While Drue is settling into a new life in her grandparents' beach cottage, her interest is piqued by not one, but two, mysteries. Who is the missing woman, Colleen, and why was the police file about her disappearance hidden in the attic? Secondly, why wasn't a better settlement secured by her personal injury attorney father, Brice, after his client, Jazmin, was murdered at her work place?

I am not a huge fan of murder mysteries, especially those solved by amateur sleuths, but I know many enjoy this genre. I was expecting a stronger romantic story line, but if you're a fan of "cozy mysteries," then I think you'd enjoy this nice, light beach read more than I did.

Location: St. Petersburg, Florida

I received an advance copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

ꜰᴜɴ. ʙᴇᴀᴄʜʏ. ᴍʏꜱᴛᴇʀʏ.


This was an entertaining beach read packed with Mystery and an added splash of romance and family drama. Mary Kay Andrews has written one heck of a perfect beach Mystery. When I pick this up I was expecting a bit more of a contemporary beach romance, but I was pleasantly surprised buy this charming Mystery. I loved being dumped into the middle of Druze messy life and watching her pick up the pieces and solve a couple mysteries. So pick up your detective hat, grab your bikini, and settle into your favorite beach chair for this fun ride.

Drew is recovering from a knee injury, working as a cocktail waitress in a beach bar, and missing being able to participate in her favorite activity, kite boarding. Drew’s beloved mother has just passed away when out of the blue Bryce her estranged father shows up. She is less than thrilled, but when she gets fired from her job she begrudgingly takes her father up on his job offer. Drew soon finds herself working for her father, a personal injury attorney and guess what? Her boss is her old eighth grade BFF turned enemy. Even better Wendy is now also Drew’s new step mommy. The silver lining to all of this is that Drew has inherited her grandparents beach bungalow and even though it is in need of much TLC it is a sanctuary from this crazy storm. Drew is not wild about her new job so she is easily distracted when Mystery comes a knocking. What follows is Drew’s involvement in two murder cases. One involves one of her father’s cases and the other is over 40 years old.

Loved Drew she was sassy, smart, strong, and a little salty. I loved solving these mysteries right along side her. Both these mysteries were compelling with outcomes that took me by surprise. The family drama was engaging and I liked how Drew and Bryce’s relationship evolved. The romance was subtle, sweet, and satisfying. This was an entertaining book that will be enjoyed on the couch just as much as at the beach.

🎧🎧🎧 Kathleen McInerney does a brilliant job bringing Drew to life in this book. She gave each character their own distinct voice and that really added an additional layer to an already wonderful story. Another book I feel that was enhanced by the listening experience.

*** thank you so much to Macmillan Audio and St. Martin’s Press for my gifted copy of this book ***

Drue Campbell is struggling. She has a serious knee injury due to a surf board kite accident. And she is about to lose her job. What is a girl to do - only crawl back to her home town and take a job - reluctantly from her father and his latest wife - Wendy. Who also happens to be an ex friend of Drue.

She finds herself living in a rundown cottage that belonged to her grandparents and now belongs to her. But... it has a hole in the roof and other problems and she doesn't have the money to fix up anything... at the moment.

Her work at her father's lawyer firm is boring and her "stepmother" seems to have the most "going nowhere" jobs for her. But... don't think Drue is going to be sidelined by that. She finds in her attic some interesting information that sets her "detective nose" into action. And then there is another situation that smells bad to her too. Not to be deterred - she wades in.

Drue is a delightful character, a little foolhardy, but she sure has her heart in the right place. She isn't sure who she can trust, and she certainly has her doubts about her Dad.There are a couple of mysteries to be solved, some suspects are fairly obvious and a couple provide surprises. Drue after a little misstep at the beginning finds someone she is going to eventually care for, so there is a little bit of romance in the air as well. And could she be a modern "Robin Hood". For certain I don't think she'll ever be boring.

I loved the setting, the old cottage, and the beach and sunset. I liked seeing Drue find her way and a family of sorts coming together. It was an engaging read - one I took up happily each time I opened the book.

Drue has had to accept a job at her father’s law firm. To make matters worse, her direct supervisor is her “frenemy”, Wendy, who happens to be married to her father. Needless to say, this is not ideal working conditions. Luckily, Drue inherited her grandparents beach house.(if she hadn’t, she would be homeless!) While she is cleaning the house up, she runs across a police file. It is a missing persons file. Well, this just opens a can of worms. On top of all of this, there is a case at her dad’s law office which just doesn’t sit right. Well, Drue being Drue, just can’t leave well enough alone.

