There's just something comforting about being inside Lucy's head. Especially during this book- as it explored the pandemic and the very real thoughts going through our heads during this time. Surprisingly, it wasn't triggering but if anything pandemic related is a no go for you- do not pick this one up. I do find Lucy and William's relationship to be...different.... but I also find it comforting in a weird way.

The writing style is straight forward and as I said before, really feels like you're reading her thoughts. I really enjoyed this book overall and I would recommend for those who love introspective, literary reads.

The first-person narrator, Lucy Barton, is an author with a life complicated by affairs, divorce, widowhood,, and an unusual lingering relationship with her ex-husband who cheated on her numerous times before she reciprocated. While this book could function as a stand-alone novel, readers will enjoy Lucy By the Sea more if they first read Oh,William!

Lucy speaks in a conversational style as if she is dictating her journal, making nites for a memoir, or talking to a therapist.. She is brutally honest about how she feels and seems fairly judgmental at times. Her unhappy childhood and unloving mother constantly pull her back into unhappy memories. While I was glad that I read Oh,William! I found Lucy’s rambling self absorption to be less appealing in a second book with the same characters. Other readers may not feel this way at all.

The setting of Lucy By the Sea is the start of the. Covid pandemic. Author Strout does a good job of incorporating numerous important events in American history from the panic of a pandemic shutdown,, the death of George Floyd, and the January 6th attach on the Capitol. My personal reaction was that this was all so recent and well publicized that it did not seem like a novel but more like bullet points added to Lucy’s stream of consciousness.

I sincerely appreciate the opportunity to read this and thank Random House and NetGalley for making it available.. This is my honest opinion.

I appreciate that Elizabeth Strout doesnt need a lot of words to make a point or tell a story. Her writing is very bare bones, no frills, straight to the point and realistic. It feels like a friend's mom is telling me a story. I read My Name is Lucy Barton a few years ago and I appreciated it though I didnt love it or connect with it as much as I have with other books. This story is a continuation for this character, and takes place during the COVID-19 lockdown in NYC and the aftermath of that event. As someone who lived through it here in the City, I do enjoy hearing about the people who fled for more secluded places. Another quick read by this author.

A truly wonderful, insightful read about the pandemic. My favorite Lucy story yet! She knows how to say nothing and everything all at once. It was both a surreal and a charming way to reflect on the last couple of years. I hope there are more Amgash stories!

Lucy by the Sea is a wonderful portrayal taking place during a full blown pandemic with strained and new relationships, fear, isolation, and, of course, love. Unfortunately we are still living during this pandemic and so it was a bit too soon for me to read this book. Although things are better, there is still a long way to go before we are less fearful and isolated. That being said, I really liked the book having followed Lucy from Elizabeth Strout’s previous books about her.

4th in series
I was so happy to visit with Lucy again but that being said I had a hard time reliving the pandamic again I just wasn't interested at all I only finished it because I really wanted to see how it ended...Depressing I wish I had been whisk away to a home on the water I would have read and read.

My thanks to NetGalley, the author and publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A Brilliant Exploration of Human Experiences, Feelings and Imperfections

Lucy Barton is swept away from her rooted life in Manhattan in the early days of the pandemic to a small coastal town in Maine. Her ex-husband William Gerhardt is a scientist, aware of the virus's potential. He rented a cottage for the both of them to ride out the pandemic and ushered a despondent Lucy out of town.

Lucy and William have two grown and married daughters who live in Manhattan. William did his best to convince both girls to leave the city. William has always been there for Lucy and the girls whenever they needed him, and they always needed him. Lucy had lost her second husband just a year earlier and was still recovering from that loss when the pandemic hits. Little did she know when she left New York that day, that she would never see her apartment again or that so many would die including family and friends.

“What is strange as I look back is how I simply did not know what was happening.”


When reading LUCY BY THE SEA I could not help but feel like I was sitting on that old red lumpy couch in the cottage sharing stories and a cup of coffee with Lucy. She was an old friend sharing her intimate thoughts and feelings with me. We both are worried about our families and about getting older and forgetful. I loved hearing her intriguing stories and her willingness to share her family’s emotional experiences during these challenging times.

I purposely read this novel very slowly because I knew I would not want it to end and I was right. It ended much to soon. The story is uncomplicated and easy to read, and Strouts writing is emotional rich and rewarding. This book is not really about the pandemic but rather is a thought-provoking exploration of the reactions we had to the experience of living through such a challenging time.

Strout’s insight into her characters is remarkable. Both Lucy and William’s characters are delightfully well-developed. Their essence distinctly captures the turbulent emotions and uncertainty of the time. The days are marked by their feelings of loneliness, isolation, fear, anxiety, loss and grief. But they also find joy in family, friendships and love. Lucy Barton and I are really good friends now and I can't wait to have another chat with her. This visit was much to short.

