A Bit of Summer Magic
By Bennett Madison
Harper Collins, $17.99, 342 pages
Bennett Madison’s September Girls brings a new layer of mystique and romance to summer holidays at the beach. Still trying to cope with the sudden disappearance of his wife, Sam’s dad suddenly decides to take his sons to the beach for the summer. Expecting a boring summer of television and sunburns, Sam and his brother quickly discover that this particular beach is inhabited by gorgeous blond girls, all of whom look eerily alike and have an unnerving interest in Sam. Then Sam meets DeeDee. While she too is one of the girls, to Sam she is somehow more vibrant and even more mysterious.
The supernatural elements in this book leave more questions than answers upon the story’s conclusion. The narrative is extremely slow paced, which is reminiscent of a long, uneventful summer vacation, but may test the reader’s interest in places. September Girls has been rife with critique and criticism since its release. While the book does deal with controversial subjects and can come across as sexist, it isn’t exactly groundbreaking in that arena. However, for readers that are highly sensitive to topics involving foul language and sexual situations, this may not be the book for you.
Reviewed by Whitney Smyth
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