This book had me from the beginning. The great descriptions of the time period and a wonderful story of how women may have felt during the time period when men worked and women played in the elite areas of the country. Fascinating and highly recommended.

Montauk remains a summer playground for the wealthy and privileged. As always, the local residents are beholden to the feckless summer guests who are vital to the economy of the village. This is a highly romantic story about the affair between a wealthy outlier and a local lighthouse officer. Not an unfamiliar plot, but set in a time when such behavior was absolutely scandalous instead of expected. For those readers familiar with the village of Montauk, this provides a romantic journey back to its beginnings.

It’s 1938 and Beatrice, who dropped out of Vassar when her brother died, is now married to the wealthy Harry. The idle rich wives are spending their summer in Montauk, Long Island; their husbands join them on weekends after working in Manhattan during the week. Both Beatrice and her husband Harry have secrets, and she finds romance and friendship outside this wealthy social circle. I found all of the coincidences presented in the novel somewhat unbelievable and, spoiler alert, if you’re looking for a happily ever after ending, look elsewhere.

This book took me a while to finish and I almost gave up on it about 1/3 of the way through. It started out very slow and pretty much stayed that way until the last few pages. And it was kind of boring? I hate saying that about it but I did find it rather dull. Maybe if we had learned more about the other Montauk guests lives, or more about what the husbands were up to in the city, it would have been better but just on the main character? She hadn't lived much it seems.

This is the story of Montauk, known to Long Islanders, as the end of the world. Land developer Carl fisher - known for his development of Miami, began developing the land in the 1920s, but the stock market crash halted his vision for the area. In the 1930s other investors began sinking money into developing the area known previously as the site for Long Island Cattle drives. The families of these rich men began summering in the area, and their families joined them. These summer visitors created jobs in the sleepy fishing village, but there was also a definite line between the summer folk and the local residents. The book Montauk tells of Bea and her rich investor husband Harry and their summer spent on Montauk.

Bea was not born wealthy and has a hard time fitting in with the other summer wives. She wants a child, but her husband's attention is divided with his work back in the city and in "keeping company" with other women. Bea befriends Elizabeth, who is a villager with four children, and a job doing the laundry for the wealthy summer guests. As their friendship blooms, so does her interest in the local lighthouse keeper. She beings to realize, as time passes, that the life she wants is not with her husband, but a quieter life at Montauk full time. A violent end-of-summer storm tears down the barricades between the wealthy and the locals, and one final senseless act of violence makes Bea's decision for her.

I received this book from Net Galley in exchange for a review. I enjoyed reading it, and the story was interesting, although I did not always enjoy the choices Bea made or her reasoning for making them. Many of the wealthy characters were easy to dislike; their shallowness and disregard of the working class made it even easier. I wanted to like Harry, but as the novel progressed I found him more and more unstable and privileged, which I think was the point. The ending surprised me, but it also left me feeling satisfied. I think any other choice would have been too pat of an ending.

Great debut novel. The author definitely has a way of telling a story that quickly drew me. Loved the history and the locale. The characters evolved as the book wore on which is always a plus in my book. I received a copy from NetGalley and the publisher and this is my honest opinion.

This book was great. It hits so close to home. I could feel every thing the author was trying to portray. It was written with such detail that I couldn’t put it down.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own

Montauk is the story of Beatrice. Beatrice is a country girl who married into wealth. At first happy in her marriage, Bea notices a rift in her marriage. Along with the rift, Bea has failed to conceive a child and that drives them further apart. So when Harry tells Bea that they will be taking a summer-long trip to Montauk Manor, she is thrilled. She thinks that they can grow close again and a child will happen. But that isn’t in the cards. Harry decides that he will work in the city while Bea stays at the Manor during the week. He’ll come and visit on the weekend. Feeling out of place, Bea strikes up a friendship with the manor’s laundress. Who in turn introduces her to Thomas, the head lightkeeper. As Bea’s feelings for Thomas grows, she realizes that she must make a choice. What will happen? What will Bea’s choice be? And can she survive the consequences?

I wasn’t sure if I was going to like Montauk when I read the blurb. To me, it screamed spoiled rich girl has an affair and there are consequences. Then I started reading. And let me tell you, this book is anything than what I thought. I was surprised by this book.

I liked Bea even if she did annoy me during parts of the book. I liked her determination to make her marriage work. I liked that she didn’t care what the other women at the Manor thought about her. But, like I mentioned at the beginning of the paragraph, she annoyed me. She overstepped her bounds when it came to Elizabeth and Thomas. She let the other women in the Manor dictate what she should do the first half of the book. And the big thing, she didn’t confront Harry about his affairs until the end of the book.

