Review | The Beach at Painter’s Cove by Shelley Noble

Posted June 8, 2017 by Asheley in review / 1 Comment

Review | The Beach at Painter’s Cove by Shelley NobleThe Beach at Painter's Cove by Shelley Noble
Series: Standalone
Published by William Morrow on June 13, 2017
Pages: 432
Source: the publisher
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From the New York Times bestselling author of Whisper Beach comes another heartwarming story of four generations of women who reunite in their crumbling family mansion by the sea for a dramatic summer filled with love, family, secrets and sisterhood.

The Whitaker family’s Connecticut mansion, Muses by the Sea, has always been a haven for artists, a hotbed of creativity, extravagances, and the occasional scandal. Art patrons for generations, the Whitakers supported strangers but drained the life out of each other. Now, after being estranged for years, four generations of Whitaker women find themselves once again at The Muses.

Leo, the Whitaker matriarch, lives in the rambling mansion crammed with artwork and junk. She plans to stay there until she joins her husband Wes on the knoll overlooking the cove and meadow where they first met. Her sister-in-law Fae, the town eccentric, is desperate to keep a secret she has been hiding for years.

Jillian, is a jet setting actress, down on her luck, and has run out of men to support her. She thinks selling The Muses will make life easier for her mother, Leo, and Fae by moving them into assisted living. The sale will also bring her the funds to get herself back on top.

Issy, Jillian’s daughter, has a successful life as a museum exhibit designer that takes her around the world. But the Muses and her grandmother are the only family she’s known and when her sister leaves her own children with Leo, Issy knows she has to step in to help.

Steph, is only twelve-years-old and desperately needs someone to fire her imagination and bring her out of her shell. What she begins to discover at the Muses could change the course of her future.

As Issy martials the family together to restore the mansion and catalogue the massive art collection, a surprising thing happens. Despite storms and moonlight dancing, diva attacks and cat fights, trips to the beach and flights of fancy, these four generations of erratic, dramatic women may just find a way to save the Muses and reunite their family.

I received this book for free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

 REVIEW:

When I saw the cover for The Beach at Painter’s Cove by Shelley Noble and that it was set in a town on the shore, I knew that I wanted to read it. The fact that there were multiple generations of women in the same family coming to their family beach mansion sealed the deal for me. I adore the type of family sagas where every character brings a unique spin to the story, all of the stories connect in some way, and each character’s story line acts to move the story along. That is what we have with this story.
I love that this is a tale of women. Everyone in the Whitaker family has a story of her own. It was easy to get lost what each of these characters had going on in her life because everyone had such interesting things going on. All of these women had drama and issues. I admit that one or two of them seemed a teensy bit farfetched at times (looking at you, Fae), but they were all super fun to read. The characterization here is varied and fun – the cast is all ages –  with a really wonderful secondary cast.
And the actual story is great too, with secrecy and love and trust issues and even a little bit of mystery. I loved this story. I loved the complete dysfunction of this family and how it added to the enjoyment of the actual plot. I loved the mystery surrounding the very important missing money. I even loved the drama surrounding the children and the drama surrounding Issy, who lives in New York but has to come to Muses to help out. I loved that ultimately, all of the craziness sort of brought the family closer together.
I want to note that I am purposefully trying to avoiding some plot points in an effort not to spoil. I think this book is fun when it unfolds on its own and the reveals are true reveals, without too much knowledge going into the story. This is a wonderful summer read-the kind I truly enjoy. I loved the details and revelations as they came – the answers to the little secrets and mysteries – and l love seeing how each character works out the issues in her own life. I think this book is best read in leisure, when you’re able to sit back and enjoy it slowly.
I’ve read one other book by Shelley Noble, and I’ve enjoyed them both so much.
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ABOUT SHELLEY NOBLE

Shelley Noble Author PhotoShelley Noble is a former professional dancer and choreographer and has worked on a number of films. She lives at the Jersey shore where she loves to visit lighthouses and vintage carousels. She is a member of Sisters in Crime, Mystery Writers of America, and Romance Writers of America.

Find out more about Shelley at her website, and connect with her on Facebook and Twitter.

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Asheley

About Asheley

Asheley is a Southern girl. She loves Carolina blue skies, Ben & Jerry's ice cream, and NC craft beer. She loves all things history but prefers books over everything.

You can find her somewhere in North Carolina, daydreaming about the ocean.

Find Asheley on Litsy @intothehallofbooks!

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One response to “Review | The Beach at Painter’s Cove by Shelley Noble”

  1. Heather J @ TLC Book Tours

    Having all these women under the same roof reminds me of spending time with my grandma, mom, sister, and our kids. Thankfully we don’t have nearly as much drama as this family does!

    Thanks for being a part of the tour!

    Reply

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