This was a fun twist on a Great Gatsby retelling! I enjoyed the setting and the retelling portion of the book, but in general it fell a bit flat for me. I found it to be a little wordy and just not super attention-grabbing. I was mostly bored throughout my reading and almost did not finish this book. The characters were all very immature and unlikable, in my opinion.

Many thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow for gifting me a digital ARC of the new book by Meg Mitchell Moore. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

“We are all chasing something: summer, serenity, second chances.”

Thank you to Harper and NetGalley for the Advanced Reader Copy of Mansion Beach by Meg Mitchell Moore.

This heartfelt contemporary fiction novel with a summer-on-the-coast setting and a cast of multigenerational women explores reinvention, privilege, and the complicated nature of home with lovely prose and emotionally layered characters. Perfect for fans of Elin Hilderbrand and Annabel Monaghan.

I’ll be sharing this review on Goodreads, Instagram, StoryGraph, B&N, and Amazon.

A VERY wordy modern retelling of Great Gatsby set in a New England summer. Elin Hilderbrand fans, this is right up your alley.

3 ⭐️ for this authors ability to use 10 pages in describing an event that would take others a paragraph at best.

Thank you NetGalley and the Publisher for the advanced copy.

What should have been a lovely summer of rest and relaxation is turned inside out and upside down in Meg Mitchell Moore's excellent MANSION BEACH. Set in Block Island, among the well to do and natural beauty, the story of relatable and likable Nicola Carr kept me captivated throughout, hooting aloud at the wonderful writing about a special and entitled community. I received a copy of this book and these thoughts are my own, unbiased opinions.

I’ve really enjoyed Meg Mitchell Moore’s previous books, and Mansion Beach continues to deliver what she does best. Her writing always has depth but still makes for an easy, satisfying beach read.

Set on Block Island, the story follows three women whose lives slowly start to overlap over the course of one dramatic summer. It has been described as Great Gatsby-inspired, and I can see that in the backdrop of wealth, secrets, and longing, all tucked behind glamorous houses and summer plans. There is a love triangle, plenty of ambition, and even a dead body. It wasn’t exactly a page-turner for me, and I connected more with some storylines than others, but I appreciated how it all came together in the end.

The setting is vivid, the characters are layered, and it has just the right amount of tension. A solid summer read, especially if you like stories about ambition, reinvention, and the quiet unraveling of personal lives. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my review copy.

First, I have to say that Meg Mitchell Moore is an auto-buy author for me - no matter what. I have read everything of hers and I will continue to do so for the rest of time. I feel like Mansion Beach had a lot of good elements, so it made the book enjoyable. But I also think that some of it could have been improved upon to make it really great! The characters didn't really jive for me. Nicola felt very out of place and she's one of our main characters. I didn't believe the friendship between her and Juliana, even as a surface level friendship. I didn't believe the deep love between Juliana and David. And all the drama seemed so.... blah. I wanted to know who died, but getting there meant a journey with people who were all doing such random, silly things. Again, good concept, but missed the mark on execution.

Mansion Beach is a modern take on The Great Gatsby in the style of a summer romance/drama with reversed gender roles (Juliana playing the role of Gatsby). The author does a great job of recreating the subtle confusion and tension among characters that I recall from my first read of Gatsby. I often found myself trying to make connections between the two plots and not immersed in the story of these updated characters. The cover of the book may lead you to believe that it is just another summer romance, but the story will fall flat in that department- probably by design. Overall, the book is well done, but the experience of reading it felt more like I was studying the plot and structure than reading for enjoyment.

I thought Mansion Beach was going to be one of those light, summer reads. While part of it was that way, the majority was a mystery behind several people. Mansion Beach was different than I thought it was going to be and that's not a bad thing.

Thanks for the read, NetGalley!

A super fun, contemporary and gender-swapped take on The Great Gatsby, I wasn't sure this book was for me when I first cracked it open, but I ended up loving the wild ride it took me on (even if I kiiindd of knew where it was going?) The writing left a little to be desired, but I still had a ball with this fun summer read.

Mansion Beach is Block Island in Rhode Island, a place I've always wanted to visit! The small beach town is starting to be taken over by rich people and their mansions. Here we find Juliana, about to take her company public and make millions. She has suspiciously bought a house across the lake from a maybe former lover David Buchanan, their green lights at the end of the docks twinkling to each other in secret.

Nicola, our protagonist, is David's cousin, and is living in a small cottage next to Juliana's new, huge house that hosts parties every night this fateful summer. Nicola gets caught up in the drama and is our guest into the world of the rich idiots, which dramatic backstories and gossip galore. If you are a Great Gatsby fan, this is a must read because it was so fun reading a well-done retelling. Otherwise, it's just a really fantastic beach read that I found hard to put down even if I wasn't totally enamored with the writing.

Thank you to NetGalley for the advance review copy in return for an honest review. I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. The pacing of this book is so slow. It made me lose interest so quickly to be honest.

