Book Review: The Summer Guests by Tess Gerritsen

Tess Gerritsen, a master of the medical thriller, continues her pivot into the world of high-stakes retirement with “The Summer Guests,” the second installment in her Martini Club series. Released in March 2025, the novel proves that Gerritsen hasn’t lost her edge; if anything, she has sharpened it by blending the “cozy” appeal of a small-town mystery with the cold, calculated precision of espionage.

The Premise: Trouble in Purity

The story returns to the deceptively quiet hamlet of Purity, Maine. Our protagonist, Maggie Bird, is a retired CIA operative who has traded covert ops for chicken farming and a cocktail-sipping book club. Her circle—the “Martini Club”—consists of fellow retired spooks who have all settled in Purity to escape their pasts.

The peace is shattered when the Conover clan, a wealthy family of “summer people,” arrives at their lakefront estate, Moonview, to scatter the ashes of their patriarch. When 15-year-old Zoe goes missing and the local police focus their suspicions on Maggie’s neighbor, Luther, the Martini Club decides to trade their binoculars for their old investigative skill sets.

A Multi-Layered Mystery

Gerritsen expertly weaves together three distinct narrative threads that keep the reader off-balance:

• The Present Disappearance: The search for Zoe exposes the fractured dynamics of the Conover family, where grief and entitlement collide.
• The Cold Case: A search of Maiden Pond for the missing teen reveals a long-dead corpse, pulling a decades-old mystery back to the surface.
• The Ghost of 1972: The book opens with a chilling historical scene involving a violent tragedy in Purity, casting a long shadow over the current investigation and the rivalry between the local Tarkin family and the elite Conovers.

Character Dynamics

The heart of the book is the “uneasy alliance” between the Martini Club and Jo Thibodeau, Purity’s acting police chief. Jo is a standout character—ambitious, capable, and perpetually frustrated by a group of retirees who are “uniquely qualified and absurdly talented” at finding information she can’t access.

The retired spies themselves are depicted with a refreshing lack of sentimentality. Gerritsen avoids making them “twee” or invincible; instead, she explores the realities of aging—grappling with physical limitations while maintaining the mental sharpness of a seasoned predator.

Final Verdict

“The Summer Guests” is a masterclass in plotting. It tackles themes of class tension, the weight of past sins, and the enduring power of friendship. While it functions as a standalone, readers will find much more depth by starting with the first book, The Spy Coast.

Why You Should Read It:

• The Twists: Even seasoned thriller readers have noted that the final act contains revelations that are difficult to predict.
• The Atmosphere: Gerritsen perfectly captures the “locals vs. summer residents” friction common in New England tourist towns.
• The Pacing: Despite its complex web of secrets, the narrative remains tight and propulsive.

“Gerritsen has hit pop culture gold with this series… as relentlessly entertaining as it is superbly structured.” — BookTrib

If you enjoy a procedural that offers both the intellectual satisfaction of a “whodunnit” and the high-octane tension of a spy thriller, The Summer Guests is a must-add to your reading list.