Publication Date: November 1, 2025
Set on the sunlit beaches of Florida, Remember That Summer follows two young lifeguards whose lives change in an instant. Brad Stone is a gifted athlete with a future mapped toward a football scholarship. Nichona Casa is steady, compassionate, and full of quiet strength. As their friendship deepens into love, a sudden shark attack shatters Brad’s career and sense of identity. Soon after, Nichona faces her own battle when she’s diagnosed with cancer.
Together, they must face heartbreak, loss, and questions of faith they never imagined at their age. Bound by love but confronted by suffering, they wonder if these events will break them apart—or lead them toward a deeper trust in God’s plan.
It’s a story about first love, resilience, the fragility of life, and the hope that can rise from unexpected places.
A summer as a lifeguard provides the catalyst that changes Brad Stone’s life.
Author Clay Renick delivers Remember That Summer, a novel that highlights love and loss. It centers around Brad and Nichona Casa, a fellow lifeguard tasked with training him.
Divided into three parts, each section should be a seamless continuation of the storyline, building on the previous events. However, the way each part begins makes it seem like they are written as a fresh introduction.
The characters deal with plenty of high-stress challenges, not just on the job, but also in their personal lives. It is a pivotal point in Brad’s life as he prepares to go to college on a football scholarship.
One decision changes the trajectory of his life and leads to an unexpected future. Faith and health are both themes explored within the story, but a solid round of content editing would tighten things up more cohesively.
Remember That Summer illustrates the lasting impact of one fateful action.
Clay Renick is a storyteller with a passion for exploring how faith and resilience shape the human heart. His background includes graduate work in pastoral counseling at Liberty University, where he studied trauma response and crisis development. These themes inspire his writing, which reflects the biblical truth that God can bring growth and hope out of hardship. His latest novel, Remember That Summer, follows a lifeguard whose losses and struggles lead him to discover faith.
