The Lighthouse details the grief and sorrow of an 18 year old Portland college student, Amy Tucker and her father, Kevin, who works for the state police, after the sudden, accidental death of their beloved wife and mother. After a rough time coping, Kevin takes Amy on a road trip out of town for a couple days to the small coastal town of Seabrook, thinking they both could use a distraction from their lives and a chance to bond, while he also completes some police business. Seabrook is picturesque perfect and the detailed descriptions made me wish I could visit! It reminded me of the pretty, quiet town Seaside, FL (where The Truman Show was filmed). The town centers its focus on a mysterious Lighthouse, which may or may not be haunted by a ghost, and which is honored yearly at the town's festival. After exploring the town, Amy fatefully meets Ryan, a local, whose father own's a horse ranch that Ryan has been responsible for since his father had a stroke. Together, Amy and Ryan both find a person in each other that they can be themselves with and be temporarily relieved from the stress and trauma they are each dealing with, through laughter, adventure and the beginning stirrings of love. Just as they begin to believe they could have a future together, despite the short time they have known each other and the looming end of Amy's short visit, reality collides with their visions of their futures to completely transform what they understand of their lives and the potentials for their futures, for themselves and their families,

The story was intriguing and maintained my interest as I loved the detailed, descriptive of Seabrook and the back stories of the people and the Lighthouse. The dialogue was sweet and simple, reminding me of a retro 50s stereotype, with perhaps skewing towards more YA readers in high school or college. The story revealed twists that I had a feeling were coming as the story contained elements that reminded me of the book The Shack and the movie Inception. The story also heavily relied on imagining the "afterlife" and asserting that "all things, even bad things, happen for a reason", neither of which I personally believe or find comforting, so readers who do hold these beliefs might have a more positive response to those elements in the book. The Lighthouse is an enjoyable, sweet/sad story of how a young woman and her father cope after loss, but not quite the mystery I had envisioned.

Lighthouses have always fascinated me, I was excited to read this book.

Travel to Seabrook - their lighthouse needs help.
Meet unforgettable characters in an unforgettable setting!
I was lost in this book, reading it completely in less than a day, I could not stop reading
I had to stay with it until I devoured the entire book.

I completely recommend this book.

ARC provided by NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

“The Lighthouse” takes the reader on one girl’s journey of self-discovery. Amy Tucker is on an overnight trip with her father, Kevin, who is a detective on assignment in the town of Seabrook. Amy and her father are grieving the loss of Amy’s mother while trying to repair their relationship. Kevin hopes that the trip will help them reconnect.

However, all is not what it seems in Seabrook. The town’s famous lighthouse, which was decommissioned years before and is rumored to be haunted, suddenly starts shining again on the eve of the annual lighthouse festival. On the same evening, Amy undergoes an alarming experience that has her crossing paths with a local ranch owner, Ryan Porter. Despite an initial meeting full of conflict, Amy and Ryan quickly bond while spending the day together. As the pair grows closer, Amy is led to a startling discovery about Ryan that turns her world upside down. While riding a rollercoaster of emotions, Amy is drawn to the lighthouse, where secrets are revealed and Amy is forced to make choices that will change the lives of both her and Ryan forever.

The beginning of this novel sucked me right in. I was captivated by the mystery of the lighthouse. As the story developed, I was further drawn in by the twisting plot and the questions regarding the fates of the characters. Unfortunately, the book fell flat for me at the end. The character interactions felt a bit forced at times and the dialogue began to develop as if written by a novice. The book lost its natural flow as it progressed, and it became overly drawn out at the ending to the point that I found myself starting to skim over paragraphs that felt unnecessary, over-simplified, and overdone. I felt the ending of the book was too neatly tied up in a little bow, losing the power that it carried in the beginning. It just didn’t work for me.

Overall, this was an inventive novel that could have been a five-star read. Unfortunately, the weak ending hurt the original storyline, resulting in disappointment. I would say this book should be categorized as a Young Adult novel mostly targeted for a teenage age group. I gave this book three stars for its unique storyline and strong beginning. While this book wasn’t for me, I believe it would work for a Young Adult reader.

