Whisper Beach

Ever since the publication of Thomas Wolfe’s novel, “You Can’t Go Home Again” the title as a phrase is well-known across the generations even if the individual has never read the novel and knows nothing but the title. “Whisper Beach” provides a twist to become the question, “Can Vanessa ‘Van’ Moran go home again?” A reader quickly becomes engrossed in wonder of all the possibilities as it is learned that Van left her hometown of Whisper Beach without goodbyes 12 years ago and some people think she might even be dead. Van’s cousin Gigi gave her all the money she had saved for nursing school as Van left town but Gigi doesn’t know the true reason Van was so desperate to leave. There’s only 1 girlfriend that knows show more the truth. As Van returns for the funeral of her cousin’s husband Clay Daly, the plan is simple, attend the funeral, stay a few days for Gigi, perhaps put the old beach cottage that has been passed down through the female generations of her family up for sale, and then enjoy some vacation time as reserved at the 4-star hotel and spa in Rehoboth Beach. Simple. Organized. Planned. Life as Van prefers and has created with the success of her own business, Elite Lifestyle Managers, in New York.

I loved this book! “Can you go home again?” A timeless question and this novel reveals the possibilities with thoughtfulness as each relationship that touches Van’s life is explored. The character descriptions are revealed at perfect pace as various encounters begin on Van’s return to Whisper Beach. Van seems not the only one to have secrets.

One of the aspects about this novel that I loved the most was the exploration of the human character. How we sometimes presume we know what we know about family and friends when we really know nothing at all about what another has gone through because we haven’t walked all the miles alongside them – we’ve only been with them for pieces of their life journey. How we sometimes are judgmental with the best of intentions but again without all the facts. When we reveal the secrets of our lives to one another and the truth brings not the judgment as anticipated, not the criticism as feared, but we are given acceptance, understanding, and love.

I’m sure this novel will bring lively discussion at book club meetings. But, I’m hoping the novel will also be discovered by readers that might not necessarily be interested in book club participation but that would benefit by a little self-introspection before taking the next steps on their own life journey. It is a story that might also offer encouragement, courage and hope to someone wondering if it’s time to unburden their heart and share their secret.

The cover art is beautiful in its simplicity and seems to invite each reader individually to the beach and to reminisce of their own past summer experiences at the beach. The cover art then changes to a slightly different scene but as a pen and ink drawing to open each chapter. The author gives credit to The William Morrow Art Department in the acknowledgments and I effusively concur. Simple. Picturesque. Welcoming.

I can’t wait to read more of this author’s novels.

I was lucky enough to receive a copy of this title as an “Early Reviewer” from Library Thing. show less

We are created by many things: our upbringing, our experiences, the people who influence and shape our lives for better or worse, expectations, and more. Each of these things plays some part in who we become and how we view the world. But sometimes we have no desire to revisit the things that forged our character, preferring to sweep the past under the rug and push forward to the future, even if we really do need to face our pasts head on. The main character in Shelley Noble's newest novel wants no part of the memories or reality of her past but she's going to be forced to confront both.

Vanessa Moran was raised in Whisper Beach. He father was an alcoholic and she's always blamed him for causing her mother's death and for his inability show more to love her. In order to survive, Van created a family of her own: Dorie, the owner of the Blue Crab Restaurant who not only gave the teenaged Van a job but also loved and advised her as a surrogate mother; her cousin Gigi, who was her best friend and was the person their whole group protected in all her sweet helplessness; Suze, the rich girl who was a constant disappointment to her mother but was loyal to her friends at the Crab; Dana, the good time girl who always had a bit of an edge to her; and Joe, Van's boyfriend and love of her life who folded her into his large and welcoming family. But when Van saw Joe in the backseat of his truck with Dana atop him, she made the mistake that would propel her away from Whisper Beach and the people she thought she knew. She got drunk, slept with a college boy whose name she never even knew, and ended up pregnant. When her father called her a whore and threw her out, with a little help from Gigi and Suze, she left town and built herself a life in Manhattan, cutting all ties with Whisper Beach. Now a very successful professional organizer proud of rising above her roots, she is reluctantly being drawn back to her hometown for the funeral of Gigi's husband. She has no intention of staying and dredging up all the things she'd rather keep buried. She'll go to the funeral and then head further down the shore to take her vacation in a place that doesn't remind her of what she once lost.

