‘Summer on Sag Harbor’ with Sunny Hostin

With beach read season upon us, the second novel from Emmy Award-winner, lawyer and journalist, and “The View” co-host Sunny Hostin, “Summer on Sag Harbor” is the ultimate companion for any vacation bag. Following her New York Times bestseller “Summer on the Bluffs,” this time, Hostin spirits readers away to the historically Black beaches of Sag Harbor for the compelling second novel in her acclaimed “Summer” series.

On Thursday, July 6, at 6 p.m., Hostin will be at East Hampton Library to talk about “Summer on Sag Harbor” with author and nationally syndicated advice columnist Harriette Cole. The event is co-presented by BookHampton which will sell copies of the book at the event.

An impressive follow-up to her acclaimed fiction debut, Hostin’s goal to make beach reads fully inclusive is well underway. The beaches spotlighted in Hostin’s novels are the historically Black communities that have existed outside Sag Harbor for over 100 years. Aiming to share this culture with those who are unaware that such places exist, as well as Black women who are looking for diverse characters, Hostin transports readers to a hidden enclave, affectionately known as SANS — Sag Harbor Hills, Azurest and Nineveh — where there’s a close-knit community of African American elites who escape the city and enjoy the beautiful warm weather and beaches at their vacation homes.

Since the 1930s, very few have known about this part of the East End, and the residents like it that way. That is, until real estate developers discover the hidden gem. And now, the residents must fight for the soul of SANS.

Against the odds, Olivia Jones has blazed her own enviable career path and built her name in the finance world. But hidden behind the veneer of her success, there is a gaping hole. Mourning both the loss and the betrayal of Omar, a surrogate father, and her two god sisters, Olivia is driven to solve the mystery of what happened to her biological father, a police officer unjustly killed when she was a little girl.

Untethered from her life in New York City, Olivia moves to a summer home in Sag Harbor and begins forging a new community out in SANS. Friendships blossom with Kara (an ambitious art curator), Whitney (the wife of an ex-basketball player and current president of the Sag Harbor Homeowners Association), and Garrett (a sexy new neighbor and single father who makes her reconsider her engagement to another man). She also takes to a kind, older gentleman named Mr. Whittingham, but soon discovers he too is not without his own troubles.

As the summer stretches on, each relationship teaches her more about who she really is. Though not without cost, Olivia’s search for her authentic identity in the secret history of her family of origin and her fight to preserve her new Black utopia, will lead her to redefine the meaning of love, friendship, community, and family — and restore her faith in herself, her relationships, and her chosen path.

Hostin, a mother of two, lives with her husband in New York.

Admission to the July 6 talk at East Hampton Library is free. Visit bookhampton.com or easthamptonlibrary.org to register or call 631-324-0222 ext. 3. East Hampton Library is at 159 Main Street, East Hampton.