I’ve never read Martha Kelly novels before and I fell in love with this WW2 novel that takes place on Martha’s Vineyard. I enjoyed the story of the farm on Martha’s vineyard and the friendships of Cadence and Bess. I particularly loved the character of Briar, her brilliance and her investigation of the traitor living on the island. This book had so many facets to WWII that I was unaware of: model building and how Martha’s Vineyard was affected by soldiers' invasion training. I loved the story of the books for the soldiers and Cadence’s attempt to enter the Publishing world. The afterword by Kelly was fascinating as well. The only criticism is I didn’t want the story to end! Such an enjoyable read.

I really enjoyed The Martha's Vineyard Beach and Book Club, which was no surprise since I have read "Lilac Girls", also by this author. and I found this book hard to put down.
The story opens in what is basically the present day., with a young woman, a painter who has basically been summoned to the island by someone she doesn't know, regarding an inheritance of a place she didn't know existed, the story is really about several women -- the Smith sisters plus friends and a potential sister-in-law all living on Martha's Vineyard at the beginning of and through WWII.
The plotline is a generational saga of a family desperately trying to hold onto their family farm and interacting with the military on the island in hopes of keeping them off their land.
The girls (as they are then) decide to start a book club -- partially to stave off boredom -- using books they acquire at the Town Dump when the wealthy summer residents have discarded them. Ginny, the older Smith sister, writes a column for the local paper that gets the attention of some of the more literary island visitors while her younger sister Briar is obsessed with monitoring the island for Germans and calling in reports of German U-boats as well as watching the local Army base. Their older brother, Tom is away serving as an Army Ranger and so the girls and their grandmother are desperately trying to keep things running at home. There is so much more detail to go into, but I would never finish the review if I did.
I found this story of the lives of the book club members so engrossing that at the end, when the young woman painter is brought back in as part of present day to wrap things up, it was a bit jarring because I had forgotten all about her!
If you're looking for a good read, I highly recommend The Martha's Vineyard Beach and Book Club.

The beach, book clubs, and books! This book has all the great things. I loved The Martha’s Vineyard Beach and Book Club.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House/Ballantine for the ARC.

This is an early contender for favorite book this year. I LOVED this story. It was so interesting to read a WW2 story set in the US versus Europe and highlight a POV of how the people left behind were affected (or in some cases, not affected) by the war. With a dual timeline and chapters narrated by different characters, this paints a picture of resilience and strength of women while weaving in a mystery, a family legacy, and more. I’ll recommend this one to everyone who loves historical fiction!

Martha Hall Kelly knows how to captivate from page 1! I love her books so much. I don’t say lightly that she is up in my top 3 for favorite authors. Historical fiction is wonderful, and she does her research well. This story was set in the WW2 era, but it was different from the other books she’s written. It has a mysterious story unfolding that allows you to go through history and back to modern day too! I loved every moment. It was a quick read as the characters were intriguing and amazing from the beginning. I’ll reread it for sure!

5⭐s from me!

As with Martha Hall Kelly's other books, this one was packed with great things. Mari Starwood travels to Martha's Vineyard to get some answers about her recently deceased mother. Mrs. Devereaux is a well-known artist who lives on the island, and tells Mari a story about her history of the island. Briar and Candace are two sisters living with their grandmother and soon to be sister-in-law on Martha's Vineyard during WWII. Briar, the quirky, socially awkward sister, finds a German deserter on the beach and they take him in. This sets in motion a search for a spy among their midst. Told in the alternating voices of Briar and Candace, the book is witty, suspenseful, and emotional all in one.

The characters in this book were wonderful! I especially loved Briar with all of her idiosyncrasies and Gram with her charm and quick wit. I loved the references to the great works of literature, and the book club that is formed by Candace and Bess to bring people together. I loved the history that the author weaves through the story, showing just how much research went into the novel. The ASEs were real!

