Book Review for The Brighter the Light by Mary Ellen Taylor

 The Brighter the Light by Mary Ellen Taylor 

Genre:  Historical Fiction, Womens Fiction, Chick Lit

Paperback Edition, 360 pages

Expected publication: July 1st 2022 by Montlake 

 

Taken from Goodreads:  From the bestselling author of Honeysuckle Season comes an evocative dual-timeline novel detailing one woman’s journey to discover the hidden stories of her family’s seaside resort.

When a shipwreck surfaces, old secrets are sure to follow.

Or so goes the lore in Ivy Neale’s hometown of Nags Head, North Carolina. When Ivy inherits her family’s beachfront cottage upon her grandmother’s death, she knows returning to Nags Head means facing the best friend and the boyfriend who betrayed her years ago.

But then a winter gale uncovers the shipwreck of local legend—and Ivy soon begins to stumble across more skeletons in the closet than just her own. Amid the cottage’s clutter are clues from her grandmother’s past at the enchanting seaside resort her family once owned. One fateful summer in 1950, the arrival of a dazzling singer shook the staff and guests alike—and not everyone made it to fall.

As Ivy contends with broken relationships and a burgeoning romance in the present, the past threatens to sweep her away. But as she uncovers the strength of her grandmother and the women who came before her, she realizes she is like the legendary shipwreck: the sands may shift around her, but she has found her home here by the sea.

My Thoughts:   A story full of family secrets.  Ivy comes back to her grandmother’s home and finds that everything has been left to her, including a house full of items from the resort she ran.  As Ivy goes through these items she finds clues, mysteries of the past, and the history of her family.  I love learning more about Ruth and her life. 

The characters in this book as so amazing.   They have histories full of secrets, lives full of drama, and family full of love. The southern charm and history are rich in this book, and I could picture myself right there with Ivy as she learns about her family.   The storyline pulled me entirely into the story, putting me at Nags Head, seeing the resort, meeting the characters, and loving it all.  

The dual timelines were perfect.   Each timeline leads the other into the next part of the story.  I love reading them and figuring out where each storyline was headed next.  

Mary Ellen Taylor did an amazing job writing this book, it is the first of hers I have read and I will definitely be looking for more. 

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