The Lighthouse centers around 18 yr old Amy who finds herself in a mystical world. An almost fatal accident puts Amy in this strange new world. This strange experience helps Amy come to terms with the death of her mother and the deteriorating relationship with her dad.
This novel is easy to read and the plot easy to follow. However there are sections of the plot that drag, or get caught up in too much detail or leave gaps in the plot that the reader must to fill in.

I feel so fortunate to have been able to read an ARC of this book, thanks to NetGalley!
With its fully fleshed out, sympathetic characters, its intriguing story line, and the steady release of hints as to what is 'really' going on, this book is riveting from beginning to end. With themes such as grief and how it effects different people, life and death, happiness and despair, and the choices made along the way, the book makes you think as well.
While I don't want to give anything away, I must say that the ending is satisfying as well, as though it wraps up the wonderful gift of this tale in a bright bow.
This page-turner is definitely destined to be one of the top books of the year. Congratulations to Christopher Parker on a superb book.

This adventurous love story mysteriously uses tragedy and fate to connect characters across time. The Lighthouse is a magical tale that promises to take the reader to destinations that can only survive the most creative imagination!

• Thank you to Beacon Press Limited and NetGalley for providing this Advance Reading Copy. Expected publication date is October 26, 2021.

Meet Amy who is mourning the death of her mother after a tragic car accident. Meet Ryan who is running the family ranch after his father’s almost fatal stroke. Meet Seabrook a town with a haunted, abandoned lighthouse. The trio comes together one weekend revealing secrets that will change their lives forever.

This book appeared to start off fairly normally, dealing with the complicated relationship between Amy and her father and their increased difficulties following the death of Amy's mother.
Then odd things started creeping into the narrative and culminated in a completely paranormal twist which was extremely well thought out and, in a strange way, highly believable.
This is a heartwarming story and although it deals with grief and loss, it ultimately feels a very positive read.
Would definitely recommend this book and look forward to further work from this author.

The Lighthouse is an amazing experience. A review will never do it justice. It is simply brilliant, hopeful and a glimpse into a spiritual journey of becoming our best selves. I loved it.

I really enjoyed this book, the writing painted such a clear world and I really loved the portrayal of Amy, the heartbreak felt real. The language was very descriptive, I was hoping there would be a little more mystery.
Overall 4 stars and Definitely worth the read.

I loved this way more than I anticipated. It made me cry, made me smile, and made me dream. I recommend this book to everyone. Was such a heartfelt story that everyone can relate too in their own way. Beautifully written.

I received this ARC for an honest review. This is the first novel for Christopher Parker, but I hope not the last. I like giving new authors a chance because you never know when you will find a gem. The Lighthouse is a gem!
This story is about Amy and her father, Kevin. About a month ago, Amy lost her mother due to a car crash, and both is having a hard time with the pain associated with the lost. Kevin is a detective for the Portland police department had to go to Seabrook for work. He decided to bring Amy with him just to get away. I’m not saying more about the story because 1: I won’t do the story justice and 2: THIS IS A MUST READ!
I love the complexity of the story. It pulled on my emotions. This story gives hope when all you see and feel is pain. I see a long writing future for Christopher Parker.

The Lighthouse, by Christopher Parker, is a well written, fast paced paranormal mystery. So, you're going to want to be sure you have several free hours before you start this story because you're probably not going to want to put it down. I thought all the main characters were likeable and the story kept me hooked even after the mystery was revealed.
There's something weird going on in Seabrook. Their lighthouse has been inactive for over thirty years and is supposedly haunted, when it suddenly starts working. The townspeople are so spooked that they can't stop talking about it.
Amy is visiting the small town along with her Dad, just for the night. She's trying not to get caught up in the town's mania but that starts to change after she meets Ryan. Then it turns into an unforgettable weekend,
A lighthouse crazed town, a shocking discovery about Ryan and a startling secret will change the course of their lives forever.

A beautiful story about loss, grief, family and love. The story turned out a bit different then I was expecting after reading the synopsis. I thought I was getting more of a scary haunted lighthouse story, but it was more heartwarming and also sad. I guess if there was one thing that I didn’t really “like” it was the ending. It went on a little bit too long. But other than that i really enjoyed it and I would definitely recommend it.

