Beach Reads
By Cindy Bilbao
Getting away to the beach ends up being anything but peaceful in these two mysteries!
Sunset Beach
By Mary Kay Andrews
Drue Campbell has inherited her grandparents’ beach bungalow in the town of Sunset Beach on Florida’s West Coast but the circumstances that surround her move to Florida are less than cheery. Her mother has died and her estranged father wants to be part of her life again now that he has married a much younger woman, who just happens to be a high school friend that Drue never really liked. To make matters worse, the charming cottage that she remembered as a child is now run-down and storm-damaged.
As Drue settles into her new life and new job at her father’s law office, she meets Yvonne Howington, a former client of her dad’s company. Yvonne was hoping for a multi-million dollar settlement for the death of her daughter, Jazmin, who left behind an adorable little girl. Drue becomes curious about this case and, feeling bad for Yvonne, uses her investigative talents to find out more about Jazmin’s death.
She earns the respect of the town’s police detective, but not before there is quite a bit of suspense when characters in the story show their true colors.
As Drue becomes entangled in the confusing web of facts surrounding this case, she also uncovers an unsolved missing-person case from decades ago in the small town of Sunset Beach. This fun beach read is hard to put down as you are drawn into the mystery with all the unanswered questions and mayhem. You will find yourself cheering for Drue as she bravely tackles these obstacles and tries to solve a murder.
Wrecked
By Carol Higgins Clark
Go to Bermuda? Or go to Cape Cod? That is the exciting question that Regan and her husband are trying to answer as they plan to celebrate their first wedding anniversary. Because Regan is a private investigator and her husband Jack is with the New York City Police Department, what they really want is a quiet stay at his parents’ house in Cape Cod while nobody else is there.
But things don’t quite end up that way right from the very beginning when they arrive during a fierce storm. The house’s caretaker, Skip, is caught peeping in the window at Regan while supposedly checking for leaks. Later when he comes running into the house saying he’s found the next door neighbor lying in a heap at the bottom of the dune stairs, Regan and Jack rush out to investigate and help. But when they arrive, the tide has come all the way up to the stairs and the woman is gone, leaving behind a stack of apology cards sitting on her dining room table ready to be sent out.
This is a fast read, perfect to grab when you want a few relaxing hours reading. This is Book 13 in the Regan Reilly Mysteries series. You can read this story without having read the previous books in this series.
This article appeared in the Beachcombing Magazine July/August 2021 issue.
