This is not the genre I usually read, but I picked it up because it's set on the Outer Banks, which is a place I love. I found the story engaging enough to keep reading, and even though it's labeled as a romance, that part of the story was pretty low key (which was good for me, because that's really not my jam). ( )

This story takes you to Nags Head, North Carolina where you learn the history of the Seaside Resort and Ruth’s family who owned it. While written in a dual timeline, most of the story takes place in 1950 with very little in 2022.

The story begins in 2022 with Ivy leaving her home and job in New York following the death of her grandmother (Ruth), and returning to the Seaside Resort (Nags Head, NC), where her grandmother had a cottage and managed the resort.

Ivy has great memories of her younger days at Nags Head where her former boyfriend and former best friend still live. While they had counted on her to stay on and work in Nags Head, Ivy had decided to leave, rather surprisingly, to begin a new career in New York. Returning to the island, she has significant trepidation about confronting these people she had previously been so close to, especially after discovering that her best friend married and had a child with her x-boyfriend shortly after her departure.

Upon arriving at the cottage, Ivy is challenged with cleaning out Ruth’s house and sorting through the huge collection of old furniture, papers, and general “stuff”. Once she completes that task, she plans to sell everything, giving her enough income to start over, but she’s undecided what and where that will be.

What Ruth and Ivy have in common is that they both are trying to unravel family secrets. Throughout the book, you are chasing clues about which family member is related to another family member. There is a great deal of detail about multiple family members including a singer on a showboat. I found it frustrating to try to keep track of who was who and I’m still not sure I have it sorted out. Seeing the family tree (in the back of the book) might have been better offered at the start (perhaps with a few blanks so as not to give the story away completely).

Despite my criticisms, I found it a fun read.
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Ivy Neale returns home to Nags Head on the Outer Banks to settle her grandmothers estate and discovers hidden family secrets as well as love (of course). ( )

The Brighter the Light contains many of the things I love most in a story—familial love, southern charm, and emotional history. All of this is wrapped in beautiful, nostalgic storytelling.

I enjoy a dual timeline, uniting two stories with a cohesive thread. Ivy and Ruth (her grandmother) are interesting, flawed, and realistic characters that became familiar quickly. There are a lot of people to keep straight in the story and there was a time or two I got tangled up but was able to sink back into everything rather easily.

There were a few hiccups while reading, mainly trying to keep straight who was who, but overall, the story has wonderful elements of friendship, family, finding a path, and searching out answers. I wouldn’t have minded if there was a bit more romance, but there was enough to satisfy.

Disclosure: #CoverLoverBookReview received a complimentary copy of this book. ( )

I loved how we got to learn the secrets from the past and the present. Ivy and Ruth are great characters. It was nice learning about Ruth and her past and how it related to Ivy and her friends and what they were all going through. This is a very sweet tale that you will not want to put down until you find out what happened that long ago summer. I received a copy of this book from MB Books for a fair and honest opinion that I gave of my own free will. ( )