"The Sea Keeper's Daughters"

by

Lisa Wingate

 

Description

From modern-day Roanoke Island to the sweeping backdrop of North Carolina’s Blue Ridge Mountains and Roosevelt’s WPA folklore writers, past and present intertwine to create an unexpected destiny. Restaurant owner Whitney Monroe is desperate to save her business from a hostile takeover. The inheritance of a decaying Gilded Age hotel on North Carolina’s Outer Banks may provide just the ray of hope she needs. But things at the Excelsior are more complicated than they seem. Whitney’s estranged stepfather is entrenched on the third floor, and the downstairs tenants are determined to save the historic building. Searching through years of stored family heirlooms may be Whitney’s only hope of quick cash, but will the discovery of an old necklace and a Depression-era love story change everything?

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Biography

Lisa Wingate is a former journalist, inspirational speaker, and the author of over twenty mainstream fiction novels, including the national bestseller, Tending Roses, now in its nineteenth printing. She is a seven-time ACFW Carol award nominee, a Christy Award nominee, an Oklahoma Book Award finalist, and a two-time Carol Award winner. Her novels are known for taking on gritty subjects while offering redemptive and uplifting themes. Recently, the group Americans for More Civility, a kindness watchdog organization, selected Lisa along with Bill Ford, Camille Cosby, and six others, as recipients of the National Civies Award, which celebrates public figures who work to promote greater kindness and civility in American life. More information about Lisa's novels can be found at www.Lisawingate.com or on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/LisaWingateAuthorPage?fref=ts  

My Thoughts ~

This is a trip back in time to the once prestigious hotel Whitney's family owned, which now belongs to her. Many decisions are to be made about what the hotel can do for her, and what she can do for the hotel. Included are mystery, intrigue, history and very detailed letters from the past, written by a member of the Federal Writers' Project. The story weaves two timelines together through those letters, bringing a great deal of interest to the protagonist and her family.

I had no idea this was part of a series of books. It reads very easily as a standalone, and swept me away from Michigan to the Outer Banks and the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina. Characters are strong, diverse, and numerous, but easy to follow as they are encountered. I loved the history and the stories of the very small group of people referred to as the Melungeons. Information obtained about these people is well researched and documented.

I thoroughly enjoyed this somewhat complicated book, a lengthy one. The plot developed at a pace that kept my attention throughout. It was difficult to put the book down as clues to the past led to a better understanding of the present. The main character frustrated me at times, but that is "who she is." She was clearly defined as her personality is as real as any other individual's. I highly recommend this interesting and entertaining book!

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from The Book Club Network For Readers Only program in exchange for my honest review. All opinions expressed are my own, and no monetary compensation was received for this review.