Beach Vibes by Susan Mallery is a heartwarming yet emotionally complex tale set against the sun-soaked backdrop of Malibu. The story follows Beth, who has always been proud of her close-knit family and thriving beachside sandwich shop, Surf Sandwiches. Her life is upended when she discovers that her beloved brother Rick, a promising doctor, is cheating on her best friend Jana—the woman he's been dating for months.

Beth is torn between loyalty to her brother and the guilt of betraying her best friend. To make matters more complicated, Jana's handsome brother enters the picture, sparking a romance that promises to be everything Beth has been hoping for. But Beth's internal struggle over whether to reveal Rick's betrayal threatens to shatter not only her relationship with her brother but also her new romance and her best friendship.

Mallery weaves a beautiful blend of romance, family drama, and self-discovery, making Beach Vibes a perfect summer read. With its relatable characters and dilemmas, this book explores loyalty, love, and the difficult decisions that shape our lives. Fans of heartfelt stories about personal growth and complex relationships will thoroughly enjoy this one.

What do you do when your life is finally falling into place, happiness and fulfillment are in sight, and you accidentally learn something that would ruin it all? What do you do? Where do your loyalties belong, with friends and lovers or family? Poor Beth finds herself between a rock and a hard spot and knows it will probably blow up in her face no matter what. Susan Mallery has presented us with quite a conundrum in Beach Vibes.

A sweet romance with some conflict thrown in! When two friends begin dating new men, things look perfect. But then a secret is revealed and things get all messed up, causing the couples to break up. Will anyone end up with the love of his or her life?

Thank you Netgalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for an e-arc in exchange for a honest review. What would you do if you learned something that your best friend needed to know? That particular line right there is exactly why I needed this book to find out what happens between Beth and her brother. There is family, trust, second chances, but there are times where you will question your brothers intentions. Beach Vibes is perfect for this summer with part mystery, part family. I can't wait for everyone to get their hands on this.

What would you do if you caught your brother cheating on your best friend? This book had me definitely thinking about what I would have done in Beth’s shoes. The story initially grabbed my attention from the summary of the plot which seemed like a story filled with plenty of drama and secrets. It’s also a story of friendships being tested and family loyalties.

Beth, newly divorced, owns a popular sandwich shop and lives with her Aunt Agatha. Beth meets Jana, a single mom, while volunteering at a local food bank and they become friends. They begin dating each other’s brothers and the friendship is tested when Beth discovers her brother is cheating on Jana.

This was another great read from Susan Mallery. The FMC’s grew from their experiences with plenty of twists and turns along the way. I loved the side characters and the non-traditional family settings for both women. The ending was just perfect. Susan Mallery never disappoints.

Thank you to Netgalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for providing this book in exchange for my honest review.

Despite the fact that Susan Mallery is a prolific and well-known author, this is only the second of her novels that I have read. Beach Vibes was pretty much exactly what you would expect and want in a beach read. There's romance, friendship, self-refelction and development, and of course the required drama and conflict. I did feel as though Mallery dragged things out a bit longer than necessary...I think I made it through a little more than half of the book with build-up and getting to a seemingly happy place, and I knew that the bad was still to come, but I felt like I was about ready to be done by that point...not to read another half a book. I also thought the dialogue was a bit off in many instances - just certain vocabulary and idioms were not current in my opinion. All in all though, Beach Vibes can definitely be thrown in your beach bag for a fun day at the beach reading!

I was hoping for a light beach read during this cold winter spell, but unfortunately, this book didn’t deliver. This book was set in CA and that was all the beach vibes it gave.

It felt unnecessarily long, repetitive, and at times, just plain boring. The characters also seemed younger than their supposed ages, which made their behavior feel immature. While there were moments of engaging plot, the constant repetition made it difficult to stay interested. Additionally, there were parts where more detail was needed, but the book just skimmed over them.

Overall, this could have worked well as a novella if it had been trimmed down.

I enjoyed reading Beach Vibes so much! I enjoyed the setting and the characters. I couldn't put this book down.

Beth has always looked out for her younger brother Rick. Even though he’s now a successful doctor, she feels his social awkwardness makes him vulnerable. Busy with her Malibu sandwich shop, Beth has a hard time making friends, so she’s super excited to have found Jana while volunteering. But her life is turned upside down when she learns that Rick and Jana have been dating and Rick is cheating on her. Where does her loyalty lie—friendship or family??

Another emotion-filled story from a master storyteller. Complete with discussion questions and recipes.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early copy in exchange for an honest review.

"What would you do if you caught your brother cheating on your best friend?"

This book has heart, tears, love and a bit of mystery! Twists that I didn't see coming and parts that made me laugh out loud!

Beth is a year post divorce and she still hasn’t moved on with her personal life. She has a thriving Sandwich shop and employees that love her. She decided to start volunteering at the local food bank where she makes a new friend Jana. She never thought that her brother would turn her world and her new friend’s world upside down all in one day.

