The return to the idyllic Coates Island off the coast of North Carolina will bring one of book club members back to the island to heal and reclaim her life and her independence. Rochelle Alers will take us back to discover how this woman suffered for decades.

It's been almost a year since Leah Berkley Kent left her lavish Richmond home to spend two months on Coates Island, North Carolina. Since that time one horrific incident will bring Leah to the reality that she has to end her toxic marriage. She returns to Coates Island where she finds healing, courage and love. Her book club friends, Kayana and Cherie, are there to support her. She will also find a love that she has never experienced.

Kayana's widowed brother Derrick knows what loss feels like and having to start over. When Leah offers to help out at the Seaside Cafe they both will discover desired feelings and welcome them.

This was a DNF for me. I didn’t like the writing style and general way the main character thought in her head.

Thank you for the opportunity to review.

REVIEWER: Brenda Larnell

Accomplished author, Rochelle Alers, is by far a great storyteller, and her Women’s Fiction stories all bear witness to that fact. THE BEACH HOUSE features Leah Berkeley Kent, one of the three book club members. Kayana Johnson (THE SEASIDE CAFÉ, Book #1) and Cherie Thompson compose the other ladies of the book club. The primary setting for the story is Coates Island, North Carolina. Leah, Kayana and Cherie all seek sanctuary from their previous lives, and Coates Island is the perfect retreat. Ms. Alers’ descriptions of the island are on point, and so inviting, you will yearn to visit.

Leah’s backstory is intriguing and offers significant insight into why she seeks refuge on the island. You’ll get it when you read the story. I will say that outwardly Leah appears to have the ideal marriage, but as the saying goes, “Don’t judge a book by its cover”. Leah’s story transcends racial lines and economic resources. It is a well-written story of starting over and second chances. While Leah is staying on the island, she helps out at the Seaside Café, owned by Kayana and her widowed brother, Derrick. As it happens, Derrick and Leah develop a rapport that challenges Leah in her quest to move on and live her best life. The storyline flows smoothly as we follow Derrick and Leah’s budding relationship.

I love everything about this story. From the setting, the book club concept, to the trauma of past events and the triumphs of a promising future that the characters experience. The side characters play significant roles in the development of the major characters. However, Leah’s husband, Alan is like a bad dream that reoccurs too often. You’ll get that when you read the book. The Epilogue offers a glimpse of a special HEA for Derrick and Leah.

THE BEACH HOUSE is an engaging and compelling inspection of second chances. I highly recommend it for your reading pleasure. While I began reading it as a stand-alone, I admit that I stopped reading THE BEACH HOUSE, and read THE SEASIDE CAFE. The continuity is priceless

I enjoyed this second installment in the Book Club series. It has many similarities with the first book in terms of featuring older couples who’ve faced complex relationship issues and are kind of too grown for drama. I think my main issue with this book was that it was a little piecey and disjointed in the build up of Derrick and Leah’s relationship and didn’t really feel cohesive to me. The escalation of their relationship to me, seemed kind of abrupt and out of nowhere.

The premise is that after 30 years of being in a toxic marriage, Leah has finally decided to leave her husband and return to Coates Island, where she spent a magical time the previous summer with her book club besties. Burned by her experience, she’s in no real mood for the sparks that fly with widower, Derrick Johnson.

I love how calm, quiet and soothing this author’s writing always is. I love that her main characters are proper grown ups and so all the petty dramas are pretty much non-existent. That’s why I was really happy to receive a complimentary copy of this book from Kensington Books (Dafina) through NetGalley. My biggest challenge with this romance was in the build up of the romantic relationship. I didn’t “buy” it. Whereas in the previous book in the series, you could kind of see where the romance came from, with this book, it almost seemed like they started dating because Kayana suggested it. They had a few troubling to me, quarrels and snits, that I wish had been addressed. I mean I liked this book, but it’s not a favourite of mine by this author. It is however a very chill and low key read and there’s definitely a mood for that. I enjoyed this.

CW: for physical and emotional abuse.

A quick cute summer read for 2021.
I didn't read the first book but I didn't feel much lost going into this second book. I enjoyed the story and I liked the telling of Leah "coming into her own". The romance was good and I liked the idea of her and Derrick, thought they were cute on page.
I do wish however that we had gotten more information on Leah's past but for the most part, this was a good read and I'm not mad at it.

*Thank you to the publisher/author for the opportunity to read and review.

