THE SUMMER OF LOST AND FOUND by Mary Alice Monroe
Getting a new book by Mary Alice Monroe is like getting a gift from a friend you haven’t seen for a while but who is never far away from your thoughts. I have been reading Mary Alice’s books for years now and she has never disappointed me – not once. Her latest effort, THE SUMMER OF LOST AND FOUND, certainly doesn’t. It continues the story of characters from the BEACH HOUSE series and in those books we have gone through generations of wonderful people who live by the ocean in South Carolina.
In this book the focus is on Linnea Rutledge, the granddaughter of Lovie and the niece of Cara, two characters who have played important roles in previous books. Linnea had been living in California but after breaking up with her boyfriend John she moved back to South Carolina. There she found the perfect job at the Charleston Aquarium. She also found a new love interest in Gordon.
When this book opens it is early 2020 and the “virus” is beginning to be a major topic of conversation. Linnea is laid off from the aquarium, while Gordon is having trouble getting back to South Carolina from England. Things get more and more complicated wth Linnea’s family when she discovers her old boyfriend John is quarantining next door to where she is living.
Monroe brings together a large cast of supporting players for Linnea to live, love and interact with over the summer of 2020. There is kindness, anger, death and drama found in the group and no one escapes unscathed. It is a real balance of talent by which Monroe manages to keep the story centered on Linnea but is able to give all supporting characters their due.
Mary Alice Monroe is a born storyteller. She manages to make her novel stories both idyllic and realistic. Believe me that is not an easy thing to do especially when you are telling a story set in the age of coronavirus. Go too far in the realism and you loose the enjoyment. Go too far in the other direction and you loose the believability. She had to dance on the head of a pin to get this story told in the right way.
Still if you are familiar with Monroe’s previous works then you never have any doubt she will do that dance. And she does. THE SUMMER OF LOST AND FOUND is emotional but accurate. It makes you fearful for the cast of characters from time to time but you always believe in the overall ultimate survival of most of those involved in the story.
It is always a good day that sees the release of another Mary Alice Monroe novel. She brings with her the warmth of the summer sun and the coolness of the summer breeze tied to as story that will find a soft spot deep in your heart.
THE SUMMER OF LO;ST AND FOUND is published by Gallery Books. It contains 368 pages and sells for $28.00.
Jackie K Cooper
www.jackiekcooper.com
