On Ocean Boulevard (Beach House #6)

It wasn’t summer unless you had one of Mary Alice’s books to read on vacation at the beach. This is her second “bomb” in two years and I’m finished with her! She no longer is capable of writing a creative stand alone book. Every book she’s written in the past few years is based on another one. This was thrown together and the characters trivial. I truly hope she reads her reviews on Amazon. So tired of her posts on social media about how wonderful this new book is!
So sad. She was such a good author and I loved her previous books that were stories within a story.

This book is a sequel to another Mary Alice Monroe Beach House book where the now older daughter of Lovie Rutledge, Cara, her niece Linnea, and other assorted characters from the previous novels meander thru this novel that seems to have no discernible plot but I guess is supposed to be one of those “realizing what is truly important in life is love and family” chick lit novels. Cara doesn’t want a big wedding to her rich, handsome fiance but stifles her 50-year-old feelings about it. 25-year-old Linnea has been dumped and needs a job and a boyfriend. Cara’s adopted daugher gets measles, and every five pages there’s a “save the turtles” essay tucked in. These characters are shallow and annoying but keep reassuring each other that they’re strong, amazing women. The pages of back history fill in and character musings read like something out of Women’s World. There is nothing that makes you want to turn the pages except hoping that there might be one scene that is anchored in reality. If you’re a big MK Monroe fan, get this from your library. Twenty pages from the end, I had to quit. I just could not muster the desire to read one more sentence.

Super disappointed in this. while I love MAM and the beach house series…the vernacular in the book was ridiculous and the dialogue didn’t flow. Who says “I remember that pugnacious bully”? “I know they are eager to see you” – I found myself rolling my eyes a lot. I’ll finish it because I paid full price, but I can’t wait for it to be over. Cara and David’s relationship is totally unrealistic. Very little interaction/mention with Hope other than the medical drama.

Love me some Mary Alice Monroe and her nature books and the way each chapter previews something about the animals contained in the novel; turtles, raptors, butterflies and even the sweet grass. I was done with the Rutledges after the first two, maybe three books in the series…..I see no reason to keep on with these characters….but that is my opinion to which I am entitled. I keep hoping that Mary Alice Monroe will start back to writing her own novels. Weaving stories around nature is what I really love about her books.

I wanted to like this book. I tried so hard to read it but it is just unreadable. Zero character development. The author doesn’t seem to know the difference between turtles and humans. No interesting prose, no well written paragraphs, no colorful descriptions. Disappointing.

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