This book wrestles with love, friendship and family. At what cost do you stick with your family, keep their secrets? This book had me thinking if I was in Beth’s shoes what would I have done.

Overall this book was an easy, but thought provoking beach read that I really enjoyed. I was also happy with how this book ended.

Thank you NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing/ Canary Street Press for this eARC in return for my honest review. I have never read one of Susan Mallery’s books before, but I really enjoyed her style of writing and this book. I look forward to reading many more of her books in the future.

What would you do if you learned something that your best friend needed to know?

Beth and Jana meet at the local food bank.

They both have brothers - what does that mean?

Well it means that they both unknowingly fall for each other’s sibling.

How does that work out?

Beach Vibes is about family, trust, loyalty, and second chances but it also has some situations that make you think about who your family members really are.

Which character becomes someone he/she is pretending to be because deep down he/she isn’t that person.

It gets a little tense once this personality shows up. This character turned out to be a horrible person who ruined the lives of the other characters.

Even though it isn’t my usual read, adding a bit of tension, the question of what would you do, and a little bit of mystery made it a good read for me. 5/5

Thank you to the publisher for a copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

What would you do for your sibling? This is a story of friendship, family, and love. It has me thinking about perceptions and family and if we truly see our family members for who they are or if we only see the person we expect them to be. Beth will do anything and make sacrifices for her younger brother to have the best life possible, changing her own dreams for him. Rick, her younger brother, is a successful doctor who takes everything Beth offers without a thought about her. When Beth discovers a secret about her brother her world is rocked and she has to decide what she is going to do with it, if she keeps it for her brother she could destroy her friendship and relationship but if she tells she could lose her brother. Beth was a relatable character and I was invested in her relationships and was yelling at the book (always a sign I am enjoying a book) with some of her choices. I also loved her sandwich shop, Surf Sandwiches, and the interesting sandwiches she created. I recommend this book to romance readers that enjoy friendship and family along with the romance.

Friendship, family, relationships are all disastrously ruined by the deception of one whose tentacles reach everyone. Beth gratefully and lovingly forms a friendship with Jana. Unknown to Beth, her brother Rick has been wooing Jana. When Beth meets Jana’s brother, Teddy, sparks fly. Her brother could ruin it all.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of the book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I really enjoyed Beach Vibes by Susan Mallery. It is the story of Beth Nield, a divorced sandwich shop owner who moved in with her widowed aunt after her divorce, and laments that in the year since her divorce was final, she hasn't had a date, and lost all her friends in the split. To top it off, she is always running in to her older aunt's overnight guests in their shared house. On her way to Costco for work, she spots a billboard proposal thinking, "tacky" until she realizes it's her ex husband, Ian, proposing to his new girl. She hasn't really moved on, and knows she needs to. She starts to seek out new friends, and meets a single mom, Jana, at a volunteer job they share. Jana just happens to have a very attractive widowed brother, who becomes a possible love interest for Beth. Susan Mallery is one of my favorite authors and this book is really good and has some twists that I found unusual for her books, and I loved it. Thank you to NetGalley, Canary Street Press, and Harlequin Trade Publishing for letting me review an advance readers ebook.

This is a story of family and friendship. The ending is predictable but I loved the journey. Thank you to net galley for an advanced readers copy.

Great story. This would be a great book club book because so much to discuss! What would YOU do? Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher. This was very good, as all her books are!

First of all, I thank Netgalley for the chance to read and honestly review an advance copy of this book.
Susan Mallery has really delved into some deep emotions in this story. Finding and building friendships and learning to love again are very important parts of this story, but deceptions, divorce, and death are factors that intricately play a part as well. I kept changing my opinion of several of the characters throughout the entire book, and at the end of the story I was pleased that my progression of thought matched Susan’s intentions! I don’t do spoilers, so I can’t go into too much detail, but I was slightly disappointed in one of the characters who might have been able to help Beth understand her family dynamics sooner than she did. Otherwise I really enjoyed the story, including all the twists and turns and recommend it as one of Susan’s better books!

This is the first novel I have ever read by Susan Mallery and I won't like, I was disappointed. It took a long time to get into the story and I kept hoping it would get better for me. It didn't. I did not care for any of the characters and I get that it's about family loyalty but it just wasn't for me. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

A worthy read!! Beach Vibes, by Susan Mallery, sounds like it could have been a light and fluffy beach romance. Instead, the well-written story dives into some weighty topics, such as how far does one take family loyalty and learning to reinvent how you see yourself after a lifetime of negative messages from yourself and others.

Beach Vibes is the story of Beth, a sandwich shop owner, rebuilding her life after a divorce. And Jana, a single mom who is working on getting into nursing school and a friend of Beth who she met at the food bank where they both volunteer. Beth’s brother, a brilliant but socially awkward surgeon who she has always taken care of, begins to date Jana. And Beth later starts a relationship with Jana’s brother, a widower with 3 kids. Through the book, Beth comes to understand more about her brother’s character and is torn between family loyalty and her friendship with Jana. I really enjoyed this story and highly recommend it!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review an advanced reader copy!