This is a great Women’s Fiction story. Leah and Derrick’s story is a story of second chances. Leah’s back story is as intriguing as the heroine herself! I love the book club concept that was flawlessly weaved into the storyline. Kudos to Ms Alers for the wonderful setting that serves as a backdrop for the story. Her spot on descriptions of Coates Island has me wanting to visit.
The storyline is flawless. Leah’s backstory is compelling. I recommend this book.

I have been a long-time fan of Rochelle Alers and have enjoyed her books many times over.

The Beach House is book #2 in the Book Club series. The characters are awesome. Leah met two women when she spent 2 month on Coates Island Kayana and Cherie and while there they formed a book club that meets weekly at “The Seaside Café’ which is book # 1 in the Book Club series. The three women form a bond that is strong and is a bond I wouldn’t mind having in friendship.

After leaving an abusive marriage of 28 years, Leah decides to return to Coates Island where she spend happier times. Leah meets Kayana’ brother Derrick who is a widow and is the owner of a beach side cafe. Derrick left the fast-paced life of New York and moved to a much slow pace on Coates Island and he is enjoying himself. Leah and Derrick are in their 40’s and they are very much attracted to each other. Can Leah get pass her previous relationship and give love with Derrick a chance? Pick up your copy today and you will not be disappointed. Waiting patiently for the next book in the series.

I received an ARC via Dafina and Netgalley. I’m voluntarily leaving my review.

Good book. The previous year Leah came to Coates Island to vacation by herself. She enjoyed the freedom so much that she plans to do it again this year. Those plans don't sit well with her husband, Alan, who expresses his displeasure physically. This is the final straw in her unhappy marriage, and Leah leaves for the beach as soon as she can.

The book opened with a look back at Leah's past, namely how she met and married Alan. I have to say that he gave me the creeps from his first appearance, and my opinion of him never improved. Leah had had no intention of pursuing a relationship with him, but the consequences of his actions gave her no choice. I suspected from the beginning what kind of man he was, and Leah's revelations confirmed that and more.

I liked Leah, though I wondered why she stayed in the marriage so long, especially after her sons were grown. I applauded her decision to end it when she did, with no hesitation or second-guessing. She has a good head on her shoulders and took steps to protect herself. I also liked how her sons supported her completely. She plans to use her time at the beach to read and to find herself under the layers created by her marriage.

I loved the immediate support she received from Kayana, co-owner of the Seaside Café and fellow book club member. Because Leah arrives so much earlier than her original plans, Kayana offers her the apartment above the café. The healing effect on Leah is immediately apparent. I liked seeing Leah and Kayana reconnect and pick up their friendship where they left off the previous summer. Kayana provides a great sounding board for Leah as she works through her options and resurrects her inner self.

The other owner of the café is Kayana's brother Derrick. He is a widower of five years with a teenage daughter and still grieves the loss of his wife. He loves his work cooking for the residents and tourists of the island. I enjoyed the scenes that involved him cooking, both and the café and at home, as his passion for it was obvious.

I enjoyed the development of the relationship between Leah and Derrick. The sparks between them were obvious from the start, though neither planned to do anything about it. Leah is a) still married and b) not interested in compromising any of her newfound freedom. Derrick doesn't engage with women who are married, engaged, or even dating someone else. Sparks aside, Leah and Derrick bond over cooking. She was taught to cook by her mother and grandmother, though she wasn't permitted to cook during her marriage. I loved seeing her knock Derrick's socks off with her baking ability. I also enjoyed seeing her push back against his judgmental attitude with her explanation of her childhood.

The connection between Leah and Derrick grew over the next few weeks, and the attraction grew right along with it. As his feelings for her grew, Derrick worried about getting too close and losing her if she decided to go back to her husband. I liked his determination to go slow and wait for Leah to work through all of her issues. Leah's feelings for Derrick grew quickly, partially because of having a man treat her with respect. Even when they disagreed, they worked through it by talking. I liked the ending and look forward to seeing them in the next book.

I liked seeing the changes in Leah as the book progressed. I got the feeling she had kept some of her spirit, but much was buried under the veneer created by her mother-in-law. Alan's actions cracked that veneer and allowed the real Leah to resurface. I liked following her plans to deal with him and looked forward to seeing him get what was coming. I wasn't very fond of the final resolution.

One thing I missed in this book was the actual book club. Though the books were mentioned several times, there wasn't much book club action. That may be because of the book's timeline and because Cherie didn't arrive until near the end. Hopefully, there will be more in the next book. I did like catching up with Kayana and Graeme.

