a good excuse -- he's floating in the harbor with his skull bashed in.
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LibraryThing member starlight-glimmer
Listening in car - Nov 2016. Entertaining escape on the way home from parent conferences. I like the voice of the reader - pleasing.
LibraryThing member hootowl1978
I loved the audiobook. I laughed, cried and just enjoyed the ride. I kind of want to live at Belle Isle.
LibraryThing member lbswiener
The Weekenders: A Novel is a nice entertaining book. There was a murder, a hurricane, and lots of life problems. The book is written with a deliberate beginning, middle and conclusion. It is highly recommended for a good escape from one's life.

Language

ISBN

9781250065940
Page: 0.6695 seconds