I love Drue. She has a bad attitude and she does not conform well to what is expected of her. She and Wendy have a rough go. Especially at the first. Her dad struggles to make up for time lost and to try and see Drue succeed. When Drue goes rogue and starts investigating on her own, this leads to a world of supposition and who did it!

The cover of this book is misleading. This is really not a beach read. It is a murder mystery. Actually two completely different mysteries in one book. These mysteries really had me guessing. And no it was not who I thought it was. It was completely twisted.

This is not my favorite MKA novel. I enjoy her light hearted with a little bit of funny thrown in stories. But, this is a good change of pace. Don’t miss this one!

I received this novel from Tandem Literary for a honest review.

I've been a fan of Mary Kay Andrews' books, and this one did not disappoint! Although the title, Sunset Beach, would lead one to believe by looking at the title and the cover that it is a beach read, it is really more of a mystery, though one that takes place at a beach setting. Sunset Beach is the story of Drue Campbell, who agrees to go work for her estranged father, well-known lawyer Brice Campbell, after the death of her mother. While working for her father's firm, Drue involves herself in a case that her father had settled involving a young, single mother who was murdered on the job as a housekeeper at a local wealthy, beach motel. Meeting the deceased woman's young daughter, and her mother who is now raising her, Drue tries to find out what really happened that led to the woman's death in order to try to find a way to get a much fairer settlement for the family. In addition, Drue becomes involved in another case that hits a little closer to home, when she discovers newspaper clippings and a police file among her mother's belongings in the attic of her grandparent's house that was left to her, having to do with a missing person's report from the 1970s. Sunset Beach was a great read, and I look forward to seeing more from this author in the future! Thanks to Net Galley and St Martin's Press for providing me with an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This was an enjoyable, easy read story. I have to admit that I'm more partial to her Weezie and Bebe stories. I love a book that makes you chuckle out load, which those do.

I usually enjoy a Mary Kay Andrews book and this was no exception. My only criticism was that there was a LOT going on... 2 mysteries, lots of family, workplace & friend drama, and I think most of the threads suffered a bit from crowding. I'm hoping that the slightly unfinished feel means that there is a sequel or two on the horizon. I'd be very happy to revisit Drue's world.

For a perfect beach read, I recommend Sunset Beach by Mary Kay Andrews. Bad things often come in threes but for Drue Campbell it seems like 3 times 2. If I haven’t lived long enough to know that sometimes this is exactly how life goes, I would think the story implausible. Women’s fiction read that has the main character, Drue finding new purpose in life as she decides to solve two mysteries.

Sunset Beach has all the elements to capture your attention and hold it as the story goes from the present to the past and back again. There is an engaging if drifting in life heroine, family drama, a mysteries to be solved, suspense, romance and a much needed to be restored historic beach cottage. The plot is intriguing and complex. It flows so smoothly carrying you along in the solving of the mystery and transition of Drue. Drue changes from a beat down woman to one who is strong and energized. The other characters are just as interesting; complex in ways that I wouldn’t have thought.

Grab your beach bag, a beach chair and this book for a rousing summer read. If the beach is not possible take all these things to the back yard. Believe me you will feel the sand in your toes and the ocean breeze in your hair as you travel to St. Petersburg with Drue.

An ARC of the book was given to me by the publisher through Net Galley which I voluntarily chose to read and reviewed. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Sunset Beach was a great read! I haven’t read anything by Mary Kay Andrews before, and I must admit it took me a few chapters to get into it, but then I was hooked!

Sunset Beach is both an easy beach read and a suspense filled mystery. It flips back and forth between past and present telling the stories of two main events. They are loosely intertwined and the reader sees the characters develop over time.

Drue, the main character, is likeable and relatable and also a strong woman you can’t help but root for. Sunset Beach was a fast, gripping book that won’t disappoint!

If you love Mary Kay Andrews you will love this book.. Family drama, mystery, romance and a beach house I would love to own...this book has everything for a great summer read! I haven't read many books by Mary Kay Andrews but I really enjoyed this one. Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Fantastic double mystery. Interesting family dynamics. A bit of romance. Good friends, or not? This story was so much more than I expected, but then, considering the author I should not have been surprised. Not sure if this was a quick read or the fact that I did not want to put it down.

