An ambitious but uneven novel with strong-willed characters.
A single mother revisits memories of her haunting past to prevent her teen daughter from committing to a terrible man in Foyt’s novel.
The book opens on Florida’s Sanibel Island in 1985, where Angel del Corazón lives with her daughter, Faith, who’s approaching her high school graduation. Angel has devoted the past 18 years to raising her child and ensuring she has both the grades and the finances to attend college. Faith has always lived up to expectations, but recently, she’s been lying about her whereabouts. The tension between mother and daughter comes to a head when Faith stumbles onto correspondence revealing that her father, Santiago—whom she’s never known—is not dead, as Angel had always claimed. As a result, Faith declares her distaste for her mother and her intention to reunite with her dad. Readers learn through several flashbacks that Angel’s history with Santiago was rocky and violent; her decision to lie to Faith was based entirely on a desire to protect her. When Angel meets Faith’s new boyfriend, a controlling older man, she decides to come clean about her past to keep her daughter from making a mistake; she begins revealing her story through a series of letters, but is she already too late to make a difference? Foyt’s story alternates between sections in 1985 Sanibel, told in the third person, and sections on Angel’s past decades earlier, narrated by Angel herself. Interspersed are vignettes about mermaids and sea goddesses, related to myths and religious teachings that Angel learned in her youth. The novel gets off to a slow start, revealing key information slowly and sporadically. Eventually, though, the story becomes more insightful and compelling as the author delves deep into issues such as family dysfunction, abusive relationships, and self-doubt. However, as the author attempts to combine a coming-of-age tale with elements of romance, familial drama, and magical realism, it becomes needlessly complicated. Still, by the end, readers will be disarmed by the two endearing and fiercely loyal female leads.
An ambitious but uneven novel with strong-willed characters.Pub Date: July 4, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-64786-455-2
Page Count: 291
Publisher: Sand Dollar Press, Inc.
Review Posted Online: Aug. 2, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2022
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
Through palpable tension balanced with glimmers of hope, Hoover beautifully captures the heartbreak and joy of starting over.
The sequel to It Ends With Us (2016) shows the aftermath of domestic violence through the eyes of a single mother.
Lily Bloom is still running a flower shop; her abusive ex-husband, Ryle Kincaid, is still a surgeon. But now they’re co-parenting a daughter, Emerson, who's almost a year old. Lily won’t send Emerson to her father’s house overnight until she’s old enough to talk—“So she can tell me if something happens”—but she doesn’t want to fight for full custody lest it become an expensive legal drama or, worse, a physical fight. When Lily runs into Atlas Corrigan, a childhood friend who also came from an abusive family, she hopes their friendship can blossom into love. (For new readers, their history unfolds in heartfelt diary entries that Lily addresses to Finding Nemo star Ellen DeGeneres as she considers how Atlas was a calming presence during her turbulent childhood.) Atlas, who is single and running a restaurant, feels the same way. But even though she’s divorced, Lily isn’t exactly free. Behind Ryle’s veneer of civility are his jealousy and resentment. Lily has to plan her dates carefully to avoid a confrontation. Meanwhile, Atlas’ mother returns with shocking news. In between, Lily and Atlas steal away for romantic moments that are even sweeter for their authenticity as Lily struggles with child care, breastfeeding, and running a business while trying to find time for herself.
Through palpable tension balanced with glimmers of hope, Hoover beautifully captures the heartbreak and joy of starting over.Pub Date: Oct. 18, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-668-00122-6
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Atria
Review Posted Online: July 26, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2022
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
A book begging to be read on the beach, with the sun warming the sand and salt in the air: pure escapism.
Three woman who join together to rent a large space along the beach in Los Angeles for their stores—a gift shop, a bakery, and a bookstore—become fast friends as they each experience the highs, and lows, of love.
Bree is a friendly but standoffish bookstore owner who keeps everyone she knows at arm’s length, from guys she meets in bars to her friends. Mikki is a settled-in-her-routines divorced mother of two, happily a mom, gift-shop owner, and co-parent with her ex-husband, Perry. And Ashley is a young, very-much-in-love bakery owner specializing in muffins who devotes herself to giving back to the community through a nonprofit that helps community members develop skills and find jobs. When the women meet drooling over a boardwalk storefront that none of them can afford on her own, a plan is hatched to divide the space in three, and a friendship—and business partnership—is born. An impromptu celebration on the beach at sunset with champagne becomes a weekly touchpoint to their lives as they learn more about each other and themselves. Their friendship blossoms as they help each other, offering support, hard truths, and loving backup. Author Mallery has created a delightful story of friendship between three women that also offers a variety of love stories as they fall in love, make mistakes, and figure out how to be the best—albeit still flawed—versions of themselves. The men are similarly flawed and human. While the story comes down clearly on the side of all-encompassing love, Mallery has struck a careful balance: There is just enough sex to be spicy, just enough swearing to be naughty, and just enough heartbreak to avoid being cloying.
A book begging to be read on the beach, with the sun warming the sand and salt in the air: pure escapism.Pub Date: May 31, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-778-38608-7
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Harlequin MIRA
Review Posted Online: March 15, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2022
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