Summer Lovin' (Costas Sisters, Book 2) [Mass Market Paperback]

Carly Phillips (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1, 2006

Zoe's a security specialist and a Costas through and through. Her eccentric, rather dubious family runs an Atlantic City spa that's just this side of legit. So Zoe isn't inclined to trust handsome, charming Ryan Baldwin when he shows up claiming to be related to Sam, the girl the Costas family is about to adopt. But Ryan is Sam's uncle and one of the famously rich and snooty Boston Baldwins.

Ryan's search for his sister Faith has led him to news of her death, and to a niece he's never met. But someone else has also tracked Sam down -- someone who never wanted the child to be found. Ryan is determined to protect Sam and find out what really happened to his sister. And Zoe "Whatever-It-Takes" Costas is just the woman to help him do it…

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Phillips's latest cheerful romance (Hot Number; The Bachelor) relates the opposites-attract sizzle between a sexy, Greek Jersey girl and a buttoned-down Boston lawyer who come together over the fate of a teenage girl. Zoe Costas lives happily with her big, vibrant family, including her 14-year-old foster sister, Sam, in Ocean Isle, N.J., and runs a security firm in Atlantic City. She's about to turn 30, but she's not pining for a man. That is, until Sam's long-lost (and very handsome) uncle Ryan Baldwin appears, just as Zoe's parents are about to finalize the girl's adoption. Sparks fly at cross purposes: Zoe's family adores Sam, but Ryan hopes to restore his niece to the Baldwins, having just discovered her existence. (Sam's deceased mother ran away from home as a teenager.) Zoe's firm investigates the Baldwin family, and she discovers that Sam's keepsake from her mother, an innocuous set of keys, will unlock the mystery of her mother's last days as well as a family secret. Despite conflicting hopes for Sam—on top of a stark culture clash—Zoe and Ryan team up for Sam's best interests, and, of course, for their own inevitable passion. Phillips's light touch assures a happy ending to this diverting beach read. (Aug.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

In Summer Lovin', free-spirited Zoe Costas is reluctantly intrigued by Ryan Baldwin when he appears on her parents' Ocean Isle, New Jersey, doorstep in the middle of foster daughter Sam's fourteenth birthday party, but complications quickly spiral out of control when she discovers he has come to claim Sam as his niece and take her to Boston, where his upper-crust family was responsible for driving away Sam's mother years ago as a child of 17. Phillips continues the zany adventures of the Costas family in the sequel to the well-received Under the Boardwalk (2004) and replaces Spank the Monkey with Ima Pig for comic relief. Lynne Welch
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: HQN Books (August 1, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 037377110X
• ISBN-13: 978-0373771103
• Product Dimensions: 6.4 x 6.7 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #480,087 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

New York Times bestselling author Carly Phillips tossed away her legal briefs and a career as an attorney to become a stay at home mom. Within the year, she turned her love of reading into an obsession with writing. Over 25 published novels later, Carly writes sexy contemporary romances, striking a balance between entertainment and emotion, and giving her readers the compelling story they have come to expect and enjoy.

Carly is a New York Times bestseller, USA Today Bestseller and Publisher's Weekly bestseller. The triple play earned her a spot on Romance Writers of America's coveted Honor Roll. In 2002, Carly's novel, The Bachelor, became Kelly Ripa's "Reading with Ripa" pick on Live with Regis and Kelly, making it the first romance ever chosen on a nationally televised bookclub.

Carly received her undergraduate degree from Brandeis University and is a graduate of Boston University School of Law (J.D.). To date, Carly has over twenty-five novels to her credit, all available wherever books are sold.

When not writing or playing online, Carly loves to read, to knit, and to spend time with her family. She lives in Purchase, New York with her husband, two daughters and two soft-coated wheaten terriers who act like their third and fourth children.

