BOOK REVIEW: Villa of Sun and Secrets by Jennifer Bohnet

Some family secrets can't stay hidden forever.

My June was full of some great summer beach reads, and this was another one of them. I really have been on a family drama kick as well, and, again, this one is full of family drama, lies, and secrets. But, it is also about second chances, finding your inner strength and accepting the person you are and deserve to be.

Carla finds herself starting over at 50. After one too many mistresses, she leaves her husband and moves from England to France, where her family is from and where her estranged aunt, Josette, still lives. Reeling from her pending divorce and the recent death of her mother, Josette’s twin sister, Carla is determined to find happiness her way and to understand what happened all those years ago that caused the family to fracture.

Let’s just say that the setting is absolute perfection for a summer read. Who wouldn’t want to journey to the south of France, Antibes to be exact, and see all the wonders that the French Riviera holds? I loved how everything was depicted all the way down to the family villa. This villa serves as a catalyst for both our main characters. For Carla, it is an opportunity to start over and learn more about her family history. For Josette, it is more of a continual punishment that links her to the secrets of the past.

Slowly, as the story progresses, we see glimpses of the past. We learn more about Josette and Carla’s mother’s youth and ultimately what led to the hatred and animosity that tore the family apart when Carla was just a baby. I feel that the pace of gradual release of information created a form of suspense. Not the type that you see in thrillers, but more in that you know that whatever this secret is, it’s not good. As Carla and Josette become closer, and it’s harder to keep the past in the past, the more that I became invested in their characters and the hope that their family could heal since so many of the initial players who set things into motion had passed away.

I do say slowly progresses. It felt that the beginning was a little slow in really getting off the ground. There was a lot of indecision, but on the flip side, it did allow for more time to build the foundation of the characters. The moments were believable and authentic. 

It was sweet to watch Josette, who punished and tortured herself for decades begin to find herself and realize that who she is now is not who she was and that she has prevented herself from living. And the sweet Gordon is one of my favorites. I absolutely loved him. Bohnet created characters that perfectly played the yin and yang of each other. She created characters that were perfect matches for what the main characters were going through, even if at moments they couldn’t see it for themselves.

Life’s a funny thing, isn’t it? Changes of which we are aware happen, we even instigate and accept some of them. Then, ten, twenty, years pass and you realize certain of those changes had an unseen domino effect on other things, and almost without noticing you’ve lived a whole different life. One where you forgot your dreams.

What we think we need or what we think is good for us and, honestly, even how we are can be dictated so much by the power we give to people around us and the moments of our lives that we allow others influence. This story really does focus on the liberation and fulfillment that can come into your life when you finally allow yourself to be who you need and want to be. Throughout, as the reader, you can see the pain that the secrets have caused Josette, but you also can see how important it is that Carla has the ability to understand. At the end of the day, these are secrets that impact the family, they impact her. How is it anyone’s right to keep them from her? Her knowledge is what allows her to be able to fully understand who she is and why the family was so divided.

Where does it land on my bookshelf?

I would put this at the top of the middle shelf. I really enjoyed it, and the setting was magnificent. The family dynamics created the perfect blend of love and hope under cover of secrets, deception and betrayals that were impacting three generations. It is one of those perfect summer books that just filled my heart when I was finished with it. Villa of Sun and Secrets is the perfect book to throw into your beach bag or your carry-on as you head out for your own summer adventures.

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