I have read a number of novels by Sarah Moss, I’ve loved her prose and the concise language she uses to evoke tension and atmosphere in her novels.
The story takes place on a rainy day by a Loch in Scotland. There are a number of holiday log cabins by the Loch and we learn how the events of the day are perceived by the occupants of each cabin. We learn about the couples and families and their relationship and issues. Minor grumbles and concerns are mulled over while all the time a sense of menace is building. There is a claustrophobic feel to the events with the families isolated in log cabins by a Loch on a rainy day. There are all trying to find an escape or ways to keep their children entertained on what is turning out to be hellish holiday. The only cabin occupants that we don’t know much about is the cabin where they appear to be enjoying themselves with late night parties. We touch on many themes including underlying middle class racism as the revellers are referred to by various East European references by the other occupants. Throughout the novel the tension rises as you feel that something shocking is about to occur.
Summerwater is an excellent, evocative novel. If you’ve read Ghost Wall (or any other Sarah Moss novel) then this won’t disappoint. If you haven’t read a Sarah Moss novel then this would be a good one to start with.

Well, Sarah doesn't ever let us down does she?! I'm glad I'm not in rainy Scotland in this particular holiday park! A beautiful, powerful and atmospheric book. This is perfect for my bookselling market (Cheltenham store) and I look forward to recommending it to many a customer.

At the end of a long single track road sits a holiday park, a small group of wooden chalets. With a lochside location surrounded by mountains it sounds like the perfect place to rest and relax, to get back in touch with nature and the simpler things in life, far away from normal everyday life. But the Scottish weather is proving a disappointment. The rain is constant. Getting out and about seems unappealing. There's little for the families on holiday at the park to do but stay indoors, and maybe watch the other holidaymakers.
A wife tries to outrun her problems, children are forced outside to play by the water, teenagers would rather be anywhere else. A young couple think of what their future holds: an older one reminisce about the past. One family, though, is marked out as 'different'. They play music and party late at night. They don't have the proper 'serious' clothing and footwear. Maybe you aren't allowed to have fun while the rain continues to pour and ruin everyone else's holiday?

Over the course of a day, tempers start to unravel, tension rises, and, whether it's from children spotting another child who's easy to bully, or from the solitary guy camping nearby, there's a feeling of trouble brewing.

Sarah Moss has perfectly captured that claustrophobic mood of sitting hunkered inside out of the rain, day after day, in an area where all the attractions - walking, swimming, cycling - are outdoors, of longing to go out but being soaked after a few minutes, while inside wet clothes steam but never dry out, and the windows fog up from condensation.
Following first one person, then another, we see the day unfold from different perspectives, and with each of them that uneasy tension builds. By close observation and dipping into their thoughts, at the end of the day/novel, these feel like people you know intimately, possibly better then their close families do. There's a certain similarity to Jon McGregor's If Nobody Speaks of Remarkable Things, with the emphasis being on people going about a fairly ordinary day, doing little of importance, while unknown to them tragedy is about to strike.
And the ending ... well, that's one that will resonate for quite a while. DO NOT be tempted to skip ahead and see what happens. On a second or third reading you'll know how things work out; just once let the full shock hit you.

It says a lot about a book that even though there is no clear reason for the book - no central character, no particular incident to focus on, just a quiet commentary on people - I still couldn’t put it down, and read it over a day.
The book focuses on couples and families staying at an isolated holiday park in Scotland where the rain is never ending, and flits from one character to another’s’ thoughts and commentary on those around them.
The reason this had me so hooked is just how spot on the inner dialogue and commentary on others is - I was nodding along and feeling the frustrations!
I did find myself a little frustrated by the very end, where I suddenly found myself wanting more, but otherwise a great easy read!

