Wow! This book just got better and better with every chapter.

Mansion Beach has so many more layers to it than I originally thought. I enjoyed that we got so many different POV’s throughout the summer. It helped me be unbiased towards each character, I was able to see their faults but reasoning for those faults - which is key for a book like this.

There are so many plot twists that really helped keep me engaged throughout the book. I am still reeling from the ending.

Amazing! Thank you Net Galley for giving me this arc in exchange for an honest review.

Meg Mitchell Moore’s latest novel, “Mansion Beach,” set on Block Island, contains her usual mix of complex characters, vivid descriptions of life in an island tourist community and great dialog. Added to the mix is a mystery involving the death of one of the characters, which is hinted at throughout the book.

The two primary characters are Nicola and Juliana. Nicola recently quit her job with a prominent law firm in Providence, Rhode Island, broke up with her live in boyfriend, and moved to a cottage on Block Island owned by her cousin David’s rich in-laws, the Buchanans. Nicola left her high pressure job to work as an intern for the Block Island Maritime Institute, where she can enjoy nature.

Juliana, who owns a startup involving the purchase of low priced designer clothes, lives in the mansion next door to Nicola’s cottage, where Nicola is often disturbed by late night parties. Shortly after the first party, Juliana’s assistant invites Nicola to one of the legendary parties where Nicola meets and befriends Juliana. Shortly afterwards, an intermediary asks Nicola to invite her cousin David to her cottage for cocktails and also invite Juliana. It is then that Nicola discovers that David and Juliana met shortly before David married Taylor, and immediately fell in love.

Interspersed thought out the book are short transcripts of a podcast where the town council members are interviewed about the mysterious drowning incident, and the attempts by the Buchanan family to get zoning approval for tearing down an old hotel and building a spa complex in its place. These snippets of information adds intrigue as the reader tries to guess the identity of the mysterious drowning victim.

The book also contains a nod to F. Scott Fitzgerald’s “The Great Gatsby,” with Juliana as a Gatsby figure, Nicola as the “Nick” character, and David as Daisy. There is even a green light at the end of David’s dock, which Juliana watches from her own dock across the lake. I particularly loved these references since “The Great Gatsby” is one of my all time favorite books.

My only quibble with this book is that it contained a lot of “parenthetical” comments, which is one of my pet peeves, since I feel that it breaks up the the narrative flow. But again, this is a minor, personal grievance and would probably not detract others from the book. I highly recommend this book to anyone who likes novels with strong, complex characters involved in emotionally charged situations with a hint of mystery.

Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow for providing me an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

read if you like:
📍 Block Island
💁🏻‍♀️ multiple female protagonists
🥰 romantic drama

summary:
This book was a fun change of pace from the drama and darkness of my normal thriller! It follows three women — Nicola, Juliana and Taylor, for their summer on Block Island. Nicola, looking for a fresh start after a breakup, is visiting for the summer, staying in her cousins’s house and reconnecting with his family after being close childhood friends. Juliana George, her neighbor, is the CEO of a fashion startup preparing for its IPO, and escapes to Block Island to prepare and reconnect with her past. Taylor, the wife of Nicola’s cousin, works as part of her father’s real estate empire, living the perfect life with her husband and young daughter. As the three collide for the summer, old romances, secrets and drama come to the surface, and all of them are forced to fight for their own self preservation.

The book starts off slow and hard to follow. It’s tough to keep track of the various characters and their existing relationships, and with everyone having their own backstories, it takes a bit to figure everyone out. However, about 25% of the way through, it picks up and becomes a quick read. All of the characters are complicated and conflicted, but I found myself loving and empathizing with Nicola quickly. Her character is relatable and her journey of self discovery is easy to root for. Some of the other characters come and go, and it’s harder to track who might be important. The murder that takes place is overlaid throughout the chapter, but I’ll be honest, as someone who loves a good crime, it felt like an afterthought. The ending was a bit anticlimactic and abrupt, and I didn’t find the story coming together the way I thought it would. That being said, it’s still dramatic, funny and written to be a tv-movie, which I hope it becomes!

Thanks to William Morrow and Net Galley for the advanced copy. If you want a quick read, check this out when it releases on May 27!

