Sunday, March 24, 2013

BOOK: The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Stedman

The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Stedman, 343 pages

Australian Book Challenge; Orange Longlist 2013

So good! I'll be recommending this to many readers in the next few months.

First, the historical and technical details of a lighthouse worker off the southwestern coast of Australia in the 1920s, a WWI veteran, were very good. The setting was realistic and the sense of the ocean greatness felt so real. The romance and marriage of Tom and Isabel and their life on the isolated island was touching. The repercussions from the first world war permeate all the characters in the story.

Then, the tragedy or bad decision by Tom when a baby washes up on shore (it made sense in the book) comes back to haunt Tom and Isabel. I was back and forth between who I felt was in the wrong (nobody?) It was a terrible situation especially for Lucy, the child. My heart broke for everyone. Parental love for a child is a strong, and parents will make decisions to protect their child.

This is going to make a fabulous movie, and everyone will be in tears.