mindfullibrarian's review against another edition
2.0
(free review copy) Sigh. This was one of my most anticipated May releases based on the premise and the fact that I love the author's middle grade works. But this book is honestly a mess. It started out fairly strong, although I instantly became wary with completely random narration changes becoming more frequent after a bit. Sloan wrote the youngest child the best and I wonder if perhaps this had actually been written as a middle grade novel narrated by this kid if it would been more successful? It would 100% have been better if only narrated by the mother, Lindsey, at least, rather than hopping all over the place.
The first half though was fairly decent - I can put up with a lot of literary flaws in service of a decent story, so I was waving stuff off until I just couldn't any more. With about 1/3 of the book left, the male narrators were introduced and they were so jarringly different from everyone else, it pulled me out of the story. And then some weird intrigue / drama stuff was introduced that I hated and then cue BIG ACTION SEQUENCE and an incredibly weak, rushed ending. This book needed a much better editor, or another 5 rounds of edits to possibly pull it together.
And then there's the problematic thing I was a little unsure of from the very beginning. Writing a white family moving to Hawaii is always a red flag to me, and although I acknowledge that Sloan did seem to nod at recognizing the damage that colonialism has done to the islands, it just never felt right to me. Also, two of the kids' names are examples of cultural appropriation, and Sloan even recognizes that in the story! I don't really understand why that was done on purpose?
Here is the Kirkus review for a more professional explanation of my plot issues. This Publishers Weekly review is what made me think I needed to read this book, and the review seems to be talking about an entirely different story. I'm disappointed by it, but also many of the other reviews here are glowing, as are some elsewhere, so it may just be me??
All in all, I hope to read much more wonderful middle grade from the author and I hope should the adventures in adult lit continue, much more editing is done.
Source: digital review copy via Edelweiss
The first half though was fairly decent - I can put up with a lot of literary flaws in service of a decent story, so I was waving stuff off until I just couldn't any more. With about 1/3 of the book left, the male narrators were introduced and they were so jarringly different from everyone else, it pulled me out of the story. And then some weird intrigue / drama stuff was introduced that I hated and then cue BIG ACTION SEQUENCE and an incredibly weak, rushed ending. This book needed a much better editor, or another 5 rounds of edits to possibly pull it together.
And then there's the problematic thing I was a little unsure of from the very beginning. Writing a white family moving to Hawaii is always a red flag to me, and although I acknowledge that Sloan did seem to nod at recognizing the damage that colonialism has done to the islands, it just never felt right to me. Also, two of the kids' names are examples of cultural appropriation, and Sloan even recognizes that in the story! I don't really understand why that was done on purpose?
Here is the Kirkus review for a more professional explanation of my plot issues. This Publishers Weekly review is what made me think I needed to read this book, and the review seems to be talking about an entirely different story. I'm disappointed by it, but also many of the other reviews here are glowing, as are some elsewhere, so it may just be me??
All in all, I hope to read much more wonderful middle grade from the author and I hope should the adventures in adult lit continue, much more editing is done.
Source: digital review copy via Edelweiss
cholderly's review against another edition
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
gallag's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.5
lindehoffman's review
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
stara87's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
hayleyebloom's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
3.75
nedwards95's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
I really enjoyed this book, but I wish it hadn’t ended so abruptly. It was an interesting read, although i did skim some of it occasionally. I didn’t see the twist coming and I was taken by surprise - I would have loved a few more chapters to wrap the story up.
momankara's review against another edition
3.0
Thanks to NetGalley for the audiobook.
I liked this book except for the romance piece. The family was really well depicted, and each of the children were delightful. Everyone has dreamed of owning a hotel near a beach so that was a powerful premise. The problem was the men, and that part of the story was retrograde. Her first husband was clearly a tool, and she should have been angrier. And this new guy. . . Yeah. Ladies, aim higher.
The oddest thing about the audiobook was that Lindsey thought in American English but spoke in Welsh.
I liked this book except for the romance piece. The family was really well depicted, and each of the children were delightful. Everyone has dreamed of owning a hotel near a beach so that was a powerful premise. The problem was the men, and that part of the story was retrograde. Her first husband was clearly a tool, and she should have been angrier. And this new guy. . . Yeah. Ladies, aim higher.
The oddest thing about the audiobook was that Lindsey thought in American English but spoke in Welsh.
tracyt223's review against another edition
3.5
When Paul Hill drowns in a surfing accident, his broken-hearted wife, Lindsey, and their three children are left in huge financial trouble. Once Paul’s life insurance finally comes through, Lindsey impulsively uses the money to buy a charmingly ramshackle motel in Hawai’i, hoping for a fresh start.
This one for me, had a super slow start. I actually considered DNFing, but kept going. I just felt like nothing much happened for the first at least half of the book. But then two things happened really quickly that did draw me into the story. Then I had to keep reading to find out how these situations resolved. I did really enjoy the last third of this story, but was definitely a struggle to start. The ending was pretty satisfying, but a tiny bit unbelievable in one aspect.
This one for me, had a super slow start. I actually considered DNFing, but kept going. I just felt like nothing much happened for the first at least half of the book. But then two things happened really quickly that did draw me into the story. Then I had to keep reading to find out how these situations resolved. I did really enjoy the last third of this story, but was definitely a struggle to start. The ending was pretty satisfying, but a tiny bit unbelievable in one aspect.