A masterpiece full of secrets, lost dreams and broken hearts. Sisters Violet and Trudy’s lives changed dramatically forty years ago. Trudy lost her voice and Violet her dreams for the future. But the magic in Sugar Bend, their hometown, is their chance at redemption from their past and a new future, full of hope, love and new opportunities. The audiobook, narrated by Brittany Presley is the perfect way to follow the story., and feel all the emotions from the characters.

“When a boat rises to the surface of Little River in the middle of the night, the present and the no-longer-buried past clash, and the future is at stake for Maya, Violet, and Trudy. As history creeps continually closer to the present and old secrets come to light, the sisters must decide if it’s time to face the truth of what happened forty years ago, or risk losing each other and newly formed bonds with those they’ve come to love.”

This book, coming so quickly after that last clunker, was a lungful of fresh air.

It was EASY.

It wasn’t gory, or twisty, or turn-y.

While it dealt with some tough issues (partner abuse, the foster system, and the police old boys’ club) it was GENTLE.

I loved the building of fleshy characters, the winged and watery landscape, and the barest brush with the paranormal.

Do I think the ending was 100% realistic to how this would have played out in life? Nope, but as Ms. Ryder and Mr. Hawk taught us, Reality Bites.

8/10

Thanks to NetGalley and Harper Muse for this tender ARC.

Overall this was an enjoyable story with well-developed characters, a compelling storyline and moderate pacing.
There were not a lot of surprises for me, but I was still invested in finding out how it would all turn out. I loved the theme that flowed through the book centered around creating beautiful things from all the broken bits. The narrator of the audio version did an excellent job.

Thanks to Harper Muse for the free book and ALC.
I love Denton and have been reading her southern fiction books for years. She captures the scenery and atmosphere perfectly. Each story is uniquely its own. She also does a great job at creating conundrums within her characters that slowly unfold over the course of the story. I liked the birding aspect of this one and found these parts of the book to be really strong. The characters were interesting, especially Trudy. But I thought the interactions between the characters were a bit too slow burn for me. I like how Denton slowly pulls her characters together, I just wanted the progression to be a bit quicker to have more time to soak in the ending with them. It was still engaging and beautiful and I read it in a day switching between the audio and print copy.
As always, Brittany Presley does a fantastic job performing this book. She captured the characters and their essence so well.

Title: A Place to Land
Author: Lauren K. Denton
Audiobook Narrator: Brittany Pressley
Publisher: Harper Muse Audiobook
Genre: Mystery
Pub Date: October 4, 2022
My Rating: 3 Stars

Story is told in flashbacks of the 70s & 80s to present.
Our protagonist is Violet Figg. She enjoys bird watching and volunteers for the Audubon Society after retiring as a teacher.
She and her sister Trudy own Two Sisters Art and Handmade Goods in Sugar Bend, Alabama.
Trudy hasn’t spoken in 40 years but is an artist and makes beautiful handcrafted items to sell in the shop. Her handcraft things are made from things she collects on the beach.

Then: Forty years ago - Jay Malone was known as the friendliest guy in town. He is owner of a very popular ice cream shop. He hired beautiful young Trudy and declares her “Miss Friendly”.
Hmmm is he as wonderful as everyone thinks?

Present Day: Violet has been seeing a large brown pelican and after she sees it she discovers fish bone skeletons. They remind her of fish bone cuff links that Trudy’s husband often wore and they mysteriously disappeared with him in 1982.

Story was slow ~ also not a fan of long chapter and was tempted to skip parts.
I hung in there as I was curious.

Want to thank NetGalley and Harper Muse Audiobook for this early eGalley.
Publishing Release Date scheduled for October 4, 2022.

Sisters Violet and Trudy run a shop together in their small Alabama town. Trudy hasn't spoken a word in 40 years and nobody besides Violet knows why. As people come into (or back into) their lives and an old boat surfaces, their secrets are becoming harder and harder to keep.

This southern mystery is mainly set in 2022, but it does flash back to the 70s and 80s. It is told through many POVs- I honestly lost count- but mainly through Violet's.

It definitely took a while for me to get into this, but it did pick up. However, I found it very predictable.

I listened to the audiobook. Brittany Pressley narrates, and as always, it is a solid performance.

I received a copy in exchange for an honest review.

This book is a winner. Mystery, romance, family drama- all brought together with fantastic narration. A winner all all fronts!

The Sisters Secret

Violet and Trudy Figg live in a small town in Alabama. When their mother left she told Violet to take care of Trudy. Violet has always tried to do so. They run a small shop selling art items made from shells and driftwood. Violet teaches classes at the academy.

