A Love Story with Heart, Healing...and GhostsArtist T.J. MacGregor had come to the Seascape Inn to heal. To find peace. There had been a sense of something almost magical about the place on his first visit years ago, and after suffering yet another painful loss and a crushing personal blow, coming back to Seascape had offered him the only hope he could find. That was nine months ago. He still hasn't left.He can't.Whenever he tries to so much as step over Seascape's property line, his body is seared by a crushing and bone-deep cold, a brutal cold that strips him of consciousness and leaves him passed out and shivering. His hope has become his prison. His haven a hell. And he has no idea how to break free.Two years ago, Maggie Wright's cousin Carolyn died in a mysterious car accident that Maggie suspected wasn't all that accidental. Only now can Maggie follow through on a promise she made, a promise to investigate what really happened, to find out why Carolyn was where she was when the car crashed, and maybe even discover who had caused the crash. Maggie had her suspicions and they began and ended with her cousin's fiancé, the respected artist Tyler James, also known as T.J. MacGregor. But she has to find him to question him.She tries his studio in New Orleans first, but instead of answers, or the man himself, she finds a painting that practically reaches out and embraces her in a cocoon of peace and protection. A painting that shouldn't still exist, if the stories of Carolyn's accident are true. It is a piece she couldn't come close to affording on her own, but the sense of serenity she feels when she gazes at it is one she hasn't felt since she was a child. In that instant, Maggie knows she's going to the place in the painting, the Seascape Inn, for a stay. It is almost a compulsion. Or a quest for something she hadn't realized she desperately needed.It's her good luck that the very man she seeks to question about her cousin literally trips over her as she is toting her luggage to her room in the inn just days later. Well, it's some sort of luck, at least, as meeting the surly and antagonistic man who probably had a hand in her cousin's death doesn't exactly strike her in any way good. In fact, he pushes every one of her seriously annoyed buttons, and despite the situation...or maybe because of it...she revels in doing her level best to return the favor.She hasn't even gotten a chance to pin him down for answers before something...odd...about the inn they share starts to seep ever-so-slowly into her consciousness. There is peace - at times - and a feeling of being watched and weighed when no human eyes are around. Then there are those episodes she sees from her window. Inexplicable episodes of...something...when she spots T.J. down by the beach, when she sees him try - flailing and batting at an unseen assailant as he does - to step across some line she can't fathom. When he passes out and collapses from the effort. Every time.Something is very weird at the Seascape Inn. Something Maggie doesn't understand but can't deny. And it's starting to draw her closer to the one man who not only obviously wants nothing to do with her, but who may have been responsible for the death of her cousin.~*~For all that I read, or maybe because of it, I'm rarely surprised by a book. There are always going to be books that are better than I expected, some that aren't as good as I'd anticipated, and occasionally a book blurb doesn't accurately represent the book's contents. That's just how it goes and it's not what I mean by being surprised. That's a part of it, maybe, but it's not the whole.Beyond the Misty Shore surprised me. It was a wonderful love story. And it was so much more. It was a ghost story. A mystery. A sexy romance. It was quirky. Funny. Had moments of tragic loss and gentle hope. It had cute characters with small-town appeal. Stubborn characters with sardonic wit. It was weird. Even a little scary sometimes. It was written with poise and grace and had passages that were so beautifully lyrical they were almost poetic. It was, in a word, unique.I wasn't expecting to be so captivated by the creep-factor. Or for the characters to grow on me so quickly. Or for the obviously haunted inn to be so subtly and sublimely woven into a story centered in the gift of timeless, selfless love and healing hearts. This book was just so much more than I expected on every front. It exceeded all expectation.The relationship between Maggie and MacGregor, tense at first, then warming, but quirky and fun throughout, enchanted me. Both are wounded. Both find solace at Seascape and eventually with each other. Their neediness and yearning for peace was intrinsic to them but didn't make them grasping or needy. Their wounded wariness made them real. The metaphorical teeth they bared at each other because of it made them a lot of fun. And the sparks they struck off each other made me chuckle...and eventually pant.I loved them for their humor when they needed to keep the fear of several big unknowns at bay. I felt for how their growing feelings for each other stirred their panic over their loss of control. They tease each other, and fight loudly, and I adored that. I understood who they are and sympathized with how damaged they were. They were as close to perfect for each other and as characters as any I've read in recent memory.The grandmotherly Miss Hattie, caretaker of Seascape Inn, was a charming enigma. The woo-woo element of the place was both chilling and heartening at turns. More than one force was at work in the place, not all my questions were answered about that, and I sure did spend a good portion of the book debating on whether the haunting elements were well-intentioned or not. The book clung tight to its mysteries, for sure. All of that was icing on an already pretty fantastic cake, because it kept me thinking.And simply, it was very beautifully written. It perfectly captured the scene and setting, the history and the mystery, and the deep, complex, sometimes conflicting emotions that are startingly realistic despite the fantastical situation. Powerful emotions, hearty story of love, loss, forgiveness and hope, sweeping romance. This book, quite literally, had it all. I loved it.If you're a fan of the chilling spine-tingle of haunted houses, characters you want to bop on the head while they make you laugh, groan, and breathe heavy, and romance so powerful it makes your chest ache, this book is for you. If you love stories about the healing of wounded hearts and the magic of the most powerful sort of love, this book is for you. If you like two characters who squabble their way headlong into a relationship while the world around them watches and gossips as small towns do, this book is for you. If you like exquisitely strong writing that pulls you into a story that has all of that, this book is for you. It was, unquestionably, for me.Disclosure: An ARC of this book was provided to me by Bell Bridge Books via NetGalley. This rating, review, and all included thoughts and comments are my own.~*~*~*~Reviewed for One Good Book Deserves Another.
