Jim Nichols new novel, Blue Summer, published by Islandport Press, is intriguing and will keep you reading right to the end.
The story is about a young man who has suffered a lot in his life, including an abusive step-father and the tragic death of his sister who fell to her death while reaching out for help from her brother.
I especially liked the way the story goes back and forth from the 1960’s to the 1990’s. And the young man, Cal Shaw, is a musician, and I loved how that was such an important part of his life. He carried his trumpet everywhere.
Jim, an eighth-generation Mainer, has written a very compelling story, with a wonderful ending. He has written four books, including Closer All the Time, winner of the 2016 Maine Literary Award for Fiction. I also loved that book.
On the front cover, Jaed Coffin captured Blue Summer very well, when he wrote, “A heartbreaking testament to youth, loss, love, and the painfully inevitable passage of time.”