SUNRISE ON HALF MOON BAY
Author: Robyn Carr
ISBN: 9780778309482
Publication Date: 4/14/2020
Publisher: MIRA Books
Sometimes the happiness we’re looking for has been there
all along…
Adele and Justine have never been close. Born
twenty years apart, Justine was already an adult when Addie was born. The
sisters love each other but they don’t really know each other.
When Addie dropped out of university to care
for their ailing parents, Justine, a successful lawyer, covered the expenses.
It was the best arrangement at the time but now that their parents are gone, the
future has changed dramatically for both women.
Addie had great plans for her life but has
been worn down by the pressures of being a caregiver and doesn’t know how to
live for herself. And Justine’s success has come at a price. Her marriage is
falling apart despite her best efforts.
Neither woman knows how to start life over but
both realize they can and must support each other the way only sisters can.
Together they find the strength to accept their failures and overcome their
challenges. Happiness is within reach, if only they have the courage to fight
for it.
Set in
the stunning coastal town of Half Moon Bay, California, Robyn Carr’s new novel
examines the joys of sisterhood and the importance of embracing change.
Excerpt
“Has it ever occurred to Scott to get a
serious job?” Adele asked. “I mean, forgive me, since I haven’t had a serious
job in my life.”
Justine smiled
patiently. “Your jobs have all been serious, and without you we’d have been
lost. If you hadn’t dedicated yourself to Mom’s care, it would have cost our
whole family a fortune. We’re indebted to you. And I agree it would help if
Scott worked more than part-time, but I think that ship sailed years ago. He’s
only worked part-time since Amber and Olivia came along.”
Adele adored her
nieces, ages sixteen and seventeen. She was much closer to them than she was to
Justine.
“I’m sorry you’re
going through this,” Adele said. “I wish there was something I could do.”
“Well, the thing is,
the future is looking very uncertain. I might need your help,” Justine said.
“What could I do?”
she asked.
“Adele, I don’t like
to push you, but you have to get it together. We have to make some decisions
about what you’re going to do, what we’ll do with the house. I realize what I’ve
given you for your hard work hasn’t been much, but I don’t know how long I can
keep it up—paying for the maintenance on this house, the taxes, a modest income
for you… I don’t want to panic prematurely,” Justine said. “Maybe I’ll be able
to work everything out without too much hassle, but if I run into trouble…
Money could get very tight, Addie. All those promises I made—that I’d help
financially while you fix up the house, that I’d give you my half of the
proceeds when and if you sold it… I might not be able to come through. I know,
I know, I promised you it would be yours after all of your sacrifice, but you
wouldn’t want me to ignore the girls’ tuition or not be able to make the
mortgage…”
“But Justine!” Adele
said. “That’s all I have! And I was considering finishing school myself!”
Though if she was honest, she had no plans of any kind.
Justine reached out
to her, squeezing her hand. “We’re a long way from me needing money. I just
felt it was only fair to tell you what’s going on. If we’re in this together,
we can both make it. I swear, I will make this all work out. I’ll make it
right.”
But as Adele knew,
they had never really been “in it together” in the past, and they wouldn’t be
for very long in the future. Addie’s dedication to their parents allowed
Justine to devote herself to her career. For that matter, it should be Justine
and Scott shoring each other up. At least until Justine had a better idea. But
where was Scott today? Golfing? Biking? Bowling?
Adele realized she
had some difficult realities to face. When she dropped out of school to help
her mother care for her father, she wasn’t being completely altruistic. She’d
needed a place to run away to, hiding an unplanned pregnancy and covering her
tattered heart. She’d never told her family that her married lover—her
psychology professor—had broken down in tears when he explained he couldn’t
leave his wife to marry Adele, that the college would probably fire him for
having an affair with a student. For her, going home was the only option.
At the time Justine
and Scott had been riding the big wave and didn’t lust after the small, old
house in Half Moon Bay. That house was chump change to them. So, they worked
out a deal. Adele had become her mother’s guardian with a power of attorney.