But things rarely go as planned and Van discovers that she cannot leave her old friends high and dry again. Dorie is on the brink of losing the Blue Crab. Suze is frantically waiting for the second piece of a grant application that will allow her to take time off to write a book to further her academic career. Gigi is a fragile mess. And Dana, who Van wants to see almost as little as she wants to see Joe, turns up at Dorie's door badly beaten up by her cop boyfriend (and not for the first time). Van might have abandoned them once, but this time she'll try to help everyone fix their lives before she goes. As she wades into the challenges facing her old friends, she is still determined to ignore her own unresolved issues from the past, especially the issue named Joe because that one just hurts too much. Whisper Beach is a small place once the tourists go home though. Van finds she can't run forever, she's tentative but still strangely comfortable with Joe, and there's more than one side to every story, even those she thought she knew the truth of.

The large ensemble cast leads to a plethora of story lines which are sometimes short-changed but in the grand scheme of things each of the plot threads needs to be there to further the story and reveal something about the friends and about Joe. The many characters are clearly unique and recognizably different from each other, not only in their professions and descriptions but also in their personalities. Van, as the main character who has risen above her unhappy upbringing is mostly sympathetic but occasionally she's incredibly frustrating too. The plot is generally predictable but in general the book is an easy, quick, and satisfying read that leaves just enough open at the end to allow for a sequel or just for the reader's imagination to create a perfect, feel-good ending for herself. Whisper Beach is a warm sunny day of a read about mistakes, friendship, repairing the hurts of the past, and moving on into a clearer future and readers will enjoy turning the pages as they dig their toes into the sand this summer. show less

Whisper Beach is a satisfying coming-home novel. Van, the main character, returns to her home town for her cousin's husband's funeral and stays "for a few days". A few days turn into more time, and she has a chance to revisit the things that made her leave and look into herself a bit more. I loved Van's character--a little snarky, intelligent but with a tendency to bolt. It was well-written and better than what you see as standard "chick lit". I enjoyed the book and recommend it to others.

I enjoyed the book even though is was a bit "romancy" for me. I was intrigued at how an incident from high school could have such a lasting event of relationships twelve years later. The story does cover some tough issues: alcoholism, abusive relationships, and friendship. Each of the girls in the story is dealing with their own present issues and the past seems to keep interfering with how they deal with them. I found Dorrie's character to be quite interesting, she still had such strong feelings for these girls who worked for her during high school. I was glad that the novel was not wrapped up all neat and tidy. It makes the story much more realistic. I enjoyed the small town beach setting. This is most definitely an easy read and show more doesn't require a lot of thinking. Makes for a good beach read. show less

Take a look at the beautiful cover on this book! Doesn’t it make you want to just pick it up and start reading? It did me. And when I saw the author is Shelley Noble, who also authored Stargazey Point, I knew I would read this one. It was just a bonus that I was invited to participate in the blog tour hosted by TLC Book Tours!

I loved Stargazey Point. Unfortunately, this one...not so much. Don’t get me wrong — it isn’t a bad read — I just didn’t love it as much as I did Stargazey Point.

Whisper Beach is a good summer read for those lazy days when you want to lay in the hammock and get lost in a good book. The story moves along quickly and I was finished in only 2-3 sessions (and could have finished in one if I could have just show more convinced the animals and family to let me alone to read!)

There were good characters and bad. I really enjoyed the character of Dorie; the motherly restaurant owner who took teens under her wing when they needed a little TLC. And I really did not like the character of Gigi, the whiny attention-seeking cousin of the main character, Van. That said, her behavior was enabled by those around her. I have mixed feelings about the main character, Van. She seemed to be a slow learner, not really learning that talking things out instead of running away can solve a lot of problems.

