Member Reviews
This follows the complex lives of three found sister and how they cope with the trials and tribulations that happen throughout their lives. The formatting of the book was hard to follow but nonetheless the story of friendship prevails.
Thank you NetGalley for the Arc!
I was very happy to receive this book prior to publication, since I've read Ms. Lloyd before and enjoyed the books. The title and cover of The Sisters of Blue Mountain Beach looked so GREAT, I dove in as soon as I got it downloaded. Unfortunately, this book, in my opinion was not a beach read.
I found the book difficult to read since there were no chapters, but it seemed like maybe since this was an ARC that the formatting was still going to take place...maybe? So much repetition. We learned details of the 'chosen' sisters over and over again. The best/important thing to know about....fill in the blank...began to be my least favorite phrase in the whole book.
The last part of the book is notable and I'll not spoil the ending for those who read to the end. I had to force myself to get there, but it is worth the read.
Three stars, but only because of the ending.
I really struggled with this. It was so hard to follow. I didn’t know what was happening and with who. There wasn’t any chapters which didn’t help at all, the sisters seemed to be angry at each other but I couldn’t work out why and it didn’t seem to get resolved. There were some interviews in the story but because of lack of chapters I didn’t know why. I didn’t care about these characters and ended up skim reading to finish.
I was looking forward to reading this one so am sad I didn’t enjoy it,
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an opportunity to read this book.
"The Sisters of Blue Mountain Beach" left me baffled and frustrated. From the onset, the premise of three sisters who aren't really sisters seemed promising, but the execution fell flat. The narrative lacked coherence, leaving me confused about the relationships and the plot's direction. The erratic format further added to the confusion, making it difficult to stay engaged. Instead of building anticipation, the impending hurricane felt like a relief, signaling the end of my struggle with the book. Overall, the novel failed to deliver a compelling story or engaging characters, leaving me disappointed and longing for a more coherent read.
Two cousins and a friend join together for their yearly vacation at a beach house on the Florida gulf coast. Arden is vastly wealthy and owns the house. Cilla is fighting cancer. Mary Fran is widowed and recently learned of her deceased husband's affair. Their usual dynamic is upset by their respective problems. Faced with an impending hurricane, their decisions could be tragic.
One big problem with the book ARC is that the chapters are not clearly defined. The additional comments of the coastal town dwellers feel out of place and add nothing to the plot. There is a large amount of repetition that tends to annoy.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
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This could have been a wonderful thought-provoking novel had it not been so difficult to navigate. The lack of formatting had the book feeling like it was one long run-on paragraph. There were multiple POV, but they were almost impossible to distinguish.
From what I could tell, each chapter was alternately allocated to a sister and their acquaintances, and while it was interesting, there was a lot of repetition throughout.
I went into this knowing it was an Advanced Readers Copy, but it was the first time receiving one so completely disjointed that I had a headache by the end.
I loved the premise of the story but did not enjoy the struggle of reading it. I sincerely hope all these issues will be addressed before the release date.
Thank you to Netgally and Rebelle Press for the advanced copy. My review was voluntary.
I enjoy a good beach read book. Three sister-friends are spending their annual two week vacation at Blue Mountain Beach.
Each is dealing with major changes in their lives, their stories revealed in alternating chapters for a two week period lending with to a hurricane. The book is hard to read as it does not flow well, it is more like a a narrator telling a story at a high level. I could not get invested into the characters or the story because of how choppy the book is written. I understand this is an advanced reader copy and I am hoping these type of situations are cleared up and smoothed out prior to publishing. I do thank Netgallley, the author and the publisher for the opportunity.
I did not like any of this. The writing style was not for me, and the formatting was like nothing I've ever read. The combination of the two made this very hard to get through, let alone enjoy. I just couldn't do it. This wouldn't be something I would necessarily recommend, but I do think it would be a good read for the right reader. That reader just wasn't me, unfortunately.
Thank you, NetGalley and Rebelle Press, for the opportunity to read and review this advanced copy.
I picked The Sisters of Blue Mountain Beach to read because I love books about the fun at the beach. I read the description about book and thought it would be different than it was. I expected a good beach read up until something went awry when the hurricane arrived.
While I realize this is an advanced copy, the first thing I found jarring was there weren’t chapters, it just all blended together. That is distracting because you don’t know where you are and if the point of view and person talking has changed. In addition to that it felt like the story just kept repeating over and over and over. There’s a part where we are learning about Mary Fran at the beginning and it says 4 times that “The important thing to know about Mary Frank is…” Then it’s repeated again a few pages after as if the reader won’t be able to remember. It was like this throughout the book.
