I read this book because somebody said it brought me to mind and my vanity took over. What a delightful find! I love boating and this book reminds me of the days my family spent sleeping on boats and traveling around the Great Lakes via water.
Like a really great all-day-sail, the book starts out
gently. Fascinating characters take shape and what looks like some sort of
cloud pops up on the horizon. Once you really get into the story, the clouds
darken and draw near, but land has slipped from sight. Then the plot kicks
into high gear and the conflict stirs up just enough worry to hold on tight,
gritting teeth, and trying not to imagine the boat bottomside-up. The novel’s
ending reminds me of a sweet cruise into harbor with the wind settling down and sun
setting into the water, reflecting orange light onto the ocean and into the
clouds above. The perfect ending to a perfect day.
Translation: a great story - especially if you like boats. Ms.
Fischer brings the town of Beaufort, SC to life with believable characters and
southern flair. And though I’m not a huge romance fan, I must admit I loved the
romantic progression of the story because of an extra special third wheel named
Jilly. Unique, sweet, and brave. Look out to starboard and snag your copy today!
Review by Jennifer Fromke
www.jenniferfromke.com
Do you sail? Do you love life on the water? Do you LONG for a life on the water? Would you read about it?
ReplyDeleteJennifer, thank you for that lovely review! (But, for the sake of clarity and to give honor where it's due: that's Beaufort, North Carolina. The other guys down in SC call it Bewfort, which we to the north say Bowfort.)
ReplyDeleteSo, did you see yourself at all? I love the idea that you picked it up because of vanity! Isn't that a hoot! (I mean, who wouldn't? My daughter got me to watch Diane Keaton movies because she said Diane might have been portraying me. What she meant wasn't exactly complimentary, but Annie in First Wives Club way back when? Oh, yeah. Sad, but true.)
Oh, thanks for the correction! I just assumed . . . ack! I did see myself a little bit. :-) My dad is a boat captain and he was my go-to guy when I researched all the boating in my novel. But we are more "power-boating" folk. For fun, we get out the Hobie cat or sunfish, but long trips were never "under-sail."
DeleteWell, we've discovered that big sailboats are often motorboats with auxiliary sails! We motored up the ICW, sailed and motored up the Chesapeake, motored up the C & D Canal, motored with sails down the Delaware and up the Atlantic. In the Pacific, we sailed a lot more often...
DeleteThank you for sharing this review. I now look forward to reading BECALMED!
ReplyDeleteI hope you'll enjoy it, Britney! Let me know, will you?
DeleteSounds like a great book! The closest I've ever been to sailing is when I was a kid with a boat in the tub. :-) But I've always wanted to.
ReplyDeleteIt's a delightful thing, Patricia. And sailing a small boat, as Tadie does in Becalmed, brings one close to the water, at one with the wind and the elements. Sailing a big boat, as Will does, takes you to far away places, limited only by your imagination (and the weather). We cruised for a number of years, focusing on the Sea of Cortez, MX, for over and planned to head west. Life intervened, as it has a way of doing, but we're back on board and loving it.
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