Their life goes on and they are contented in the life they live. One day a boat floats up during a storm and it changes their lives forever.

A long kept secret emerges and spells trouble for both of them . Can they keep the forty year old secret or will it be revealed?

Sometimes the past just can't stay in the past and sometimes secrets creep out in the open and are revealed for all to see. Life is not always as it seems.

This is a great story with wonderful characters. I listened to the audio book and the narrator had a very pleasant voice and was very easy to understand.

The story has mystery, family, love and compassion as well as evil in a small town where almost everyone knows everyone and everything but sometimes they don't know everything.

It was a good story with excellent characters and I enjoyed it very much. I would recommend this book.

Thanks to Lauren K. Denton for writing a great story, to Brittany Pressley for her wonderful narration, to Harper Muse audio books for publishing it and to NetGalley for providing me with a copy to listen to and review.

Lauren K Denton has delivered a strong story that readers will find enjoyable. Set in the south, this is a story of two sisters who have survived many hardships and trials and come out on the other side.

The Figg sisters grew up and live in the small town of Sugar Bend. An eventful night forty years ago still has a ripple effect on their lives today. With a set of mismatched characters that work well together, Denton has written a story that the reader/listener will want to unravel.

A solid 3 stars from me. The main reason that I didn't give this book four or five stars is that it is so similar in many ways to a popular book right now. A young girl/girls left by their mother, an abusive father/husband, set in the south, birds play a big role in the story, a murder, and a lost love. Ring any bells?

I received an ARC and advanced audiobook from NetGalley, Harper Muse, and Harper Muse Audiobooks in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

After 40 years, a divine power decides it's time for family secrets to be revealed. From fish bones, an unearthed boat, and prophetic dreams, the truth of what happened to two sisters just became too impossible to believe. I was also frustrated with the character build of the boyfriend police officer who oddly never put the obvious connections of relations together even though he has the skills, knowledge, and career resources to do so. I have it three stars because it was still an uplifting story, but the believability was just not there for me. Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book. The reader of the audio was great.

I received an arc of this title from NetGalley for an honest review. Though it took me a bit to get into this book, I could not put it down in the end. The story is wonderful, as are the characters and the plot, and I love the reader for Denton.

A Place to Land is a very well plotted tale by Lauren K. Denton. Sisters Violet and Trudy Figg have lived in Sugar Bend, Alabama, for the entirety of their 60+ years. Violet was the studious, plain, bird watching sister. Younger Trudy was the beauty. Their father was an abusive drinker and their mother left when they were teens when she could endure the abuse no more, but only after getting Violet to promise she would always look out for her little sister. Their father subsequently wrapped his vehicle around a tree leaving the girls on their own.

When they were grown, Violet wanted to go to school to become an ornithologist, but Trudy had met and married owner of Friendlies ice cream, Jay Malone. Early on Violet saw the telltale signs of abuse on her sister, so Violet got her teaching degree at a nearby college and was always there to watch over Trudy at the expense of her own dreams.

Then the fateful night happened that robbed Trudy of her voice and Violet of her future with the very honest Officer Frank Roby. Now, forty years later, a sunken Jon boat has appeared, known to have belonged to Jay Malone who disappeared four decades earlier. And the past is back to haunt.

In this same time period, a young lady, Maya, appears in town following her own signs and befriends the sisters. Maya connects with Trudy in a way no one has before. And is there when all comes to light.

This is such a well written and plotted story! The characters are well drawn and endearing. The setting is beautifully described. The intrigue is top notch and the outcome surprising. I very much enjoyed this book and I do recommend it!

Thank you to the publishers, author and NetGalley for the free copy of this audio book.

This was a sweet little read. I loved all of the characters and while some things were a little cliche it was still really enjoyable. The narrator did a great job as well.

Wow!! What a gem! I loved this book! The mystery was great and even though it seemed clear the sisters dynamic and overall changes made this interesting to read. This story follows two sisters who have had many hardships in their life and a crime that is brought back to the surface after being buried for years.

So many people where involved and I loved the multiple POV's. This is a story filled with likable characters put in hard situations making decisions that no one should have to make. Each point of view helped build a big picture and bring us further into the center of this crime. I found myself not able to put this book down. Despite for the most part piecing many things together quickly I found myself wanting to hear the different characters views of situations which led them to where they are now.

For those looking for a mystery involving many people and a small town that has more to the story than at first glance I recommend this book! Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book! It was such a great book!

