This was my first Mary Kay Andrews book and while it had a slow start I really did enjoy it in the end!

Letty is on the run with her four year old niece after finding her sister murdered. She makes her way to a sleepy motel in Florida who's guests are all 65+. They don't exactly welcome her with open arms but she makes her own family with the motel's owner, Ava and Ava's two children, and begins to find a place she could call home. Too bad her sister's ex is trying to weasel his way out of getting caught for murder and trying to take back his daughter from Letty.

I enjoyed the building your family process that Letty goes through. I did skim some of the long winded descriptions as this book did get a little lengthy. There is a little bit of everything in this book, romance, mystery, family drama, friendships, kidnapping and the list goes on.

It's a solid summer read that will have you escaping reality for a few hours.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Last summer, I listened to Mary Kay Andrews’s Sunset Beach and loved it. So you can only imagine my excitement for The Newcomer.

I will give a quick synopsis of The Newcomer. Tanya was discovered dead by her sister Letty in her townhome in NYC. Letty has an idea who murdered her sister (Tanya’s baby daddy Evan) but she had to run with her 4-year-old niece. Letty drove from NYC to The Murmuring Surf Motel in Florida. There the owner (Ava) of the motel allows Letty to stay and work. From we learned about Tanya’s secret, Letty falls in love, murders, people to go jail and happy ever after.

Overall, I did enjoy The Newcomers but it was long. I think I would have loved it if it was 150 pages shorter. I enjoyed some of the nitty-gritty but other times I felt like the story was just dragging on. I did enjoyed what happened with Evan (couldn’t stand that m*****f*****). I loved getting to know the people from the motel. Maybe it just me but I wasn’t feeling Joe and Letty's relationship either. I know he was suppose to come off as protective but it felt aggressive and inconsiderate of Letty’s situation.

I think in the future I will listen instead of reading MKA just because of the length.

thank you St Martin’s Press and Netgalley for the opportunity to read The N

What a wonderfully cute story! I was told that MKA was a great author, but this one really did impress me!
This is about Lettie and her four year old niece Maya who are on the run after Maya’s mother was murdered.
We jump right into their story as they hide in Florida at a resort called The Murmuring Surf. While this resort is filled with older people who have been visiting there for years, Lettie and Maya stick out like sore thumbs.
I loved watching the friendships and romance bloom in this heartwarming story.
I did appreciate that the plot line was not too far fetched but also a bit interesting with Maya’s father trying to hunt them down.
This is a fantastic beach read!i

I really enjoyed this book. It was fast-paced and kept me on the edge of my seat!

At first, I wasn't sure what to expect; we meet Letty and her niece Maya and they're on the run as Letty's sister has just been murdered. Throughout the book, we meet the community of characters that support them as Letty tries to get to the bottom of what happened to her sister, while keeping her young niece safe.

Andrews brings out the fear Letty feels and the kindness of those she meets. The Murmuring Surf Motel and its inhabitants come to life as Letty gets to know them and as she learns more about her sister's past. While this is a suspenseful part of the storyline, the support Letty gets along the way is inspiring.

This isn't normally the kind of book I read, but I thoroughly enjoyed it!

This cozy is perfect for reading on the beach or in front of the fire! Ms Andrews’ #thenewcomer is a great distraction from the everyday and I grew to really care what happens to the characters. I thought the plot was original with the crime committed and the main character running away with the victims child but finding a live interest while hiding from the law gave a great twist to the tail that I wasn’t expecting. Then throw in the FBI and you have a little bit more excitement to keep your interest towards the end of the story. Thank you to #netgalley and the publisher for providing this ebook to read and review.

This was not my favorite unfortunately. I think this is probably a more "it's not the book, it's me" as I have seen plenty of other glowing reviews!