While I normally adore Mary Kay Andrews books this one fell a little bit flat for me. I just didn’t like the main character. I found her to be whiney, immature and a little bit obnoxious. She has some serious issues with her father and I felt like that situation was weird, especially not that he’s married to one of her old friends. I think that whole situation was unnecessary to the plot and could have been done without making it so weird. All of that being said it was still a good read. There is a really great mystery element, the plotting and writing are well done and the setting is fabulous. I can also see a lot of potential for this to become a series and I hope that the main character grows and changes and that future books wont have that same vibe. I would still recommend this to anyone looking for a great southern setting and a fun beach read.

I have always been a huge, huge fan of Mary Kay Andrews and have loved all of her beach stories. I know it's summertime when I have one of her books on my TBR list.

Sunset Beach, like all of MKA's other books, is full of beach, sand, water, and wonderful characters. The thing that is different about this story though, is the mystery that the author wove into her beach story this time.

I loved Drue's tenacity and perseverance when it came to getting to the bottom of things. I really hope that this was just the beginning of our glimpse into Drue's life and that Mary Kay has more mysteries for her to solve.

This story has it all—a nice beachy read with a captivating mystery thrown in for good measure.

'I'm only one woman, you know. I can solve only one mystery at a time.'

What a nice book! I’ve read The Weekenders from this author and really enjoyed it. I was pleasantly surprised to see that this was just as good as that one. I enjoyed the story and the characters were very well written.

Mary Kay Andrews can always be counted on for a solid read. She is a master at setting. I really felt the ocean breeze of Florida.

There were two things that held this back just a little for me 1) Drue took a while to like. She’s in her mid-30’s and some sort of arrested development. I see her as a mid-20’s character. She did grow on me after a while, but I still struggle with her age vs her actions and maturity. 2) this read almost completely like a cozy mystery; two deaths concurrently being investigated. Nothing wrong with that genre at all, but as a “beach read” I wanted to see more character development and less investigation.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC.

I love when a book and author takes me completely by surprise. I imagined Sunset Beach to be a stereotypical summer beach read. Boys meets girl, conflict, resolution… What I read was a story about a woman, Drue, who has gone through a season of life where nothing goes her way but manages to find her new home and life in a charming bungalow with good memories and a quite unexpected mystery. The main character’s journey from a point where she is struggling to a place where she thrives is encouraging and gives the book that “beach read” feeling you expect. The unsolved mystery that takes Drue on this journey is what makes this book great. When Drue feels compelled to investigate a suspicious death that seems to have ties to her father and his business associates, she discovers not only the truth but romance, restored familial relationships, and a new life. Another strength of this book is that the author did not rely on gratuitous sex, violence, or profanity in an effort to give weight to her story. She relied on the strength of the characters, the story, and her writing to give the reader a great experience. I hope the author makes this book the first of a series as I would like to continue reading about Drue and her experiences. I've already purchased an audio version of this book as I enjoyed the ARC so much.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an advanced readers copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

This new release has much more substance than the cover communicates. I was impressed that there were actually two mysteries in the book and we got to the bottom of both within the span of the narrative. Drue was a bit rough around the edges, but she has had some tough breaks. The beach house itself is a substantial piece of the plot and if those walls could talk. . . Includes some scrumptious-looking recipes at the end and some tips on choosing your very own beach house. There were a couple of unsatisfactory plot holes for me, but I would definitely recommend this for a beach read.

A big thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for providing a digital ARC of this new novel in exchange for an honest review.

Sunset Beach is a wonderful summer read. Mary Kay Andrews sets the bar higher with each new book.
Drue Campbell has her life turned upside down when her estranged father comes back into it. She loses her job as a waitress and her father offers her one. Drue is out of options and has to accept the job even if she doesn’t want to.
Drue is determined to start over and get her life back on track.
Thank you Netgalley& St.Martin’s Press for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Drue Campbell is down on her luck. She has lost her job and her mother. Her estranged father shows up at the funeral with an offer of a job. Her father is a lawyer who is married to an old friend enemy. Along with the job comes her inheritance a beach house. Drue spends her days on the phone weeding out the grifters, and nights fixing the bungalow in Sunset Beach. When a suspicious death at a nearby resort whic may or may not involve her father, Drue decides to investigate. I loved this book. It had everything romance, adventure, and family.

Once again Mary Kay Andrews has written the perfect summer book. Her “beach books” are wonderful reads and I love when the background is an actual beach! This book revolves around St. Petersburg beach, an ideal location for this story. Ms. Andrews incorporates two interesting and interwoven mysteries in an easy plot. Her character, Drue, is an interesting character, with a background that leaves her fairly distrustful of life in general. Thirty six years old, with unresolved feelings for her father, and an injury that leaves her adrift, I enjoyed watching her get control of her life and find herself. Overall, a favorite read of mine this year.