| Title | : | The Inn at Ocean's Edge (Sunset Cove, #1) |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 1401690262 |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9781401690267 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 336 |
| Publication | : | First published April 1, 2015 |
In 1989, Claire Dellamare disappeared from her own fourth birthday party at the Hotel Tourmaline on the island of Folly Shoals, Maine. She showed up a year later at the same hotel, with a note pinned to her dress but no explanation. Nobody knows where Claire spent that year—and until now, Claire didn’t even know she had ever been missing.
But when Claire returns to the Hotel Tourmaline for a business meeting with her CEO father, disturbing memories begin to surface . . . despite her parents’ best efforts to keep them forgotten.
Luke Rocco lost his mother under equally mysterious circumstances—at the same time Claire disappeared. After a chance encounter reveals the unlikely link between them, Claire and Luke set out together to uncover the truth about what happened that fateful year.
With flashbacks swimming just beneath her consciousness and a murderer threatening her safety, Claire’s very life depends on unscrambling her past . . . even if her family refuses to acknowledge it. Someone—maybe everyone—is hiding something from Claire Dellamare, and it will cost her everything to drag the truth out into the light.
The Inn at Ocean's Edge (Sunset Cove, #1) Reviews
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This is not easy for me. I'm such a fan of books and of the authors who write them. I will always point out the positive when writing a review. The positive points of Colleen Coble's The Inn at Oceans Edge is that the concept of this mystery was a good one. Unfortunately, the execution of it was horrible.
Claire heads to Maine to assist her father in merger that they hope will save their hotel. Once she steps foot inside she has a panic attack but isn't sure why she is so distressed. To relax, she talks a walk along Maine coast and meets Luke. After a quick run in he asks her if she is the same Claire that went missing for a year when she was 4. Claire was clueless. Her parents had never told her. Up to this point I had hopes for the book. The descriptions of the coast pulled me in and I thought hmmm... this may get interesting.
For me it went downhill very quickly from there. There are a sequence of events that follow that are ridiculous only because of the complete lack of emotion. For example, if you witnessed someone get thrown off a cliff and the body landed at your feet, it may freak you out about right? How about if you turn the body over and noticed I KNOW this person!!! Traumatic no? Not for Claire. Not even when she gets knocked over the head at scene and wakes up to the body being snatched. Claire simply goes back to hotel and is more concerned about her parents telling her about her disappearance.
I'm sorry but c'mon. This girl had a panic attack a few hours earlier the sees a murdered acquaintance and it's like she was in a fender bender. This is all in the first chapters.
The book does have twists and turns that could've made this a great mystery. It just did not contain the character development to pull off any emotional connection. As the mystery unfolded I found myself rolling eyes. I don't think this would have been the case had I been connected to the characters.
Again, great concept. Just too one dimensional.
Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the advanced copy in exchange for this honest review. -
I never like saying I couldn’t get into a novel, especially one like this with so much clout behind it. I want to get hooked on every book I read. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen here.
It wasn’t the story itself, which is–in and of itself–intriguing. Rather, it was something, somehow, in the way it was told. Starting, perhaps, with the way that I didn’t feel the author trusted me, the reader, to connect obvious dots. Like in this brief snatch of narrative: “What had gotten into her today? First experiencing a panic attack and then jumping to unwarranted conclusions.” This came on page 15, which meant I’d read about these two things (the panic attack and the jumping to conclusions) only a page or two before. I’m not likely to have forgotten so quickly what I was just so well shown.
I felt there was also a heavier reliance on cliché than I’d prefer. (“…her first impression was of impossibly dark eyes that seemed to look right into her soul. He would have been right at home on the cover of a pirate romance.” page 14)
And sometimes the dialogue felt stilted, as when characters used what they were saying to explain backstory to another character who would already be in the know. For example, ” ‘He hasn’t hit you again, has he? I thought he stopped that after I threatened him when I was eighteen.’ ” (page 8, emphasis mine)
And then there were passages like this, which to me just didn’t ring true:
” ‘You’re wearing a peculiar expression, Claire. And look at you. No shoes. You’re filthy, and your hair is a wreck. What happened to you this afternoon? Your father even called the sheriff. Are you all right?’
