My Rating
Book Review
Have you ever had a few moments to yourself watching the clouds or sitting near a river bank and watching the flow of water or just counting stars in the night sky? Not that I have experienced it much but it gives a feeling of serenity and sublime peace to think about. Rebecca Alexander’s Secrets of The Cottage By The Sea (The Island Of Lost Secrets) is one of those books that make you crave for such tranquility.
Welcome to Morwen Island, all of you. Welcome to the story of Patience and Elowen and the Kittiwake Cottage!
I have always loved dual-time narratives, but most times it is always the past that holds my interest rather than the story in the present, but Rebecca Aleander’s writing is such that both timelines are utterly captivating. The story of Patience and a lone young boy Dutch saved from the seas during WWII and then the story of Elowen finding herself on the Island and her love with Bran holds the readers’ interest magnificently. The island and its inhabitants and the whole lot of lovely characters residing there feel like our own. The reading experience was so immersive that I wanted Morwen Island to be somewhere nearby where I can walk around and experience the island in all its glory.
Essentially about secrets that are made and the repercussions that may affect generations to come, Secrets Of The Cottage By The Sea also explores relationships and friendships. For starters, Patience is a grandmother every kid would love to have around and as a teacher probably the world’s best. Then there is the sweet and loving romance between Patience and Dutch so touching and heart-warming, and everyone on the Island is kind of aware of the truth but ignores it for the sake of the warm friendly relationship they all seem to share. Elowen arrives on the island to rediscover her roots but as she settles back down to the place which was her childhood home, she realizes slowly the kind of hold the place has on her and her innermost desire to call Kittiwake cottage her home.
Grab a blanket and curl around on your favorite sofa and just be transported to Morwen Island.
Delightful beyond words!
Book Blurb
As Ellie stood on the boat, watching the small island come into view, she wondered what awaited her on shore. What secrets would she uncover in this place?
When Ellie Roberts inherits a cottage on a remote Scilly Isle, she’s shocked. She’s never heard of the previous owner, Patience Ellis, so why did she leave Ellie her legacy?
Overwhelmed with unanswered questions, Ellie travels to the isolated island. Windswept from the boat, salt spray still on her skin, she searches for Patience’s whitewashed cottage, hidden behind overgrown ivy. But when she steps inside, the house feels strangely familiar, and she has a memory of laughing as a child with her beloved mother in the window seat overlooking the sea… The mother she lost when she was only a child.
Determined to find out more, Ellie meets enigmatic local Branok Shore. While at first he seems uninterested, he believes he can help. Charmed by his green eyes, and curious about his past on the island, he and Ellie grow closer, but Ellie knows she needs to understand her own story before she can embrace the future. And when Branok prises open Patience’s dresser, filled with letters from the Second World War, Ellie discovers the shocking secret Patience was forced to hide – and the truth that will change her own life forever.
The letters tell the story of a brutal storm on a dark night in the depths of war, and of an injured soldier who begged Patience for help, and asked her to make an impossible choice…
But the letters don’t hold the answers Ellie so desperately needs. Why did Patience leave her home to her? And how can Ellie have memories of the cottage, when she’s never been there before? When Ellie finally uncovers the truth, will she be strong enough to put the fragments of her life back together?
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Many thanks to Net Galley, Bookouture, and the author for a chance to read and review this book. All opinions are expressed voluntarily.
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The setting sounds wonderful.
Oh truly, I loved how the author captures the magic of the place.
What a great review. You know how to sell a book!
Oh my, that’s high praise indeed. Thank you Noelle♥️♥️♥️
Nice and interesting blog ❤️ I hope you also follow mine and WE GROW TOGETHER. 👋🇪🇦
Thank you or visiitng the blog and ur lovely comment!