Why couldn't the first half of the book be as satisfying as the second half? I loved the Blake story line. I loved her perspective and her romance. I hated Kat for 90% of the book. I get that someone had to be difficult and that she had a rough go, but so did Blake. I might be over the influencer trope, but there was so much detail about her posts and algorithms and engagement that it took away from the story. If I could have more story like Blakes, this would have been a more enjoyable read for me. It was good. It was fine. It was a lot of work to get there.

The Beach Trap is a heartwarming novel about sisterhood, secrets and learning to forgive. Two women, reunited after 15 years apart, finally face the truth neither wanted to acknowledge but NOW they must. The sisters are forced to come together at the families summer home, one wants to keep it and the other needs to sell for the cash.

Together, the learn to deal with past while mapping out their future. The love interests in this story are simply dreamy. I especially loved the many names for Max (the dog) - "Such a good boy, little Maxie-Waxy. Wax on, wax off, wax on, wax off."

This novel warps you a warm hug at the end. Ali Brady's debut is perfect for #summerreading

Thank you Berkley Publishing Group, Berkley Romance for the advance reader copy.

Agreat beach women’s fiction while I’m on the beach 🏖 brings back memories of summer camps in which one friend captures all the feels of a sister. As Kat and Blake practice for the Talent show, Kat gets an unwanted message that her dad is picking her up because her grandfather passed away. When her dad opens the car door, Blake realizes it is her estranged dad. He doesn’t want to explain to her but hustles Kat away. Blake’s situation has been one of heartache since her mom died when she was young and raised by her grandparents. Kat’s life has been a privileged one, and does not want to accept her dad’s abandoned secret family.
15 years later, no words are shared between the two until their father dies and proceeds by an attorney they each have a shared inheritance of a Beach house in Destin, FL.
The story is enlightening with forgiveness and acceptance as well as some hot love scenes when they both find romance.
The sacrifices are understandable and you might think of The Parent Trap except it is The Beach Trap! A very enjoyable read that will bring tears, anger and happiness to the table!
Thank you NetGalley and Berkley Books for this ARC in exchange for my honest review!

I absolutely loved this book! I read it in one night and it was a mix of some of my favorite things in a book!

▪️Summer camp meeting
▪️Surprise half-sisters
▪️DIY house reno
▪️Adorable dog with the best nicknames
▪️Strong amazing female main characters
▪️Wonderful men
▪️Florida Beach setting

I went to Destin last year with friends so it was fun that I had been there recently. I loved the Summer Camp BFFs to enemies to sisters of this book. This was the perfect mix of women's fiction and romance.

I find writing duos so fascinating and this debut novel is sure to be a hit! I can't wait to read this their next book!

The Beach Trap is a perfect summer read! I enjoyed the character growth as the two half sisters come together to renovate the beach house that they've inherited from their father and come to realize the importance of family.

I started The Beach Trap in the morning before I left for work and I was immediately invested and thankful that I could listen to it while working so that I could find out what happened.

As twelve-year-olds, Kat Steiner and Blake O'Neill meet at summer camp and instantly bond. But then they learn that they're half-sisters and their friendship falls apart. Leaving Blake confused and Kat angry. Fifteen years later, they reconnect after their father dies and they find out that he left them each half of the family beach house in Destin, Florida. Blake wants to sell the house and Kat is desperate to keep it. Reluctantly they forge forward to renovate the house, with Kat wanting to buy Blake out at the end of summer. As they clash and start to fall in love, they realize that at some point they have to address their past and the fact that they're sisters.

Blake was someone who my heart immediately ached for. I wanted to offer her support and friendship. Blake was determined and figured out her value despite feeling abandoned and unwanted by her father,
I loved watching her journey over the summer as she stood up for herself and realized her worth. I loved her and Noah together; the way that he supported her and wanted her to be happy was swoon-worthy.

Kat was someone that I grew to like, at first she was very snobbish and entirely too focused on the image she projected. I just wished that she had taken more responsibility for her own actions and the way that she treated Blake. I know that she was grieving, and grief manifests in different ways, but the way she treated Blake for most of this book made me mad. While she had growth, I just wish that Blake had felt more support and understanding from her. I also wish that we had been able to see a little more of the development of Kat and Henry's relationship, even if it had been reminiscing about when they were younger. I needed something to help me understand their connection.

I found myself tearing up more than once and laughing throughout. I definitely recommend checking this one out, but grab a box of tissues if you get emotional easily. Ali Brady is a duo to watch and I can't wait to read what they put out next.

Thank you to Berkley and PRHA for the ARC and ALC in exchange for an honest review.

TW: infidelity, dementia, death, parental abandonment

All debut novels I've read this year have seriously blown me away and this was no exception!

