Portrait artist Elly Sorenson leaves her Washington, D.C., life for the Caribbean island of Bonaire, hoping to find refuge from personal tragedy and financial fallout. Instead, she is confronted by old demons, including a gambling underworld that taps paranormal talents she would prefer to leave dormant.
On the island she finds an unlikely kindred spirit in teenager Rosie Ryan, an Australian with a gambling father and artistic talents of her own—and a penchant for breaking and entering, particularly into the rooms of other guests.
Against a backdrop of a gathering storm, Rosie is blamed for a freak diving accident, and the stakes at the gambling table mount. Nobody is safe, least of all Elly, whose whole life, it seems, hangs on one final game. Underestimated by the men around them, Rosie and Elly must conquer forces they never imagined and fight for a future that promises real freedom.
Former chef and syndicated columnist Moore (author of A Woman's Guide to Search & Rescue) sparkles in this expertly wrought tale. Artist Elly Sorensen is reeling after the death of her estranged husband and struggling financially when she leaves Washington D.C. and returns to the Caribbean island of Bonaire to finish a long-delayed portrait commissioned by a local resident, Trevor Martin. Originally planning to stay in a spare room at his home, Elly returns to find Trevor’s finances have taken a major hit, and she moves into a dilapidated room at the local resort where Trevor runs a dive shop. She immediately meets and bonds with Rosie Ryan, a 16-year-old aspiring artist from Australia who is staying on the island with her gambler father, Steve. Readers will get lost in Moore’s beautiful prose, her impeccable plotting, and her outstandingly relatable and multi-layered characters as Elly and Rosie both try to outrun their demons—Elly’s estranged husband, his debts and her former agent’s machinations, and Rosie, a controlling grandmother and the fallout from the impulsive decision to light her former boyfriend’s van on fire (and immediately going viral). Rosie reminds Elly of her wild-child sister, Lily, who perished in a car accident; Rosie is in awe of Elly’s artistic talents and her purported relationship with Trevor (which isn’t what Rosie thinks, despite a few misinterpreted situations). In addition to courage and the drive to fight for their own freedom, both share a love for scuba diving, a pursuit that the author handles with skill, drawing on her own experiences.
As the story hurtles toward a rocky, dangerous conclusion, Moore expertly keeps readers guessing at the outcome—and even holding their breath—until the novel’s final page, with strong, unexpected climactic developments involving well-deserved comeuppances. This outstanding tale, alive with suspense and insight, should garner a well-deserved readership for Moore.
Takeaway: Beautifully wrought story of two women artists outrunning their demons.
Comparable Titles: Marissa Stapley’s The Last Resort, Kristin Hannah’s Comfort & Joy.
Production grades
Cover: A-
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A