It’s the longest day of the year at a holiday park on a remote highland loch, which should be idyllic, but the rain is relentless and the atmosphere tense. The log cabins are currently home to a myriad of characters including a retired doctor and his ailing wife, a depressed mother of two, a running addict, a newly engaged couple, a young family with a baby, teenage siblings longing to escape each other and their middle aged parents, and a Ukrainian mother and a daughter. We hear from the various characters except the Ukrainian family who are cast as outsiders from the start. As we watch events play out through each of the characters eyes alongside their inner dialogue, what starts off as a monotonous rainy day builds towards a tragic conclusion.

A novel about a bleak day on a campsite wouldn’t usually be something I’d pick up but I’m so glad I did. Written in the form of a stream of consciousness, you can almost picture yourself there, watching alongside each character as the rain falls and the day grows darker. The atmosphere is almost suffocating, and little interludes that weave the surrounding nature in to the mix only make it all the more ominous, this is descriptive writing at its best. Each of the characters comes to life, and the mean spiritedness of some is juxtaposed with the young fiancé picturing bacon rolls during sex, and the tired mother who wastes her only free hour thinking about how she should spend it. It’s very realistic which makes the casual racism all the more jarring but Moss captures the essence of Brexit era Britain perfectly.

I have never read Sarah Moss before but I’ll be adding her to my list of go to authors now that I’ve finished this little gem. If you’re looking for a short but thought-provoking and immersive read, I would definitely recommend this.

Over the course of a single day we spend time with the different residents of a Scottish holiday park as they try to make the most of, or simply make it through, an incredibly wet summer’s day. I mistakenly believed I would read this short book quickly but it turned out to be rather dense and a much slower read for me. Each chapter is from a different characters perspective and the writing is an almost endless flow of internal thoughts. Unfortunately for me I started reading Summerwater at a time that my own thoughts were loud and racing and adding other people’s thoughts into the mix meant I couldn’t always focus. As soon as I was in a better frame of mind and able to settle into the story I became utterly absorbed, the writing is beautiful and the more I read the more I wanted to read. It is very atmospheric and Sarah Moss perfectly describes the oppressiveness of a grey day in Scotland.

As you read Summerwater be warned that you may not always agree with the thoughts and opinions of every character. Being stuck in a small community on a miserable day, boredom causes the characters to turn their attention toward the activities and lives of their fellow holiday-makers and, well, everyone seems to have an opinion about everyone else. I find this makes for an interesting and realistic read but I know other people might find it ruins the reading-experience for them.

I have to say not a lot happens in this story until the very end. If you love books that are more character-focused than plot-driven then I would recommend this book. After a slow start I found I loved this short book. Summerwater will be published tomorrow, 20th August, and I have already pre-ordered my copy. I can’t wait to read it again and see how the story changes now that I know the ending.

Thank you to NetGalley and Pan Macmillan for the free e-book of Summerwater in exchange for a review.

I just didn't get on with this. Moss is a gifted writer and I've enjoyed other novels by her but this fell so very flat for me. I found the stream of consciousness very boring - even the section about the couple trying to have simulatenous orgasms. I'm not sure if I just wasn't in the mood for this or what, but I just found it rather pointless.

Her observations on character are truly lovely but I didn't feel anything for these people. The strength of the descriptions in fact, made me feel rather like a scientist observing results clinically.

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a copy in exchange for an honest review. I can already see that most people are enjoying this a lot more than I did. I still look forward to the author's next work.

Brilliant and evocative book. Cinematic in it's drawing of the impressive and oppressive scenery and intimate in it's depiction of those living there. It's a beautiful and fascinating exploration of people living in their own internal monologues and subconsciously perceiving the otherness of the people around them. Highly recommended.