Inspired from The Parent Trap, this book is the perfect blend between women's fiction and romance, which in my humble opinion, is a rare combination. For me, this novel was more than just a beach read because it had so much depth given that it dealt with grief, loss, sisterhood, complicated family dynamics, sense of belonging (a universal struggle), and forgiveness.

While there are romance sub-plots, at it's core, this book is a complicated love story between two sisters.

The dual POV helped me gain insight into the thoughts of each sister and how unique their experiences were growing up and how differently they dealt with the loss of their father.

I appreciated how the story progressed and evolved. Each sub-plot was so well-balanced and each leading character was so well-developed. While I loved all four MC's, I have a soft spot for Kat because she had the best character arc and showed the most growth, and rightfully so because she needed it much more as compared to Blake, Noah or Henry.

While Blake and Noah's romance progressed more quickly, Kat and Henry's was more of a slow burn. Again while Noah had the makings of being the perfect book boyfriend, I have a softer spot for Henry given he was a single dad, which is one of my favorite romance tropes.

It seemed like such a well-researched story, whether it was being transported to Destin, Florida (a place now on my vacation bucket list because it sounds amazing!) or how authentic the influencer lifestyle and house renovation felt. It is my dream to own a beach house one day so I loved living vicariously through the sisters.

Though I do wish Kat's mother's character was more fleshed out, overall, I still thoroughly enjoyed the book because I was so captivated by the seamless and cohesive writing style. It also 100% delivered on the steam level (hallelujah!) that they had teased about in their marketing.

Can't wait to read this author duo's next book (loved the sneak peek at the end) because I'm now their biggest fan! I can't wait to hold the pre-ordered physical copy in my hands on June 14th!

Kat and Blake were best friends as children—until a family secret tore them apart. Years later, the half sisters jointly inherit their father's beach house. Blake wants nothing to remind her of the father who abandoned her—but she needs the money from the sale of the house to pay for her grandfather's long-term care. Kat, meanwhile, wants to keep the house that was an important part of her childhood. As they work to fix up the house, they're forced to confront the long-simmering bitterness between them. Can they become the family they both need?

This is a heartfelt women's fiction that also includes romance subplots for both Blake and Kat. It's a lovely, satisfying novel.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

This book was a delight! Kat and Blake find a best friend in each other at summer camp. When Kat has to leave camp early for a family emergency, her dad picks her up - only to discover Blake and Kat have the same dad…?

It’s 15 years later and their dad has died. He leaves them a Beach House to share. So the daughter he raised and the daughter he abandoned have to come to terms with their mixed feelings about family and childhood.

While one of the sisters had A LOT of growth needed to have any sort of healthy relationship, I loved how at its core it’s about finding family. Each sister also has their own budding beach romance. And both love interests are perfect book-boyfriends. 🔥

This book also makes me want to do a renovation project!

Short synopsis: Blake and Kat (estranged half sisters) both inherit a beach home from their dad. A beach house in need of some real love and elbow grease.

My thoughts: Blake and Kat are so very different. My heart ached for them in different ways, Blake abandoned by her dad after her mom died and Kat only seeing the business side of him. Kat was selfish and spoiled, and Blake learned at a young age to be grateful for what she had. I loved to see the growth each of the girls went through as the book progressed, both in themselves and towards each other.

I thought the romance side stories were a fun addition, and loved the epilogue and how it all tied together at the end.

I did a mix of ebook and audiobook on this and loved the flow both ways. The audio featured two narrators voicing each of the girls which I love multiple narrators.

Pick this one up if you’re a sucker for:
* Sisterly bond and family drama
* Home makeover shows
* Absurd pet names

This is the perfect summer read!

Kat and Blake meet at summer camp when they are 12 years old. They discover that they aren’t only best friends, but also have the same father. Fifteen years later, Kat and Blake haven’t spoke to each other since that summer years ago. Their father dies and leaves them both a beach house in Florida. They must join forces to renovate the house and decide whether or not to keep or sell it.

I really enjoyed this one. It’s a story of both Kat and Blake learning to become sisters, excepting the mistakes their father made, and them both finding love. Told through the alternating POV’s of Kat and Blake. Kat lived with her father, had a luxurious lifestyle and was an influencer. Blake rarely seen her father growing up, she was raised by her grandparents and was just trying make enough money to take care of her grandfather who has Alzheimer’s. We see Kat’s character grow a lot through the book, the two men the girls end of falling in love with are the sweetest and the ending is perfect. I definitely recommend!

