Warning. This is not a beach read. This is a story of barely developed characters, subtle racism (overt in some cases) a secret child story-line (I hate those) and a plot that zigs-zags from the past to the present repeatedly. I was left 100 percent disappointed with this read and baffled that Andrews wrote this. I have enjoyed her books over the years and this book feels/reads like a rough first draft to me. I think if maybe the amount of characters had been cut out and or just had Josephine and Brooke as the only "voices" maybe the book would have worked out better. Instead we have a plethora of points of view (POV) in this one and random actions by characters that I didn't believe at all.

"The High Tide Club" deals with almost 100 year old heiress, Josephine Warrick calling up Brooke Trappnell telling her she wants to hire her. Josephine wants to do what she can to leave her estate to friends of her that were part of a so-called "High Tide Club". The state wants to buy all of Josephine's land/home and wants to demo it. Josephine wants Brooke to prevent that by seeking out her friends and wants the opportunity to make amends with them.


Seems simple right? It's not. From the first we have Josephine telling Brooke her story in fits and starts. It doesn't work as a narrative device to have Josephine telling a story and then the book flashing back to the past, and then flashing back to the present, then flashing back to the past again. That happens repeatedly while reading. It took me out of the story every single time. And at one point I started to skim in self defense because I just didn't care anymore and wanted to be finished with this book.



And I did laugh though when Josephine lets Brooke know that one of the people she wanted to contact was Brooke's now dead grandmother. At this point we find out that two of the women from the club are dead and only one, her name is living, her name is Varina, but they had a fight related to Josephine not selling back land she bought from her and other Geechees living on the island.



So then the book segues into Brooke contacting the heirs of the dead women and then coming to the island to hear about what they could possibly be inheriting. Instead there is a death, confusion, and just general bedlam of people scrambling around trying to demand land/money from a woman that any barely seemed to care died. And then we have reveal after reveal hitting you over the head with Josephine looking the worst out of all of the characters with some of the others coming in a close second.

Brooke is an idiot and I was so done with her whole so-called plot. I hate secret children in romance novels. It is not believable at all and just once I would love it if the dude in question called the woman out and said no, I don't want to be with someone that would lie and hide the fact that they had my child for so-called BS reasons.



The other characters were secondary and I didn't care for them much either. Varina's granddaughter or grandniece was shown to be grasping and greedy. Varina herself was portrayed as naive. I hated the fact that the book shows the other so-called members of the club treating her like a doll they could dress up and give expensive things to. But she's African American and could not really be a part of their world at all. In fact most of the African Americans in this book don't look that great at all in the end.


The writing was rough in a lot of places. As I said above, maybe cutting out all of the extra characters and the jumping back and forth in the story would have helped. It was hard to keep things straight. When Josephine dies (not a spoiler, it's in the synopsis) the story loses it's forward momentum.



The setting of the island doesn't feel real at all. I think maybe just telling the story from past to present would have helped it to feel more centered in the book. Instead I didn't get why anyone was killing themselves trying to save the place.



The ending was supposed to be moving and uplifting, I just was glad to be done.

Wow what a read. I really enjoyed this book! It had so much that I didn't want it to stop. I want to know more about the new High Tide Club and where their stories take them. It has everything mystery, romance, finding out about your family and friends and finding new friends. It is definitely a must read for this summer.

I'm always excited when I see a new book by Mary Kay Andrews, and The High Tide Club did not disappoint. Filled with mystery, secrets, romance and, as always, MKA's cast of delightful characters, this book kept me intrigued and entertained. Even at a length of just under 500 pages, I still wanted more – that's how good this book is! It's not your typical Mary Kay Andrews' novel, but it is definitely a winner!

‘The High Tide Club’ by Mary Kay Andrews was a delightful book. This is my first Mary Kay Andrews book and I loved it. The plot was full of twists and turns. The characters were colorful and identifiable. At certain points in the book you find yourself cheering for the main characters. Also just when you think you figured out where the story was going the author surprises you. You want to keep reading to find our what happens next.

This novel had everything you need for a wonderful read: mystery, romance, humor, friendship, a beautiful setting and so much more. The setting is on a fictional island off the coast of Georgia. Mary Kay Andrews descriptions had you smelling the ocean and feeling the heat. Ms. Andrews includes some interesting southern traditions and beliefs that I was not aware of. I love southern fiction and this one doesn’t disappoint. The book moved quickly and found it hard to put down. I would finish a chapter and find myself saying ‘one more chapter’. Ms. Andrews is a wonderful storyteller. While this book was 480 pages, it flew by. You will absolutely be addicted to this story and have no idea how long the story actually is. I will definitely be looking for more of her books.