After Letty discovers her sister Tanya dead on the floor of her New York City townhouse, she is certain she knows who did it: Tanya's ex; real estate entrepreneur Evan Wingfield. Letty is determined to out-run Evan and the law, but run to where? She sheds her old life and checks into an uncertain future at The Murmuring Surf Motel. As Letty settles in with her niece Maya, she tries to unravel the key to her sister's shady past, all while dodging the attention of the owner's dangerously attractive son Joe, who just happens to be a local police detective. Can Letty find romance as well as a room at the inn--or will Joe betray her secrets and put her behind bars? With danger closing in, it's a race to find the truth and right the wrongs of the past. review: Mary Kay Andrews is one of those authors that always writes a quintessential summer read! I always look forward to her books each year. Her books are always filled with romance and a little bit of mystery that's so easy to dive into. This book was a middle of the road read for me. It was slow to start and it took me a while to become invested in the story and the characters. That said, the characters were flawed and complex and I enjoyed learning more about them. I also liked that The Murmuring Surf Motel had such a variety of guests - you got a little bit of everything with them - and they made interesting side characters. There were times that I found the mystery to be a bit implausible, but I kept reading to figure out how it was going to end! I'm a big Mary Kay Andrews fan, but this wasn't one of my favorites from her. If you're looking for a good summer read though, give this one a shot. rating: 3 out of 5 ⭐️

4.5 stars

Okay, I was somewhat skeptical about this book because I never know what I will get with beach read romances, but I really enjoyed this one! It was somewhat of a mystery thriller with a little bit of romance, although the romance was the least interesting part of the story (ha!). I mean, Joe seems like a good guy and all, but it took him a long time to fully respect Letty and her wishes, and kind of acted childish about it. Thankfully, he had an amazing sister and mom and Letty herself to set him straight. Besides that, though, I found the story to be quite interesting and I came to really love the little hotel community. In some ways, I might describe this as a more adult version of Front Desk, which is a middle school book about a girl who grows up in a motel. No, the stories are not remotely the same, but I really enjoyed Letty and Maya getting to know the long-time residents and vice versa and how they became an extended family for them. The mystery of what happened in her sister's past and how it all connected to what was happening now was not exactly original, but what made the story interesting for me were all the people that helped Letty and Maya, and even Tanya. I don't want to reveal any spoilers so I won't say more, but ultimately, the author created relatable characters, some of whom I ended up loving, especially Joe's mom and sister. This is my first book by the author and if it's typical of her books, I'll probably pick up another one in the future. I would definitely recommend this as the perfect beach read.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Mary Kay Andrews hits it out of the park again with her book The Newcomer. Letty knew something was going on with her sister, Tanya, who had a stash of cash and an "If any thing happens to me..." warning. When Tanya is murdered, Letty does as she promised and goes on the run with Tanya's daughter. Letty and her niece head to a small beach motel that has a connection to Tanya's past and just maybe answers. Filled with the quirky characters Mary Kay Andrews is known for, it doesn't take long before you wish you were enjoying the Florida sun with them.

Another winner from MKA! I loved the setting in this novel and it made me want to go live on the beach. I always love the thrill, romance, any mystery that make up MKA novels and this was no exception! Thank you St Martin’s and Netgalley for my copy!

I thought this book was good but I just had a hard time getting into it. I love this author and her work. I will still be checking out her other books but this one just didn't do it for me. It felt really slow at times and just boring.

MKA has been one of my favorite go-to authors since I first read her many years ago. I love her! I love all of hers and read each new one as soon as it comes out each year in time for summer!! Again this one was awesome!! Love the story, mystery and characters!!

This was a fun and intriguing read that has a little bit of everything ---thriller, romance, quirky elderly characters, friendly people, good guys and, of course, bad guys, murder mystery -- all in one book.

Tanya and Letty are sisters. Tanya has a four year old by a very rich, controlling man, Ewan. Tanya is found dead and leaves a note to her sister that if anything happens to her, Ewan did it. With that letter, a bag of cash and a huge diamond ring and a screaming four year old, Letty takes off, ending up at the Murmuring Surf motel in Florida. Why? Letty found a cut out article in Tanya's possessions, and figures there must be a reason. So now they're being hunted by Ewan, as well as others. But why?

