I can't even begin to describe how much I loved this book. I couldn't put it down. There is a mystery with a bit of romance and good old-fashioned Southern charm.

Letty is the type of character that I would want to be friends and have coffee together. This book took me right back to a trip that I took to Treasure Island many years ago. Too bad that I didn't find 'The Surf' when I visited there.

The mystery is not so much about 'who did it?' but rather will Letty be able to keep her secret and Maya safe. You can't help but cheer her on to the end.

This is a fun, light read. Perfect for a summer day in a lounge chair. I enjoyed the mystery, the makeshift family and the live story. This book had it all!

Mary Kay Andrews is always number one on my list of summer beach reads. I look forward to her books and have never been disappointed. The plot and characters consistently hook me from the beginning. In The Newcomer we meet Letty who is a strong and capable women despite the hard knocks life has thrown her. When she finds her sister, Tanya murdered, she grabs her 4 year old niece, Maya and flees New York for Florida. Tanya feared her ex husband and made Letty promise that if anything happened to her she would take Maya and run. Letty ends up at The Murmering Surf motel. It's a slightly run down decades old beach resort full of eccentric characters that add humor to the story. Letty tries to provide a somewhat stable life for Maya with the help of the sympathetic motel owner who gives her a job and her son, who happens to be a police detective with romantic affections that complicate things. To solve her sister's murder, Letty must unravel the many secrets her sister had before the law and criminals from Tanya's past close in. A delightful book full of mystery, suspense, lies, and a little romance. Thank you to NetGalley, Mary Kay Andrews and St. Martin's Press for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. Highly recommend.

I received an ARC for an honest review.

It's been awhile since I have read The Queen of beach reads. It's also very fitting that I am currently at the beach. And not just any beach, but one that is not far from Treasure Island where the book is set. So all this made me love the book even more! This was a cute beach read with some suspense thrown in. Maya is this adorable 4 year old that Letty is now in charge of due to her sister's murder. This is where the suspense comes in ad Letty is on the run and the "father" wants her "taken care of"! And all the secondary characters are amazing! The snowbirds are such great characters. And Joe, oh Joe...... Despite him being cautious about Letty first showing up at the Murmuring Surf, they are really cute together. The romance is definitely slow building between the two, but once they are there that's it for them. I thought this was a very cute read and definitely makes me want to catch up on some of The Queen of beach reads backlog!!

Letty is on the run with her niece Maya. She has just found her sister Tanya dead in her Manhattan apartment and 4 year old Maya hiding upstairs. Tanya's evil wealthy ex wants Maya, and he wants Letty indicted for her murder. Tanya had once mentioned a small motel in Florida, so that is where Letty is headed. Without giving away too much, there's a hit out on Letty, and the FBI is involved. (I did wonder if the FBI would really arrange a money transfer on a public beach.) Mary Kay Andrews' beach setting mysteries are always on my to-read list, but this one is probably my least favorite. I never really cared for the main character, and found the bratty 4 year old to be insufferably annoying. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC.

Oh Mary Kay Andrews, you’ve done it again! Always a fan of her books although this one was definitely deeper and darker than her usual light beach reads. The book started off a little slow for me but sucked me in quickly. I do feel it could have been a little shorter but I enjoyed it and would recommend it. I hope she continues to dabble in more thrillers like this one as I would definitely read another!

Great story it I felt like I’ve read this before. I love this author and will read anything she writes.

Middle of the road novel for me. The cover implies a light beach read, but this one had the drama and anxiety amped up too high for this genre for me in my Covid state of mind.

This was my first book by this author. The cover drew me in and the story sounded good. This book was way too long. It seemed to drag on and I wasnt impressed. I had high hopes for this story and while it was enjoyable it was just too long and too slow.

I always enjoy Mary Kay Andrews as a beach read author. This is not quite like her other light and fun books, but I liked it just the same. It starts with Letty finding her sister Tanya dead in her apartment with Tanya's daughter as a possible witness. Letty runs out of Tanya's apartment with her niece and heads to Florida where she strikes up a friendship and finds a job with the owner of a kitschy motel in Treasure Island. From there, she tries to find her way to getting her own life back on track and solving the murder of her sister. Another good read from Ms. Andrews.

Thanks to NetGalley for an ARC of this book.

It’s back to the beach with Mary Kay Andrews, and there’s murder, loot and suspected kidnapping on tap.

Letty was the big sister who always tried to take care of her troubled sister, Tanya, but now she needs to take save herself and her niece Maya. She escapes NYC after Tanya’s murder with Maya and heads to Florida, and finds more than she ever expected.

Now, I’m not saying I want to be accused of murder or have to go on the run, but if I ever did, can I wake up to a hot cop, an understanding hotel owner, and have a go bag that will see me on my travels? While this may seem over the top, it absolutely works with the story, especially since the hot cop doesn’t immediately trust Letty, even though his mom does.

I love stories like this, a beach read, with lots of story, lots of backstory, there’s multiple mysteries, but none of them take away from each other, and there’s always Maya, a 4 year old actually acting like a little kid - she even watches Paw Patrol unrelentingly.

Another great mystery from Mary Kay Andrews. I especially enjoyed reading this book because the setting is St Pete Beach in Florida, where I have vacationed several times and could just picture the little resort and the characters.

