Helpful Score: 1
If you like substance in your beach reads, I highly recommend A Happier Life by Kristy Woodson Harvey. This was my first novel by this author who's long been on my 'want to read' list.
Told in a dual timeline format, readers spend time with two generations of the Saint James family and the home in coastal North Carolina that's been in their family for generations. The past timeline takes place in 1976 and features Townsend and Rebecca 'Becks', he the town physician and she the consummate hostess known for her impeccably planned dinner parties. Their lives were cut short one summer evening due to a car accident.
The present time story finds their granddaughter Keaton escaping her NYC life on her first visit to the NC home to prepare it for sale. She's amazed to find it like a time capsule, exactly as her grandparents left it at the end of their last dinner party. Through the possessions and people they left behind, Keaton finally gets to know the grandparents her mother never discussed.
I enjoyed this novel for many reasons:
- summer vibes
- the home is a secondary character
- thread of mystery
- intergenerational friendships
- brother-sister relationships
- family tradition of piloting small aircraft
I also really appreciated the deeper exploration of grief and mourning, both before and after loss, and characters considering self-worth and success on their own terms rather than others'.
Thank you to Gallery Books and Uplit Reads for the review copies of this book; all opinions are mine. I'm definitely looking forward to reading Ms. Harvey's backlist books in the future.
Told in a dual timeline format, readers spend time with two generations of the Saint James family and the home in coastal North Carolina that's been in their family for generations. The past timeline takes place in 1976 and features Townsend and Rebecca 'Becks', he the town physician and she the consummate hostess known for her impeccably planned dinner parties. Their lives were cut short one summer evening due to a car accident.
The present time story finds their granddaughter Keaton escaping her NYC life on her first visit to the NC home to prepare it for sale. She's amazed to find it like a time capsule, exactly as her grandparents left it at the end of their last dinner party. Through the possessions and people they left behind, Keaton finally gets to know the grandparents her mother never discussed.
I enjoyed this novel for many reasons:
- summer vibes
- the home is a secondary character
- thread of mystery
- intergenerational friendships
- brother-sister relationships
- family tradition of piloting small aircraft
I also really appreciated the deeper exploration of grief and mourning, both before and after loss, and characters considering self-worth and success on their own terms rather than others'.
Thank you to Gallery Books and Uplit Reads for the review copies of this book; all opinions are mine. I'm definitely looking forward to reading Ms. Harvey's backlist books in the future.
Ten stars! I can't remember when I was this excited about a book that I didn't want to put down until I finished! Took me two days because..well,life..
Two amazing timelines-1970's where we learn about Becks and her true love Townsend who meet and fall in love despite obstacles. Their romance is one for the ages. She is the grand hostess of the town and lives for her family.
Then present day, when her granddaughter Keaton quits her job and goes down to Beaufort,NC which is totally charming by it's characters and descriptions, to clean up the house that her grandparents had left after their mysterious disappearance in 1976. The house is exactly as it was when her grandparents left it,and she finds journals from her grandfather and her grandmother's planning book which carries so much information.
I was totally transported back in this book. It is very heavy on family relationships, personal relationships, a young boy and a cute dog. What was not to love!!!
Two amazing timelines-1970's where we learn about Becks and her true love Townsend who meet and fall in love despite obstacles. Their romance is one for the ages. She is the grand hostess of the town and lives for her family.
Then present day, when her granddaughter Keaton quits her job and goes down to Beaufort,NC which is totally charming by it's characters and descriptions, to clean up the house that her grandparents had left after their mysterious disappearance in 1976. The house is exactly as it was when her grandparents left it,and she finds journals from her grandfather and her grandmother's planning book which carries so much information.
I was totally transported back in this book. It is very heavy on family relationships, personal relationships, a young boy and a cute dog. What was not to love!!!
