There is only one thing that Katie Ellis wanted out of her divorce, her dog Bark. She let her husband have the house and everything in it. Katie packed up Bark and her meager belongings into her beat-up Honda Accord and heads to her Grandmother Nan's house in Port St. Lucie, Florida. Nan has always been her harbor in the storm. She took Katie in after her father died and her mother went off to pursue her career. And now she is taking her in after her divorce. Katie, a costume designer, eagerly agrees to help Nan and her eclectic group of friends make costumes for their mermaid reunion. But where would they wear mermaid costumes, in the water? Katie has been deathly afraid of water ever since her father died after Katie goaded him into swimming. And she couldn't save him. Katie's ex-boyfriend, a documentary filmmaker, enters the mix after Katie reaches out to him for filming advice. Causing Katie's anxieties to launch into hyper-drive. Will Katie ever be able to get past her crippling anxieties and find the happiness she doesn't believe that she deserves?
I visited Florida for the first time this past year and my trip took me to Port St. Lucie. I was thrilled to discover that
Swimming For Sunlight was set in a place that I had actually visited. Forty-Three year old me really struggled to find empathy for Katie. The big scene that had me railing involved a bathroom visit at the house of Luka's friend, a tampon, and Katie's insecurities. I kept thinking to myself that she was being ridiculous. And then I remembered the age difference and I think that I probably experienced the same kind of anxiety of leaving behind evidence of menstruation at a guys house when I was twenty-seven, too. I loved Katie's relationship with her grandmother and her grandmother's crazy group of friends. That is exactly how I want my "golden" years to be, carefree and surrounded by friends. They provided a support network that a woman of any age would be lucky to have around them. There was some great character development for Katie and I was pleased to see the way her story ended.
Bottom Line -
Swimming For Sunlight is a "Beach Read" about a perfectly imperfect woman trying to swim for sunlight and put her life back together after some really unfortunate and tragic events that have shaped her life.
Details:
- Swimming For Sunlight by Allie Larkin
- On Instagram
- Pages: 352
- Publisher: Atria Books
- Publication Date: 4.23.19
- Buy it Here!
- Thank you to Netgalley for the book in exchange for a review.
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