Strout has written nine additional literary works that brilliantly explore human experiences, feelings and imperfections. Two of these nine feature Lucy Barton. They are My Name is Lucy Barton (2016) and Oh William! (2021). Strout’s book Olive Kitteridge which won the Pulitzer Prize in 2009 and was followed by Olive, Again in 2019.

Thanks to Netgalley and Random House for an advance reading copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I also listened to the audiobook which was fabulously performed by Kimberly Farr who succeeded in bringing Lucy and William to life.


Publisher Random House
Published September 20, 2022
Review www.bluestockingreviews.com

‘Lucy by the Sea’ was my first Elizabeth Strout book. The book takes place in NYC and the coast of Maine during the pandemic. I had such hopes for this story, just based on where and when the book took place. Unfortunately, the story is simply a journalistic account of Lucy Barton’s experiences, and feelings during the pandemic. I found the authors slight references to her political affiliations unnecessary. I still plan on reading the first book in this series, by Ms. Strout.

Lucy by the Sea sucks you in from the start. A book about nothing and everything, just like the human experience. This book made me think, and also made me fall madly in love with Lucy. The writing style is so unique and honest. I couldn’t figure out how she was going to end the book since so much of it felt like stream of consciousness, but she wrapped it up and a nice little bow. Beautiful.

Elizabeth Strout does it again - she writes a sterling, beautiful novel that captures its readers with its spare and sparkling prose.

It is the beginning of the pandemic and William, Lucy's ex-husband, wants to get Lucy and himself out of New York City and to Maine. He has a friend there who will loan him a house and William feels they will be much safer than if they remained in New York. Lucy agrees to accompany him and the novel shows how the two of them settle in, face the pandemic, make new friends and interact with their two adult daughters.

Lucy is enraptured by the sound of the sea. It is her song as she faces lockdown. She takes a walk every morning and listens to the sounds of this rural community so different from New York City.

During lockdown, Lucy meets Bob Burgess, a character from one of her earlier novels, and they become great, enduring friends.. Lucy loves him and their walks together are one of her treasured moments. Olive Kitteridge also appears briefly in this novel as a patient in an assisted living facility.

Lucy is still grieving the death of David, her second husband, and the reader can see how she is trying hard to navigate her relationship with William, her first husband ,with whom she shares two daughters, Chrissy and Becca. There is family drama with the daughters but there is never any doubt of Lucy's love and respect for her children.

Lucy is a loving woman who has survived an awfully traumatic childhood. Despite her occasional panic attacks and anxiety, she has arisen from her childhood with grace and love. She remains traumatized from her childhood but her ability to love is remarkable.

I have read all of Elizabeth Strout's novels and each one shines with a beauty of its own. Lucy By The Sea can be read as a stand-alone but would be better appreciated after reading the preceding Lucy Barton novels.

The true life thing about this story are the little moments of caring and habit that abound in a marriage , even when the time comes for it to end. Lucy Barton is a creature of habit and disruptions are barely tolerated. William is pragmatic, slow to communicate, quick to see that the world is about to experience a moment we are still shaking our heads to understand. William makes Lucy abandon her New York comfort for the wilds of the Maine shoreline. There is poetry in the descriptions of life as it evokes during lockdown. The family is forced to face its own consequences of choice. It is a breathtaking revelation. Happy reading

Elizabeth Strout returns to my favorite fictional divorced couple in Lucy by the Sea. It is not necessary, though it would be a lot of fun, to read the previous two books in what could be loosely termed a trilogy with this couple whose friendship comes and goes long after their marriage is over. Lucy Barton, from My Name Is Lucy Barton and Oh William!, gets an urgent alert from her ex-husband William at the beginning of the pandemic that they must leave Manhattan with its Covid dangers and go for a week or so to a small town in Maine to lessen the danger that they will be infected.

In the beginning, Lucy is only vaguely aware of the hazards of the virus. Time in Maine expands into months as Lucy and William form new relationships with local people. They navigate new connections with their two grown daughters who are dealing with the pandemic in ways that seem harmful to their parents. In her own reaction to the isolation, Lucy finds herself as a writer at a loss for words to put on paper. Readers will find themselves relating to the pandemic experience as the novel gives an empathetic look at the feelings stirred by the long-running crisis. As always with this author, a good story is wound into the setting by relatable characters.

My first experience with Elizabeth Strout, who has become one of my favorites, came with Olive Kitteridge. Olive has a tendency make cameo appearances in Elizabeth’s other books, as she does in this one, though age has begun to take its toll. If you are already a fan of the Lucy Barton books, this one will not disappoint. If not, I recommend getting all three and reading them in order.