A huge thank you to Berkley and Netgalley for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

This book was aptly named. The story of two sisters who discover each other at summer camp is reminiscent of the beloved classic "The Parent Trap." And, in addition, that beach house they both inherit is in its own way also a trap. The estranged half sisters cannot agree on keeping or selling. Will this be a flip? A flop? Or can it become something more? I really loved watching the house be transformed along with the relationship between Kat and Blake. Seeing the story from each woman's perspective in alternating chapters also gives us an inside look at the motivation of the narrator. Not having that information leads to a number of misunderstandings, when grace is not given. As we watch these young women grow throughout the summer, we are also reminded that others carry burdens we cannot see. This new author duo is off to a promising start. Their bedroom doors are open a bit long for me, but I know other readers will enjoy the extra steam.

Thank you to Berkley Publishing and NetGalley for a DRC in exchange for an honest review.

Two best friends who learn their relationship is much more complicated end up inheriting a beach home together. They must work together to mend the house and their relationship. Also they both have a chance at love.

The Beach Trap is the perfect Beach Read.

Add this book to your summer beach bag! This story features two half-sisters who inherit their late father's beach house. The two do not like each other, the house is falling apart, and they have different views of what to do with the house itself. Blake is determined to fix up the house to sell it to help finance her grandfather's assisted living care and Kat wants to keep the house since she has so many childhood memories there.

I loved seeing each of their growth, their external relationships with other people and how those relationships impacted their relationship as sisters. I did find Kat to be a bit tough to root for but really liked her growth and where she ended up. Their journey towards mending their own grievances with each other was bumpy but authentic.

I loved the flashbacks to the summer they initially met at camp. I would have loved one reflection chapter from the father in the epilogue or somewhere else referencing his relationships with each daughter and decision to leave them both the house.

Hello, perfect summer read! Storylines from two half-sisters are wound together as they inherit their late father's beach house. But there are a few problems: they haven't talked to each other in years, they don't like each other, and the beach house is falling apart.

I loved how Kat and Blake's storylines were distinct, but balanced each other well and met in all the right places to create a wonderful sisterhood narrative. Plus, we get TWO love stories! Can't complain about that!! I definitely liked one character more than another (and found one pretty obnoxious for most of the book), but loved her character growth in the end. Our male MCs are perfectly swoon-worthy supporting characters, adding lightness and fun in contrast with many of the characters' difficult backstories. I couldn't put this book down and I promise you are going to want this in your beach bag this summer!

Thanks to Berkeley for the copy of this ARC!

This is like the parent trap but if everything went wrong and the sisters stayed hating each other. I loved it from beginning to end. The character development was paced so well and there were so many moments of growth. Both of the sister go through a metamorphosis on this summer vacation while navigating new romances, their shared father, and a backlog of emotional history. I think this is the perfect beach read. If you're a fan of Emily Henry or good books, read it

The Beach Trap dives into estranged sisters, self-discovery, troubled pasts, and secrets. Overall, I enjoyed this one! I really loved the two perspectives from the sisters along their respective romance subplots. I tended to gravitate more towards Blake and Noah than Kat and Henry. I liked how each character was fleshed out and the way the authors slowly revealed their pasts. Definitely recommend picking this one up!

The Beach Trap by Ali Brady (nom de plume for co-writers Alison Hammer and Bradleigh Godfrey, is a delightful story of friendship, romance and family. This duo has a great writing vibe as the reader would never be able to tell it was co-written. Honestly, this is one of those summer reads that you can read in a weekend.

The story is redemptive, offers complicated family dynamics (totally relatable), summer camp memories and a stunning setting. Both Blake and Kat fall into romances that are sweet and had terrific, though predictable outcomes. Social media plays a big role in this book, from Kat being an influencer to Blake using YouTube videos to help her through the renovation. It was interesting to see Kat find her real identity rather than the one she portrays on Instagram.

Besides the well-developed human characters, the dog adds a sense levity with all the crazy names it was called. I could totally relate because I rarely ever call my own dogs by their given names. It’s wild how many owners do this!

In my opinion, it was the house that was the most important character in the book. It held core memories and its renovation symbolized second chances. I think their dad was smarter than his behavior because he knew these girls needed this house to create new, happy family memories.

I look forward to reading what next from this duo!

THE BEACH TRAP by Ali Brady took The Parent Trap to a whole new level.

I loved reading this book. I think I may have struggled to get into it at first, but I think that was because of my own life getting in the way – not anything to do with this book or how it was written.

From the family drama, secrets, and discoveries to the home renovation projects and newfound friends and relationships, this book felt like a breath of fresh air – and it truly made me want to visit a beach…SOON.

When two twelve year old girls forge a friendship at summer camp, little do they know they are actually half sisters. This twist carries us through this story as our two main characters deal with a father who treated them differently, a family's twisted past and a shared, dilapidated beach house. This book takes us on a journey through a summer where the sisters attempt to mend fences, fix up their hearts and the beach house and meet some cute guys along the way. A sweet story that will capture your heart. Throw this one in your beach bag- it's a winner! Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC! #TheBeachTrap