I would like to thank Mary Kay Andrews, St. Martin's Press and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Oh. My. LANTA - I’m such a happy camper right now! Sad because I just finished this book, but happy that I was given the opportunity to read this advance copy (thanks, Netgalley & St Martin’s press!) and most importantly, that one of my all-time favorite authors was ON FIRE with this one!!
I’ve never really cared to provide a summary in the reviews that I write; I figure you can read that anytime, between Goodreads, Amazon, etc. but I will say that this story goes deeper and is more entertaining than the little blurb you might catch somewhere. Being a true blue, Southern Belle, I have always enjoyed stories that take place here, which this author provides frequently in her books, in a glowing & loving manner. The descriptions of the Georgia coast, Savannah and all points between are apt and bequiling..... The narratives regarding race, social hierarchy, multi-generational secrets and alarming discoveries in our “that’s not nice to talk about” South? Simply enthralling and splendidly skillful.
No, this is no “War & Peace”.... yes, it’s considered “women’s fiction” (& isn’t that just a grown-up version of our “chick lit” from a couple of decades ago 🙄😏), more of a light read, but it IS a great read! This author has provided a bit of mystery, humor, intrigue, romance, all-things-Southern… You can’t ask for much more than that when you are just wanting a dadgum captivatingly charmful read and not looking to read a dictionary!
I have been a fan of Mary Kay Andrews a.k.a. Kathy Trochek, since first discovering her cozy mysteries. I even had the wonderful pleasure of going to one of her book readings/signings when living near Atlanta briefly - she was just as gracious and delightful as her stories led me to believe she would be and I have followed her closely ever since - & thank Heavens for Facebook, blogs, email, etc! While some of her stories I have possibly liked more than others over the years, this one is her best, I believe. Take a minute, sit on the front porch with your glass of sweet tea (or margarita or coffee or wine ..... just something yummy 😁) and open your mind and heart… Give it a read, y’all. You’ll thank me for it later!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and did not want to put it down. I thought I had the first of the plot all figured out, but then it continued to twist and turn and add intrigue. I really enjoyed the multiple plot lines.

This book explores the friendship of four women over the years. The loyalties, trustworthiness, and forgiveness of this friendship is all explored.

My heart literally started racing when I saw Mary Kay Andrews had a new book coming out, and this book definitely did not disappoint.

I felt like I was riding a roller coaster while reading this book. The beginning of the book started off a little bit slow, but once I got to the middle it was like a race to get to the end because I NEEDED to know what happened. Every time I thought I knew where Andrews was going, a twist came and made the ride through the book even more exciting than anticipated.

I would recommend this book to anyone that loves cross over between mystery and chick lit!!

The High Tide Club by Mary Kay Andrews is an atmospheric mystery set on a southern barrier island. There is so much to love about this book; the mysterious terminally ill socialite, the fantasy of inheriting a crumbling old mansion from a stranger, the women who meet as strangers but become sisters, the descriptions of the moss draped Georgia island with secret beach, and hidden bodies. This is a great beach read that will keep you reading until the end. I received an ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. I always enjoy a Mary Kay Andrews book, this was no exception.

The High Tide Club – Mary Kay Andrews

Josephine Bettendorf Warrick is an old reclusive heiress who resides in her pink mansion on the family owned island of Talisa, off the Georgia mainland. Home to her family for generations, the 99 year old Josephine is determined to see that the island falls into the rightful hands of her descendants, and not the state of Georgia, which wants the island to create a state park. Seemingly out of the blue, she contacts local attorney Brooke Trappnell to assist her in this endeavor.

The book vacillates between past and present – and the reader is introduced to ‘The High Tide Club’, a small group of girls who became fast friends in the early 1940’s, and together have kept a secret for their entire lives. Estranged over the years, Josephine asks Brooke to summon the women, or their descendants, to the island, so that she can make amends, as Josephine wants to deed her island to them.

But, before the will is signed, Josephine is found dead, and the makings of a legal battle appear to develop, as distant relatives appear and attempt to make a claim. But Brooke and the group of women she’s assembled research the past, and make some startling discoveries about Josephine, her friends and the events of 1941 which created an unbreakable bond for these four women…

This was a very enjoyable read, with the story being told in both past and present times, and the reader only learns of the challenges, sacrifices and heartache the women faced as the novel culminates with some twists you won’t see coming! A great rainy day read!

Mary Kay Andrews' latest is her best book yet. Every spring I eagerly await her newest release since it kicks off my summer reading list. This year I scored an ARC through NetGalley and savored the read. The High Tide Club is fantastic! It's riddled with secrets, flashbacks to World War II, and lots of colorful characters. One of the best parts is the hijacked RV story. Don't miss out on this one!

Winter seems to be lingering in many parts of the country (including here in Northern California), so it felt like a good time to escape to the beach—via fiction. Mary Kay Andrews has been called “queen of the beach reads,” and her new book, The High Tide Club, will be published in May, just in time for summer vacation, and you couldn’t ask for a better book to put in your beach bag.

At almost 500 pages, the novel is hefty enough to last a while, and though it’s stuffed with plot—family secrets! Murder! Mysterious strangers! Shocking revelations!—it’s all presented in an easy, breezy way, with lots of short chapters and surprising twists sprinkled throughout the book.

