Review: 'Summer at Rose Island' by Holly Martin (2016)

Darcy Davenport is ready for a fresh start. Determined to leave a string of disastrous jobs and relationships behind her, she can’t wait to explore White Cliff Bay and meet the locals. 
When Darcy swims in the crystal clear waters of the bay, she discovers the charming Rose Island Lighthouse. But it’s not just the beautiful building that she finds so intriguing… 
Riley Eddison doesn’t want change. Desperate to escape the memories of his past, he lives a life of solitude in the lighthouse. Yet he can’t help but notice the gorgeous woman who swims out to his island one day. 
Darcy is drawn to the mysterious and sexy Riley, but when it seems the town is trying to demolish his home, she soon finds herself having to pick sides. 
She’s fallen in love with White Cliff Bay. But is that all Darcy’s fallen for?
Over the past few years author Holly Martin has really made a name for herself within the romantic comedy/chick lit world. I’ve had the pleasure of reading several of her novels up until now, mainly her Christmas titles such as ‘Christmas under a Cranberry Sky’, ‘Christmas under a Starlit Sky’, ‘Christmas at Lilac Cottage’ and ‘Snowflakes on Silver Cove.’ In 2016, ‘Summer at Rose Island’ was released, and while I straight away managed to get a review copy of the novel via NetGalley, it took me quite a bit of time to finally sit down with it. Nevertheless, I know by now that a book with Holly’s name on the front is definitely worth giving a try, so I was keen to finally get started and discover more about Darcy’s story.
Darcy Davenport has moved to beautiful White Cliff Bay with a mission. Even though she loved her work as a marine biologist, she is determined to have a fresh start and make something of herself, and hopefully finally make her parents proud of her. When she first spots Rose Island lighthouse, she immediately falls in love with the beautiful building, but when she discovers there are actually plans to demolish this piece of Rose Island history, Darcy wants to do whatever she can to stop this from happening. Lighthouse-owner Riley Eddison seems to have the same goal and Darcy can’t help but fall for his rugged good looks. However, Darcy can’t forget what she came to White Cliff Bay for, and this ultimately puts her in an incredibly difficult situation where she is forced to pick sides…
‘Summer at Rose Island’ really is one of those chick lit novels that makes you long for warm lovely days on the beach and walks outside in the sunshine… Setting the scene is something author Holly Martin is known for and she certainly manages to do just that in this particular book; I wish I could actually visit White Cliff Bay and its lovely locals! While this novel is actually the third part of a series, it can undoubtedly be read as a stand-alone and no prior knowledge of any characters is needed. That being said, I did really enjoy seeing some familiar faces again and discovering how they are doing, such as Libby and George.
Darcy is a great main character; I loved how feisty she was, but also struggling to deal with some issues in her life, and it was wonderful to join her during this new step in her life. White Cliff Bay is a lovely village with a great sense of community; all locals know each other and seem to know everything about each other as well, but in the end they all mean well, and it resulted in this lovely atmosphere and feeling to the whole book. There is definitely a pattern noticeable in Holly Martin’s books and storylines, but I have to admit I personally still enjoy it every single time and I’m already excited to see when I will be able to pick up her next read. All in all, ‘Summer at Rose Island’ is a sweet, heart-warming and romantic read, and definitely a good one to pick up if you’re longing for a bit of sunshine in your life!

Rating:9/10

  For more information about this book: Amazon.co.uk / Amazon.com / Goodreads
Thanks to the publisher for providing me with a review copy in exchange for an honest review.