” ‘I’m fine, Mom. Some guy killed the woman at the counter when I checked in, Jenny Bennett. I called the sheriff, but the killer sneaked up on me and hit me over the head.’ When her mother gasped, Claire shook her head. ‘I’m okay. The sheriff is looking for him.’ ” (page 33)
Really? All this talk of a killer and a brush with death delivered without a quiver? I don’t think so. Not in my world, anyway.
I’m sorry to sound so crushing. Could it be I lack an appreciation for the trademarks of this genre? Perhaps. I would certainly point to the author’s huge fan base and bestselling, award-winning status and urge other readers to take my take with a grain of salt.
Because, on the plus side, The Inn at Ocean’s Edge did have plenty of atmospheric suspense, plus a wealth of layered mystery, twists, complications, and original sub-plotting (including an incident involving an orca whale! I’ll admit I’ve not seen that one before). And, though I wasn’t much taken with the rest of the story, the ending was–to me, at least–satisfyingly unpredictable.
Thanks to BookLook Bloggers for providing me a free copy to review. All opinions are mine. -
Colleen Coble is another author that I’m a little behind the curve on reading, and I hope to remedy that further in the future. The Inn at Ocean’s Edge is only the second of her novels that I’ve read, and while I wasn’t blown away by the other novel, this one was a great suspenseful read. This novel provides really great set up for upcoming books in the series, while still in keeping with what appears to be Colleen’s trademark romantic suspense.
I think what impressed me most with this story is how quickly the action starts. I love how it starts off with a bang and doesn’t let up until the end. It’s hard to talk about this type of story line without accidentally giving any spoilers, but I was held fast by the mystery. There are several surprising elements, and while some of my suspicions proved to be correct, there were many instances that I wasn’t sure what was going on with certain characters or plotlines. The story ended up being much more layered and intricate than I was expecting, and I thoroughly enjoyed watching everything unfold. There were a few scenes that I thought ended in an odd way, as if it needed just a few more sentences to give it a better sense of completeness, but it may be something that wouldn’t bother super-fans of suspense. While I enjoy it, it’s not the genre that I read most often, so this could just be me.
The characters, for the most part, react realistically to what is going on around them, and the less desirable characters don’t come off as caricatures, which is often a complaint of mine. Although my life is nothing like Claire’s life, I still found ways to relate to her. There were times that I could have used a bit more depth for the main characters; I did think they had realistic back story’s that created great conflict for their current circumstances. Colleen gives Claire small but impactful characteristics that add a lot of realism to her character and the same can be said of Luke’s character as well.
Colleen also does a great job in writing the romance realistically into the story; the romantic moments are genuinely sweet yet realistic and fall naturally within the story’s flow. While Claire and Luke aren’t complete opposites, there’s a softness to him that Claire is drawn to. Their scenes had a spark from the very beginning.
The setting is another area that is really well-done. Although I’ve never been to Maine, I feel like I’ve at least been on its coast because of this story. I could easily envision Hotel Tourmaline, as well as the natural landscape of the setting, whether it was a rocky cliff, sandy beach or a cranberry bog. This is a random side note, but I’ve loved the names of her more recent titles – this one gives off a sense of place, as well as a sense of excitement and, perhaps even danger, especially with the words, “ocean’s edge.” Despite it being a hotel more than an inn, the title is very evocative of the story overall.
Fans of suspense and of Colleen’s past novels are sure to enjoy this one. Even I, an unseasoned suspense reader, flew through the pages once the mystery hooked me, and I definitely hope to read the next book in the Sunset Cove series. -
There were orcas, y’all. Squee! They made a couple of appearances through the story, and each one made me smile.
