This was a very very slow book.
The characters were so shallow and under developed.
I was so disappointed in this book.

Thank you NetGalley for this advanced copy. I requested this book because I love beach stories and also have enjoyed most of her books in the past. This book didn’t have the beach feel to me as much as I would have liked. Lots of aspects to this family and secrets finally being revealed. Not her best book, but not her worst either. I enjoyed it but the suspense wasn’t great.

delightful ! i really enjoyed this book and the way it explored the complex relationship between a father and his three daughters .throw in a 20 year old unsolved disappearance and a long lost lover you have the perfect summer read .

A long unsolved mystery draws our characters together during a week at the shore. Lots of twists and turns before all is eventually revealed.

Thirteen-year old Joy Aldris has never visited her mother’s family home at Bay Bluff and is curious when her Mum receives a phone call from Jack, her Papa’s next door neighbour. Single parent photographer Mallory Aldris left home 20 years ago after a scandal broke that rocked her whole family and Jacks too. She not only parted from her parents and two sisters, but also from the love of her life, Jack Sabathian. He imparts some shocking news about her father and Joy seizes the opportunity to encourage Mal to take a holiday for a week and visit her Papa, who is cared for by his youngest daughter, Ann, Mal’s young sister.
Off they set on a game changing journey to the coast. Joy has always wanted to visit her mother’s family and see the Rhode Island beach house that shaped her mother’s life and made her who she is. Fatherless herself, she craves a family of her own. Her Aunt not only cares for her father, but has a business in town. As Mal and Joy settle down with her Papa and Aunt Ann, an overjoyed Joy is soon behind the counter and helping Ann by serving food and refreshments. Joy also meets Jack, Papa’s neighbour, walking his rescued dog called Guy, retraining him and showing him trust and love. Joy is smitten by Guy and when she learns that Jack is a vet she offers herself as a helper at his surgery while she is on holiday.
Margot, Mal’s older sister, phones her believing she is at home with her daughter in New York. She decides to join her family for a homecoming reunion. Together again at last, the three sisters spend time sharing memories and looking at old photographs, determined to be proactive in trying to resolve issues that wrenched their dysfunctional family apart, realising that their damaged relationships have changed and matured over time during the long years of the family rift. It is time for peace, forgiveness and reconciliation.
Barbara Delinsky’s trademark themes are put to good use in this emotional story of family, marriage, love, adultery, dynamics, sibling rivalry, parenthood and friendship. Lies from the past resurface when gently prodded and the story becomes addictive, electric and tense. This is a family saga seen through the years of childhood to adulthood and times have changed with increased tolerance, wisdom and healing. The characterisation in this story is very skilled and indeed it is the skilfully created and developed characters that drive the story forward. These are ordinary, everyday folk, airing their grievances, speaking up and seeking understanding, resolution and the grace to move forward in their lives with self-confidence and joy.
I received a complimentary copy of this novel from publisher Sphere through my membership of NetGalley and I would like to thank them for my copy, sent out to me in return for an honest review. I enjoyed reading this novel and award it 3.5*

Having never read anything by Barbara Delinsky, this proved to be a great summer read that combines family drama, mystery and romance all in one book. Three sisters find themselves together at the family home in Rhode Island for the first time in twenty years following events that tore the family apart. Their ailing father is suffering from dementia and, before it is too late, the sisters try to piece together what really happened all those years ago, leading to the death of a neighbour.

Whilst it took me a little while to get into the book, it picked up for me as I became more invested in the story. Delinsky creates interesting characters - the dynamics of the sibling relationships between three very different sisters is cleverly explored, and the mother daughter relationship of Mallory, the middle child, and her teenage daughter Joy is engaging. The setting is beautifully described and easy to visualise and the surprising twists along the way kept engaged as the story played out. I will definitely be seeking out more books by Delinsky to add to my summer reading list.

Thank you to Netgalley and Sphere for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.