Author: Mary Kay Andrews
Genre: Mystery & Thrillers/Romance/Women’s Fiction
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press/Macmillan Audio
Publication Date: May 4, 2021
Book Description: Mary Kay Andrews, the New York Times bestselling author and Queen of the Beach Reads delivers her next page-turner for the summer with The Newcomer.
In trouble and on the run…
After she discovers her sister Tanya dead on the floor of her fashionable New York City townhouse, Letty Carnahan is certain she knows who did it: Tanya’s ex; sleazy real estate entrepreneur Evan Wingfield. Even in the grip of grief and panic Letty heeds her late sister’s warnings: “If anything bad happens to me—it’s Evan. Promise me you’ll take Maya and run. Promise me.”
With a trunkful of emotional baggage…
So Letty grabs her sister’s Mercedes and hits the road with her wailing four-year-old niece Maya. Letty is determined to out-run Evan and the law, but run to where? Tanya, a woman with a past shrouded in secrets, left behind a “go-bag” of cash and a big honking diamond ring—but only one clue: a faded magazine story about a sleepy mom-and-pop motel in a Florida beach town with the improbable name of Treasure Island. She sheds her old life and checks into an uncertain future at The Murmuring Surf Motel.
The No Vacancy sign is flashing & the sharks are circling…
And that’s the good news. Because The Surf, as the regulars call it, is the winter home of a close-knit flock of retirees and snowbirds who regard this odd-duck newcomer with suspicion and down-right hostility. As Letty settles into the motel’s former storage room, she tries to heal Maya’s heartache and unravel the key to her sister’s shady past, all while dodging the attention of the owner’s dangerously attractive son Joe, who just happens to be a local police detective. Can Letty find romance as well as a room at the inn—or will Joe betray her secrets and put her behind bars? With danger closing in, it’s a race to find the truth and right the wrongs of the past.
Rating: 4.5 Stars
Review: Another great beach read brought you by Mary Kay Andrews. When this book opens we meet Letty who is on the run with her four year old niece Maya, after her sister Tanya is found dead. Letty is the main suspect, but she knows somehow her ex-boss and sister’s ex-boyfriend is the culprit. She winds up in a small motel in Florida because her sister indirectly lead her there.
We get a funny array of characters when she lands in Florida. From Joe the cop, to Eva tho motel owner and all the long term guests that come every winter season every year. When Joe figures out something is just not right with Letty’s presence he goes to great lengths to find her truth.
Mary Kay Andrew always gives us delightful beach reads. This one has mystery, romance and humor in this fun read. All the more she added the adorable Maya who will melt your heart the instant you meet her. This book is very fast paced and keeps you for wanting more. I can’t think of a perfect way to spend a day or two at the beach reading this gem.
Thank you NetGalley and St Martin’s Press for an Advanced Reader’s Copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Obsessed Bookaholic 