Yet another one of my "mixed reviews". First, I want to say that I am giving it 4 stars because I really enjoyed it. It was mostly after finishing it, and thinking about it that things started to bother me. But on the other hand, I didn't just put it down and forget it, right?

First I need to say that I thought this was going to be more of a mystery with some romance thrown in,. Instead what I got was more of a fantasy/romance/young adult with some mystery thrown in. That's not bad - it's just that I had very different expectations going in.

This book was sweet, and the male lead was amazing -maybe too good to be true? The dialogue was pretty basic and filled with cliches. yet I didn't really notice this WHILE I was reading it.

Minor spoiler alert - if you dont want ANY, read past this section.
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One major issue I had is that I kept wondering why she was not more worried that her dad was missing. She didn't even think of him as missing - she just thought it was odd that he left her in the hotel for days?? We understand why later, but I did keep thinking about it while reading and it just bugged me

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If you are in the mood for something sweet, and simple and light, this will be the book for you. If you want a little more depth to the characters, maybe give it a pass. I was in the mood for some light, easy, escape and that's what i got..

I want to thank the author, the publisher and #netgalley for the ARC which did not impact my review.

I was excited to get an advance copy of this new book to read, and I am sure this newly published author will write many more good books. However, for me this was not really the genre I enjoy. I had expected it to be more of a mystery or suspense story, but I thought it was a romance/fantasy novel instead. It also seemed to be written for a YA audience, since the main characters were so young.
The book has many layers of plot and is very imaginative. Sometimes the chronology of events was hard to follow, and the characters expressed the same emotions over and over.. I think more could have been left for the reader to discover! Tighter editing would have corrected some of my criticisms. The last few chapters were especially drawn out. I prefer books with more ambiguous endings that leave the reader wishing for more..
Since I have a family member trying to be published, I do sympathize with the writer and wish him well!

Thank you to NetGalley and Beacon Press for a free advanced review copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Amy, who has just hit adulthood and left her teen years behind, was recently struck with the unbearable trauma of losing her beloved mother to a tragic car accident. Her father, Kevin, who works with the police, equally struck by this tragic event, has found himself at a loss, unable to bridge the chasm this event created between him and his daughter. At his brother's suggestion, the two leave Portland and head to a town called Seabrook, where Ryan, our second main character in the story, is dealing with his own dilemma, trying to survive severe financial difficulties that could cost him his family ranch, while taking care of his ill father. The lives of these two characters intertwine, impacting each other in profound ways.

This book does a great job hitting the reader in all the right places to get them to experience the heavy emotions it was trying to convey. It deeply explores grief, an emotion we all experience at one point in life. It does a great job showing us how grief can greatly damage our mental health, making us believe that there is no realistic path forward after an irreversible loss, even though there is always a way out of that dark tunnel, if one changes their perspective, and allows time to slowly make the wound hurt less. We walk with Amy through this dark path, and get to see how Ryan shines a beacon of light in her life that allows all of these shadows to start losing their influence on her. We get to experience the simple purity of kindness that Ryan embodies through his character, which is a very refreshing breath of air, since this kindheartedness is very difficult to come across in our day to day lives.

The setting of the story was described quite nicely, and reading this book felt like a very vivid journey into Seabrook, and I was left feeling truly immersed in the atmosphere of the world. I could vividly imagine the town square, the hotel, the ranch, the beach and the lighthouse, and it was a very cozy atmosphere. When I think of Seabrook, I get a pleasant and nostalgic feeling, and it is a town I would like to re-explore one day.

The story is very character driven, and it is imperative to like the characters in order to enjoy reading the book, since we spend a great portion of it exploring the psyches of our main characters and reading about them hanging out with each other. There were surprising twists in the book that took the plot to places I wasn't initially expecting, and it did a good job making me want to turn the pages to find out what happens next.

