The Sea House (Review)

 

This review is for the book "The Sea House" by Elisabeth Gifford. This is a story which intertwines some things that happened in 1860 with some things that happen in the early 1990's. I hate to say it, but I found this story really hard to get into. I wanted to like it. I love mysteries and suspense novels, but this one just did not capture me. First of all, I felt that it was told from too many perspectives. I was confused about the relationships and dates of some of the characters and it bounced around a lot from person to person. It was also hard for me to relate to due to the use of dialect and a lot of phrases I was unfamiliar with. I do not suggest this should be held against the author, but I am simply trying to explain why I did not feel a connection with the story.

I think I would have enjoyed this story more if it was from just two perspectives, with more familiar dialogue. I can tell it was very well written. I would be interested in reading something else by the author and giving her another chance. Something not in a Scottish background may appeal to me more since I don't know a lot about that community.

Thank you to Litfuse Publicity and St. Martin's Press for a copy of the book in exchange for my honest review.