Sisters Violet and Trudy own a shop in a small, southern coastal town. Trudy, an artist, has not spoken in 40 years, after a traumatic event. Violet believes herself to be her sister’s keeper. The two had an extremely hard life growing up and are bonded like no other. After they take in Maya, an 18 year old that has just exited foster care, the traumatic events from 40 years ago come to light and the sisters must face their past.
While the characters were interesting and the setting was great, this book was a little slow and a bit too predictable for me. If you’re looking for an easy read, this would be good.
*** huge thanks to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review

I finished this book in two days and loved every second! This was such a cozy read that hooked me from the beginning. I liked all of the characters, the past/present storyline, & how each chapter bounced around to the different main characters. This book also had the perfect mix of love in all forms. This book is perfect for fans of Heather Webber!

DNF. I am sorry to say that the story is clichéd, pedestrian, boring and slow! Thank you Netgalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

A Place to Land by Lauren K. Denton is such a wonderful story.
I've had the pleasure of reading and loving her previous book!
The Summer House and Hurricane Season being my favorite.
Denton has a way to set the most relateable setting and some relatable characters.
The characters were all so fantastic. The writing is amazing as usual.
A contemporary story that I enjoyed from start to end.
Brittany Pressley is one of my favorite narrators. And she executed this book perfectly.
I couldn't stop listening once I started

"I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own."

HarperMuseAudio,
Thank You for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!
I will post my review to my blog, platforms, BookBub, B&N, Kobo and Waterstone closer to pub date.

Thank you so much to the author, the publisher and NetGalley for the advance copy of this book (via audio), all thoughts are my own.

This is the first book I have ever read by this author and I have to say that this book absolutely blew me away. I am pretty new to audio books so before I requested a copy of this I had a quick listen to the little sneak peak that NetGalley offer. Straight away the story grabbed me and I knew I had to listen to this book, also I need to add that the narrator of this book was outstanding, I could listen to that southern twang all day long.

In this book we meet sisters Violet and Trudy, they live in an adorable little town where they have spent their entire life. This book spans 6 decades where we see how they spent their time growing up and how that shaped them to who they are now.

I was immediately drawn to the two main characters of this book, these sisters have a lifelong bond like no other, something that will never be broken in their lifetime. They absolutely adore one another and there isn’t anything that they wouldn’t do for each other to ensure their sister is happy. The strength of these ladies characters was admirable, they have been through so much in their lives yet both come out stronger that ever.

The storyline in this book was brilliant, you could really feel all of the emotions jump off of the pages. The storyline takes you on a long journey, a journey of love, heartbreak and hope. The imagery in this book was amazing, I could absolutely picture everything as if I was there which is always great in a book.

I must mention Mya, what a beautiful troubled girl, she has not had the best life but at least she has finally found her home.

Brilliant read, one I think you should all go out and grab.

A Place to Land by Lauren K. Denton is a treasure. Trudy is an artist; she’s had no speech in 40 years since a horrible night that’s been locked in the recesses of her memory and holding her voice captive. She works to repurpose items like shells, wood, and wires by showcasing their beauty in new, imaginative ways. I loved how Trudy listened to the pieces tell their story of what they wanted to be. This, to me, shadowed her own story of not being able to use her voice but still bringing forth beauty for others to enjoy.
Violet, her capable sister enjoys caring for Trudy and being a co-owner of their specialty shop. Violet loves the birds and her idyllic southern coast town. She categorizes data for the Autobahn Society and loves being out in the elements. Until she sees the large brown pelicans and small fish skeletons that remind her of that night, so long ago. Convinced that her perfect world is starting to unravel, flashbacks to the 1970s and 1980s begin unfolding the story that refuses to be forgotten after all. Don’t be surprised by the touch of magic or the Divine as things begin to fall into place at just the right time.
Frank has always loved Violet and never forgot the one who got away. He has a second chance and intends to take it. In the meantime, he’s helping his nephew solve a cold case.
Maya is looking for a place to belong after growing out of the foster system. She sees a poster that draws her to Sugar Bend and ends up being exactly what the two sisters needed. They each see each other in a deep and meaningful way. I love how she brought a touch of fresh youth to the story that mainly focuses on older women.
The story is written in a Southern style voice with deep roots that evokes all kind of nostalgia and emotions. The topics covered are heavy with depth (abandonment, marital abuse and infidelity, abuse of power). There’s plenty of substance to fully engross the reader from start to finish. The idea of new life, redemption, and second chances balance the heaviness and remind us all that good can come forth from bad.
I particularly enjoyed the audiobook with the southern accents to bring the various characters to life. Brittany Pressley is the perfect narrator for this story.
I received a complimentary audiobook from the publisher via NetGalley and all opinions expressed are my own, freely given.