I have reviewed this book; the review can be found here, on Booklikes, and here, on my blog. However, I will no longer be posting reviews on Goodreads, due to its recent changes to terms of service and, far worse, the boneheaded and incomprehensible way it is proceeding with the new policy. Deleting content, almost randomly, and without warning (whatever they may have said) is wrong, and a half-hearted apology later doesn't make it all better. Failing to provide a sitewide announcement is wrong. Failing to address users' very legitimate concern over the situation is wrong. Also wrong – worse in some ways – is the failure of Goodreads to adequately pursue the possibility that users real names, addresses, and email addresses are being harvested from giveaways and distributed. The staff is aware of the possibility, and doesn't care. If this is indeed true, I don't think I need to point out the dangers inherent in such a list, do I? Not to mention the illegality of it… I'm not going to leave GR while I have good friends remaining here, but I will no longer post anything but links for reviews. I'm not what anyone would call a heavy hitter, but I have breached the top reviewers lists from time to time. I have a healthy number of people following my reviews (thanks, all). If nothing else, I want to set an example. I will also no longer perform librarian functions, however much missing covers and bad information annoys me: I will no longer contribute to a site which cares so little about its users. Again, I'm no heavy hitter as a librarian – but I had about 1500 edits to my name, and there are at least a couple dozen I could have made in the past few weeks and refrained. I was an asset to the site, albeit a small one. I'm not anymore. That is what Goodreads' actions have caused.I will also be posting the gist of this message on my blog, on LibraryThing, on Booklikes, and anywhere else I can think of. And when I review for Netgalley from now on I will state that I no longer post reviews on GR, and why. It may not affect the situation here – but people still don't know what's going on (because Goodreads isn't telling them). In good conscience I can't do anything less. My friends and followers will be seeing some version of this message a lot over the next days and weeks. Sorry.
Do You like book Beyond The Misty Shore (2011)?
Review written for www.books-n-kisses.comI want so badly to tell you about this book and why you should read it but there are not enough words to tell you how wonderful this book is. It is rare I give a book 5 stars but this book is most deserving. There is something magical about this book. It feels like a romance novel from years gone by even though it is set in the present. It makes you believe you are there and watching the love unfold instead of turning pages. Seascape Inn is a place you want to visit.This book reads like a movie. Have you seen the movies "Somewhere In Time" or "The Two Worlds of Jenny Logan"? OK this is dating myself but then if you have not seen them you should. Anyway, this book has the feel of these timeless movies. The softness of love as it grows between the characters and the mystical spirit that is there to guide not haunt make this book worth the read. More than worth the read it is worth owning the book and never letting it go. Luckily this is the 1st in a trilogy and I can not wait to enjoy the other two books.
—Kimberly
This is obviously a romance with a dash of mystery and a touch of ghosts. Maine is a wonderful setting, particularly for a paranormal romance. This one just didn’t work for me, although I can clearly see how it will be able to find an audience.I found the writing, particularly the romance, to ring a bit….old-fashioned and conservative. The characters all seem to speak in the same speaking style as the elderly woman who manages the inn.Similarly, the way the entire town is willing to appease the local pastor when it comes to things like alcohol and condoms kind of enraged me.So, ignoring the fact that this book is far too conservative for me, there is one other issue that bothered me. I found the mystery of Carolyn’s death entirely confusing. At first I thought that Maggie came to Seascape to investigate the death because Carolyn died up there, but toward the end of the book, it sounds like she died in New Orleans. Which was it? And if she did die in New Orleans, then why did Maggie go to Seascape in the first place? Also, people think the car crash was mysterious because the painting she had with her was undamaged, but then toward the end of the book they say no the undamaged painting wasn’t found at the car, it’s just that it had disappeared and reappeared. Or something. I’m still very confused about everything about Carolyn, which is problematic given that this is the central conflict keeping our romantic couple apart. The mystery should be mysterious but not illogical.Overall, this is a romance novel that was not for me, but will appeal to more conservative romance readers. People looking for an old-timey style romance with a touch of ghosts will appreciate it.Check out my full review. (Link will be live June 24, 2012).Note: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
—Amanda
This was one of those books that has a great mix of genres ...some romance, a paranormal element and a mystery....so much promise. Sadly it just wasn't able to completely deliver for me on that promise. Although on the whole the book was enjoyable, the Seascape Inn and surrounding town delightful, the romance sweet and the paranormal elements mysterious...I just was left feeling unsatisfied.The pace of the book seemed very slow. Not a whole lot happens and when it does happen it seems drawn out and repetitive. There were many points were I contemplated putting it down, but the mystery did keep me interested enough to hang on and I was rooting Maggie and TJ as a couple.Speaking of Maggie and TJ: I really liked both of the main characters as well as the secondary character of the innkeeper...by the middle of the book I sort of wanted to strangle them all. The romantic conflict seemed just way to drawn out for my taste...beyond the point where it was believable. And the innkeeper's insistence upon not meddling bordered on injury in my opinion. Thank goodness they seemed to come to their senses by the end and realize that they were meant to be together.The paranormal aspect also completely puzzled me. I could not for the life of me wrap my mind around the entity's intent. It seemed to go from goodnatured and helpful one chapter to malicious in the next. And how did were the entity and the effect of the house related? I'm still not 100% sure.I'm sure this book would appeal to those who like sweet romances with a punch of paranormal and don't mind a slow pace.
—Melissa ( Melissa's Eclectic Bookshelf)
