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In its heyday, The Golden Hotel was the crown jewel of the hotter-than-hot Catskills vacation scene. For more than sixty years, the Goldman and Weingold families – best friends and business partners – have presided over this glamorous resort which served as a second home for well-heeled guests and celebrities. But the Catskills are not what they used to be – and neither is the relationship between the Goldmans and the Weingolds. As the facilities and management begin to fall apart, a tempting offer to sell forces the two families together again to make a heart-wrenching decision. Can they save their beloved Golden or is it too late?
Long-buried secrets emerge, new dramas and financial scandal erupt, and everyone from the traditional grandparents to the millennial grandchildren wants a say in the hotel’s future. Business and pleasure clash in this fast-paced, hilarious, nostalgia-filled story, where the hotel owners rediscover the magic of a bygone era of nonstop fun even as they grapple with what may be their last resort.
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Praise
Last Summer at the Golden Hotel featured on Frolic’s 12 Hot Reads for May
“You must experience Friedland’s novel for yourself. Her characters are well-rounded, and every reader is sure to find himself or herself within at least one of them (hi, I’m Aimee), but it is the drama and comedy of every interaction that make this book — and the Golden Hotel — utterly unforgettable.”
–Book Reporter
Last Summer at the Golden Hotel is a Book of the Month Pick!
New York Post: The best new books to read
“Episodes of intergenerational disconnect contrasted with unshakeable family bonds make Last Summer at the Golden Hotel a great choice for fans of Schitt’s Creek and feel-good family dramedies.”
–Shelf Awareness
“With lots of laughs, as well as a few tears, Elyssa Friedland’s Last Summer at the Golden Hotel is a family drama that is full of heart, on every single page. Perfect for anyone with nostalgia either for the movie Dirty Dancing, or for the place and time of its setting, The Catskills in the 1960s, this novel tells an engaging story of family, friends, business, progress, change, tradition, secrets, and so much more.”
–The Nerd Daily
“The perfect upbeat novel to reach for when life seems difficult and confusing.”
–Jewish Book Council
“Written with Friedland’s signature wit and sharp dialogue, Last Summer at the Golden Hotel is an incisive novel that touches on family legacies, nostalgia, and multigenerational dynamics. Readers not content with armchair immersion will want to book their Catskill getaway immediately.”
–Booklist
“Breezy and charming, this is great fun.”
–Publishers Weekly
“A high-spirited party of a book…From the perfectly put-together diva grandmother Louise to the Instagram influencer and avocado-toast photographer @free2bephoebe, the ensemble cast is full of comfortably familiar characters, almost every one of them with something they’re not tellin’…yet. The vanished history of the Catskills is evoked with love and plenty of schmaltz.”
–Kirkus
“Simply a delight”
–Alma, 8 Jewish Books We Can’t Wait to Read This May
“You will laugh out loud at the antics of two delightfully dysfunctional families as they fight, share secrets, and fall in love in the once-prosperous Catskills hotel that they own. Once again, Friedland brilliantly wields her rapier wit – if Dorothy Parker and Joan Rivers wrote a book, this would be it!”
–Fiona Davis, New York Times bestselling author of The Lions of Fifth Avenue
“Chock full of charm and wit, Elyssa Friedland’s Last Summer at the Golden Hotel is the only family drama you need this year! Set in a ramshackle Catskills hotel and featuring a vibrant cast of characters, it’s a laugh out loud funny novel with a heart of gold.”
–Karma Brown, international bestselling author of Recipe for a Perfect Wife
“Prepare to laugh. Take a trip to the Catskills with Last Summer at the Golden Hotel and bask in the hilarity and chaos that make Elyssa Friedland the queen of the family drama.”
–Jane L. Rosen, author of Eliza Starts a Rumor
Illustration: Muriel Smith