I did figure out about Harry cheating early in the book. He was in love with Bea but he was chomping at the bit to get back to Manhattan. When it was validated, I was surprised that Bea didn’t say something to him. But, that was how it was back then. Men could do whatever they wanted with whomever they wanted and the women took it.

I was surprised when the author chose to have Bea and Thomas start a relationship while married. While two wrongs don’t make a right, I do think that Bea deserved to be happy. And Thomas made her happy. But she was torn between Harry and Thomas. I was on pins and needles about who she was going to choose.

You will need tissues when reading the end of the book. I was surprised at what happened between Harry and Bea. Very surprised. I was also surprised by the news that Bea had. I mentally went “Yikes, how is she going to deal with THAT“. The very end of the book had me sobbing. Let’s say that it was not a happy ending. Which was surprising and refreshing.

I would give Montauk an Adult rating. There is sex (not graphic). There is mild language. There is violence. There are triggers. They would be the death of a sibling, depression, cheating, and rape. I would recommend that no one under the age of 21 read this book.

I would reread Montauk. I would also recommend this book to family and friends.

Unfortunately, I didn't finish this book. It was slow and not interesting. I had no desire to find out what happened. It was so long, I felt like it could have been great if it was shorter (which is unusual for me).

It just wasn't for me; hopefully, it will appeal to others.

A book I read in two days. I thoroughly enjoyed reading about the socialite scene in Montauk. Add a little scandal to the mix and the book had my attention.

I love historical fiction. And I love the East Coast of the USA. So when I saw the description of Montauk by Nicola Harrison, my interest was piqued. Let’s take a second to appreciate this beautiful cover!

Okay, now for the premise of the book:

Montauk, Long Island, 1938.

For three months, this humble fishing village will serve as the playground for New York City’s wealthy elite. Beatrice Bordeaux was looking forward to a summer of reigniting the passion between her and her husband, Harry. Instead, tasked with furthering his investment interest in Montauk as a resort destination, she learns she’ll be spending twelve weeks sequestered with the high society wives at The Montauk Manor—a two-hundred room seaside hotel—while Harry pursues other interests in the city.

College educated, but raised a modest country girl in Pennsylvania, Bea has never felt fully comfortable among these privileged women, whose days are devoted not to their children but to leisure activities and charities that seemingly benefit no one but themselves. She longs to be a mother herself, as well as a loving wife, but after five years of marriage she remains childless while Harry is increasingly remote and distracted. Despite lavish parties at the Manor and the Yacht Club, Bea is lost and lonely and befriends the manor’s laundress whose work ethic and family life stir memories of who she once was.

As she drifts further from the society women and their preoccupations and closer toward Montauk’s natural beauty and community spirit, Bea finds herself drawn to a man nothing like her husband –stoic, plain spoken and enigmatic. Inspiring a strength and courage she had almost forgotten, his presence forces her to face a haunting tragedy of her past and question her future.

Desperate to embrace moments of happiness, no matter how fleeting, she soon discovers that such moments may be all she has, when fates conspire to tear her world apart.



I am already in love with this book based on that synopsis. It reminds of when I was a teenager and read all kind of historical fiction set in the English countryside about the scullery maids who fall in love with the wrong man. It’s the kind of story that can break your heart and make you feel all the feelings. I am so looking forward to this book!

This is a stunning debut and I highly recommend it. The author has a gift of vivid details and descriptions of a bygone era. Thanks to St. Martin’s Press and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

I was drawn to this title after reading the description, as this time period fascinates me. From the beginning, I was hooked and didn’t want to put Montauk down. The characters were well thought out and the final twist broke my heart. I’ll be giving this book 4.5 🌟

Absolutely love this book but the real facts are very poorly researched in regards to Montauk’s real timeline as a resort for the upper tiers of NY society. By the dates of this story, Montauk was in the midst of returning to a sleepy fishing village due to the stock market crash and the financial disasters of it’s developer, Carl Fisher. That being said, it is a well written, interesting story that I really enjoyed. Having vacationed in Montauk for well over 30 years, and knowing the town and places well, this book was a beautifully executed love song to the tiny hamlet of Montauk. I have heard and read a lot about the town and watched the restoration of the Montauk Manor, the Lighthouse, Gurney’s Inn, the Montauk Playhouse, etc., but it was such a delight to read about them in their prime as a vacation spot for the wealthy where social status and money determined everything. There were the townspeople, some with family names that are still running local businesses today, and then there were the NYC high society names but these worlds were not supposed to mingle......until they did. Life was hard for the locals with fishing the biggest source of income but during the first few years of the Montauk Manor, the rich came from NYC for the summer social season and hard, demanding seasonal jobs were available for the lucky locals that could get them and not do anything to anger the rich.

