TLC Book Tours Book Review: The Islanders

About The Islanders

• Hardcover: 432 pages
• Publisher: William Morrow (June 11, 2019)

"One of my own favorite writers." --Elin Hilderbrand

J. Courtney Sullivan’s Maine meets the works of Elin Hilderbrand in this delicious summer read involving three strangers, one island, and a season packed with unexpected romance, well-meaning lies, and damaging secrets.

Anthony Puckett was a rising literary star. The son of an uber-famous thriller writer, Anthony’s debut novel spent two years on the bestseller list and won the adoration of critics. But something went very wrong with his second work. Now Anthony’s borrowing an old college’s friend’s crumbling beach house on Block Island in the hopes that solitude will help him get back to the person he used to be.

Joy Sousa owns and runs Block Island’s beloved whoopie pie café. She came to this quiet space eleven years ago, newly divorced and with a young daughter, and built a life for them here. To her customers and friends, Joy is a model of independence, hard-working and happy. And mostly she is. But this summer she’s thrown off balance. A food truck from a famous New York City brand is roving around the island, selling goodies—and threatening her business.

Lu Trusdale is spending the summer on her in-laws’ dime, living on Block Island with her two young sons while her surgeon husband commutes to the mainland hospital. When Lu’s second son was born, she and her husband made a deal: he’d work and she’d quit her corporate law job to stay home with the boys. But a few years ago, Lu quietly began working on a private project that has becoming increasingly demanding on her time. Torn between her work and home, she’s beginning to question that deal she made.

Over the twelve short weeks of summer, these three strangers will meet and grow close, will share secrets and bury lies. And as the promise of June turns into the chilly nights of August, the truth will come out, forcing each of them to decide what they value most, and what they are willing to give up to keep it.

Social Media

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Purchase Links

HarperCollins | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Review: I love books that absolutely scream BEACH READ! This is definitely one of them/ Its set in the summer months and involves three very different people who are on Block Island and how their lives get intermingled.

The three characters Anthony, Joy and Lu will grab you from the start. Each has problems and secrets of their own. They are very well rounded and actually pretty likable characters. I liked that Block Island isn't a playground for the upper class or the upper middle class too. That made it easier to like these people. They felt "real"

I think of all the characters it was Anthony, I connected with the most. His story of being the son of a famous author, who had a career briefly before a plagiarism scandal sent him on a downward spiral, was the most intriguing of the three. There's just so much to his story, and oh how I loved him. He wasn't just a guy someone fell for, he had a story of his own and it was interesting and sad...very sad indeed.

Lu was the character I grew the most frustrated with. Not really her, per se, but her husband and his weird idea. Truth be told, I probably would have kicked his butt to the curb. Cos OMG she hired a babysitter so that she could do something for herself. I found Jeremy to be a selfish jerk of a barely there dad.

Joy was the most down to earth of the bunch. Her life was a bit more average, but its through her and Anthony that everything ties together.

This was a book that I wanted to read in a lawn chair in the back yard with the sun beating down on me. The writing is engaging and it really makes you want to lose yourself in the story. At least that's how I felt.

Put this one in your beach bag!

Rating 5 flowers

About Meg Mitchell Moore

Meg Mitchell Moore works as a non-fiction writer in Newburyport, Massachusetts, where she lives with her husband and three young daughters.

Find out more about Meg at her website, and connect with her on Facebook and Instagram.