Reviewed by Emma Crowley
As the sun warms the sand of Port Promise bay and the sea is stained turquoise, Gaby Morrow is about to discover that her life is going to change forever…
As she looks through the window of Thistledown Cottage, her perfect home with its flower-filled garden and views of the sparkling, white-tipped waves, Gaby Morrow should feel like she has it all. She watches her two gorgeous children race down to the golden beach and waves goodbye to her husband Kilian, his chestnut hair tousled as he heads off for another day working on the lifeboats. To her friends and family Gaby’s life looks wonderful, but deep down Gaby knows that this is a lie.
Recently Kilian has grown distant, a terrible tragedy at sea causing him to withdraw. Try as she might, Gaby can’t get her beloved husband to open up, and she knows Kilian has been lying about where he has been going. Gaby wants to believe she can trust him. But when she discovers that he has been keeping a secret that will change all their lives, will she ever be able to feel the same again?
Gaby’s sisters rally round in her hour of need and remind her of everything she has that is worth fighting for. But just as she makes her decision, she sees helicopters circling the sea and the call she has dreaded her whole life comes in. Kilian’s rescue mission has gone wrong. Will Gaby’s life be turned upside down all over again? And has she only realised what is truly important when it’s too late?
Many thanks to Bookouture via NetGalley for my copy of A Secret for the Lifeboat Sisters to review and to Sharon for having my review on the blog.
Here we are at book three in the Lifeboat Sisters series by Tilly Tennant and I really don’t want it to end as I have thoroughly enjoyed this wonderful trilogy. I’ve loved being able to read the three books in more or less quick succession as there have been short intervals between publication of each book and therefore the details are so fresh in my mind. I’m sad that this is the last book set in Port Promise as I have loved each book from beginning to end and in fact I want more if at all possible please Tilly. Don’t worry if you haven’t read the first two books as each is easily read as a standalone as they follow a different Morrow sister. Plenty of background detail is given and if I was coming new to book three I wouldn’t have felt confused. But do yourself a favour and do read the previous two books as they really are brilliant and quite possibly the best books that Tilly Tennant has written so far. Although A Very Vintage Christmas is one of her previous books that I will always love and treasure.
A Secret for the Lifeboat Sisters sees oldest Morrow sister Gaby finally have the chance to share her story. The book has a very dramatic opening that leaves you with your heart in your mouth. You are left thinking how can things be left like that. Don’t leave the reader in suspense like that but then at the same time there are lots of questions arising which have you pondering how did Gaby and her husband Killian reach that point of distress and anger on Flag Day (the annual fundraiser for the lifeboat crew as organised by Gaby)? It was literally edge of your seat stuff but to discover the answers to all my questions and also what would happen after that shocking opening, Tilly takes us back several months and the story begins to unfold. The plot was brilliant and there were lots of shocks, revelations, doubts, misunderstandings and resentment to explore and I thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it. In fact, I was trying to slow down my reading because I didn’t want to leave the setting and characters but at the same time, I wanted answers.
Gaby has been the sister who has to me seemed a very closed book compared to Ava and Clara. She is married to Killian and has two young children Fern and Elijah. She is so together and always on top of her game and could turn her hand to organising anything and it would be done to perfection. But in this story we see her start to crumble and waver in her strength and when her marriage comes under scrutiny and testing times she becomes more open and exposes her vulnerabilities which she hasn’t been able to do before. No one previously ever felt the need to offer her support as it appeared as if she was a pillar of strength. She gave them the courage, durability and advice that they needed. But now that Gaby is venturing into stormy weathers when a secret Killian has been keeping is exposed, is she ready to be the one that seeks advice and sustenance?
Gaby is the one who holds everything together through the good times and bad and especially after the Morrow family lost their father Jack at sea during a lifeboat rescue. But now with the truth of what Killian has been keeping secret she starts to flounder and feels all alone. She believes her life was all just a sham that never having been able to project how she truly feels that how can she turn around and do this now when she believes the worst has befallen her? Killian remains cool and distant especially after a troubling rescue at sea. Gaby is used to winning and getting what she wants and getting to the bottom of any conundrum or issue that stood in her way. But now that she is doubting Killian and he won’t talk to her, her mind starts to race and she thinks all kind of things until the revelation comes forth.It is surprising and I can totally understand why Gaby reacted in the manner in which she did but because both herself and Killian are so stubborn and never back down in an argument I wondered could they ever solve their problems?
There are numerous events sent to test Gaby and Killian’s relationship to the max and none more so than in the form of Lloyd. He is the new owner of Betty’s café and he has very strong plans for its future. He certainly riles Gaby up with his plans to turn the café into an upmarket restaurant which would challenge Cormac’s (Clara’s partner) fish shack. Lloyd comes across as arrogant and obnoxious and he loves stirring things up. There is plenty of verbal sparring between himself and Gaby and he really can’t see that Port Promise is a community where everyone is supportive and there for one another. He wants to muscle in with his out of town, well to do attitude and it really doesn’t go down well. I thought the incident with Gaby and Lloyd further on in the book was well written and really helped bind the strands of the story together. A different side to Lloyd was revealed but still I didn’t really feel in any way enamoured to him at all. But yet this incident was sent to test Gaby And whilst you are reading you hope it is a much needed wake up call for her. That she can try to separate things out and see a clear path to Killian and a way to attempt to try and sort their problems if this is at all possible.
Tilly Tennant gave us the perfect ending to A Secret to the Lifeboat Sisters. I loved how we got to see how everyone from the series was doing and there were aspects which certainly brought a smile to my face. There are so many emotions as you read through the book involving all the characters and I just totally immersed myself in Gaby’s story. I found by the end my opinion of her from the earlier books had completely changed which was surprising. The series has been entertaining and there were never any lulls. With such a beautiful, realistic setting, superb characters and a brilliant homage paid to the work of the lifeboat services, all of which is voluntary, all these elements combined to make the perfect read. Tilly Tennant, you’ll have some job topping this series in my eyes anyway.
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