Somewhere Beyond the Sea

Amanda
James
Genre: 
Suspense-Thriller

Moving his family to the Cornish village near where he grew up, Doctor Tristan Ainsworth thought he’d help his family grow. Instead his wife Karen has become withdrawn, taken to hiding at home. When an opportunity to sing leads Karen to open up again, Tristan is thrilled that the wife he loves is returning to normal. However, when Karen’s past comes back to haunt her, the truth turns everything Tristan knows about his wife upside down, and might end up destroying the life Karen has fought so hard for.

 

A contemporary novel told from the eyes of the Ainsworths, “Somewhere Beyond the Sea” shows a crisis of the past coming back to haunt one’s present. Karen is a conflicted character. Most of the story is told through flashbacks to her past, which is only made clear by reading the book summary or reaching the end of the book, making it very confusing. Her narration is also unreliable at times as a result. The rotation between the flashbacks and present day slow the story down at times. However, if the reader perseveres, watching the characters grow over the course of the book, with their  weaknesses and strengths, their steady and sometimes entertaining interplay with each other as well as the side characters, it is truly enjoyable. It can get a bit more graphic at times than some readers might prefer and although the story swings between crisis and everyday life, all loose ends are tied up, and the genuine love between Karen and Tristan is wonderful to read.

 

Sarah E Bradley