In Martha's Vineyard Beach and Book Club, Martha Hall Kelly tells an engaging story that moves between two time periods. Years ago, sisters Cadence and Briar, along with Bess (who is dating their brother Tom), start a book club to distract themselves from the worries of World War II. Cadence is a local journalist who writes for the newspaper, while Briar is fascinated by war topics. Briar even reports U-Boat sightings off the coast to local authorities.

In the present, we meet Mari, who is dealing with her mother’s recent death. She seeks to learn more about her family’s past and connects with Elizabeth Devereaux to help uncover hidden truths.

The book explores themes of family secrets, love, and loss, showing how people cope with tough times. The characters are relatable, each facing their own struggles, and the story highlights their strength.

Many thanks to Random House Publishing Group- Ballantine and NetGalley for the opportunity to read The Martha's Vineyard Beach and Book Club!

The Author’s note gets 5 stars! Such meticulous efforts to write this historical fiction story set on Martha’s Vineyard during WWII deserve applause.

Shame on me for knowing nothing of the presence of German u-boats off the coast of MV and American troops stationed there during WWII as well as the concerted military exercises conducted there by experts from the US and abroad.

Some aspects of the story seemed a bit far fetched to me which distracted from my enjoyment in the moment. Afterward , upon reading the author’s note it all seemed a bit more plausible.

I liked the female characters in the story and especially the friendships around books. The setting on Martha’s Vineyard was my favorite part.

Spoiler alert!
Some things that I found less believable were the easy acceptance of Bess’ pregnancy, the return of Tom, the successful hiding of Pete, the murder and quick burial of the neighbor boy. .

Women’s historical fiction fans will very likely find much to love in this book.


Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review of this book.

After her mother's death, 34-year-old Mari Starwood travels from California to Martha's Vineyard to meet reclusive painter, Elizabeth Deveraux, after finding her name printed on a piece of paper among her mother's belongings. Elizabeth is just as curious about Mari as Mari is about her, although it isn't immediately clear why.

Elizabeth soon launches into a long tale of two sisters, Briar and Cadence Smith, who lived on the island with their grandmother, "Gram", during WWII. At the beginning of the story, Briar and Cadence's brother Tom is set to ship off to Europe and the responsibility of taking care of the family farm is left to the women, including Bess Stanhope, Tom's girlfriend who is living on the farm after falling out with her parents.

Briar is rather a tomboy who has a keen interest in war and swears she's seen U-boats in the waters nearby. Cadence is a budding journalist who writes about island happenings for the local newspaper.

After Tom ships out, Gram Smith suggests she, Briar, and Cadence form a book club which they call "The Martha's Vineyard Beach and Book Club". They also invite a woman Gram knows from church, Margaret.

I have to admit that I thought the book club was very secondary to the story, although the title is quite catching. This novel is more about a German soldier who mysteriously washes ashore, the threat of spies on the island, and the budding romance between Cadence and British officer Major Gilbert.

Overall, I liked all of the women characters because they were plucky and strong.

As with all dual-timeline novels, the relationship between Mari Starwood, Elizabeth Deveraux, and the Smith girls comes together. I think it would be cool if Martha Hall Kelly wrote a related novel that was about the story of Cadence Smith and Major Gilbert after the war.

I appreciate all of the research the author did for this novel and am happy I was offered an ARC ebook edition of this book from Netgalley and Ballantine Books.

The Martha’s Vineyard Beach and Book Club by Martha Hall Kelly. The story of the Smith family was very interesting and hard to put down.

The Smith sisters, Cadence and Briar are trying to keep their farm solvent during WWWII . Cadence chaffs under the confines of war. Keeping her on the farm when she would love to go to New York to write. To keep herself writing she begins to chronicle the events in the area. Living off the coast of Martha’s Vineyard, citizens would patrol the area looking for submarines. Briar was singularly obsessed with sighing of vessels off the coast. The girls lived with their grandmother, a no nonsense new englander. The arrival of troops brings an unexpected challenge to the people who lived year round . The troops are here for maneuver s training for DDay. The sisters have a brother who is engaged to Bess, a woman whose family is upset that she chooses the farm to wait for Thomas. It’s revealed that Bess is pregnant and as we wait out the birth, Briar becomes increasingly concerned with what she sees as subs off the coast. The book club was a way for the women on the vineyard to bond, plan their war effort and provide support . The story of the Smith sisters is told starting in modern day and revealed through each main character as the months unfold. Happy reading

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

A heartwarming story of 2 sisters and a best friend on MV during WWII. Story began in 2016 but went to 1942 for most of the story except for a brief glimpse back to 2016 a few times during the novel, and then of course at the end. Briar and Cadence are sisters living with their grandmother Ginny on their family farm in Martha’s Vineyard. Cadence’s best friend and girlfriend of her brother Tom, Bess, also lives with them after a fallout with her high society mother. They all work the farm to make ends meet. Tom goes off to war as an Army Ranger. Briar,16, also works for the US government’s model project, where they make models of allied and enemy war planes, ships, etc. There is a military presence on the island. All of the girls interact with various military personnel. As the story develops, Cadence and Bess form a book club, reading the books discarded by the rich folk on the Island. They then plan to give books to the troops, which they enjoy reading.

