ONE SUMMER IN SAVANNAH by Terah Shelton Harris

When Sara returns to Savannah eight years after she left in the wake of a terrifying sexual assault, she does so because her father, a bookstore owner, is ailing. She brings with her Alana, her daughter born as a result of the rape by the drunken son of a prominent Savannah family. 

Complications ensue when her father's condition turns out to be worse than she'd anticipated. He is, in fact, months away from death, so she reluctantly decides to remain in Savannah with Alana to support Hosea, even if that means that her assailant's family might well learn about Alana's existence, which she has managed to keep secret since her daughter was born. 

Alana is no ordinary child. She is a genius, fascinated by mathematical equations and time, her mind more like that of her biological father than that of Sara, who is a poet. Daniel, the rapist, is also a genius, as is his twin brother Jacob. And here is the crux of the major problem with the novel: Sara manages to fall in love with Jacob, the identical twin of the man who assaulted her. 

ONE SUMMER IN SAVANNAH is a debut novel by a talented writer, Terah Shelton Harris, a collections development librarian in Dothan, Alabama. Many reviews cite the relationship between Sara and Jacob as requiring a suspension of disbelief. It simply seems impossible that a victim of sexual assault would fall for her rapist's identical twin, at least not without more agonizing than occurs in the novel. 

The other problem is the genius thread running through the book. The Wyler twins, as well as their younger sister who'd died in a car crash are all geniuses. Alana, Sara's daughter is a genius. Hosea, Sara's father has a form of selective mutism in that he doesn't speak or even write notes, but communicates purely through the recitation of poetry. Sara herself is a published poet who receives royalty checks, which is also rare. 

There are too many rare birds in this story, at the expense of characters who are just normal people living their lives. That being said, there's also much to appreciate here. Daniel, who is about to be released from prison, is dying of cancer. For much of his time in prison, he has been trying to atone for his crime, throwing his energy and intellect in humanitarian projects within the prison system. The strongest parts of the book revolve around these themes of atonement, forgiveness, and loss. 

Harris wrote the book in response to the mass shooting at the church known as Mother Emmanuel in Charleston after she learned that parishioners forgave the shooter. How, she wondered, did they do so? How do you forgive the unforgivable? She realized she need to think about what it meant to forgive, and ONE SUMMER IN SAVANNAH is her treatise on that. 

This was the part of the book that resonated with me. Sara maintains boundaries while leaving herself open to loving Jacob. Her love for her daughter has led her to hide her away from the Wyler family out of fear that the twins' grandmother Birdie might attempt to seek custody. By the end of the book, she must come to terms with the woman who vilified her during the trial eight years earlier, especially if he wants Jacob in her life. 

Harris takes on difficult topics, and she's not done with these characters. She plans to carry on with their story in future books. With a strong debut novel, she's an Alabama author I know we'll be hearing from again. 

ONE SUMMER IN SAVANNAH is a available through the Camellia Net ebook collection, available now at Moon Lake Library. Download the Libby app to read it on your phone or tablet. The title is being made available for multiple readers simultaneously because Harris is a new Alabama writer who is getting some buzz nationally. If you want to find out more about how to access Camellia Net, stop by the library for information. 

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