Strout’s new novel reads like a very boring diary. The entries are short and abrupt at times creating a chopped reading experience. The action occurs with the beginning of the Covid epidemic and relates one families life with the quarantines, illnesses, deaths and daily drudge we all can recall. The author, in a heavy handed way, names one of her previous eponymous characters several times which adds nothing to the story line. I could not relate to Lucy at all. She, like the author, is a writer and is relating this novel. She espouses her technique often throughout the diary and to be brutal could use a better editor. Her odd relationships with all her family members were not worth my attention. I as quite bored and breathed a sigh of relief when I finished.

The pandemic. Quarantine. Isolation. Masks. Fears. Loneliness. Vaccinations. The election of 2020. The January 6 riots. Family ties: William, Chrissy, and Becka. Neighbors and friends (including several who have drifted over from other novels by Elizabeth Strout.) Relationships fall apart. Relationships begin anew. All as seen through the eyes of Lucy Barton as she describes it in her spare yet touching narration.

And then this thought went through my mind:

We are all in lockdown, all the time. We just don’t know it, that’s all.

But we do the best we can. Most of us are just trying to get through.

Lucy is an endearing character and I eagerly jumped at the opportunity to read Lucy by the Sea. I didn’t know how I would feel about reading a book on the Covid-19 pandemic, especially as viewed through the eyes of a New York resident. However, Lucy by the Sea is so well done. Elizabeth Strout has Lucy reflecting back to us so many of our fears and feelings as we’ve muddled (and continue to muddle) our way through the events of the past 2+ years. Lucy by the Sea is not just about those years; it is much much more. Read it and enjoy Lucy's reflections on life. Highly recommended!

This is the first book by Elizabeth Strout that I have read. I picked it up because of the COVID time setting. I wanted to see how the story was told around that timeframe. It was interesting to remember how much we didn't know and how often information changed.

This is the story of Lucy and her ex-husband, William. He is a scientist who is terrified of the virus and so they leave New York for a sea side house in Maine. They are trying to escape the virus. Their children and their spouses and a few new friends make up the list of characters we meet. It's about how they deal with the pandemic and each other.

Overall I enjoyed the book but I found the 1st person narration to be a bit meandering. She gave a lot of disjointed stories and details about her days. Some bits were really interesting but most of it was a bit dull.

One thing that annoyed me was that William was constantly telling everyone around him to put on a mask and to stay away from people but encourages his kids to get on a plane to come visit for a couple of days. That made no sense to me.

It seemed as if the author took some relatively current events and put them all in one novel but ultimately had no purpose to the story. I liked enough of it to want to finish it but at some points it was a struggle. The ending wasn't satisfying because a question was posed that was never answered.

Lucy is a character from an earlier novel, updated here in the early days of Covid. Lucy has been widowed for two years when her ex-husband, William, currently divorced, sweeps her up and whisks her off to Maine, to an isolated beach house where they can safely ride out the pandemic. As foggy-brained and confused as ever, Lucy goes with him. As she relates the often-mundane elements of her days in a stream-of-consciousness fashion, we learn of her abusive childhood, her lack of confidence, and her negativity. I enjoyed the portrayal of the early days of the pandemic, although troubling to remember, it was realistic in the details and has historical value.

However, this novel was quite tedious. Strout gives us epilogue scenes from earlier novels, and I'm not sure those had value, nor did the creepy negativity of Lucy's new novel with a character (a policeman named Arms) breaking the spine of another character (a young man named Sperm), and then caring for him for life.

There is one scene toward the end of the book where Lucy emerges from her somnambulist ways to give her sad adult daughter some really good, inspiring advice, but then Lucy goes back to sleep. The excellent question her daughters ask, whether her unlikeable ex (their father) is manipulating her for his own needs, goes not only unanswered, but the novel ends in a Stockholm Syndrome-type vignette.

I found this novel, and the writing style, unsatisfying. I'm not sure if Strout was feeling experimental or lazy with this work, but either way, the dissatisfaction I had with her previous novel, "Oh, William," continues. At this point, I'm sorry to say I don't think I'm a Strout fan anymore.