I loved the history of MV during WWII as well as the author’s relationship to the island and how she used various experiences members of her family really had as she writes the book.

The book started off slowly and was somewhat predictable. It is a heartwarming story of the main characters as well as Mari and Elizabeth’s relationship. I thoroughly enjoyed reading it.

A few things I found while reading. First, Goodreads synopsis has the second sister’s name as Ginny. That’s the grandmother’s name.
Secondly, during the current time in the book, it’s mentioned that a bar serves two for one gimlets. That technically would be a happy hour special and in 2016, there was no happy hour in Massachusetts.

A fun read by an author I have never read before. I enjoyed the fiction along with the sprinkling of history throughout the book.

The Martha's Vineyard Beach and Book Club by Martha Hall Kelly is a historical fiction novel. Historical fiction is my favorite genre especially with strong female protagonists and this novel doesn't disappoint. When the opportunity to read a new historical fiction novel by the author of Lilac Girls I couldn't wait to read it.
The Martha's Vineyard Beach and Book Club is written in dual timeline (modern day and WWII era), setting on idyllic, Martha's Vineyard. In 2024, Mari plans a quick day trip to Martha's Vineyard to visit a reclusive famous painter in order to gain information she is seeking about her recently deceased mother. She sets up a 1-1 painting session with Ms. Devereux and is surprised to learn that the painter has accepted the request. As Mari begins to unravel the mystery of her connection to the island,
In 1942, sisters Ginny and Briar are facing the beginning of WWII as their brother has newly enlisted. Briar is the younger sister and is convinced she has seen traces of German U=boats spying in the area. As she reports suspicious activity, she is not believed by local authorities and is referred to as Briar the Liar. One night she finds a German soldier washed up on the beach. She struggles with hiding him or turning him in and the consequences of her decision. Her older sister, Ginny writes for the local paper. Ginny finds herself in a flirtatious relationship with a British Officer who is stationed at the local Army base.
As the reader follows all of the character's journey's, mixed with surprising twists and turns of real historical events, the outcome is an unputdownable novel!

I love a good beach read and anything with “book” in the title is an instant hit. But the title is deceiving. Sure it takes place on Martha’s Vineyard, and there is a book club included. But the real story centers around the role Martha’s Vineyard played in World War II. I was totally unaware that troops trained on the island for a beach landing in Normandy, or the fact that German U-boats were sited offshore. A well-researched historical fiction novel filled with mystery and intrigue, The Martha’s Vineyard Beach and Book Club is a winner. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

this is a duel timeline about two sisters living on Martha's Vineyard during World War 2. Love the story and the setting.

I absolutely loved this book! I was interested from the very beginning and with a few different things going on, it really kept me excited to keep reading and find out what was going to happen next. I look forward to reading more books from this author!

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House for the opportunity to read Kelly’s new book! As a fan of Lilac Girls, WWII novels, and Martha’s Vineyard, I was so excited to read the description of this and even more excited to read the novel itself! I appreciated the care and research that went into the book.

An interesting take on a WWII novel . Kelly writes such good books and this another one . It is filled with a well researched plot and the characters are well rounded. I have loved all her books
That’s to Netgalley and the publisher for letting me review this book

I am a huge Martha Hall Kelly fan and she once again provides a great novel while also adding in fascinating historic details. Set in World War II in Martha's Vineyard, Kelly's most recent book weaves together characters from current day and from the past. She also includes some fascinating historic information about US troops using Martha's Vineyard as a practice sight for amphibious attacks (think D-Day at Normandy Beach attacks) as well as some frightening details about Nazi supporters in the US, especially in Long Island. I am a lifelong northeast person- and I didn't know about either of those things!
I love the intertwining stories of the strong and interesting women of the Smith family. No one can match Hall's ability to write about strong women from strong families. The reason for not giving this five starts- I wish there had been a little more about Bess in the current day story or more about how Mari spent her childhood years with her mom. But, this was a great book that I highly recommend to fans of this author, anyone interested in Martha's Vineyard (either past or present), historical fiction fans and to anyone who just likes a great and interesting read!
Thank you to Net Galley and Random House Publishing for providing this free ARC e-book for me to read and review.

If you like a historical fiction book set around World War II and interested in Martha’s Vineyard then this is the book for you. I was able to read it thru NetGalley. Interesting aspects are those describing the war maneuvers that took place on the island and descriptions of the Vineyard in the past and present. I also appreciated the author's notes on who and what she based characters on in the novel

I believe Kelly is one of the finest authors at this point. She has proved it definitively with this beautiful novel. I found myself engaged in the lives of Briar, Cadence and Bess to the point of refusing to do anything except read this book to its’ ending. I was even fascinated by the Afterword.

