Sean and Willa’s sweet romance takes off with both hesitant to fall in love. Sean is waiting on a big photo assignment to come through that will take him out of the country, while Willa doesn’t believe she is someone who Sean could love. Between the death of her mother when she was a teenager and her sister, Harper’s, cancer diagnosis shortly thereafter, Willa has had a lot on her plate. When everything seems to be going well, Sean has to leave on his big assignment. Willa’s beloved sister, Harper, is stricken with cancer again, and Sean is not there to help her through this agonizing time. This book was not your typical beach read, but oh, how it tugged at the heartstrings. I literally could not put this book down, and cried as I was reading it (and I’m not a crier).

Engaging storyline that hit a range of emotions for me. It offered a lovely romance, looking at trusting again with a coffee-shop scenario I always love. But it also looked at pain, loss, and family situations thta moved it beyond just a quick beach read. A wonderful balance to keep me engaged and interested.

I started reading this book on Friday and finished it on Saturday. I didn’t want to put it down!
I love her books and this was no exception. Fast paced, detailed, moving, and compassionate. Debbie is a true story teller.
If I had to give it one criticism, it was a sad book, and maybe it should be reclassified.

I loved the characters, the setting, and the overall story. You felt like you were living the story with the characters. Great book Debbie, thank you for allowing me to read it!

I honestly don't even know where to begin with this book. It was so amazing I don't really even have words.
I was drawn into this book from the very beginning and couldn't put it down.
I loved the characters and how they all were perfectly human. They had flaws and issues, and each delt with them in their own way.
I cannot recommend this book highly enough. Just read it.
*I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own*

This is an emotional story, albeit sad, which I finished in one afternoon. Great book for summer reading with characters you come to care about. Also a story about family, sisters, love and trust.

Debbie Macomber never fails to entertain and tug at our heartstrings. She has done it again although a bit more sadness was mixed in. Danielle Steele’s works come to mind when reading this title. I finished it in one day. And the dog, Bandit, was my favorite.

Debbie Macomber is one of those authors who writes books that you know you are going to love before you even start reading. She always has wonderful, real characters to connect with and a plot that will keep you reading. Her books have a few laughs and a few tears; a little romance and a lot of positive changes in the characters. A Walk Along the Beach is way more than the simple romances that she used to write - this one definitely fits in the Women's/Family Fiction category.

Willa's mother died when she was 13 and she had to become the mother to Lucas and Harper. She cooked and cleaned and tried to protect her siblings. Their father coped with his grief with alcohol so he wasn't helpful to the family at all. Now they are all grown up and Willa owns a coffee shop, Harper teaches yoga and Lucas lives with his wife. (Note - Lucas isn't a major part of the story line which mostly concentrates on the two sisters.) Willa and Harper share an apartment and are each other's best friend but are completely opposite - Willa is quiet and reserved while Harper is outgoing, happy and always looking for fun. Due to the cancer that Harper survived in her teens, Willa continues to try to be overprotective which results in some tension between them. Willa meets Sean at her coffee shop and soon they are dating. He is a free-lance photographer and is often away on photo shoots, not only in the US but in places like South America where it is difficult to find internet or cell phone availability. When Harper begins to get sick again and Willa needs someone to comfort her, Sean is out of the country and not able to communicate with her. She needs to decide if this is a relationship that she really wants or needs.

Debbie Macomber has brought her readers another wonderful novel with characters who are so well written that they seem like friends - characters that readers will laugh with and cry with and won't soon forget. The plot is emotional and full of love. The scenery near the beach in Washington State is lovely. And the bond between the two sisters is incredible. This is a story about family and friendship, heartache and love, illness and happiness, happy tears and sad tears.

Note: Be sure to have tissues at hand for the last half of the book - you're going to need them!

Thanks to netgalley for a copy of this book to read and review. All opinions are my own.

Once again Debbie Macomber has a hit. Very emotional book. I liked the characters, flaws and all. And they have lots of flaws.

Thanks to NetGalley, Debbie Macomber and Random House-Ballantine for the arc.

A most touching and beautiful story about family, trusting in each other and mostly about the power of love. I thoroughly enjoyed this story and once again Debbie Macomber touches the senses of the reader to produce a wonderful read. Thank you for the opportunity to have read this book prior to publication--truly enjoyed every word.

A Walk Along the Beach by Debbie Macomber
Love the dedication to a fellow author and how hard it must have been to take a whole year off from writing.
This book restarts where the author left off. Willia is a baker and lives with her sister Harper who has just finished going through chemo for leukemia and goes through testings every 6 months.
Sean shows up in town and he's a professional photographer. Love the parts of this work and where it leads him as I recall seeing the building murals in WA. He travels a lot overseas and when he returns once he has developed typhoid.
WIllia had taken care of him til he contacts his parents and he's on the mend. Her brother has proposed to Chantelle and they are to be married, women have been fitted for dresses the bride will design for them all. This sounds so cool!
During his recovery they are able to discuss his past life in baseball and she recalls the scene he had gotten injured.
Very emotional and sad book but things keep them both going. Very descriptive details going through cancer treatments.
Received this review copy from Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine via NetGalley and this is my honest opinion.
#AWalkAlongtheBeach #NetGalley

In typical Macomber fashion, this is a heartwarming, emotional story. This one focuses on sisters, and the characters are flawed and relatable. The ending felt a bit rushed compared to other parts of the story, and it wasn't quite what I expected. As one of the characters has leukemia, this book is a bit heavier than many other books by this author, so keep that in mind going into it.