We’ve all been on that summer holiday, tucked in a log cabin listening to the rain falling endlessly, careless of our holiday plans, watching other holiday makers and wondering what they are doing... I was attracted by the reviews of Summerwater highlighting its observation, humour and exceptional writing. Summerwater is something of a modern day stream of consciousness as the narrative switches between the mind of each of the holiday makers and we sit deep in their thoughts. We are immersed in their boredom, their frustration, their aspiration, their sexual desires, their racism... The writing is beautiful, evoking the rain drenched scenery of a Scottish loch. The atmosphere is tense, frustrated and claustrophobic. I loved the way Moss understands the individual frustrations- ‘Claire makes two cups of tea, in the biggest mugs she can find which are still annoyingly small and also tartan...’, or in the case of the teenager - ‘I can’t exactly post, can I, more rain on more trees, rain again, trees again, more rain, more trees, hashtag summer holiday, hashtag family fun..’ As the day closes the frustration builds. I really enjoyed this book, it is so insightful, so beautifully observed and so utterly evocative. With thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a digital copy of this book.

A really good short read. Beautifully written, I felt I was there watching everything happen.

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy.

I was gifted a free eARC* of this book by the publisher, via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

*eARC: electronic Advance Review Copy

Summerwater by Sarah Moss is beautifully imagined. Set in a cabin park in Scotland and told over the course of a singly rainy summer’s day, it offers up a wide range of perspectives, characters, emotions and stories. It almost blurs the line between novel and short story, with each section focusing on the inhabitants of a different cabin. This changing of perspectives meant the day felt much longer than it really was for me — too much seemed to be happening to all be contained within a single day but, of course, it was 12 days in a way, with each family experiencing the day differently.

The amount of characters in this did get a little bit confusing at times. Much of the novel is based on the characters observing one another (on a day of pouring rain, what better way to pass the time than judging the neighbours?), so there was a lot of casting my mind back to remember if there had been a section from the perspective of certain characters as they were mentioned by others. Having characters crop back up again in this way requires a lot of intricacy and plotting of characters’ locations at different times of the day to ensure the piece stays consistent, and as far as I can tell, Sarah Moss pulls this off! Despite only getting to spend a short amount of time with each of the characters before moving on, I felt like they were all very well fleshed out. There weren’t any characters that stood out to me as ‘the main characters’, which for a novel like this, is a great achievement.

The tone of this novel is really difficult to pin down, because it varies so much throughout the novel. One thing that remains fairly consistent, however, is a sense of dread, or some sense of foreboding. Perhaps this is more evident in hindsight, but every story has something ominous hanging over it, some more obviously than others. The ending wasn’t really for me, personally. While it did feel like it was built towards thematically, it didn’t feel quite fitting, in a way I can’t quite place my finger on. I think it was a bit rushed, but I shan’t say any more so as not to spoil it!

Sarah Moss’ writing is really impressive. Each perspective feels markedly different from every other one, despite the characters sharing a lot of things in common with one another. Between each perspective is a short interlude, describing the world as it goes on around these characters, which is a kind of writing I really love. These descriptive, characterless passages remain short, so they don’t make the already slow pace painful, and they don’t become obnoxious (although I do love some obnoxiously descriptive writing on occasion…). As I mentioned, this is definitely a slow paced book: it takes place over a single day! Despite this, the book never dragged for me. So many mundane tasks are performed in this novel, but the switch in perspectives and unique voices meant it never felt repetitive or dull. I enjoyed working out how the characters’ paths crossed, how their experience of this particular day coincided with everyone else’s.

I also found the brevity of this book quite refreshing! The majority of the books I read are over 300 pages, I would say, and Summerwater, at just over 200 pages, achieves a lot in such a short space of time. Some of the characters I perhaps would have liked to spend more time with, but they were all still very well fleshed out in the space they were allotted. This book really does fly by despite the slow pace, so if you’re looking for a quick, engaging read, this might well be for you.

For some reason, while the characters were all well-written and developed, I didn’t really feel very connected to any of them, which I think is partly down to how short the sections often are. I can’t remember any characters that I liked, just ones I wanted to know a bit more about. This is, I suppose, a natural sacrifice that has to be made when writing such a short book containing so many perspectives. The other thing is that non of the characters are meant to be very likeable, in my opinion. We see inside their heads, we see their flaws, their judgements, their failings. I felt sympathetic towards some characters, but only on a very surface level, and I do like to feel really involved in characters’ lives, which is what this book lacked for me due to the form.

