When the end of a relationship brings eighteen-year-old Sam back to the Cornish Island where he was born, he’s forced to face dark family secrets lurking just below the surface.
Meeting Tryste, a fisherman with eyes like thunderstorms, provides Sam with a distraction from the truth about his father, but Sam’s wounds run deep, and he’s worried about having his heart broken again. While fighting his feelings, he’s haunted by eerie visions of a pale woman who lures him beneath the waves.
Soon, it becomes hard to tell dreams from reality, and when he wakes drenched in saltwater, Sam realizes he inherited more than just his father’s face.
Embracing the truth may mean losing the life he’s built, but when Tryste’s boat goes missing, Sam has no choice. To save the boy he loves, he must follow his heart to the bottom of the ocean, even if it means blurring the line between reality and fairytale forever.
Fans of “The Wicked Deep” by Shea Earnshaw and “Out of the Blue” by Jason June will enjoy “The Boy With the Heart of Sea Glass” by Laura Livingstone.
THE FACTS
📕Folklore fantasy/romance
📗Young Adult will appeal to everyone
📘Love, longing, healing
📙ends on a bit of a cliffhanger (still satisfying and don’t worry, there’s more story coming)
THE REVIEW
I didn’t read the synopsis before I dug into this book and I’m so happy I didn’t. There was something magical about this story.
Sam has escaped to his aunt’s on a small island to lick his wounds. Once there, he begins a journey into his past. He also meets Tryste – a man who makes him want to think of a future he isn’t sure he’s capable of.
Tryste – fisherman, patient, kind, intriguing – orbits Sam without pressuring him. There’s no spice in this book, but I didn’t miss it at all. There are very intimate moments for the MCs and a gentle tension and longing.
It’s peaceful and beautiful in a strange way despite all the turmoil the MC has gone through in his past and his attempts to heal in the present. I credit the author with handling touchy subject matter very well. The ocean is always present, in and around the characters and I think this is soothing in a way.
While the fantasy whirls around this story, it’s about finding where you belong but still being open to possibilities.
This story also captures the longing and love for the ocean. The sense of belonging for those of us who are drawn to island life is visceral in this story. I believed Sam belonged on the island long before he did. I could “Feel” it. What a remarkable skill for an author to be able to convey that message.
THE LINKS
I received an ARC of The Boy With the Sea Glass Heart from the author in exchange for an honest review
Kinzie Things 