What I found fascinating throughout the book is how Nicola appreciated Block Island for what it was in its natural beauty and its ecosystems whereas Taylor saw it as what it could be through continuous construction. There was such a perception that wealth meant happiness and he who built the largest house and threw the most lavish parties must truly experience joy. However, as successful as Juliana was with LookBook, she was constantly lonely and needed to prove herself. Shuttled between 9 foster homes and felt degraded at college, the only happiness she could find was her determination to work harder than anyone else around her. She knew what it was like to have nothing and promised herself that it would never occur again. It was through George that she started believing in herself. Of course there was a rationale behind why she chose the house that she did but she bought it at her terms and means. Taylor grew up being groomed to run the company regardless of her sex which was evident in her name. She never knew what it was like to be a little girl which was why she promised herself that Felicity would know what it was like yo be a princess. It was sad how her and David lost sight of each other as each one felt that they didn't support each others dreams. This book ended on s hopeful and loving note as what was supposed to happen truly did. It can always be tough but just like the one night between David and Juliana doesn't mean that there is a future involved.

Ah! A book set on Block Island! YES. Written by a talented writer, please! I was transported to a summer on Block throughout reading Moore's novel. I adored the action, mystery, characters, and setting. It reminded me sometimes of The Great Gatsby. Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC. Telling everyone about this for summer book choices!

Oh man, this book was awesome. I didn’t know that it was a retelling of The Great Gatsby when I started it, so I was a bit surprised by the references at first. I love Gatsby, and I think this book was a wonderful successor. Highly recommended for all fiction lovers!

I enjoy reading Moore's books each summer and like that they are set at the same location, Block Island, in this case. I was excited to start this book but it quickly fell kind of flat for me. It was predictable, and the death referred to in the podcast notes wasn't even introduced until very late in the book. I didn't feel that the podcast interviews added anything to the story, and I also felt like the ending was rushed. Overall, a good read, though and I will continue to look for new works by this author. Thanks to netGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Thank you, NetGalley, for this uncorrected digital ARC of 'Mansion Beach' by Meg Mitchell Moore - expected release date 05/27/2025

ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I was so excited to be accepted for this ARC because I've read all Moore's books and didn't want to wait months for this to come out!

Her books typically use Block Island as the main setting, similar to Elin Hilderbrand using Nantucket. Unfortunately, this book didn't really resonate with me like her past books. I couldn't find it in me to like any of the characters and the storyline is one that's been done and done and done again, in other author's books.

The interactions between Jack and Nicola didn't feel hopeful for a budding relationship, definitely gave off situationship vibes. Nicola used the word love to describe her feelings towards Jack, yet all he did was ghost her, booty call her, and not respect her work or day to day life. Moore did a good job of giving readers the ability to see that Jack was the worst (this is confirmed for sure at the end of the book) - THANK GOD Nicola didn't end up with him, just for happy endings sake. I really wish Moore would have written a better ending for Nicola, though, and had her pursue the schooling at URI than just giving up on everything and moving home to Minnesota.

There was podcast data dropped in here and there, with interviews of people in the community, speaking about the deceased and their association with the deceased. I felt like that could've been left out completely, it just kinda muddled up the story with interactions that really didn't matter and wasn't really necessary to the storyline. Toward the end, Moore wrote a chapter from Shelly's POV in which it explains her drunken exploits and confirmed she was the deceased. All that build up as to who it was, I don't know, I just kinda felt like it being her wasn't that climactic.

It was a little strange that Nicola's dad and 2 additional sisters weren't mentioned until the last 10 pages of the book. You'd think they should've been mentioned early on, her mom and a sister Shauna were talked about throughout, may be better to introduce all family members somehow at the same time?

Overall the storyline wasn't really the greatest, the revelations weren't very exciting and the book maybe needs some cleaning up or better organization?