Lucy by the Sea is Elizabeth Strout's latest edition to the life of Lucy Barton. Having been a fan of her previous books, I was delighted to receive this one. I know it is my own fault for not reading a synopsis before starting the book but I was a little surprised to see that we go on the Covid journey with Lucy. Lucy's ex-husband William understands the implications of the disease and convinces Lucy to leave NY for a remote Maine town.

Lucy has to deal with the growing concerns of the pandemic and being in lockdown with her ex. As the days turn in to weeks and then months, she and William reconnect and find comfort in being with someone they know so well. In the meantime, Lucy is still mourning the death of her second husband and not being able to see her daughters.

Less important, and yet why I enjoy Strout's work, is the Maine community who are unwelcoming of the city people to begin with. I really felt like Lucy is a friend who I know well, her introspections are spot on. On another side not is the reason that William chose to depart for Maine and not Long Island.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

Lucy by the Sea by Elizabeth Strout was covered in my Fall Book Preview, where I share a curated list of the season’s hottest new titles including the books I’ve most enjoyed, the ones I’m most looking forward to reading, and the ones the industry is most excited about. I loved this gentle and astute pandemic novel. This story took me places I didn't know I wanted to go. I will read anything Elizabeth Strout writes.
Our Fall Book Preview event is exclusively for members of our MMD Book Club community and What Should I Read Next Patreon “Book Lover” supporters. Our communities also received a printable of all the picks with Lucy by the Sea's publishing info and release date included.

Lucy By the Sea is book 4 in the Lucy series by Elizabeth Strout. This novel features the beginning of the pandemic in the early months of 2020. Lucy and her ex-husband travel to Maine to ride out the pandemic in a rental home on the coast. They get to know each other again as well as the residents in the town they're temporarily residing in. We get to read about their daughters and what they're up to in their lives and we even get to hear a little bit about Olive Kitteridge. A sweet book that has you reliving the scary early days of the pandemic. Read and enjoy!

I have been waiting for someone to capture the pandemic experience in prose. The fact that this was done by one of my favorite authors makes this even more sublime. Lucy Barton is one of the most universally appealing characters to appear in fiction. I found many parts of her “lockdown” experience understandable, relatable, and memorable. Our lives could not be more different but her perspective is surprising and reassuring at once. Thanks to the publisher for the opportunity to read and review.

Elizabeth Strout has done it again. Why is she so good at creating such believable characters? I loved revisiting Lucy and William’s unusual relationship and seeing how they dealt with quarantine. The Maine backdrop is perfect. Lucy is so open and honest with her feelings towards those around her and how she’s still overcoming the trauma of her past. I also could relate to her relationship with her grown daughters. It’s just so well done!

I wasn't sure that I was ready for a Covid novel. In fact, I was sure I wasn't. The fear, anxiety, and loneliness of those early days of the lockdown still feel painful. Yet, Elizabeth Strout handles the topic with such care that this book felt like a balm. I'm deeply grateful.

Lucy Barton is convinced by her ex-husband William to leave NY and go to a rented house on Maine as the Covid pandemic begins. He's also concerned about the safety of their daughters and families , hoping to persuade them to leave NY too. While Lucy goes along, she believes it is going to be a short stay in Maine. As time goes om and more and more people become infected, Lucy reflects on her relationships - her recently deceased husband, her ex William, their daughters and her mother. It also deals with the changes and challenges that Lucy dealt with as Covid spread and the impact it has on her life.
#Lucy By The Sea #NetGalley

From the moment of opening Lucy by the Sea, written in its loose, free-associating journal-entry style, this reader was so pleased to have the privilege to enter Lucy Barton's mind / life / thinking (felt a little like 1966's Fantastic Voyage?!) to see the cracked up world through her eyes during the Covid pandemic and all that came before it. Not the least of which was because it was a real time world we all lived in. . . if you were living in 2019 - 2022. . .this is a series of snaps during those self-reflective days we all spent so alone and appalled. We had plenty of time to reflect on the past, worry about the future and rail against the present as it was daily unfurled by the unbelievable news of each media announcement. Turns out it wasn't just us. . . .Lucy was living it, too.

With William (see Amgash #3 in the series) back in her life, along with her daughters Becka and Chrissy and all the on-agains, off-agains that can happen in the weird communication dominated by a robust aspect of isolation, masks and face time iterations there are moments in this book that stabbed me through, and some left me just shaking my head. Oh! And Olive! Olive mentions sprinkled here and there. The Elizabeth Strout magic continues.

What's amazing is that Lucy Barton is real to me. Some of what she does, I just don't get. Just like I have besties who do stuff I just don't get. That doesn't mean I slam the book shut, march away and don't finish. I just shake my head, stay present and stand by for whatever comes next. I'm Lucy's friend and fan. She's a permanent part of my Readirverse.

Whatever's next? I'll be there, whatever's next.

A Sincere Thank You to Elizabeth Strout, Random House and NetGalley for an ARC to read and review. #LucybytheSea #NetGalley