Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
So I had been reading a ton of good literature lately and when the opportunity came to review The Inn at Oceans Edge, I was ready for a change. A new suspense novel by Colleen Coble, The Inn at Oceans Edge reminded me of a V.C. Andrews novel. In a good way :).
From the publisher:
In 1989, Claire Dellamare disappeared from her own fourth birthday party at the Hotel Tourmaline on the island of Folly Shoals, Maine. She showed up a year later at the same hotel, with a note pinned to her dress but no explanation. Nobody knows where Claire spent that year—and until now, Claire didn’t even know she had ever been missing.
But when Claire returns to the Hotel Tourmaline for a business meeting with her CEO father, disturbing memories begin to surface . . . despite her parents’ best efforts to keep them forgotten.
Luke Rocco lost his mother under equally mysterious circumstances—at the same time Claire disappeared. After a chance encounter reveals the unlikely link between them, Claire and Luke set out together to uncover the truth about what happened that fateful year.
With flashbacks swimming just beneath her consciousness and a murderer threatening her safety, Claire’s very life depends on unscrambling her past . . . even if her family refuses to acknowledge it. Someone—maybe everyone—is hiding something from Claire Dellamare, and it will cost her everything to drag the truth out into the light.
I don’t usually post the plot from the book jacket, but I want to try to avoid spoilers because it was a really good book! As I mentioned, it reminded me of a classic V.C. Andrews novel in the sense of families with money doing things that are sketchy at best. It didn’t have the graphic depravity & major human faults, though. The connection of Claire to Luke was heart-warming and really necessary to kind of “redeem” Claire’s past, if you will.
The plot itself was excellent. I’m usually pretty decent at coming up with plot twists or guessing the ending but this one caught me completely broadside. She did a fabulous job of revealing information very deliberately so as to make it a surprise. Ms. Coble also did a great job with the setting on the island and it really made me want to visit.
If you are looking for a good suspense novel that won’t mess with your head (in a bad way), The Inn at Oceans Edge would be an excellent start. I would highly recommend it for a summer/beach/pool read!