4.5⭐️
A modern day Great Gatsby style love affair meets Elin Hilderbrand style book. Mansion beach is set on Block Island in the summer, switching POVs between two women, Juliana and Nicola. If you’ve read The Great Gatsby, you know the premise of the story; A person with new age wealth, trying to capture the attention of their long lost love through glamorous and extravagant parties, in hopes that that one specific person will arrive as a guest one night. Mansion beach is no different. Julianna George, self made millionaire, throwing elaborate parties that she doesn’t even care for at her new Block Island home, all in hopes of capturing her loves attention.
I really enjoyed this book! I am always looking for a book with a beachy, summer theme, but also an air of mystery, mixed in with some light romance, this story has it all. It’s a light & easy read that kept me captivated. This was my first Meg Mitchell Moore book, but will not be my last!
Thank you so much to NetGalley and William Morrow Publishing for the advanced copy.

Thank you for the ARC! This was a fun read. It is inspired by the great gatsby with a lot of big and small nods to it.

The book started off slow and although I predicted the ending, it was interesting to see the character and story development moving on.
Not particularly realistic or meaningful but yet it kept me going. Thanks for the advance read

Mansion Beach is set on Block Island like several others by Meg Mitchell Moore. Once again, her writing is powerful, and her attention to detail bring the scenes to life for the reader. Her characters are easy to connect with and are very likeable.

In Mansion Beach we meet Nicola, Julianna, and Taylor, who have totally different back stories. Nicola grew up with sisters and parents with strong family values. Juliana grew up in foster homes and attended college on a full scholarship. Taylor was primarily raised by her father, had money for what ever she wanted, but always felt it was conditional. Nicola, once a lawyer, is on the Island to intern as a marine wildlife researcher. Juliana is now the CEO and founder of a fashion-tech company. Taylor is now in command of a real-estate empire. As summer progresses, the present lives of these three women cross paths and has repercussions for each of them.

This is a beautifully written story about how differences and similarities can bring people together and forge bonds and summer friendships. It is told from multiple POV'S and in the past and present giving the reader the full scope of how the present came to be for each character.
I really enjoyed this book and highly recommend it. It will be the perfect summer read.

Thanks to Netgalley and William Morrow for the advanced copy

I really enjoyed this book. An added perk for me is that I am a native Rhode Islander and the book was set on Block Island. Great story. Would love to see what happens later for these characters.

Meg Mitchell Moore fans will want to pick up her latest book. Mansion Beach was a great book. I couldn’t put it down.

I really liked this book!! I liked how the story flowed, and how the characters were developed. I think the themes of love and growth were good, everything was entertaining and funny with some heartwarming bits thrown in!

Thank you to NetGalley, to the author, and to the publisher for this complimentary ARC in exchange for my honest review!!!

I’ve enjoyed Meg Mitchell Moore’s books since the first book I read, the Captains Daughter. This one does not disappoint and will be sure to be on many’s summer reading list. It mixes romance, mystery, opulent life styles and a chic summer locale. Nicola, Jade/Juliana, Taylor and tangentially Shelly all intersect w one of them ending up dead by the end of the summer. I must say it was not who I thought it was. Recommended for all public libraries

I love all of Meg Mitchell Moore's books and this one is no exception--although it may be a little more clever than the others. If a reader has not read The Great Gatsby, they will still love the intricate plot, the fascinating characters, and of course the wonderful setting of Block Island, but if the reader knows Gatsby the book will have a whole other dimension. Although it is NOT a retelling of Fitzgerald's classic there are all kinds of snippets of references to Jay Gatsby and the other characters in the older book. Mansion Beach would be such a fun book to do as a book club to see who could find the most tie-ins between the two books--I'm sure there are many that I missed. Although this book takes place in a real place in Rhode Island and Gatsby takes place in a fictional town on Long Island, both have the green light at the end of the dock.

This is a very charming novel. If you are a fan of THE GREAT GATSBY, you will be enchanted by the references to the novel; if you are not a fan of GATSBY, you will enjoy the novel on its own. I have enjoyed Moore’s previous novels and I was drawn into this story of love, wealth, betrayal and carelessness.

It is Nicola who serves as the connector between the characters. She is dealing with her own crisis, trying to change her life. Her neighbor Julianna uses her as both a sounding board and messenger. Julianna, on the cusp of millions in an IPO , is in love with Nicola’s cousin. It’s a delicate dance, cleverly presented by townspeople on the exclusive Block Island, discussing a death in their midst.

I highly recommend this lovely, nuanced tribute to GATSBY which also stands alone as a great beach read.

Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to read, review and enjoy this novel.