Mansion Beach is a sharp, atmospheric novel that blends ambition, class tension, and mystery—all set against the backdrop of Rhode Island’s privileged coastal enclaves. Meg Mitchell Moore captures the allure and complications of a life surrounded by wealth, especially for those on the outside looking in.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an advance copy of Mansion Beach by Meg Mitchell Moore in exchange for my honest review and feedback. Meg Mitchell Moore always is at the top of my must read authors so I was dying to start this one once approved. This book is absolutely fantastic! The cover is precious and the book itself if just wonderful. Such a fun summer read! Do yourself a favor and buy this the moment it's released tomorrow and put it in your beach bag immediately! This is the perfect way to keep your summer reading streak going!

A modern Gatsby retelling… but make it beachy, gender-swapped, and filled with ambition, secrets, and a splash of murder? Consider me intrigued.

In Mansion Beach, we follow three women spending the summer on Block Island: Nicola, in need of a quiet escape; Juliana George, a fashion-tech CEO throwing fabulous parties and harboring big dreams/ bigger secrets and maybe a romantic rekindling and Taylor Buchanan, the polished real estate queen whose picture-perfect life is threatening to unravel. Their paths slowly (and messily) intersect as the story builds toward betrayal, heartbreak, self-discovery and yes, a dead body.

The Gatsby references are everywhere — from the extravagant parties to the longing stares across the water (complete with a literal green light). I’m a sucker for a classic retelling, so I couldn’t help but smile at all the little nods. That said, some of the connections felt more distracting than clever like the name swaps: Nicola for Nick, Juliana George for Jay Gatsby, and the Buchanans just… still being the Buchanans 😅. It teetered between homage and parody at times, but in a way that still kept me turning the pages.

My biggest gripe? The chapter lengths. I love sinking into a story, but when chapters stretch too long, my attention starts drifting like a beach umbrella on a windy day. Still, the intrigue, the setting, and the juicy tension between these characters made up for it.

This wasn’t a five star read, but it was a fun one where you bring to the pool or the patio, flip open with a cold drink in hand, and disappear into for an afternoon. If you love Gatsby-inspired drama, power-hungry women, mysterious neighbors, and the kind of summer secrets that demand to be spilled, Mansion Beach might be worth the trip to Block Island.

Thank you Netgalley and William Morrow Publishing for a copy of this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I picked this one up not realizing it was a Gatsby retelling but the Buchanans, the green light at the end of the dock, and all the parties tipped me off quickly. Some things made sense, some just felt like an obvious Easter egg.

I enjoyed revisiting a familiar story through a new lens but found it to be pretty forgettable.

The modern take on "The Great Gatsby" is undoubtedly its strongest suit, providing a fresh lens through which to explore themes of wealth, longing, and the elusive American dream. I didn't connect with the characters much. The characters, while distinct, often come across as remarkably immature, making it challenging to fully invest in their struggles and decisions. Their actions sometimes feel more like adolescent whims than the complex motivations expected in a narrative of this scope. Furthermore, the plot itself can be surprisingly hard to follow. The narrative threads occasionally fray, leading to moments of confusion that pull the reader out of the story.

The Captain's Daughter is one of my all time favorite summer reads, so I am always excited when Meg Mitchell Moore releases a new beach read, however, Mansion Beach was not a winner for me. The characters were insufferable and not in a fun campy way - I hope MMM's next release is a bit more Captain's Daughter-esque!

This is OK. I didn't love it, but I didn't hate it. It doesn't help that I don't love the Great Gatsby, so I don't expect to love nods/retellings.

I absolutely LOVED this book!! The story was intriguing and kept my attention. I wanted to stay on that vacation forever! Moore writes great summer beach reads and I always look forward to her next book!

I had high hopes for this one with the summer cover and I’ve enter other books. The audio was well done. The characters were unlikable.

Review will be posted on 7/11/25

Nicola Carr is leaving her stressful job behind in Boston for life on Block Island. She is taking a marine biology internship and staying at her cousin David's cottage. David has married into the wealthy Buchanan family, and her life is vastly different than his. David and his wife, Taylor, are hosting Jack Baker, a pro golfer, in their guest house this summer. As Nicola spends more time with David and their group of friends, she realizes that Juliana George, a fashion CEO, is living next door to her cottage and is responsible for all of those lavish parties. Juliana appears to have it all, but the story dives into her point of view, and readers realize that isn't the case. Throw in excerpts from a podcast about the events from that summer and hints at a mysterious murder, and readers have themselves a lavish beach read in Mansion Beach by Meg Mitchell Moore that is reminiscent of The Great Gatsby.

Moore does a phenomenal job with a modern take on The Great Gatsby. I enjoyed all of her Easter Eggs and allusions to the classic novel. She tackles some of the same themes from The Great Gatsby in Mansion Beach, especially focusing on the upper class, and it makes this beach novel more than just a fluffy read. While I loved being wrapped up in Nicola's world on Block Island, I will say I wasn't connected to the characters like I was hoping and usually am when it comes to Moore's beach reads. Nonetheless, it was a wonderful way to pass a summer weekend.