The motel is full with the the old timers staying there, but the owner feels sorry for Letty and Maya and cleans up an unused cleaning/storage room for them. Eventually the two are 'adopted' by the owner and the others. One complication: Joe, the owner's sexy son who just happens to be a police officer. There are some places that you just say 'did that really happen' because it seems a bit incredible, but all in all this is a good romance with a little excitement thrown in for fun.

I enjoyed this book very much and devoured it over a weekend. It had suspense, mystery, drama, travel (which I always love) and romance. This book is the complete package.

Letty is 33 years old and lives in NYC as a struggling actress. While working as a diner waitress to pay the bills, she meets Evan, a rich guy who just might be the answer to all her prayers. He offers her a job along with a place to live - until a few months later when he meets her sister, Tanya. Evan falls in love (as much as he can love) with Tanya and he dumps Letty. Evan and Tanya have a baby together and begin their lifestyle of the rich and famous. Until Tanya decides to leave Evan - and that’s when it all turns dark.

Tanya has a past that Letty knows nothing about. She was apparently arrested while living in Florida (Letty thought she was living in Atlanta as a model, not Florida as a con artist) and had questionable friends. When Tanya ends up dead, those friends come back into the picture and it’s up to Letty to save her niece and find her sister’s killer. Along the way, Letty may just find her own happiness as well.

I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. The opinions above are mine without biases.

Mary Kay Andrews always has an entertaining and good story to tell. This one is no exception. Her books typically have a bit of mystery and romance. I enjoyed the story and characters in this one. It wasn't as predictable as I thought it was going to be and took some turns I didn't expect. I did feel the build up of a relationship between Letty and Joe was a little weak. There just wasn't enough there to support the fastness of the attraction and nothing other than Joe saying that he has fallen in love with her. Overall a good beach read for this summer. I enjoyed it, but not quite as much as some past books, but still recommend it. The book was well-narrated by Kathleen McInerney.

This was my first book by Mary Kay Andrews and I can see why she is such a popular author. The Newcomer has engaging and sympathetic characters involved in just enough mystery and romance to keep you turning the pages. A fun summer beach read!

This was an easy summer read that would be good to keep the time passing on a beach trip. While I don’t mind suspending my belief to enjoy a good piece of fiction, there were just a couple too many unbelievable aspects to this book. It was a fine story, but I just was not blown away by it nor did I feel particularly connected to the main character or any of the characters despite this being such a long book where you got to spend a lot of time with them. They just didn’t feel super developed to me. 3 stars ⭐️ . Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me the chance to read and review this novel.

There’s no particular reason I can point to, but I just didn’t love this book. The story centers on Letty, aunt to Maya who took her and escaped after the death of her sister, Tanya. Letty knows that Tanya’s ex is to blame and needs to keep Maya safe. She escapes to a small resort in Florida, The Murmuring Surf, and takes on a job in exchange for a room. From there, she learns that Tanya’s ex was wrapped up in even more trouble than she knew, and Letty gets mixed up in a sting to capture him.

This book was just fine for me. I liked Letty okay, but didn’t love her. The romance plot line happened a bit too quickly for me, even though I knew it would happen. I felt like the timing of it wasn’t quite right, and I never really bought into their feelings for each other. The chase to capture Evan, Tanya’s ex, was interesting but nothing that kept me rapt.

Each piece of the story was fine but not particularly enthralling. I liked it okay but probably wouldn’t read it again.

I always say it isn't officially summer until I've read the latest MKA book. The Newcomer was a fun intriguing read that whisked me off to Florida the minute I started reading. In true Mary Kay Andrews form there was intrigue, suspense, humor, love, and a little bit of sex sprinkled in. A simply delightful read!

I love Mary Kay Andrews and this book was no exception! I absolutely can NOT read scary/mystery/thriller books even though I used to enjoy them so much. Her books have just enough mystery in the middle of a light read to keep that part of my mind intrigued while not giving my scaredy cat self night mares 🤣