One critique I would have would be related to the characters themselves, specifically their dialogues which felt a bit too one-dimensional and without much variability. Their expressions felt too artificial and not too realistic in terms of what you would expect from people in real life. To give a vague idea about what I mean without quoting the actual book, most of the dialogue was similar to things like "Oh, I'm so glad you did that!" or "Oh, jeez, that does sound so very terrible!.. with a lot of "cliche stock expressions" and punctuation that make it clear that this is a work of fiction with the characterization not being very realistic. This aspect of the book negatively impacted my immersion, however, some people might see it as a positive form of escapism. Due to this aspect of the writing and the softer romance aspects, I would classify this book as more of a YA work and not so much as an adult book as it was marketed under, so having this expectation in mind while reading it might lead the reader to have a more positive experience and not be taken by surprise because of it. I would have also preferred if Amy's character was developed a little more, since she felt a bit bland in some aspects and vivacious in others, in a manner that was a bit inconsistent despite her grief.

Overall, this was a pleasant book to read. The developments at the second half of the book made me appreciate the story as a whole, and rereading the book one day knowing the full picture would be an interesting experience since I would notice the little hints planted at the beginning. The topics explored tug at your heartstrings, and Seabrook is a very heartwarming place the reader will likely appreciate their stay in. I would be curious to see more works by this author!

I was most pleasantly surprised with this debut novel from Christopher Parker. It has it all, a little bit of love, sadness, loss, romance, mystery, intrigue, horses ( I love horses), a smidge of magic, and then most of all, it has hope. It is hard to believe this is the first book he has written, the ability to cross between the present, the past, other timelines, then adding in near death experiences and bringing it all back to present. I was impressed.
Lots of twists and turns and even though some of the story was magical, I just followed right along and enjoyed the ride. Amy, Ryan, Kevin and especially Little Dipper. Well done, Mr. Parker, well done.
Received an ARC from Beacon Press Limited and NetGalley for my unbiased review – This one comes in with high 5*****’s.

I was enchanted by this story of grief, love and magical realism. It read somewhat like a fairy tale and I was totally under its spell. It was really a character driven book. When I picked it up I didn't expect the magical nature of the book. It started out with Amy trying to deal with the grief of losing her mother. She and her father, aa police detective, had never been close. This was even more pronounced after her mother's death. Her father was being sent out of town on police business - some business, but really a to get Amy to come with him so that they could spend some time together.

They travelled to Seabrook, only to spend one night, but circumstances changed. The morning after they arrived, Amy's father disappeared. Amy met Ryan who lived on a nearby ranch. After spending some time together, they end up trying the discover the secret of the mysterious lighthouse.

A very imaginative debut novel. Ryan's story was heartbreaking and my heart went out to him. I liked all of the characters in the book, which is unusual - there is usually at least one rotten character in most books. I liked that there was no violence in this story. I think it should be classified more as a YA book though.

Thanks to Beacon Press Limited through Netgalley for an advance copy. This book will be published on October 26, 2021.

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion.

I was interested by Christopher Parker's premise for his debut novel, The Lighthouse. The mystery around the lighthouse in Seacrest is intriguing, and I was excited to see how things would play out. The city believes the lighthouse is haunted.

Amy is grieving the death of her mother. Kevin, her father, is a cop and is trying to reconnect with Amy, but they are distant from one another. They take a trip to Seacrest to resolve a matter of police business.

Amy meets Ryan, a young man taking care of his family ranch as his father who had suffered from a stroke. The two connect, and the story proceeds. Ryan is charming and a good=hearted young man, but he's made a terrible mistake.

Themes in this novel include: healing, facing your mistakes, building human connections, and possibly that there is a grand design in our lives.

I enjoyed the twist that came at about 60% of the book (and I thought it worked well). There were a few moments when I wanted a character to tell Amy or Ryan what was going on instead of giving the answer that everything would make sense in just a few more minutes. The ending tied everything up. I actually would have liked to have a loose thread instead of everything being quite so pat - but that is probably personal preference. I would also like to see the supernatural elements pushed farther. I would say the lighthouse is a beacon of hope by the end of the story.

This book is appropriate for a teen audience, and I feel like teens will particularly enjoy the romance.
I would recommend this book for a fun, quick read.