Sunday 13 April 2014

Books Read: Kimberley Freeman - Lighthouse Bay

1901: Isabella Winterbourne has suffered the worst loss a woman can know, and can no longer bear her husband nor his oppressive upper-class family. On a voyage between London and Sydney to accompany a priceless gift to the Australian parliament, Isabella is the sole survivor of a shipwreck off the sun-drenched Queensland coast. But in this strange new place, she finds she cannot escape her past quite as easily as she'd hoped. 

2011: A woman returns from Paris to her beachside hometown to reconcile with her sister. But she, too, has a past that is hard to escape, and her sister is not in a mood to forgive her. Strange noises at night and activity at the abandoned lighthouse raise her curiosity, and she finds herself investigating a century-old town mystery.


Amazon links: Kindle or Paperback

Told through a dual timeframe, this is the story of two strong women, Isabella and Libby, who both end up in the Queensland coastal town of Lighthouse Bay.

Beginning in 1901, we first meet Isabella Winterbourne who is the sole survivor of a shipwreck off the Queensland coast with just the clothes on her back and a wooden chest containing her most treasured possession.  Is this her chance for a new beginning to escape the unhappiness of her past?

Over a hundred years later Libby has decided to return home to Lighthouse Bay, a town she left over twenty years previously following a tragic accident.  Will she be able to find redemption to finally put the past behind her and move on with her life?

I love stories told through dual timelines but this was definitely one of my favourites that I've read in recent years as the stories blended perfectly as you followed them as they set out to make their peace with their pasts and look ahead to brighter futures.

Lighthouse Bay is the first book that I've read by Kimberley Freeman but after having been totally captivated by Isabella and Libby's stories, I'll definitely look to read more books by her in the future. 

I'd like to thank Quercus for sending me a copy of this book to review.  

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