From the very beginning of the prologue, the tension was high and seemed to always be on the rise. I’m so amazed at how well Mrs. Coble manages to ramp up the stakes from chapter to chapter in her suspense books, and this one definitely rose to the occasion.
There were a couple of major plot twists that I guessed long before they happened, but there were enough surprises along the way to keep me invested.
The plot was completely intriguing to me. It involved missing persons, kidnapped children, and complex familial connections. There were mystery, suspense, and romance. Danger and murder and shocking revelations saturated this book, and they’re what kept me cruising at a fast clip.
I can’t wait to start the next book in the Sunset Cove series. In fact, I’m turning on the audio right now.
Content: replacement expletives, marital affairs, unwed sexual relations (spoken of, not shown) -
4.5 stars
Honestly, I think this is Colleen Coble's best plot yet. There are more twists and turns to it than there are chapters, yet it unfolds at an even pace and is not too challenging to keep straight. Claire is an interesting character and easy to empathize with, while Luke is a good steady hero. (His being a Coastie just makes things even better!)
Also, I have to add that I found the part about the injured orca, and the facts about them and their pods, both endearing and educational! A great addition to the story. -
The Inn at Ocean's Ridge is Colleen Coble at her best. The story is richly layered around the theme of what makes us a family. Is it blood relationships? Is it love? Is it something else?
Claire Dellamare arrives at Hotel Tourmaline ready to help her father close a merger with another company. But the moment she arrives, she has a flashback or panic attack that sends her running for the ocean. Luke Rocco is in a quandary deciding between staying in the Coast Guard or coming home to run the family's cranberry bogs. Soon he's in the middle of helping Claire unravel the truth about her past and his mother.
There are threads of murder, kidnapping, and so much more. For the quiet shore of Maine, there's a lot of crime surrounding Claire -- something that keeps the sheriff unsure of what's really happening. Through it all, Claire and Luke stay the path in their dogged pursuit of truth. At the same time another character is equally determined to find the truth --regardless of the cost -- because her life depends on it.
The story has a strong romantic thread and several subplots that all come together before you reach the end. But the strongest part of this story is the exploration of family. Readers of Colleen Coble's other books will enjoy this first book set on the Maine coast. It will also delight those who love a strong romantic mystery. -
I love this author-- she's a long-time favorite of mine. Her writing style almost always draws me in from the moment I start reading and refuses to let me go until after I close the book.
This book was wonderful! I really enjoyed it. The characters were great and the plot was terrific!
However, I figured out too much of the mystery too far before the end of the book. It was still pretty intense, though. That alone wouldn't have made me take the rating down a star, but there were a few scenes that were a bit... I don't know-- rough feeling? Abrupt? I don't know how to explain it, it just didn't feel entirely smooth to me. And there was one scene I distinctly remember where a character was called by another character's name. I thought at first that, perhaps, it would be significant to the story in some way, but it was just a typo. Funny, but I found that slightly disappointing... ;) -
What an exciting story; quite a few twists and turns!
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This suspense novel was filled with lots of twists and turns. I didn't figure out who the villain was until it was revealed. While the suspense and plot were strong, the romance between Luke and Claire was just o.k. In particular, the endearment "honey" bothered me each time it was used. Do thirty year olds call each other "honey"?
Overall, a solid suspense novel. I look forward to the next in the series. -
This was by far my favorite Colleen Coble book yet! The suspense was so intense I felt as if I was right there with the characters. Claire was so realistic I felt for her the whole time. I thought that it was interesting that all of the characters said "fudge." I don't think there was anything in this book that I didn't like. Strong reccomendatuon!
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Abandoned after 7% read.
I picked this up for a book club and, to be fair, didn't realize it was a romance. I decided to read it anyway, hoping that the emphasis would be on the suspense/mystery, but I find that I can't get past the characters themselves.
So far, everyone seems to be highly successful and beautiful, and the writing is ridiculous.