For more information, visit Carly's always updated web site at www.carlyphillips.com where she has monthly contests, excerpts and much more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Delightful Summer Loving, August 16, 2005

By 

Judy "book reader" (Cincinnati, ohio United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Summer Lovin' (Costas Sisters, Book 2) (Hardcover)

Carly Phillips has written a charming follow-up to Under The Boardwalk in Summer Loving. It continues the wickedly delightful tale of the Costas family.

Zoe Costas ex Fed Agent is changing the direction of her life. She has opened a new business with her new brother in law Quinn and his former police office Connor. Zoe has reconnected with her family and especially with her twin Ari. She cares deeply for her family and the newest addition, foster sister Sam. The Costas are in the final stages to adopt Sam. A surprise in the form of Ryan Baldwin changes everything.

Lawyer Ryan Baldwin has been searching for his deceased sisters Faith's child for years. He finds her thriving at the wild and fun loving Costas. Ryan and Zoe agree to hold off on telling the family until things are more settled. One major problem with that plan is that Zoe and Ryan are attracted to each other.

Ryan always toed the line with his strict upper class family, but his sister Faith could never find her place at home. Zoe makes him loosen up and look at his life in a whole new light. Zoe is a free spirit but afraid to let her self go and fall in love. When the truth from the night Faith ran away comes to light they both will need the strength from each other to deal with the fall out.

Carly Phillips brings the Costas family to life. It's a delicious story filled with love, family and hotter then hot passion. Its another keeper.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Fun Summer Read!!!, July 29, 2005

By 

Kristi Ahlers (Illinois) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Summer Lovin' (Costas Sisters, Book 2) (Hardcover)

The second in the Costas Sister series is a fast-paced read with endearing characters. Fan's of Ms. Phillips are in for a very entertaining read.

Zoe Costas has quit the Secret Service and has gone into business with her brother-in-law and his best friend. She is trying to find her place in life while maintaining the close family connection that her loving Greek family has. The family is about to increase by one with the adoption of their foster child Samantha. That is until a stranger shows up. He is handsome, uptight, and straighlaced. He's trouble alright. Trouble for Zoe.

Ryan Baldwin comes from a wealthy Bostonian family. He has been looking for her niece for years. He tracks her down in Jersey. She is living with a fun, zany family that are totally opposite of his own family. On top of that there is Zoe. Zoe is beautiful inside and out. She truly cares about his niece and she speaks to a part of his heart that he didn't know he had. He's going to have to jugggle things in order to make sure that everyone is happy in the end. The Costas family, Zoe, Samantha, and himself. How can he take Samantha away from a family that truly loves her when all he wants is to bring home the piece of his sister that he didn't know he could have? And, how can he walk away from the first woman that he's ever loved?

This is a complex story but not so complex to confuse readers. I truly enjoyed stepping into Ms. Phillips world. The Costas family, Zoe and Ryan are truly wonderful and dynamic characters. There is no don't that THEY tell their own story.

There is a natural chemistry between Ryan and Zoe that makes this a very good romance. Ms. Phillips truly has a talent when it comes to drawing out her characters and pulling a reader in. This is a great read and one that you won't want to miss.

Official Reviewer for Romance Designs

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Phillips gives a fun, fast read, November 12, 2006

By 

J. Kopala "avid reader" (AZ) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Summer Lovin' (Costas Sisters, Book 2) (Mass Market Paperback)

Summer Lovin' is the continuation of the Costa Family story. There are lots of family get-togethers, with family dynamic and misdynamic. The teen that the senior Costa's took under their wing and into their hearts turns out not to be without relatives. Actually she has wealthy, sneaky, stuck-up relatives. Naturally, the only 'nice' relative finds the teen and has to deal with the loving family she's found for herself. Specifically her older 'sister'. This book is fairly predictable, but Phillips has a way with characters that makes you keep on reading, just to see what happens next. If you are hooked on finding out what happens to characters throughout a series, Phillips is high up in the pecking order