Martha Hall Kelly is an automatic purchase for me. I have loved all of her books and this one was no different. Highly recommend!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for an advanced copy.

Another winner from Martha Hall Kelly. If you enjoyed her other books, you'll enjoy this one too. It has less action, but the same great story-telling.

Plot summary; Mari's mother recently passed away, and Mari found a cryptic note connecting her mother to famous New England artist Elizabeth Deveraux. She goes to visit her and finds out the connection. Most of the story is the artist's telling of the past, when two sisters, Cadence and Briar, managed through some unusual events during WW2 at their farm on Martha's Vineyard, and how these events changed their lives forever.

As usual with this author, this has strong female leads and is told over through several voices. The characters are richly drawn and the story is engaging. As typical with this genre, the old story is much more compelling than the present-day story, and the author smartly focuses on the former. However, it was a little clunky because after opening in the present day, we don't hear about it again until halfway through, and I almost forgot about it. The present-day story does become important at the end, when the past presents an important dilemma for Mari.

The first half was overall fairly slow, but the second half was very fast and interesting, full of romance and mystery. The mystery becomes somewhat obvious as we are told more, but it was hard to know if some of the characters were the "good buys" or the "bad guys." I think most readers will figure out the connections between Mari and Elizabeth from the beginning -- there's a pretty big giveaway. All the threads are pulled together, and the end was heartbreaking, heartwarming, and beautiful, with some moments that made me tear up.

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine | Ballantine Books, and Marth Hall Kelly for the opportunity to review an advanced copy.

This was such a fun book to read! My favorite genre is historical fiction with a dual timeline where the reader is also treated to a mystery being solved. This novel fit that bill to a tee.

While reading this book by Martha Hall Kelly, not only will you fall in love with several of the characters, you will also definitely learn a little more about WW II history. We are treated to such instances as the Martha's Vineyard shores being the locale for US training missions and to Nazi U-boats lurking off shore, communicating with Nazi sympathizers on the island via short wave radios.

The Smith family is nothing short of delightful, and, of course, we a presented with a wartime book club that meets on the Vineyard shores and creates a prototype to get popular titles of smaller sized books in the soldiers' backpacks.

As if the enchanting characters and the captivating love of reading throughout the book aren't enough, we are rewarded in the author's note at the end in learning that so, so many factors in the book were indeed based on the author's mother's and grandmother's actual lives in the Martha's Vineyard area. Reading the author's note at the culmination of the novel is a must. Your appreciation of the story you just read will be even more augmented and valued with that knowledge.

Thank you, NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballentine, for this delightful eARC. Love history? Love strong female characters? Love the Eastern coast as a setting? Love a love of reading? Watch for this one when it hits shelves on May 27, 2025.

I can't recommend it enough! I really enjoyed this book, I couldn't put it down, I finished it in a couple of days!

The Martha's Vineyard Beach and Book Club is a WWII book that starts with a modern day character, Mari Starwood, trying to answer questions about her past by traveling to Martha's Vineyard. However, most of the book is about the members of the Book Club during WWII and only briefly goes back to Mari's story a couple of times. The story is told mostly from the point of view of two sisters, Briar and Cadence. It chronicles the time when German Uboats could be seen from shore and there were soldiers based on the island for amphibious landing training. There is some intrigue about a German spy. But really it is just a relaxing read about the experiences of a few young women during a this time period. I really enjoyed the story and would recommend the book to anyone who enjoys WWII fiction or books about books! Thank you NetGalley for letting me read an advance copy of this book.

