Here's something I love about ARS - her writing is real. So real it can't help but strike a chord in the reader somewhere.
The villain in this book was Caro's husband. A man she adored and had spent most of her life with. He wasn't an evil, terrible husband. He loved her. He nurtured her. He knew her. But he was still "the bad guy."
Don't you think it's delicious when an author is so real they can make the "evil one" human? It is rare to find someone that is all bad, so when an author sets out to create an antagonist and they make them wholly despicable, it's almost like a caricature. Not so with ARS. She's a master. Truly.
Caroline has lived in the South Carolina lowcountry since she married her husband, Clay. They have raised two children there and made it their home. Clay is a real-estate developer and has made his living taking prime properties and making them into manicured mansion dwellings. Caro inherited an island (an entire island!) just off the coast of S.C. from her grandfather and it is her sanctuary. As well as a sanctuary for the Gullah inhabitants who call it home.
Clay finds himself between a rock and a hard place and sets out to - secretly - develop the mystical haven that nurtures Caro. A nightmare. A betrayal. The only way out.
I'm not going to spoil the end of this story. But it is right. It is beautiful. ( )

When her husband's company threatens to turn her beloved island into a theme park, Caroline Venable decides to fight to save both the ponies and Gullahs of her low country hideaway. ( )

Moving story of a woman who struggles to regain some sense of normalacy after her daughter is tragically killed in a boating accident. Full of memorable characters and a reminder that life is precious. ( )