For example, the male lead is in the coast guard and when his appearance is described, these sentences happen: "...impossibly dark eyes that seemed to look right into her soul. He would have been right at home on the cover of a pirate romance." (p. 9) Seriously?
As for the female lead, "...cute was hardly the word for Claire. Drop-dead gorgeous was more like it." (p. 23) She works with her CEO father and is helping him with a business merger.
Another woman introduced in the beginning went to Vassar on scholarship.
I mean, come on. Coble either doesn't try to make her characters realistic and relatable at all, or she has lived a very different life than I have... -
I use to love Colleen Coble but this book really wasn't what I was hoping it to be. It is even hard to explain. There are 2 story lines here and at first you are at a lost at the second story. You will try to figure out what it even has in common with the book. Eventually, it is explain but half the book in and by then you almost don't care. At first the book is trying to explain a women murder and a child murder as well. I will tell you the truth it is so apparent what the ending will be like I almost put down the book over half way through. I usually love Collen Coble book but this one was a bust for me, so much so I won't be finishing the series. Like people say you can't love them all.
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Title: THE INN AT OCEAN’S EDGE
Author: Colleen Coble
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
April 2015
ISBN: 978-1401690267
Genre: Romantic suspense
Claire’s visit to a luxury hotel in Maine awakens repressed memories, threatening all she holds dear.
In 1989, Claire Dellamare disappeared from her own fourth birthday party at the Hotel Tourmaline on the island of Folly Shoals, Maine. She showed up a year later at the same hotel, with a note pinned to her dress but no explanation. Nobody knows where Claire spent that year—and until now, Claire didn’t even know she had ever been missing.
But when Claire returns to the Hotel Tourmaline for a business meeting with her CEO father, disturbing memories begin to surface . . . despite her parents’ best efforts to keep them forgotten.
Luke Rocco lost his mother under equally mysterious circumstances—at the same time Claire disappeared. After a chance encounter reveals the unlikely link between them, Claire and Luke set out together to uncover the truth about what happened that fateful year.
With flashbacks swimming just beneath her consciousness and a murderer threatening her safety, Claire’s very life depends on unscrambling her past . . . even if her family refuses to acknowledge it. Someone—maybe everyone—is hiding something from Claire Dellamare, and it will cost her everything to drag the truth out into the light.
THE INN AT OCEAN’S EDGE is the first book in Ms. Coble’s new series, A Sunset Cove. I enjoyed getting to know Luke and Claire. Claire is a typical rich girl who had it all handed to her on a silver platter—on one hand. On the other, she is not at all as she seems. Luke is kind and loving, but suspicious and firm. I loved how he believed whole-heartedly in Claire even though he just met her.
At first I thought this book might be somewhat predictable. I figured out who-dun-it fairly early on. But then Ms. Coble threw unexpected twists in the plot. I had to keep reading to find out what really happened… and what it might mean for Claire and Luke.
If you like romantic suspense, you will love THE INN AT OCEAN’S EDGE. Great book. Ms. Coble is one of my favorite romantic suspense authors.
5 stars. Available in paperback, hardcover, audio, audio CD, and ebook. 336 pages. -
This mystery grabbed me! And, wow, what a great romance! The Inn at Ocean’s Edge was a great and spooky suspense.
I loved Claire and Luke’s relationship story. The attraction between these two made for a great romantic read. I also thought that the tension they both experienced in the beginning of the story, as they realized that they came from extremely different financial and societal positions, added an extra layer of complexity to their romance.
The mystery that must be solved in this book is more than just one simple answer to be found. There were around three or four different problems that had to be sorted throughout the book in order for the reader to figure out what had happened in the past and what was happening in the present. It was great! I figured out a couple parts of the “mystery equation”, but the author was able to surprise me with another couple of twists I didn’t see coming.
I really enjoyed reading The Inn at Ocean’s Edge and read it very quickly because I didn’t want to put the book down! I’m so happy that it is the first in the Sunset Cove series.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from BookLook Bloggers in exchange for my honest review.
