Author: Mary Ellen Taylor
Publisher: Montlake
Genre: Fiction
Source: Amazon

Goodreads: From The Brighter the Light author Mary Ellen Taylor comes the emotional story of a mother and daughter learning to endure life’s twists and turns as they grieve a loss and face an uncertain future.

When artist Dani Peterson learns she’s slowly losing her vision, she becomes unmoored. Her ex-husband died only months before, leaving Dani and her preteen daughter grief stricken. Suddenly, the life Dani built for her family on the Outer Banks feels like a painful reminder of all they’ve lost.

On a whim, Dani sells her waterfront home and buys an old farm inland near the Virginia state line. But Dani’s daughter recoils at the sudden, drastic change. The Outer Banks’ sun-swept beaches, pink dawns, and savage storms are all she’s ever known.

But Dani is resolute, and the pair move to Virginia to embark on a challenging renovation. That summer, their efforts to turn a run-down silo into an art studio bring forth new friends, new loves, and new challenges.

As mother and daughter navigate the fiercest storm of their lives, they learn that instead of waiting for the skies to clear, they can withstand the wind and rain, so long as they do it together.

Ope’s Opinion: I have read several books by Mary Ellen Taylor and enjoyed them, so when Amazon gave me the opportunity to read this, I did not read the synopsis closely – I wish I had. Everyone in this book was in the midst of grief – that I could handle, but it dragged me down. The part that I did not enjoy at all, was the ghost – I am not a fan of ghosts in any story.

I had no idea that there was a book ” The Brighter the Light ” that came before this one, so it read like a stand alone, but it would have been nice to have read that one first.

I did enjoy the setting, I am a huge fan of the beach and the Outer Banks is one of my favorite places – why you would leave there is beyond me. The ending is what you would expect.