But what really made this a less than stellar read for me was that there were a lot of loose ends I would have like to have had tied up. I would like to know a little more about Van and her father, and how their relationship proceeds. I also would like to know a bit more about Bud, the cop. And I really, really would like to know why Harold was even in the story, as there didn’t seem to be much point to his character.

This could make an interesting pick for book clubs looking for a summer book that is a quick, relatively light read, but still has plenty of fodder for discussion. There are discussion questions available at Reading Group Guides, or you can just make up your own. Whether you are looking for a summer book club selection, or just looking for a good summer read for yourself, this one is worth taking a look at!

My Rating: ★★★1/2 3-1/2 Stars

This book review is included in a tour by TLC Book Tours. I was provided a copy for review purposes. show less

A special thank you to LibraryThing and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A long-time fan of talented Shelly Noble, she once again delivers a story from the heart, WHISPER BEACH, an ideal summer beach read of complex relationships and friendships.

Vanessa (Van) lived at Whisper Beach, an idyllic beach town, growing up with a difficult childhood-- her dad an abusive alcoholic and in addition, she blamed him for her mother’s accidental death. A cousin, Gigi gave her money to escape the town and she moved to Manhattan, attended school, and later she became successful with her own business as a professional organizer. She never wanted to return to this place of bad memories.

Now, she receives the news from Gigi, show more her cousin’s husband has died and she returns after fifteen years to Whisper Beach to support her cousin. She plans for a quick visit to Jersey Shore; however convinced by Gigi and her friends Suze and Dorie to spend her vacation in Whisper Beach.

While in town she stays Dorie, owner of Blue Crab Restaurant, where she worked as a teen at the famous pier restaurant. Dorie was always there for her when she was younger. Van intends to only stay for a weekend, but her plans fall by the wayside as the troubles of this coastal town draw her beach, so she stays to help repair the restaurant before it goes into bankruptcy.

As they begin repairing the restaurant, she runs into her ex-boyfriend and he is ready to pick back up where they left off. Something happened years ago—the night when she saw Joe and someone else in his truck. Soon memories will return of the anger and rage she has pent up. Vanessa will need to face her past, as we meet all the people who crossed her path.

As the restaurant begins to thrive and Van reconnects with old friends, trouble comes from an unexpected source and she realizes she must face the decisions of her past or sacrifice this new life she has so carefully built. Lots of drama as each of the friends have issues; however, everything may not be as it appears. Can each of them move on and leave the past behind?

Noble sets the mood for an intriguing and mysterious story of something happening years ago. Slowly each character and a story unravels as we come to terms with the abusive memories from the past.

A heartfelt story of friends, reuniting in this idyllic beach town on the Jersey Shore, as they reevaluate their loyalty and friendship to one another. The books sets itself up for a continuation, so hoping to see more to come! show less

This seems to be the first novel in a series that follows Vanessa Moran, a young woman, who after fleeing her hometown of Whisper Beach has made a life as a successful organizational specialist in Manhattan. The death of her cousin’s husband brings her back to town after a 12 year absence in which most of the people who knew her thought she was dead. For Vanessa, better known as Van, ghosts of her past haunt her in every part of town. Expecting to embark on a 2 week vacation, Vanessa only intends to stay for a short time in Whisper Beach, she fully expects to get a relaxing stay at a luxury hotel, minus all the ghosts. She soon finds it increasingly difficult to extricate herself from her past, and she is starting to warm to the idea show more that that may not be such a bad thing. For Vanessa, she learns that all that she knows of the past may not be the full story.As an introduction to these characters the pacing is a bit slow in this story. I expect the pacing to pick up in further novels. I can relate to Vanessa and her need to escape from those who have hurt her in her past. Vanessa has a strong love interest here in childhood beau Joe, which we don’t see too much of since this is a starter novel in the storyline. I am intrigued enough to pursue the story into further novels. Thank you to Netgalley for the copy in exchange for an honest review. show less