You can read this review on my blog at:
https://brittreadsfiction.wordpress.c... -
I enjoyed it even though I did not like the author using heroine stupidity and some lack of logic.
The mysteries were good and kept me guessing. I liked the family ties ideas.
Wealthy Claire meets coast guard guy Luke. A nice bond develops. They have similar interests - whales and the sea. There is no sex in the book and I’d say no sexual tension, but there is a comfortable romantic relationship developing.
DATA:
Narrative mode: 3rd person. Story length: 320 pages. Swearing language: none that I recall. Sexual content: none. Setting: 1989 and 2014 Island off the coast of Maine. Copyright: 2015. Genre: romantic suspense. -
This was a very well-written book.
The orcas!!!!! Ahhhhh, so adorable. Animals in books are almost a guaranteed plus for me.
The romance was good for the most part, with the exception of a few steamy moments.
Let’s talk about the story line though folks... I. Could. Not. Figure. This. Book. Out!!!!! Most mystery and suspense novels I figure out the villain or the idea of the book around the quarter or middle, but this one purely stumped me until the end. You think it’s going to go one way, and then it goes the complete opposite!!
The idea of the father being a bit two sided in the novel was somewhat offsetting, but I’m glad that the book clearly showed the trouble that comes from a secret life.
One of my favourite quotes: “Sometime we dabble in sin and think it will never come back to haunt us, but it does. It comes back so much worse than if we’d been honest from the beginning...”
Now to get caught up on the schoolwork that I’ve been avoiding to finish reading this.... 😒 -
This is a really great murder mystery. I was stumped up until I was well past the halfway mark. I tend to fall for the 'coastal' murder mysteries because the terrain, the setting, the characters and lifestyles are so creative and different than my own 'city girl' life.
Lots of twists and turns with this novel and you can't seem to catch your breath before another twisted revelation appears as clues are revealed. It left some threads open to interpretation and/or continuation for the next book. Inspirational, emotional at times and edge of your seat suspense. A tiny bit of christianity but not overwhelming. There are a couple of things that I loved about this novel but don't want to spoil the key to the overall murder and mystery.
I loved a lot of the characters, Clair, Kate, Meg, and her brother, the grandparents. I did not particularly like Mary or the fathers of these young ones but it was written well and necessary for the plot. -
Horrible. Only finished it because it's short, and I wanted to see if the ridiculous "twist" I guessed in the first 20 pages was actually the way it would go. It was. The dialogue was some of the worst I've ever read.
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"Sometimes we dabble in sin, and think it will never come back to haunt us; but it does, it comes back so much worse than if we'd just been honest from the beginning."
Coble always seems to pen riveting suspense, and this one did not disappoint. In fact it was so convoluted that it was almost a who's who? I did have an inkling as to who the culprits were, but the twists and turns kept me guessing the answers for sure until the very end. Definitely a great suspense read for those who like twists and turns with every page. -
The Inn At Ocean’s Edge is a mesmerizing, compelling, mysterious tale.
As haunting as a Hitchcock, this story will keep you reading late into the night. An eerie beachside hotel, brings back haunting memories for the main character and as the reader, I got to follow in her footsteps as she desperately tried to uncover the truth of the past.
Family secrets, mysterious attacks, and murder all lead to the final shocking conclusion.
If you are a fan of suspense, you will love The Inn At Ocean’s Edge! -
Whew! There are some stellar plot twists in this book! I had an idea of how things were going to play out but I did not dream it would go in the directions it did. What a great ride! This entire series is one of Colleen Coble's best to date!! Suspense, romance, faith nudges - all just spectacularly done.
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I can't believe all the rave reviews. I only finished it to just finish it! It was so predictable. Not very mysterious for me!
Would not recommend and this is the first written review I've done on here. Sorry... Not worth the time. -
A special thank you to Thomas Nelson-Fiction and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
After reading Colleen Coble’s Hope Beach series, was delighted to receive an ARC of THE INN AT OCEAN’S EDGE (Sunset Cove #1). This is one intriguing and complex multi-layered mystery suspense page-turner thriller!