4.5, a beautiful book about a divorced couple who are friends and shelter together during the pandemic. It did feel a little entitled by the main character to never dwell on people who had to keep working during the pandemic. But all the characters were interesting and grew throughout the book. Strout's writing is beautiful and sparse with deep reflections on life and people. Thank you to net galley for an ARC!

An easy to read narrative yet Lucy’s dark cloud-lined observations of the recent events that wove in and out of the pandemic left me tired. I really don’t need to shoulder Lucy’s angst too.

I picked this book due to the author. Was excited to read but unfortunately I was bored. Not really sure the point of story, I feel the author is just capitalized on current events and through them onto paper .
Yes it’s a story about family, love, loss, human nature self preservation, I just didn’t get it.

This was my first book by this author & I have to say I absolutely loved it!! What a wonderful story. I could not put it down. Definitely recommend!

I would like to thank NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest review.

Lucy and William are back, and together we get to live the COVID lockdown in their adventure. Lucy by the Sea is like listening to an old friend share their experiences, fears, regrets and personal relationships.

Lucy is truly struggling with the lockdown after leaving her NYC apartment with William and high tailing it to Maine. Her complicated life with her ex-husband brings comfort in her time of distress. Ultimately, they find their way back to each others heart..Strout has captured what it means to be human and live during a pandemic away from family and friends. The author doesn't shy away to show life carried on during these times with some good and not so good happenings within Lucy's family. We witness an older, wiser and more vulnerable Lucy than we've seen in previous books.

Lucy by the Sea is a contemplative novel filled with heart and wisdoms for its readers. This couple might just be my absolute favorite. Thank you Random House for the complimentary copy of this novel.

Thank you to Netgalley and the author and publisher for a chance to read and review this amazing story by Elizabeth Strout! You seem to never disappoint me in your books! Oh how I love the writing and the characters! This is an exquisite novel that I would not hesitate to recommend!

“And then this thought went through my mind: We are all in lockdown, all the time. We just don’t know it, that’s all. But we do the best we can. Most of us are just trying to get through.”
This quotation from Lucy by the Sea sums up what I love best about the book. William, Lucy’s ex-husband who cheated on her years ago, has urgently insisted that Lucy join him for “two weeks” at a rented cottage on the coast of Maine. It’s the beginning of the COVID pandemic when a lot of people truly realize that they and people they care about could die from this mysterious virus. Lucy is freezing in Maine and misses her New York apartment very much. She also misses (and chronically worries about) her adult daughters who have their own struggles. The pace of the book is like a week in the country...a bit slow, but then forcing us to stop, observe, and rethink. I loved Lucy’s gentle socially-distant friendship with Bob, and I loved it when William wordlessly orders Lucy some much-needed warm clothes. I’ve known some divorced couples who still knew each other very well and still cared about each other but with a certain emotional distance. Again, think of this book as a week in the country that will force you to slow down and see some things you’ve been missing.

This is a poignant story about how one woman and her family navigated the early days of the pandemic. Lucy Barton, the main character of author Elizabeth Strout's previous novels, is living in New York in the apartment she shared with her second husband, who passed away. Just as awareness of the pandemic is rising, William, Lucy's ex-husband and sometime friend, convinces her to leave the city for small town Maine. Living together for the first time in decades, and without the usual distractions of day-to-day life and many of the connections and experiences that previously made up their daily lives, Lucy and William struggle through the surprising new phase of life and wonder what it will look like on the other side.

This is an a touching exploration of what life was like during a period which was disruptive for everyone at every level. Through Lucy's eyes, the author portrays this difficult time and the personal impacts it had.

Highly recommended!

I loved this and will be recommending to everyone I know. I feel like I’m finally ready for pandemic stories with some lightness and this was perfect. Loved seeing the relationships build due to lockdown.

Lucy By The Sea is the first book that I have read by Strouts. I understand Lucy is a reoccurring character and after meeting her in this book I want to meet her again.