A Walk Along the Beach reminds me of Debbie Macomber's Cedar Cove series.
In this book Harper is the younger sister and Willa is the older sister.
When their mother died, their father went into a downward spiral, causing Willa to pick up where the mom left off. To top it off, Harper was diagnosed with cancer.
Three years after the cancer scare, Willa has a successful coffee shop in town and Harper is a social butterfly.
Willa has no time to date, or do anything, but Harper wants to set her up.
Sean O’Malley is a freelance photographer and loves adventuring around the world to take pictures.
He becomes interested in Willa, but is shy and does not quite know what to do.
This book has a lot of ups and downs. It tugs on the heart strings.
I will not lie, I cried through part of this book, however, I had to keep reading.

Debbie Macomber has created another masterpiece. Willa and Harper Lakey are sisters who are as close as sisters can be and are as different in personality. Willa is reserved and shy while Harper is lively and outgoing. Willa runs a bakery and coffee shop where she meets Sean O'Malley, a free lance photographer who often travels widely for his assignments. He is attracted to Willa and wants to see their relationship evolve, but she is not sure about his travelling. Harper is living life to the fullest, but has a set back when her cancer returns. A wonderful story of love, trust and hope.

I received this book from NetGalley for an honest review. This an emotional story about two very devoted sisters who are very close and have a remarkable bond. The story deals with death, lost love , Cancer and very deep emotions and relationships. The story takes place in a small beach community in Washington where the sisters live and work. The older sister, Willa, has issues with the man she is falling in love with . Their relationship is like a roller coaster. The younger sister, Harper, has fought and is fighting cancer. Their brother, Lucas , is in a relationship with a wonderful lady, Chantelle. Their father became an alcoholic after their mother died. The book is about all these relationships and the ups and downs they all go through. I enjoyed the story, but, it did drag and move very slowly. It seemed repetitive at times.

Harper is much too pushy. Let them lead their own love lives.

Aw, that is so cute! But video games, really?

She's kind of a control freak.

Eww. And people think pate is gross.

Holy crap, I thought it was just altitude sickness!

Coconut is like eating chalk.

Poor woman can't catch a break.

And now I am going to start crying.

I love Chantelle.

I was rooting for Sean, but too little, too late.

Oh man, that must be a beautiful sight. Her poor dad, though.

Her landlord is a lovely man.

That is my favorite verse as well.

I received an ARC from Netgally in exchange for an honest review.

A magnificently crafted novel of the love between two sisters and the love of family. So beautifully written and thought out. Characters are so much alive, I felt like I was there, living their tragic story. I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough. I don’t say this often about a book...but bring a hankie!

A story filled with high emotion, this book tugs at the heart over and over again. We get the close, warm relationship of sisters, and their bond through everything that life throws at them (and it is a lot!) If you have any emotional triggers, you might want to set this one aside for later -- but definitely come back to it, because it's one of Macombers' best. Very deep-feeling. Highly recommended, and I thank NetGalley and the publishers for sharing the ARC of this book for review.

To me, this seemed a. It different from her usual style, but I quickly became involved in it until the end, which was just a few hours after starting it. Debbie Macomber never fails to deliver books which look deep into relationships and show courage with her female characters.

Debbie Macomber does not disappoint! This is a wonderful story of forgiveness and a families bond. A beautifully moving and heartwarming story. I can always count on a Debbie Macomber for a beautiful tale.

… the greatest of these is love
A Walk Along the Beach, by Debbie Macomber, is a poignant reminder that tomorrow is not promised and the greatest thing in life is to love and be loved. Willa and her younger sister Harper are extremely close after suffering through the untimely death of their mother and Harper’s subsequent battle with and victory over Leukemia. Things seem to be looking up as Willa’s small cafe, Bean There, and Harper’s health and lust for life are flourishing. Even their father’s alcoholism, which took over his life after the death of their mother, has been more under control. When Willa, who is quite introverted, finds herself on the receiving end of attention from her attractive customer, Sean O’Malley, she is finally starting to believe in that proverbial rainbow after a storm. But when life suddenly starts to splinter and Sean’s job takes him away right when she needs him most, Willa questions whether she should ever expose her heart again.

Willa’s story of family, friendship, heartache and love is easy to relate to on so many levels. We all have family we love dearly who encounter struggles that we would take from them, if we could, but who we can only be there for to share in their pain. There are no guarantees in life and those who have suffered from cancer and illness know that personally.

Being able to still see the joy in life and live each day to the fullest are hallmarks of survivors like Harper. For Willa, her past devotion to her seriously ill sister has only made her more fearful for the future and very guarded with her heart, which makes it even more surprising to Willa when Sean is able to open her heart and mind to a future possibility of peace and happiness. That all changes when he is not there for her when she needs him the most which ultimately makes her realize that love is both a choice and the thing that matters.

I found A Walk Along the Beach to be a heart-warming story of sisterly devotion and romantic love between imperfect people who fall short of each other’s expectations when faced with the difficulties of life. However, while I enjoyed the premise of the story and the emotional ebb and flows that accompanied the life events I found that the first half of the book was spattered with repetitious litanies of emotional declarations that by the fourth or fifth time had me skimming whole sections. This is not to say you shouldn’t read A Walk Along the Beach, just that you should push through those sections to get to the heart of the story.