Coble is at the "top of her game" with this new and exciting series of lies, dark family secrets, murder, and conspiracy.
The story opens with a brief encounter from 1989 with a scared little girl in the forest, near the cliffs and the sea, as the branches around her hold scary shadows. She hears a woman’s voice, sees a scarf, and an angry man doing bad things, and she has to escape . . . he is after her and then all goes black.
We jump to the present on the coastal shore of Maine with a stunning ocean front five story Hotel Tourmaline in a remote area, to the northeast of Schoodic Peninsula, on the island of Folly Shoals sitting atop its pink-granite cliffs.
Claire Dellamare, twenty-nine from Boston, has been on the road for five and a half hours plus a ferry ride from Summer Harbor to reach the rocky shore. As she emerged from her white Mercedes, as she looks up at the hotel, she gets an uneasy shiver down her spine.
She is here on business, to meet her millionaire dad, Harry Dellamare, coming to help with the upcoming merger. She is greeted by Jenny, the clerk, an attractive blonde in her thirties as she hands her the keys to the penthouse. Her dad is surprised to see her as he was not expecting her.
However, something weird is happening, as she cannot breathe—she is having a panic attack, or could it be a heart attack? She has to get out of here. She runs out of the hotel to the ocean front to get her breath, thinking the sea would calm her.
In the meantime, Luke Rocco is on a boat headed towards Sunset Cove on the south side of the island with his sister Megan. He joined the coast guard years ago and loves it; however, presently Megan informs him she is taking a job in Oregon. He couldn’t much blame her since he left three years earlier as she was stuck with the family cranberry farm, which has been in their family for many years. Someone would have to pick up the slack, and Luke was not thrilled at the prospects of having to work with their father nor coming back to this small remote town he spent his life trying to escape. Their dad was not a nice man and had gotten worse since his stroke.
They never have forgotten their mom’s disappearance twenty-five years ago. Being the island was so remote, unfortunately it still remained a mystery.
Gorgeous Claire meets Luke and Megan, as they are trying to rescue an orca and they do not get off to a good start, first with the panic attack and she jumps to the wrong conclusion when Luke was only trying to rescue the orca. She happens to be a volunteer for the organization. The love of the sea, bonds them instantly.
When Luke learns of her name, he recalls back in the 90’s when Claire went missing a year out in the forest. However, Claire does not remember and knows about going missing as a child. No wonder she is upset--has she been here before, and her parents had never told her? She had been five when she was found and she has no memory of the event. Maybe her parents will have the answers. As far as she was concerned this was her first visit here. Had she been lied to her entire life? If she had been kidnapped, why did they hold her for a year and what was she doing during this time?
If things could not get any worse there are two people struggling at the edge of the cliff and she witnesses a murder, as a man just threw a woman over the cliff. The woman is Jenny Bennett she just met when she checked into the hotel. Now she recalls the face of the hunter, from her nightmares, only this time there was no fox attached to his belt. However, when the police arrive they see no body. She knows she did not imagine the scene. What did Jenny know?
Luke begins to wonder if Claire may possibly know something about his own mom’s disappearance. However she would only have been four years old at the time. His mother disappeared the same night Claire was taken and was never found. Did Luke’s dad have something to do with his mother’s disappearance and how are the two connected?
She discovers her parents were at the hotel when she was four and had a birthday party in the garden and now she is desperate to remember the events leading up to her abduction and why she cannot remember. Appears she was returned to the hotel with a note. No one ever found out where she was the entire time she was missing. Her parents were married at the hotel and came back every year for their daughter’s birthday; that is until she went missing. In addition, her mom seems worried about something and she feels her dad is hiding something critical.
