By
Kelli A. Wilkins
www.Kelliwilkins.com
Hi everyone,
To celebrate
the start of the summer months, I’m starting 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.
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