Letty flees NYC with her niece Maya, after her sister,Tanya, is brutally murdered by her boyfriend. Letty packs up Maya and just drives, finding herself in Florida. Tanya's "go bag" was grabbed at the last second and Letty finds info about the Murmuring Surf Resort and ends up there early one morning. Spotted by Joe, the owner's son, who just happens to be a police officer while sleeping in her car is not the best introduction. The snowbird residents of the Murmuring Surf Resort are suspicious of Letty and don't appreciate a little kid being in their space. Will Letty be able to just blend into the background here? Will she solve the mystery of her sister's death? Will she find love in this unlikely place?

In true MKA style this book is the perfect blend of mystery, romance, quirky characters and a very intriquing storyline. Her books are always a hit with me and The Newcomers is no exception. Thank you to Netgalley, Mary Kay Andrews and St Martin Press for the opportunity to read this book that comes out in May.

A solid 4. This one keeps you guessing on whats going to happen til the end. It starts off kinda slow but other than that I really enjoyed it. A good read for the summer. Many thanks to Netgalley for the advance copy!

This murder suspense novel is intertwined with plenty of humor and emotion. I thought it was a fantastic blend. Rich New Yorker, Evan Wingfield, has been a scandalous schemer. His entanglements with two sisters, Tanya and Letty Carnahan, force Letty to flee and hide in Florida with Tanya’s four-year-old daughter, Maya, as Tanya has just been murdered. Letty and Maya end up at The Murmuring Surf Motel in Treasure Island, Florida, a town close to St. Petersburg. While in Florida, another criminal, Declan Rooney, appears due his past connections with Tanya. The snowbirds and retirees that Letty meets at The Surf are a hoot, either by getting in the way of everyone else, or by inadvertently saving others from harm. Police detective Joe DeCurtis starts out as being leery of Letty, but ends up falling for her and Maya. Isabelle, Joe’s teenage sister, and Ava, their mother and owner of the motel, are beloved characters. I really enjoyed this entertaining crime adventure and highly recommend it as a fun summer read. [Thanks go to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an early copy to express my opinion.]

For a mystery, this left very little to puzzle out. The book was about 200 pages too long and every plot point was extremely obvious.
The characters did nothing to draw me in and the romance had no build to make me care.

I also think this is in dire need of a sensitivity read. The tiki party had quite a few cringe moments for me. Specifically one of the guest darkening his face with self tanner and then the demeaning "island fantasy" imagery.

Another great book by Mary Kay Andrews. Couldn't put it down.
Letty, upon discovering her sister has been murdered, takes her four year old niece, Maya, and runs. She is terrified of Evan, her sister's ex, and knows he had something to do with her death. Letty drives as much and as far as she can until she lands in Florida, at the Murmuring Surf Hotel. There was something about this place that meant something to her sister. Letty befriends the owner, Ava, and her family, and soon she and Maya are enjoying life in Florida. They have a great place to live, friends, and a great job. But, trouble is not far away. Evan is determined to find his little girl, and make sure Letty stays out of their lives forever. Can he get away with murder twice?
Great characters and plot. Few small twists and turns, and while the ending was predictable, the book itself was a great read.
I received an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

This is my second book by this author. This story is so full of drama which keeps you entertained throughout the whole book.
I really enjoyed getting to know each of the characters and their relationships.
I will definitely read more of her books in the future.
Thanks Netgalley for the arc in exchange for my honest review.

Letty is on the run with her niece Maya after finding her sister Tanya dead. Tanya had told Letty that if something ever happened to her, to grab the To Go bag and get Maya as far away as possible. Based on an old article in the bag, they ended up at an old beachfront motel in Florida. The owner took pity on them and worked out an arrangement for them to stay against her son's, a police detective, advice.

The story has lots of intriguing twists and turns that make you change your mind multiple times on who did it. Throw in a four year old girl, snow birds, and a romance and you have a wonderful story.

I received a copy of this book to review through NetGalley and thoroughly enjoyed it.

I would like to thank net galley and the publishers for a copy of The Newcomer in exchange for my honest opinion,

Letty comes to pick up her 4 year old niece Maya for a day of fun and instead discovers her sister Tanya, dead on the floor of her posh New York City townhouse. Her sister was going through a horrible custody battle with her slimy ex and told Letty if anything happens to me Evan did it;Take Maya and run. So Letty being a good sister, and knowing first hand what kind of man Evan is, does just that.

She grabs Maya and runs to an "old-timey" beachfront motel on the Gulf coast of Florida called The Murmuring Surf. She will do whatever it takes to lay low and protect her niece from her father. But Evan is wealthy and well connected and that is going to be more difficult than she anticipated.

You will fall in love with these characters, with the quaint little Florida motel and all the old-timers who frequent there and are a little suspect of this newcomer and her little 4 year old niece. But thanks to the owner Ava and her family Letty just might find a new family, one she has been searching for her whole life.

This is the first Mary Kay Andrews book I've read, and I really enjoyed it. I loved the characters. They seemed so down to earth, and my kind of people. And the plot never stood still. Every time I thought I knew where it was going, it shifted a bit and threw me off. Now I need to go find more MKA books to add to my TBR list.

Thank you to NetGalley, Mary Kay Andrews, and St. Martin's Press for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.