This is a fun, easy read and I highly recommend this book! I can’t wait for it to be available for friends, neighbors in Montauk, and my children to read since Montauk has always been our summer destination and our retreat from the world! I read this on a long haul flight from NYC to Honolulu and was down to the very last few chapters as we landed. It was one of those times when I both didn’t want to leave the world of Montauk 1938 but desperately wanted to see how it ended. I really loved this book and felt I learned a lot about one of the most wonderful places on earth! This is a very special book as a story of fiction but is just not based sufficiently in truth and fact. By the end, I found the plot manipulation of setting this story around the famous Hurricane of 1938 a truly bad idea. It made for a spectacular ending for the story, but it really happened in late September when the rich would have been long gone but also, by the late 1930’s, Carl Fisher and his dreams of a Miami of the North were already in bankruptcy and Montauk had reverted back to the life of a fishing community until the start of WWII when the US government came in, evicted everyone and created a torpedo testing site, Camp Hero, and built submarine spotting structures in case of German attacks. Lots of attempts were made to save the glamorous dreams of Carl Fisher and his investors but it took a dozen or more years to figure out how.

At first I thought this book was beautifully researched and beautifully written. Unfortunately there is a lot of playing with both real facts and real events and verifiable dates. Many books about Montauk, like one by James Patterson many years ago, could really be any summer beach community with the name Montauk just plugged in; that is definitely not true for this book. That being said, however, you can almost feel and sense the amazing smells, sounds of the waves crashing, and see the wonderful cliffs and beautiful trails and the beauty around every corner of Montauk. Even the light is different in Montauk as artists have known for years. The author paints this beautifully. You can really see it through her eyes. This author really brings Montauk to life but set in a time long past. The Montauk Manor, the Playhouse, the Surf Club, Trails End, Gurneys, are all still there and are today immensely popular as a summer resort destination. This is a special book just not the truth of the particular point in time that the author has chosen.

Nicola Harrison offers more than a story. This book puts you in Montauk, in the sunshine, on the beach among the glamourous rich of Manhattan society. You can almost hear the swish of the dresses and see the shadows cast by the wide brimmed hats. Despite the often heartbreaking events, the atmosphere and wealth of this class in pre-war America is palpable. The actual narrative surrounds a couple struggling with infertility and a wife struggling to become a person in her own right. The book addresses the nature of relationship, friendship, and the consequences of crossing the social divide.
It's a beautiful book that you won;t want to leave down..

A beautiful book in a beautiful setting. A strong debut novel by Harrison. This historical fiction novel will likely be a fan of book clubs.

I enjoy historical books and when they are combined with romance, then it is a wonderful thing. I liked the historical points in this book. But the characters left much to be desired, especially Beatrice. And Harry was no better in my opinion. Those so-called friends were obnoxious. This book was so-so, I didn't hate it, but I wasn't in love with it either. I voluntarily read this book via netGalley in exchange for my honest opinion.

This book seemed to be an accurate representation of a slice of American history-the time of FDR, the uncertainty of the an upcoming war on the heels of the last war and the divide between the “haves” and the “have nots”. The main character, a young women from rural Pennsylvania thrust into society by her marriage to a New York business man, is compelling and you become drawn into her world very easily. There is quite a bit of romance in the novel which could almost be considered a “coming of age” tale. While reading I felt drawn into the world of “summering” as it was depicted in Montauk NY as it was beginning to be developed. At times I was surprised to look away from the book and realize it was actually winter outside! This was a completely enjoyable read and I thank #netgalley for the opportunity pre-publication to read #montauk.

I could just picture Montauk, 1938 so well from this author's descriptions. So well written. A playground for the rich, high society folks. Unfortunately Beatrice, who is married to Harry, wants to use the twelve weeks of Summer to spend time with him. Instead she is left to socialize with the society women, with whom she has no common interests and Harry stays back in New York pursuing his own self interests. The best thing about this story is reading about the strong character development of Beatrice, who finds herself attracted to another, who is more like her. Thanks to the publisher, the author and Net Galley for opportunity to read the advanced copy.

This was a beautifully written book - I was first attracted to it for the location/setting. Knowing Montauk I was intrigued by how it would be portrayed and if there were placed mentioned that I was familiar with (there was!)
The story of Beatrice, the wealthy socialite longing for more out of life felt so authentic. I could feel her struggles as if she was a friend not just a character in a book and found myself cheering her on, racing to get to the end to see how it ends. I am thrilled to have gotten the opportunity to read and review "Montauk" and would highly recommend it. Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and author for an ARC of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.