Reviewed by Emma Crowley
Twenty years.
One secret.
A promise never to tell...
Nikki finally owns the little coastguard cottage of her dreams - and it's a few steps away from the hidden beach that means so much to her.
But when a handwritten note lands on her doorstep, she realises it's only a matter of time before the heartbreaking truth of her past is uncovered.
Twenty years ago, her whole world was turned upside-down when a terrible storm rolled into the small seaside town of Speedwell.
Ever since that night, Nikki has been keeping a secret. One she knows has the potential to destroy the lives of those she loves most.
Because as sure as the tide turns, there are no secrets in a small town...
Many thanks to Orion publishing via NetGalley for my copy of The Secret Beach to review and to Sharon for having my review on the blog.
The Secret Beach is the brand new story from Veronica Henry and once again she has written a thoroughly enjoyable book. It’s centred around a family who live in a small seaside village called Speedwell in North Cornwall. The family are still adjusting to the loss of their father and brother-in-law many years ago and it’s the women left behind who have to pick up the pieces and move forward. But this is very difficult to do given the main character Nikki has been harbouring a secret. If said secret is revealed she feels her family’s lives will be even further torn apart yet the guilt is weighing heavily on her, especially when she receives a sinister postcard which says - there are no secrets in a small town. To say my interest was aroused would be an understatement and I was keen to dive into the book and see what Nikki was keeping close to her chest and why.
The book is mostly set in the present day but a brief introduction is given set twenty years earlier. A storm is approaching the village which will have severe consequences but a woman has to do the noble thing and meet someone at their secret beach. Why does she feel the need to do this given the warnings for the storm and why will it be their last time meeting? These questions as well as many others ran through my mind but to discover the answers we are taken back to the present and the story slowly starts to unfold. The pace throughout the book wasn’t fast or a rollercoaster of emotions. It didn’t need to be instead there is a lovely, gentle and relaxed pace which allows the reader to get to know the characters and the situations they find themselves in. Bit by bit, the strands of the story start to come together and by the end there is a deeply satisfying conclusion which makes Nikki and others realise that family is the most important thing.
Nikki now has an empty nest as her son Bill has moved to Bali. She needs to downsize but wants to remain in Speedwell. The house of her dreams has just come on the market, a former coastguard’s cottage at Devil’s Cove, which is near to the secret beach which means so much to her. The reasons for her love of this beach become more evident the further the book progresses. Nikki is a wedding planner and her company has had good success. As well as this she is a member of the lifeboat crew as was her father and brother-in-law Rik. She craves the seascape and solace. She enjoys the ability to be by herself and enjoy her own company as everyone in a small seaside town knows everyone else’s business.
With the opportunity to buy the cottage she feels the world is her oyster and the past can be put behind her but not so when the postcard arrives and sets the cat amongst the pigeons and all thoughts of the past and what she has tried to avoid come rushing back to her. Nikki meets her new neighbour Adam Fitzroy and his dog Gatsby. He has moved from London and is recently widowed. Despite his situation you can see that there is a little spark between the pair but given the maelstrom of emotions that is about to be unleashed is Nikki in a place to pursue things further than a friendship or is Adam even ready to?
The story deftly moves back and forth between the past and the present enabling connections to be established and chapter by chapter things become clearer to the reader. Grief is something Nikki is not immune to and she knows how lost you can feel as does Adam. I have to say I did prefer the chapters set in the present day but at the same time I appreciated the need for recollections of the past. In the past, we see Nikki as a young and impressionable girl whose sister Jess is the complete opposite to her.
Jess is wild and pushes people to the edge and always gets what she wants. She is headstrong and you never know what angle she is going to take. She could be a judge or as nice as pie. Jess has scant regard for her sister and when the dazzling and seductive Rik sails into Speedwell harbour he certainly catches the eyes of the two sisters. Rik has been drifting about on his boat trying to find his place in the world. Nikki feels very comfortable in his presence, like she has known him forever and she introduces him to the secret beach. They really get to know one another and the reader can see that Nikki is falling hard and fast. But as the storm approaches life is about to change for Nikki and it will never be the same again and it’s only in the present day that we learn the true story of Nikki and Rik and how Jess forms part of it too. But to say much more would give too much away. Suffice to say, it was a tangled and interesting web which I could see no way out of once you were within its clutches.
The Secret Beach is another winner from Veronica Henry. I really do enjoy her style of writing. This story focused on love, loss, family relationships and there was a nice bit of drama thrown in too and all in all it made for a really enjoyable read with memorable characters, setting and a plot that will have you guessing until the end.
Thanks for the blog tour support x
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