When a stranger comes to Martha’s Vineyard to learn about her connection to the island, she is greeted by an elderly woman who narrates the tale of the women who created the BEACH and BOOK CLUB, in the midst of WW II and the shocking entanglement of the island in preparation and training efforts for the D-Day Invasion.

This is not only a lovely novel but an incredibly engaging social history of intrigue and strength on this island. The author has done a fine job of research in bringing the story of those left at home to fight the war. I was especially impressed by the role of women and the social strictures and mores that surrounded their lives.

I simply LOVED this novel and I highly recommend it. The story of Bess is especially chilling during the present war on women and their rights.

Thank you Netgalley for the privilege of reading and reviewing another extraordinary novel by Martha Hall Kelly.

This is a dual timeline between 2016 and 1942 set on Martha's vineyard. In 1942 Cadence and Briar live with their grandma and Bess, who is their brothers fiancee. They are trying to make a go of it farming the land. In 2016, Mari is headed to the vineyard for a quick trip to learn why her deceased mother had the name of a famous painter on her. This story gets interesting fast and includes spying, books, and a little bit of romance. A great historical fiction novel!

I read everything Martha Hall Kelly reads so was excited for a chance to review “The Martha's Vineyard Beach and Book Club.”

Like many of Kelly’s books, this novel has a dual timeline. The present story of Mari is meant to frame the past story of sisters living during the WWII area while their brother is deployed to fight. Part of the novel focuses on the book club that the sisters form while the other focus on the two sisters’ happenings—Candace is a journalist focusing on community activities while Brie discovers what she believes to be a German spy.

The present story does connect with the past one in a nonpredictable way. Most importantly, the author does an awesome job of creating well-rounded characters and dropping them into historical areas. So much has been written about WWII, but this storyline was certainly both unique and interesting.

Four stars.

Thanks to the author, Net Galley and the publisher for a chance to read this captivating novel.

This review will post on Goodreads and Instagram (links below) on May 13, 2025 as per publisher request:

This was the first time I have read a book by Martha Hall Kelly (I know I am late to the party) but Martha's Vineyard Beach and Book Club is an incredible read about the power of female relationships, strength of family bonds. I highly recommend this for your summer read, especially if taking a trip to Martha's Vineyard or the beach. While I knew there were German U-Boats off the shores of the US including Long Island and had a plan to attack in New York, I did not realize how close they actually came to Martha's Vineyard.

This book is dual timeline taking place in 2016 and 1942.

It's 2016 and under the guise of taking a painting class with Elizabeth Deveraux, Mari arrives on Martha's Vineyard looking for answers after the sudden death of her mother and discovering Elizabeth's name written on the back of an envelope. Elizabeth begins to tell Mari a story about the farm Elizabeth is living on, and which Mari becomes a character.

Rewind to 1942 we meet the Smith sisters Cadence and Briar, their grandmother, their brother Tom, and Bess who is Tom's fiance. Cadence and Briar could not be more opposite, Cadence dreams of leaving Martha's Vineyard and having a career in publishing, while Briar is a tom boy and war obsessed, even doing her part for the war effort by building model replicas of enemy military craft. Bess has joined the Smith family living on their farm, and helps take care of it when Tom is deployed as part of the Army Rangers.

In an effort of maintaining a sense of normalcy, Bess and Cadence start a book club dragging Briar and their grandmother along, which becomes popular when they meet Winnie who has connections to the publishing world. Their life and dreams are put on hold though when a German washes ashore on their beach, and rumors start rippling through their beach town that there is a spy in their midst with the FBI on the hunt.

*Thank you Netgalley and Penguin Random House for providing me with this ARC and the opportunity to review*

What a lovely World War II dual timeline historical fiction novel set in Martha's Vineyard! It seems that most current WWII historical fiction novels take place in Europe, so this was a quite welcome change.

The teenaged Smith kids, Tom, Cadence, and Briar, are being raised on the family farm by their grandmother following the untimely deaths of their parents. The kids, along with Tom's fiancé Bess, work tirelessly to keep the family farm from going under. In an effort to stay busy and share their love of books, Cadence and Bess create the Martha's Vineyard Beach and Book Club that meets in Grandma's kitchen or on the beach near their farm.

In present day, Mari Starwood, searching for answers following her mothers death, finds herself in Martha's Vineyard, with the reclusive painter Elizabeth Devereaux. The story of the Smith sisters unwinds over the course of a weekend. Mari is shocked to find she has personal ties to the island despite her mother's denial that she had never lived anywhere but California.

This is the story of love and loss, war and suspicions, and so much more. It is sure to be a bestseller!