Our heroine is Brooke Trappnell, lawyer and single mom of a three-year-old. She practices law in the small town in Georgia, dealing mainly with petty criminals, DUIs and divorces. So she’s surprised when 99-year-old Josephine Warrick, an eccentric millionaire living in a crumbling mansion on a barrier island, says she wants to hire her. Josephine already has a team of high-powered Atlanta lawyers, but she wants Brooke to try to prevent the state from taking her property in order to make it into public land. She has no heirs and is dying of lung cancer, so time is of the essence.

It turns out that Josephine also wants Brooke to track down her three best friends from the 1930s and 40s (or, more likely considering how long ago that was, their heirs). The quartet called themselves the High Tide Club, and Josephine says she needs to “make amends” to the other three women. When Brooke discovers that one of the High Tide Club members was her own late grandmother, she brings in another lawyer, Gabe Wynant, the senior partner in a prestigious Savannah law firm whom Brooke worked with early in her career, to avoid a conflict of interest. A recent widower, Gabe is a couple decades older than Brooke, but as they work together again, an attraction begins to develop.

“Sometimes the people we think we know the best are the ones with secrets we can’t even fathom,” Brooke’s mom tells her at one point. That’s certainly true of the characters in this book, but by the end, of course, mysteries old and new have been resolved. This is an incredibly fun novel with characters that will feel like old friends by the time you turn the final page.

This book took me a bit to get into but I’m glad I stuck with it. It had a little bit of everything: mystery, romance, friendship, and well-developed characters that could still surprise you.

I really loved this book and this is a first considering i didn't know what her style was like. There was laughter. romance, mystery and friendship all in one single book and i LOVED it, i wish i could give it ten stars so well done.
There were a lot of beliefs and traditions where the story was set and i couldn't put the book down. Once i got through a chapter i was flicking to the next...
Her style is amazing and i loved the characters.

I so love this author’s books. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book. The mystery kept me intrigued, and the diverse group of women who become friends all have their own stories...and secrets...to share.

The High Tide Club was the perfect companion for a snowy day. I devoured it. Filled with secrets, mystery and even a touch of romance. It is the perfect “chick lit”book. I loved the setting and character, and felt as if I was part of the story. Thank you Net Galley for my ARC.

It wouldn't be summer without a Mary Kay Andrews beach read. The story about a group of girlfriends from the 1940's is told alongside a story from the present day. The High Tide Club has a mystery, a little romance and mostly a great story about female friendship. This book is a great summer read.
Thanks to NetGalley for a copy to review.

What a riveting story and so many twists and turns. Hard to put down. I highly recommend

Mary Kay Andrews hits it out of the park with her newest book, The Hide Tide Club: A Novel. It is an amazing, awesome, extraordinary story of four young girls and their friendship. This is a multigenerational novel and traces these friendships from the early 1940s through present day. There are secrets long held that forever changed their lives. Decisions made by some that would help shape future generations. Set mainly on a small island off of the coast of Georgia Josephine is now 99 years old and has a terminal illness. It is Josephine's dying wish to rectify the wrongs of long ago and reach out to her friends and their heirs. Do the heirs really know their loved ones? Will the sins of the past repeat themselves? Wonderful story and would highly recommend this book.

This was my first book by Mary Kay Andrews and I have to say I was pleasantly surprised. It was the perfect blend of friendships, secrets, mystery, and romance. Mary Kay Andrews does a great job painting a picture for you while reading her novel. I felt like I was immersed in the story the whole time. This is a perfect beach read. I’ll definitely read more by this author.

“It’s easier to walk around with love in your heart than with hate.” -Varina

Mary Kay Andrews’s The High Tide Club is a perfect beach read filled with mystery, romance, friendship, and humor.

The story jumps back and forth between the 1940s and present day. In the 1940s, we meet best friends Josephine, Ruth, Millie, and Varina, the girls of the High Tide Club. In the present, only Josephine and Varina are still living, and 99 year old Josephine enlists the help of struggling lawyer Brooke to get her estate in order. Her estate happens to be a wild and beautiful barrier island off the coast of Georgia, and Brooke is tasked with bringing the surviving family members of the High Tide Club together on the island so Josephine can make amends for unknown transgressions. Mysteries from the past and the present intermingle, romance blossoms, lives are endangered, and the most unlikely friendships form.

The Deep South setting of The High Tide Club is beautiful and allows Mary Kay Andrews to fill the book with local color. The reader is transported to the humid, muggy, insect-filled beauty of South Georgia through the language, food, and local landmarks.

My favorite parts of The High Tide Club revolve around the unlikely friendships formed. Lizzie, Marie, and Felicia join Brooke, Josephine, and Varina on the island as descendants of the High Tide Club girls, and despite different family situations and geographical backgrounds, they overcome their differences and set aside assumptions to forge great friendships. These friendships carry them through sad circumstances and hard revelations. While the story is ultimately about solving a mystery or two, the development of these characters, the humor they share, and the fierceness of their personalities are this book’s real treasures.

This book kept me entertained the whole way through. Thank you to St. Martin's Press and Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.