Overall, I did enjoy reading this, and I would definitely pick up more books by this author in the future. I really like the premise, but I think perhaps if there were fewer perspectives, the reader could connect more to the characters and feel more emotionally invested in the story.

This book contains scenes of a sexual nature, as well as characters thinking about sex. The majority of the sexual content is in ‘Zanzibar’, for anyone who may wish to avoid this. There are sexual references elsewhere in the novel, but no other sex scenes.

I love Sarah Moss’ writing so I was delighted to get my hands on a copy of Summerwater and I can honestly say that I adored it!

Summerwater is set during the longest day of the year at a very rainy summer in a holiday cabin park in Scotland. Each chapter is told from the perspective of the people staying in one of the cabins so we get there own experiences and their views on everyone else. Then the story moves along and eventually we meet almost all the people in the cabins and see how their holidays are going. There is a real sense of building tension through this novel as it works towards it’s shocking conclusion.

This book is brilliant. I loved meeting a person in each of the cabins, it felt like I was right there with them and watching their neighbours on this wet, miserable holiday. We follow a young mum who just wants a few minutes to relax but when her husband takes the children out for an hour she doesn’t know what to do with the time. We meet a young couple who are meant to be having a romantic getaway but the boy is obsessed with working on their simultaneous orgasms and the girl who loves him dearly but is thinking about how she’d just quite like to fry some bacon. There is the family with a teenage daughter who wants to get out and meet up with a man she’s getting to know who’s camping nearby. Also we meet an older couple, the husband likes to walk on holidays but the wife is struggling. We see things through each of their eyes in two different chapters and I found their story really moving. Alongside them is a family we don’t get to meet, they are Ukranian and everyone who watches them seems to be suspicious of them. They play loud music every night and people on the holiday park are judging their every move. The tension slowly builds in the background of everyone else’s story as they each have an existing judgement about this family that they allow to be compounded by the loud music.

I loved the way the author shows us the public side of the holidaymakers but then we get to see their inside selves, how they behave with their family and the glimpses into their secret selves; the things you’d never say but you think.

There are moments in this book where I was holding my breath as various holiday makers have near misses – accidents that could have had a different outcome, childish pranks that felt sinister and dark. The ending when it comes though is still stark and shocking. The reactions of the people around was fascinating and it leaves you thinking about how you would do in that situation.

This is a claustrophobic novella; we all know what it is to be on holiday when the weather is horrendous and there’s nothing to do. I love the way it broadly explores the perspectives of all age groups, it evokes memories we likely all have of this holiday experience.

This is an incredible novella; I finished it a few weeks ago now and I still keep thinking about it. I think it might be one of my favourite books of the year so far. I loved it and I highly recommend it!

I thought the author’s book Ghost Wall was fantastic so I had high expectations for Summerwater. Thankfully, this is everything I was hoping for. This is a very short book, barely 200 pages yet I feel like I’ve read something much longer, 400 or 500 pages at least. The book is broken up into narratives of different lengths, each one focusing on one of the twelve characters, exploring their issues gradually moving all the threads together as the mother and daughter who don’t quite fit in become a force of gravity. The book takes a dark turn towards the end which although hinted at still shocked me. This is a terrific read. One to take your time over despite its brief length.

Summerwater is a beautiful book, perfect for August when we are trying to holiday despite the pandemic.
Section by section, Sarah Moss tells the story of the different people who are all staying in a holiday village somewhere in Scottish woodland.
Each section gives an insight into the person's story, btu it also tells us about the site as a whole, and the world around. Packed with subtle detail, it draws you in, circling back as you view life in the same place from different perspectives, as everyone portayed grows more irritated by the noisy partying family, the outsiders.
A compelling read right to the end which smacked me in the face with the unexpected climax.