But the will had never been adjusted to ref lect just one beneficiary rather
than two. In the case of the death of both parents, Adele and Justine would
inherit equal equity in the eighty-year-old house and anything left of the life
insurance. At the time, of course, neither Adele nor Justine had ever
considered the idea that Adele would be needed for very long. But before Adele
knew it, eight years had been gobbled up. She was thirty-two and had been
caring for her parents since she was twenty-four.
Adele, as guardian,
could have escaped by turning over the house, pension, social security to a
care facility for her mother and gone out on her own, finding herself a better
job and her own place to live. She wasn’t sure if it was her conscience or just
inertia that held her in place for so long.
“I just wanted to
make sure you understood the circumstances before anything more happens,”
Justine said. “And since you don’t have any immediate plans, please don’t list
the house for sale or anything. Give me a chance to figure out what’s next. I
have children. I’ll do whatever I can to protect them and you. They’re your
nieces! They love you so much. I’m sure you want them to get a good education
as much as I do.”
Does anyone want me
to have a real chance to start over? Adele asked herself. This conversation
sounded like Justine was pulling out of their deal.
“I’ll think about
this, but Scott has responsibilities, too,” she pointed out.
“He’s been out of the
full-time workforce for so long…” Justine said.
“Just the same, we
all have to live up to our adult commitments and responsibilities. And you’ve
had a highfalutin job for a long time. You’ve made a lot of money. You can
recover. I haven’t even begun.”
“I need your help, Addie,” Justine said. “You need to come up with
a plan, something we can put in motion. Make plans for your next step, put a
little energy into this old house, make suggestions of what we should do with
it, everything. Let’s figure out what to do before I find myself short and
unable to help. I’m sorry, but we have to move forward.”
Excerpted from Sunrise on Half Moon Bay, Copyright © 2020
by Robyn Carr. Published by MIRA Books.
What I thought about Sunrise on Half Moon Bay
I picked this book to review mostly because Half Moon Bay is one of my most favorite places on this earth. I haven't read this author before so I really didn't know what to expect. I'm happy to say that this book was fabulous! I may have to read it again.
Sunrise on Half Moon Bay is the story of two sisters at a crossroads in their lives. Adele has spent the last eight years in the Half Moon Bay home where she grew up taking care of her two parents in the last years of their lives. She's basically put her life on hold to take care of them. When both pass on, she's left wondering what she will do with her life. Her sister Justine, twenty years older and an accomplished corporate lawyer has taken care of her financial needs for the last eight years, and the college degree she once started is still unfinished. She has a lot to think about, but Adele is a bit averse to decision making and is so fearful of making a mistake, she's almost paralyzed until she gets herself together and slowly starts to build her life.
Justine thought her marriage was solid and that she was going to grow old with her college sweetheart and husband. But when that doesn't quite work out as planned, she too has a life to rebuild.
I loved how this story is told in dual point of view between the two sisters. The pace of this book was amazing. I was pulled in immediately to the story and then kept on the edge of my seat wondering how these two sisters were going to navigate the challenges in front of them. But most of all, there were some fascinating themes to this book -- sisterhood, friendship, finding yourself, finding love and the one that really had be glued to the pages -- love in a long time marriage and how that changes over the course of a thirty years.
I really loved this story. I need to read more from this author as I really liked the writing in this book. Overall, I recommend this standalone if you like a book that has something to say about life and love through the eyes of two sisters who find their friendship in the process.
An ARC was provided for review.
Robyn Carr is an award-winning, #1 New York Times bestselling author
of more than sixty novels, including highly praised women's fiction such
as Four Friends and The View From Alameda Island and
the critically acclaimed Virgin River, Thunder Point and Sullivan's Crossing
series. Virgin River is now a Netflix Original series. Robyn lives in Las
Vegas, Nevada. Visit her website at www.RobynCarr.com.
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