Claire teams up with Luke as they desperately attempt to find the missing pieces of how she can be linked to his mother’s disappearance since they were on the same day. Victoria Rocco the co-owner of Rocco Cranberries went missing on her customary evening walk and never returned. She did not get as much attention, since searchers were looking for the young girl. Luke was only a kid himself at the time.
When an anonymous letter is sent to the Sheriff stating they should investigate Claire for Jenny’s murder, postmarked the day before the Dellamares arrived and found Jenny’s prints on the envelope. The Sheriff finds it odd Claire claimed Jenny was shoved off a cliff and days later just happens to be the one to find her out at Dead Man’s Cove. After all she had only been gone fifteen minutes from the hotel when it occurred.
At the Fisherman’s Inn there is another plot brewing, a blueberry farm and more dark family secrets. When more bodies turn up and one happens to be a four year old girl who had blond hair – was there a serial killer out there years ago and now he is back? The locket was found which held a picture of her parents with her initials on the back. There could not possibly be two of her? What about the bones of a woman? Could this be Luke and Megan’s mom?
Claire has been attacked several times and this time he takes her drawing of the person she thinks may be the murderer. What if she is not a Dellamare? Someone thinks she may be able to identify him and she is in danger. However they find no evidence of a breakin. Her life is falling apart. She needs God’s help and Luke's—she needs to find solace on the water.
THE INN AT OCEAN'S EDGE is one intense read, as had to stay up until 4 am to finish, as dying to know the identity of the murderer and how these three families are linked together in this complex conspiracy. Wow, Coleen Coble delivers a "top-shelf" mystery crime thriller with light romance suspense—strongly reminding me of Terri Blackstock (a favorite), with Christian faith themes.
Am also reminded of another favorite author, Mary Alice Monroe with the strong connection to the sea creatures, rescue, environment, and its relation to human family bonds and dynamics. Fans of Linda Huber's The Cold Cold Sea and Christina Dodd’s Virtual Falls series, will enjoy this mix of suspense, romance, and mystery.
As mentioned in the letter from the author, this is indeed, a deeper and more complex story than any she has written previously and YES, Colleen, you have mastered it-brilliantly written. What an engaging read! I am also a sucker for novels surrounding coastal hotels and inns since have been in the business for a number of years….always an intriguing setting.
A fabulous front cover drawing you into this family mystery. Would love to hear more about the inspiration behind the novel, as she has some imagination— cannot wait to see what comes next in the series. The book would be an idea choice for book clubs and discussions.“God gives us what we need to face every curve life throws our way. Taking the awful things that happen in life and turning them into diamonds in our path. God gives you what you need, not necessarily what you thought you wanted. Challenges we face in life can make us a better person, if we accept the things that come from God’s hand, and allow him to use them to mold and shape us.”
Judith D. Collins Must Read Books -
2.75⭐️
A young woman travels to a small town with her dad for the family business. When they get there, Claire feels some serious deja vu but can’t place why.
Also, in that same town, a brother and sister discuss taking over the family farm as they struggle with grief in not knowing what happened to their mom a year ago when she disappeared.
——
For me, this book had a decent story, but the writing was very formulaic.
A few annoying things:
- the main character uses “fudge” instead of swearing…🙄
- when joking about pirates with the love interest, Claire thinks ‘…she’d like to be his wench…” 🤨
- after ONE spontaneous kiss, the love interest starts calling Claire “honey”…presumptuous much?!?
- also, falling in love amidst all of the crazy things Claire is learning about herself and processing…weird -
Another great story by the author! I had no idea what was going on until I got to nearly the end of the story. I mean "really" what was going on. I really liked the characters and the suspense kept getting to me. Poor Claire. There's always one character who gets the lion's share of danger and she's the one who got the short straw in this one!
There's even a baby orca in the story! How can anyone resist THAT? And yes, it plays a role in the story.
The twists and turns were a surprise and I can't wait to read the next one! -
WARNING - SPOILERS are in this review!!!
The plot of "The Inn at Ocean's Edge" was fairly preposterous - but it still worked for me, up to a point. The story was a little slow to develop, but once the main plot unfolded, the action moved along at a nice clip.