Leah Berkley Kent has returned to Coates Island, NC where she has finally had the courage to leave her abusive husband and turns to the two friends she's bonded with the summer before during a summer book club. One of her friends, Kayana, has a restaurant, the Seaside Cafe, with her widowed brother, Derrick. Leah begins helping out at the cafe and in the meantime, also becomes closer to Kayana's brother, Derrick. The two are drawn to each other, but Derrick is hesitant with Leah until she truly files for divorce.

I am going to be completely honest, the first part of this book was very awkward for me. I don't know if trying to tell the story of how Leah and Alan met was rushed, but it felt awkward to me. Once the book fast-forwarded to Leah with her kids grown, the book became more readable and I enjoyed the story a lot more. once Leah was at Coates Island. Derrick was a great love interest for Leah and she deserved a happy ending after everything she had been through.

Overall, The Beach House is a good summer read. I am adding a trigger warning here as the book does contain domestic violence-not much and and in no graphic detail.

Thank you to Netgalley, Kensington Books, and Rochelle Alers for an e-Arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I became interested in reading this book because of the cosy description of this book. Beach house, friend group and a book club? Sine me up! But unfortunately, I did not end up a fan and DNFed the book at 25 %.

The story started 30 years back where the main character met her husband, and we know already from the start is not going to be a happy marriage – because it is literally in the first three sentences in the synopsis. This made me not super interested to read about how they met described in real time. I think this would have been done better as flashbacks or how the main character looked back and assessed their history from her new perspective. Instead, we get the story from both her, and(!) his perspective. And this I really did not like because I thought it did not make much sense. I felt that his action was just confusing, and I did not see how a human being would act like that. The author tried to do all the red flags while simultaneously tell it from his perspective and thoughts and I felt it did end up very contradictory. I think that this beginning could have worked if it were not told from his perspective but just solely from hers.

This book is not really long, and it felt weird that a fourth of the book was spend in the past, and a past we already knew how it would end. Thus, when the story actually started, I had lost interest to finish. Maybe the core story is amazing, but I am sorry, you have lost me with a long intro that I do not see a point in.

Leah Kent has returned to Coates Island, North Carolina where she and two women forged a bond over bonds at a summer book club. Leah will also find the courage to leave her husband, Alan. Her twin sons are adults and she decides it is time to end things, while embarking on a friendship with Derrick, her friend's brother.
:Let me first start off my saying that the cover for this beach read is absolutely gorgeous. The first part of the book deals with the backstory for Leah and Alan. I wasn't sure how much this was needed but it did provide a strong reason for Leah wanting to end her relationship.
I loved the sisterhood and I think Derrick was a wonderful hero. This is a read that covers heavy subject matters but still have plenty of other things that keep it a beach read - like food. The author always give so many descriptions on food and location that I think many will appreciate and love.
Even though I didn't read the first book, I think readers won't have any difficulty reading or getting into this read.
Thank you #Netgalley for an ARC.

This was a great read. I featured it as Book of the Day on all my social media platforms, and I’ll include it in my monthly roundup of news releases for my Black Fiction Addiction blog.

This book packs a whollop, so here we go.
CW: Cheating, physical spousal abuse, domestic abuse
This book follows Leah. The first 25% of this book sets up the toxic marriage she is leaving. The other 75% consists of her going somewhere she feels safe, truly finding love for the first time in her 50 years, and getting back to all of the things she loves, like cooking.
Derrick is a fantastic love interest for her. His sister was the heroine of the previous book, so he knows first hand how a bad first marriage can effect someone. His patience and understand were an excellent counterpart for her.
TBH, I wish that this book would have given us the info on Leah's past in flashbacks or a short prologue, rather than getting so much perspective in the past.

"The Beach House", by Rochelle Alers was a wonderful read. I couldn't even sit it down and found my self up late just to finish it. I read the first book in this series and truly believe it could read as a standalone, but having the previous story made reading this one so much better.

I wanted to know so much about Leah, especially after meeting her in the series first title. Her character carried a lot od mystery for me and I need to know why she was the way that she was. Well I can assure you Ms. Alers lead me on a wonderful exploration of Leah's life and help me to understand her much better. Her lavish life was a facade and seeing how she landed into it was juicy and pretty heartbreaking to me. Her husband Alan proved to be a master manipulator and he surely learned well fron his parents.

This only proved that an escape from her reality was beyond needed for Leah. Even though her life was lavish it came with great sacrifice and I'm happy she got her boys out of the deal. She was not without faults and had to realize that she was to blame as well as Alan. Alan's mother Adele was just what I imagined and he proved to be a grown little boy trying to please mommy.

