Hi everyone,
To celebrate the start of the summer months, I’m posting a
“Summer Romance Series” of blogs. And since June is Pride Month, I’m sharing a
look at my gay romance, A Thousand Summer Secrets. This tender contemporary
romance takes place over a summer weekend, where two friends reconnect while
seeking love and acceptance.
Here’s the book description and link:
A Thousand Summer Secrets
You can’t outrun your past…
Ten years after being disowned by his family for being gay,
Eric Warren pays a visit to his family’s summer cabin. It’s his last attempt at
reconciliation before moving on. But a surprise from the past is waiting for
him.
Eric’s intolerant brother, Jamey, has several friends
staying at the cabin for the weekend, including Matt, Eric’s boyhood friend and
secret crush. The years haven’t faded their mutual attraction, and they quickly
reconnect. But Eric is hesitant to get romantically involved. He’s emotionally
broken and scarred from his traumatic past.
As Matt tries to help Eric, Jamey goes out of his way to
sabotage his brother. And when the weekend events take a disastrous turn, Eric
finds himself at a crossroads.
Should he follow his search for love and acceptance with
Matt? Or leave the past behind forever?
Order your copy here:
https://www.kelliwilkins.com/thousand-summer-secrets
***
Before I talk about the characters, let’s talk about the
title. Yes, as you may have guessed, this book is filled with secrets (and
lies). Are there “a thousand” secrets? I’m not sure, but I do know the
characters are keeping secrets from each other and themselves. Everything isn’t
exactly what it seems, and there’s plenty of family and relationship drama to
fill a weekend.
As for the title itself… Many years ago I was mindlessly
fooling around with little magnetic squares of words and strung together
“thousand summer secrets”. I thought it would make a good title, so I wrote it
down.
I thought I’d use the title for a story about two female
best friends reconnecting during a week at the beach. That book never
materialized. But when I wrote about two male friends reconnecting over a Fourth
of July weekend, I realized the title fit the story perfectly!
When I wrote the book, I deliberately set the story in a
rural cabin during a long weekend. Why? To build drama and tension. Basically,
I threw several characters who don’t get along in a small space and forced them
to deal with each other, for good or bad. You never know what they’ll do or say
next. (If anyone has ever been “stuck” with people you can’t stand for a long
rainy weekend, you know what I’m talking about.)
A Thousand Summer Secrets is about a young man (Eric) who is
trying to put his life back together. He was disowned by his family for being
gay (and other reasons) and wants to find out if he can make peace with his
relatives, or if it’s best to cut his ties and move on. He’s had a rough life
and several bad relationships, and he isn’t sure if he can trust anyone again.
Eric’s rejection by his family wounds him deeply and feeds a lot of his low
self-esteem issues.
Everyone in this story has flaws they’re working through (or
should be!). Jamey has anger issues (for starters). His friend Dave is a
homophobic jerk. Eric is in AA and harboring a lot of guilt. Matt is the stable
one in the group and tries to make peace between everyone. But after a while,
he realizes it’s an uphill battle, and Eric might be better off without his
cruel, dysfunctional family.
I wanted all the characters to realize it’s okay to walk
away from people and situations that make your life miserable. Just because
you’re related to someone (or dating them), it doesn’t give them the right to
bully you or treat you like crap. Life is too short to be around uncaring,
intolerant people, and it’s within your right to leave them behind, move on,
and close the door to them forever.
As Eric tries to come to grips with his past, he needs all
the love, support, and help he can get. He was disowned by his parents
(literally thrown out of the house forever) when he was 20 years old, and left
to fend for himself. Despite his attempts at reconciliation, his family wants
nothing to do with him. Why? Because he’s gay.
Eric’s plight is based on stories I’ve heard from gay
friends and coworkers over the years. Some people were kicked out by their
parents, others were told to stay in the closet and “not embarrass” the family,
and some were subjected to anti-gay physical and verbal abuse at work or in
public. Even now, people are still facing bullying, hatred, and worse from
their relatives, in their schools, and on social media—all because they don’t
“fit in” with the “norm” of society. It’s not surprising that many times the
LGBTQ+ person decides the only way to be happy is to leave their biological
family and find a new family in the LGBTQ+ community.
I channeled a lot of these types of experiences into this
story.
Although Eric is dealing with his past, he’s not alone. Matt
comes along at the perfect moment. Matt knew Eric before his life went to hell
and even after 10 years, his feelings for Eric haven’t faded. They quickly
resume their friendship. Matt is a stabilizing force for Eric and a sounding
board for his troubles. Matt acts as the voice of logic and reason in a
chaotic, turmoil-filled weekend.
Eric has his share of challenges in this story and one of
them is his intolerant brother, Jamey. Jamey goes out of his way to push every
one of Eric’s buttons as only family can. Jamey and his friend Dave are
determined to undermine Eric’s recovery and make his stay at the cabin a
nightmare. And they do a good job of it.
As I wrote the story, I wanted to show how Eric is trying to
do the right thing by making amends with his family and trying to heal the
past, but at what cost? Eventually he has to face the harsh reality that you
can’t go home again. (And sometimes you shouldn’t want to.) Life can never be
the same as it was before, but sometimes when you least expect it, life takes a
new direction, and things turn out okay.
A Thousand Summer Secrets isn’t all drama, feuds and
fighting; there are tender moments, funny scenes, a bit of sadness,
introspection, and even danger—plus the happy ending Matt and Eric deserve…
because love is all that matters.
I hope you enjoyed this “Summer Romance Series” blog. Visit
my site www.kelliwilkins.com to learn about all of my books, read more blogs,
and get links to my social media.
June is Pride Month. Let’s all celebrate Love this summer.
Happy Reading,
Kelli A. Wilkins
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Kelli A. Wilkins is an award-winning author who has
published more than 100 short stories, 24 romance novels, and 9
mystery/thriller/horror ebooks. Her romances span many genres and settings, and
she likes to scare readers with her horror, mystery, and thriller fiction.
Her latest book, The Route 9 Stalker, was published in
January 2026. This mystery/thriller is set in Central NJ and follows Detective
Jim Rourke on a disturbing new case. Meet him for the first time in The Route 9
Killer.
Kelli's 24th romance, For Love’s Sake, an epic historical/fantasy romantic adventure, was published in January 2025.
In 2024, she released Surreal Escapes, a collection of 7 speculative/spooky stories. Anything can—and does—happen in this anthology.
Follow Kelli on her Facebook author page:
https://www.facebook.com/AuthorKelliWilkins and visit her website/blog www.KelliWilkins.com
for a full title list, social media links, and more.