The characters were a little flat and one-dimensional, though. I never connected with Claire or Luke. Their romance could have been better developed, but was still OK. Yes, there was some insta-love, but it was not as egregious as in some other books I've read.
Kate was probably my favorite character. She seemed the most "real" and had the most personality. What wasn't "real" were the reactions of Claire's family to the many attempts on her life. The reaction from Claire's mom, dad and grandparents was fairly muted to my mind. You'd think a family with the wealth, privilege and connections they had would have gone absolutely bonkers at the many attempts and done everything on earth to bring the culprit to bear. But, besides urging Claire to leave, I thought their reaction was too low-key as to be believed. I also had to wonder if they knew - and if they did, why they didn't care that the local sheriff wanted to pin Jenny's murder on their beloved family member. Would powerful people really allow a local two-bit sheriff to railroad a beloved family member into accusations of murder?! The whole Dellamare clan was so bizarre.
But speaking of unreal characters, there were two people whom I felt were too unbelievable to be believed (sorry for the bad syntax). First, was Claire's father. OK, I get trying to help your wife recover from a devastating trauma, but taking one child to replace another?! And then you compound that by letting your wife believe the replacement is her daughter instead of exposing the truth that she was killed - wow, that requires a suspension of disbelief that I just don't have.
But there was someone even worse - Mary! Not only does she inadvertently kill a child, she was too easily cajoled into giving away one of her children as recompense?! Say what?! Then, when she's reunited with the daughter she thought was lost to her, she's fairly blase when she learns that her brother may harm or even kill her long-lost daughter. This took the story into "over the top" territory.
So far, my review contains a lot of negatives. However, I did like the cover art. I felt it was so hauntingly beautiful, and matched the atmospherics of the novel perfectly. However, the novel as a romantic suspense, did neither very well, but was merely adequate in both the romance and the suspense. -
Lots of twists and turns in this solid suspense.
I loved the inclusion of the baby orca.
I was disappointed the Lord's name was used in vain during this story, so I've dropped a couple of stars off the rating.
Favourite Quotes:
“Sometimes we dabble in sin and think it will never come back to haunt us, but it does. It comes back so much worse than if we’d just been honest from the beginning.”
“Reach deep to find the bedrock of your faith as the winds begin to blow.”
“Always remember who you are, Claire. You belong to your heavenly Father and no one else. All that you are is found in him. Don’t let anything shake that knowledge.”
“It doesn’t take blood for love to flourish.”
His grandmother had always told him God was in the habit of taking the awful things that happened in life and turning them into diamonds in our path.
Family was all about passing the baton, working together, dealing with the ugliness that existed even in people he loved, weathering the hard knocks of life by linking hands and stepping out in faith.
We aren’t defined by their mistakes—only by ours, and we can use them to make us better people.
“God gives you what you need, not necessarily what you thought you wanted.” -
This was the first time I've read a book by Colleen Coble. I read it for a book club, and I was happy about stepping outside my normal reading parameters. But, unfortunately, it wasn't as great as I had hoped. The story was interesting, and it made me want to keep reading (which is a good thing!). Overall, though, I thought the story was too outrageous. I felt like I was watching a soap opera. I mean, a hidden kidnapping wasn't enough? Then two dead bodies? Then a secret family? Then a secret twin sister? Then a secret twin sister with a life-threatening disease who couldn't find a bone marrow match? THEN a baby whale saves the day? Nah, just not my cup of tea. Maybe I'll try another one of Coble's books and see if I feel differently.
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I loved it and gobbled it up in one sitting!
A SUSPENSE with a fast pace. Twist and turns that had my head spinning and made me gasp several times.
5 Stars to Devon O’Day for an excellent engaging audio performance.
This was my first novel by Colleen Coble but definitely not my last.
A must read if you like Christian Romantic suspense! -
Awesome book, can't wait to read the next in the series!!