How he treated her had me pissed and heartbroken and I am glad she left that toxic situation, even though it took her almost thirty years to do so. In her leaving she got to finally live the life she desired and the happiness she deserved.

In that discovery she is reunited with an amazing widow fighting his own loss learning to move past that lost and letting his eighteen year old daughter spread her wings allow him to begin living again also. Derrick is amazing and just whay Leah needs.

Even though I liked them together, I feel they moved entirely to fast. But, as they stated they were only getting older and time waits for no man or woman. Alan thinks he can trap Leah with money but she seeks only happiness in her late forties. As she her settles into happiness, Alan life is torn to shreds, he loses someone he holds dear and his life spirals further out of control.
I won't ruin the story for you, but Leah gets her happy ending and lets just say Alan learns fast life has fast endings.

I truly look forward to the next installment of this series and will make a slight prediction (what I desire only) Leah second son finds ever after with the third book club member, Cherie. It was also great catching up with Kayana and Graeme.

Overall wonderful read. Ms. Alers work carries a elegance for me and helps me to explore lifestyles that I may never get in person. Her meals she talks about in her books are top notch also. As always, many thanks to Kensington, Dafina, and Netgally for this ARC. This is my most humble and honest review of "The Beach House. Thanks also to Ms. Alers. I look forward to all of her reads.

Leaving an abusive marriage, educator Leah spends the summer in coastal North Carolina to regroup. There she meets her friend's widowed brother Derrick while helping out at his beachside café. Both are over forty and have no plans to marry again. But they can't resist the attraction between them. Can love heal their wounds from the past?

This is more women's fiction than romance. The focus is more on the breakdown of Leah's marriage than her relationship with Derrick. It's not the relaxing beach read you might expect from the cover. The author does a good job of developing the characters and immersing the reader in the story.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

Content warning: slut shaming.

Loved Leah and how she took her life back in her own hands to find happiness again. It’s a good read that many women may be able to relate to

I received an ARC from the publisher and am voluntarily posting a review. All opinions are my own.

Having really enjoyed the first book in the series, picking up The Beach House was almost guaranteed. And generally, I did enjoy the nice, cozy beach vibes and reuniting with familiar characters for new adventures.

This book is a bit heavier than the last, opening thirty years prior to the present, with the circumstances in Leah’s volatile, toxic marriage that led to her leaving for Coates Island and finally beginning the process toward divorce. It was abrupt, but an effective beginning, and made her journey of finding love again rewarding, especially as she found it with Kayana’s brother, who has himself faced the loss of his first wife. Their connection did seem a bit fast, given both were both licking fairly fresh wounds, but ultimately, I did really like them together.

However, I missed the camaraderie of the book club. There are scattered mentions of books they’re reading, and Kayana plays a role, being supportive of the new lovers and their respective healing journeys. But Cherie was barely in the book. While these books are still very much romances, one of the best parts of book one for me was the dynamic between all three women as they get to know and bond with one another, and I could have used more of that, given the heavy themes.

While I was somewhat let down by aspects of this book, I did still enjoy it for what it is: a story about finding love again after heartache, with the support of friends. If that sounds appealing to you, especially if you’re looking for a book with a beachy setting to read this summer, I recommend picking it up.

Leah has finally left her older controlling husband. She's come back to Coates Island, where she spent a wonderful summer and found friendship with two other women- Kayana and Cherie. The three of them formed a book club, which figured more in the first novel (don't worry if you haven't read it-this is fine as a standalone) than it does here. What is important is that Kayana has a brother, Derrick, who has left his Wall Street job and moved to the beach. Leah and Derrick find they have an attraction to one another and, well, you can guess what happens. I liked that Leah and Derrick are a mature couple but the relationship felt trope-y. As with the first book, this would have benefited from a strong edit. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.

The Beach House is a great addition to the Book Club series. Leah's story is a fascinating one that has many unexpected twists and turns. I really liked that Derrick thought he knew everything about Leah by just looking at how she dressed and her jewelry but discovered there was much more to her than meets the eye. The development of Leah and her family adds much to the story, I would highly recommend this book to those who love a complex story and especially like to read about how to make different dishes, This book makes you imagine how good the food they make tastes and smells. The Beach House is another winner from Rochelle Alers.

This was the most disappointing book I have read this year. Within the first three pages I had to stop . The lurid descriptions of a mans penis were disturbing and not for most to want to read. I found it quite upsetting and could not continue. I have read this author before on Net Galley and while her books are a easy read they have never been pornographic but this certainly is. So sorry to the publisher and to Net Galley but this is less then 3 stars and a very offensive read.