This book is written about the early days of the pandemic. Before shelter in place orders come in, Lucy's ex-husband William convinces her to come with him to a home in Maine.

She does, and thus begins an emotional journey is a super-charged time. The complexity of emotions and depth of Lucy's life make her introspection quite meaningful. Her relationship shifts as the two of them spend so much time together - away from the rest of the world.

A thoughtful book that will you leave you thinking about it long after the book is closed.

I had sworn off any more Pandemic Novels... but perhaps this is the ONLY Pandemic Novel one should read. Honestly, skip all the others and settle in with Lucy as together, you begin to make sense of what we have/are living through.

We are all in lockdown, all the time. We just don't know it, that's all. But we do the best we can. Most of us are just trying to get through.

This story begins at the very beginning of the pandemic when William whisks Lucy away from NYC to settle into a home on the coast of Maine. I found myself at times in agreement with William and at other times in sync with Lucy. But really, what this story all boils down to is how people deal with isolation, loneliness, the uncertainty of an illness that has killed far too many people... and in those trying circumstances... how can we maintain our humanity? It is also about relationships... especially how the bonds of friendship are exactly what we need to get through challenging days/weeks/months/years.

To say I loved this book is an understatement... I highly recommend!

I would like to thank Netgalley and the Random House Publishing Group for a copy ARC of this e-book.

I apologize to NetGalley and the publisher, who granted me this ARC, but I cannot continue to read it. I am not remotely interested in anything relating to covid. The last thing I want to read about is the beginning of the epidemic 2 1/2 years ago and how it affected people. We all lived it and I, for one, do not want to re-live it. I enjoy Elizabeth Strout’s books but not this one.

I was thrilled to see Lucy Barton return, this time during the beginnings of the Covid-19 pandemic. I will admit, I was not completely sold on reading a novel set during this time, but I cannot resist Elizabeth Strout or this series. Strout's new story revolves around Lucy's family and some new characters along the way.

Lucy's ex-husband, William, sweeps her away to a remote area of Maine when he very early on determines they cannot stay in NYC. I found her confusion, loneliness, and anxiety very relatable to every New Yorker's feelings early pandemic life. William the scientist, is acutely aware of the dangers but Lucy is navigating the crisis like so many of us did, one day at a time wondering if she will be able to return to her apartment tomorrow or when she can visit her adult daughters.

You will blow through this book wanting more story (let's hope she brings us more Lucy!).

This is the second book I’ve read from Elizabeth Strout about Lucy Barton. It’s fairly easy to read because I feel it’s a very conversational style. However Lucy is a very odd and unique character as well as sad and negative. The stories have been somewhat interesting, but she isn’t a character I can say I enjoy or like. This book deals with Covid a lot! So if you don’t want to read a book that reminds you of the past couple years you may want to steer clear. Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for an early copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

DNF at 10%. I can't handle books about Covid and lockdowns. I'm tired of feeling like there's a political agenda behind a novel.

Elizabeth Strout is back with her signature writing style in Lucy By the Sea, a sequel to My Name is Lucy Barton and Oh William!

In this new title, the pandemic has just begun as Lucy flees New York City at the urging of her ex-husband William. She and William escape to a small cottage in coastal Maine. Isolated from the life they once knew in New York and with limited contact from their daughters and friends, William and Lucy must find a way to navigate this new situation. As the year progresses, Lucy and William try to develop friendships with their new neighbors while staying connected to their family. Lucy also struggles to come to terms with the death of her second husband as they both decide when and if they should return to New York. As crises continue to rise in public and personal events, Lucy and William’s durability and coping skills are put to the test.

Lucy by the Sea is a thoughtful and moving novel that illustrates the resilience of human relationships. Strout’s ability to illustrate all perspectives and create complex, multi-faceted characters creates a work of empathy and reflection. A relatable telling of what we all went through and the opportunity that quiet contemplation can bring to our lives.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for the opportunity to review this title before its release.