I forced myself to finish this book because it was an advanced reader copy, but it did not get any better.
I appreciate being given the opportunity to read this book by NetGalley and the Publisher.
A great read that is well written, thought provoking and beautifully set. The characters are 3 dimensional and believable; topped off with a twist!
Thanks to NetGalley and Rebelle Press for access to this title. All opinions expressed are my own.
This is the story of three women - Arden, Cilla, and Mary Fran. They are not sisters by blood but by choice. As they navigate the ups and downs of their lives, a hurricane approaches, and they must face it together.
Frankly, I wouldn't say I liked anything about this book. It was repetitive. The omniscient narrator might have known all the thoughts and feelings of the character but I felt unmoved. I always keep in mind that I am not reading a finished copy. That being said, I would have appreciated better spacing surrounding the first-person accounts of the people after the hurricane.
I don't give one-star ratings often, but this book and I cannot coexist.
Expected Publication Date 21/05/24
Goodreads Review 20/04/24
#30Abookclub #NetGalley.
I thought this would be like a fun beach read (queue in Emily Henry or Elin Hilderbrand), but this was kind of a bit not like that?
It felt predictable (okay sure say what you want about my other beach read authors, but their stories are always something I gush over, and cannot get enough of).
This was a 'nothing happens' then 'everything happens' then just honestly, weird. There was a hurricane at some point, maybe? But I never got to it there was so much fluff, and just blah.
Some of my top take aways:
-There weren't any chapters either (which I know it's an ARC, but still, I felt there should have been some separation?).
-Nothing was resolved, you didn't get that feel good ending...
-They are actually not as young as you think they are... they are older women, but it is written like they are 30ish.
-It drug on so much about this fluff stuff.
I had a hard time really getting into this, so it became a DNF around 53%. I couldn't get into it, and honestly, when I struggle to get into a book, I stop. The world is wide, there are millions of books, this wasn't the one for me.
Thank you NetGalley and publisher for my E-ARC in exchange for my honest review.
Having 4 sisters of my own, I absolutely love a book about sisters. Three sister are once again at the beach and they start having to deal with family relationships good and back romance, disappointments, love, friendship. Does growing up close change as you get older. Will you slowly grow apart or will you grow close. Life gets in the way of our familial relationships and this has happened to these sisters. Will they be able to get back what they use to have or just stay as family aquaintnences. This book was great and it made really think about my relationships with my sisters.
Three sister-friends are spending their annual two week vacation at Blue Mountain Beach.
Each is dealing with major changes in their lives, their stories revealed in alternating chapters for a
two week period lending with to a hurricane. Will the sisterhood bond hold as secrets are revealed?
#TheSistersofBlueMountainBeach #NetGalley
A story of three sisters, who each have their own lives, but need to reach each out for another.
Although the woman aren’t really sisters, they rely on each other as they go through life with all the things that life throws at them, like a hurricane.
The lead up to the hurricane, makes each woman look,at their lives and what is happening in it.
The Sisters of Blue Mountain Beach takes place at none other than - the beach!. We follow three “sisters” , all dealing with the complexities of life, as they share a house at the beach in anticipation of an impending hurricane. While this storyline felt very predictable, it is probably exactly what someone else is looking for. Wouldn’t recommend it to everyone, but certainly wouldn’t discourage it either.
Thank you NetGalley & Rebelle Press for this ARC!
Kalan Chapman Lloyd's "The Sisters of Blue Mountain Beach" narrates the complex journey of three close friends facing life's trials, including infidelity, cancer, divorce within a Ponzi scheme, and the death of a deceitful husband, all set against the backdrop of an impending hurricane. The novel's unique storytelling style, with chapters alternating between the perspectives of each friend and their acquaintances, initially draws interest but soon proves disjointed and challenging to follow. The narrative, filled with jealousy, lies, and health struggles, strains believability and makes it difficult to connect with the characters. Despite an appealing beach setting, the execution—marked by a fragmented style and uneven pacing—makes for a demanding read that struggles to engage fully. The attempt to weave the characters' experiences through shared meals and mutual disdain falls short, lacking the cohesion and depth needed for a compelling beach read.
This book overall really bored me and felt very predictable. I wasn’t really enjoying this book so it took me a while to finish.
Loved this one! I think we will be seeing it as a highly-sought after pick for a lot of book clubs. I highly recommend this unique story.
It took me awhile to get into the book. I was having a difficult time getting into the plot. Overall a decent read, but I would not put this on the top of my list.