This was an interesting and atmospheric short novel, with the tension building gradually over the course of a single rain-sodden day.

We are given windows on the lives of people staying in a group of wooden holiday cabins in Scotland - what they are thinking, whether about their own situation or those staying near them - and, slowly but surely, a picture begins to emerge.

A teenage girl bored out of her mind and her brother, an older man whose wife is in the early stages of dementia, a fitness-obsessed woman with her husband and two children, a woman possibly with post-natal depression and her family, a young engaged couple, and an Eastern European family who annoy everyone else with their loud music.

Everyone is linked, mainly by the appalling weather as they juggle family responsibilities and frustrations, but something is lurking just below the surface and leads to a startling denouement.

I liked the way the various narratives were connected by scenes of nature in the woods near the chalets, and the way different emotions were laid bare. The sense of tension is palpable.

This is a well-written story and I would be happy to read more from this author.

I was sent an advance review copy of this book by Pan Macmillan, in return for an honest appraisal.

Sarah Moss has a huge following and deserves all of her praise as an outstanding writer. This novel is full of darkness and intrigue, suspense and calamity, leavened with Sarah's characteristic wit and observation.

Reading this on one of the hottest days of 2020, it was a relief and respite to delve into torrential rain and a wild loch in the Trossachs.
These short vignettes of the people staying in the log cabin holiday park around the loch were varied and immersive, building up a picture of how different each group were. Each cabin held a group of people frustrated and bored because of the awful Scottish weather, all eyeing up each other through the curtains but none prepared to make the step to engage in conversation or invite them over to liven up the stay. There is an Eastern European family who are treated with suspicion, not least by the little girl of one of the family, Lola, who is spiteful to their daughter. She has obviously learned these attitudes through her father, who expresses prejudices without having even met them.
The two main threads that are beautifully interwoven in this book are the natural world, and the extremes of climate we are beginning to experience that will affect all habitats, and the xenophobic attitudes prevalent in the UK at the moment. Once again, it is highlighted that we need to come together, talk and share cultural experiences in order to find common ground.
The ending was unexpected and jaw-dropping when realisation came to me about what had actually occurred. Nothing is clearly said and it is very clever that the story tests the reader's own assumptions and prejudices as to what has happened.
If you enjoyed Lanny, Reservoir 13 or Stillicide, then you will love this.

This is a brilliant book, but possibly not to be read if you’re going on holiday to a remote cabin in Scotland! Unusually, I empathised with not one, but just about all of the characters, from different stages in my life. The book is a series of stories, each with a different character, from the holiday cabins at a remote location. The author has amazing insight into each person, from the youngest child, through the awkward teenagers, harassed mum to elderly woman. The stories are interspersed with short passages about nature - equally engaging.

Summerwater by Sarah Moss

This is a story of a single rainy summer day on a Scottish holiday park told from the views of 12 different people staying at the park.

This book takes us through the day following different characters of a range of ages and genders. I thought the characters were very well drawn for the brief amount of time spent with each one. It is testament to Sarah Moss’ skill that she creates 12 very different characters that all felt very fleshed out.

There wasn’t a lot of plot as this occurs over just one day however it didn’t need it. This a character study and looks at otherness, ageing, desire and parenting among other things.

I raced through this but also wanted to slow down and savour the beautifully written words. I would read anything Sarah Moss writes.

Midsummer in the Trossachs, 24 hours as experienced by the residents of a holiday park by a loch. On the longest day of the year, the rain keeps falling and everyone finds their mood darkening.

Honest emotions, hopes and memories are explored by the residents, but as night falls these individuals must work together.

The writing echoes the gloom of Scotland on a rainy day trapped inside a damp cabin, wishing for sunshine. Sarah cranks up the suspense but leaves it until the final pages for the story to explode.