Down with the Shipmans by Meg Mitchell Moore: Three Sisters, One Beach House, and All the Feelings

Family ties, old grief, and a beach house about to be sold. Everything I needed in a summer read.

Synopsis

From the bestselling author of Mansion Beach, a summery drama following three sisters who return to their childhood home, each with their own secret, perfect for readers of Sandwich and Pineapple Street.

It’s the week after Fourth of July, and the Shipman sisters are returning to their picturesque summer home on the New Hampshire coast for what they believe is a family reunion, the first without their late mother. However, their tranquil setting quickly becomes a stage for drama when their father, Calvin, drops the bombshell news that he plans to sell the cherished beach house.

Mae, the youngest daughter, who has a newfound penchant for attracting trouble, is distraught, already dealing with her own emotional scars and a problematic rescue dog. Natalie, the middle sister and social media darling known for her seemingly idyllic life as a tradwife, is equally anxious, especially since her flawless public image is on the verge of imploding. Meanwhile, Jordan, the eldest, a high-powered crisis communications expert, is ready to be rid of the house so she can tend to her own professional disaster.

As old memories are stirred up and the sisters navigate both the packing of the house and their personal crises, the arrival of Calvin’s new wife pushes Jordan, Natalie, and Mae to decide how far they’re willing to go to preserve the Shipman bond.

A delicious summer read that explores the enduring power of family and sister connections, Down with the Shipmans is a humorous, heartfelt reminder that home is not a place, but the people who love you, no matter how imperfectly.

Audiobook Review

4.5 stars

This is exactly what I look for in a summer read or a family drama.

We follow the Shipman sisters. Jordan is the oldest: organized, driven, and extremely successful at managing crises for her clients in New York. Nathalie is the middle sister, an Instagram sensation who lives on a farm with her very attractive husband and three small children. #tradwife is her motto. She homeschools her kids, milks cows with soulful eyes and long lashes, bakes everything from scratch, and makes it all look effortless.

And then there is Mae, the youngest. Since losing her mother, Mae has been adrift. She has no home, lives in her car, and hasn’t told her family any of it. She works as a dog trainer and has just taken on Leo, a reactive pit bull mix rescued from the streets who needs all the patience and love she can give.

Their father summons all three to the family beach house, their mother’s ancestral home, where he gathers them together to make an announcement: he’s selling the house. That decision stirs up a storm of emotions and memories. Nathalie and Mae are dead set against it. Jordan, ever the sensible one, understands the logic. And the summer unravels from there.

I love books that dissect family ties and relationships with honesty, all the love, the occasional resentment, and the loyalty that holds despite everything. I adored watching these sisters challenge each other and prop each other up in equal measure. Each of them is at a crossroads in her own life, and the soul-searching feels real and earned. Add two dogs, three charming kids, heaps of nostalgia, and a thread of grief running quietly underneath, and I was completely won over by this messy, joyful, loving family.

A perfect beach read, and I don’t mean that as a slight. This isn’t saccharine, it isn’t fluff. It’s depth and sadness and joy and hope and growth, all rolled into one very good story.

Thanks for reading.

Sophie