Can I just come out say how much I love this book? Mira, having just lost her mother sets off to Martha's Vineyard to find answers and a connection to her mother by meeting with a famous artist who lives there on a farm. I was so drawn in by Elizabeth's story giving the backstory of the Smith sisters of The Martha Vineyard Beach and Book Club that existed during World War 2. This was page turner. Detailed descriptions and great character development made this story come alive. Some mysteries about spies, some heartache and loss about families, it had you guessing throughout. Courage, Friendship, and love, this was a heartwarming story. Many thanks to #netgalley #marthahallkelly #themarthasvindyardbeachandbookclub for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Thank you very much @netgalley for the Advanced Reader Copy of The Martha’s Vineyard Beach and Book Club, by Martha Hall Kelly, to be released in May. Of course I will read any book about Martha’s Vineyard, but this book uncovers a part of the island's history that was new to me: during WWII, the US Army used the island for beach invasion training, including maneuvers that would later be crucial for D-Day. There are also rumors of German U-boats hiding off the coast, which adds a thrilling historical layer to the story. There is a modern day aspect to this story, Mari goes to the island to learn about her own family history, and finds out way more than she expected. But the historical part is the bulk of the book. Two sisters, their grandmother, and their brother’s fiancé live together on their family farm and start a book club, write books, and interact with the islanders as well as the soldiers. It was great to recognize a lot of the places mentioned, even better to learn about this part of history, albeit fictionalized. #themarthasvineyardbeachandbookclub #marthahallkelly #netgalley #advancedreadercopy #marthasvineyardnovel #bookstagram #lovetoread #readersofinstagram #booklover #readallthebooks #historicalfiction

There was a time when practically every book I picked up was historical fiction set in the WWII era. At some point I stopped reaching for these types of stories, but I am so grateful to have been given the opportunity to read this. Id read several of Martha Hall Kelly’s previous books and enjoyed them and this was no exception. Hall Kelly brings us strong, resilient and nurturing female characters. The book was set exclusively in the United States which was a unique perspective for a WWII novel. This was a solid read and I enjoyed it.

Thanks to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest review.

As historical fiction, the Martha's Vineyard beach and book club relates a story I never knew. The details of the "invasion" of the military onto the normally quiet island were so well researched that I learned something on almost every page. I felt the relationship between the islanders and sailors as the war waged far away, yet touched everyone in very personal ways.

However, I did feel it could have been more tightly edited. I thought that there were some characters included in order to pay homage to their service in real life (in an afterword, the author explains who the characters were based on) rather than to actually advance the story.

The story jumps between 1942 and 2016. However, there were so many chapters taking place in 1942, that when one of the ones that took place in 2016 popped up, I had to remind myself that the book took place in 2 time periods. I was distracted by the 2016 story, much of which I thought could have been incorporated into the 1942 narrative which was interesting and involving.

Having said that, however, the characters were well drawn and compelling. I cared about them and their stories. Because of the author's obvious love for the island, her descriptions made it another character in the book that I wanted to see healed after the disruption of war. Fortunately, for all of us, it has.

As with all of Martha’s books I learn a lot!
This dual timeline book set on Martha’s Vineyard puts us into the scene in 1942 along with naval training, possible Nazi spies and the escape books give us.

Years later, an artist arrives seeking answers about her mother from a reclusive painter.
Martha ties it all together nicely!

I especially liked learning of how books were specifically created for the use of the military!

I always love how Martha weaves history with fiction and real people. This novel starts out with a young woman, Mari, going to Martha's Vineyard to find out what mysterious link there is between the island and her recently deceased mother. The majority of the narrative comes from the point of view of 2 sisters living on a farm on the Vineyard during WWII. As their stories unravel, Mari and the reader learn where she fits into the story. I really loved the characters and intrigue in this book.

I enjoyed this book overall. The plot lines were interesting and kept good suspense, which I enjoyed. The pacing was a bit slow, but it was still a good read. This wasn't my favorite of Martha Hall Kelly's books; I felt the setting was a bit limiting for her. This book was enjoyable but seemed to be more based on wanting to talk about her own family rather than her usual more Epic stories

Unfortunately it archived before I had a chance to finish but from what I read I really enjoyed it. The characters were well developed and I was very interested in their story. I look forward to this book coming out so that I can finish it.

Many thanks for the complimentary ARC kindly provided by NetGalley and the author/publisher. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

MHK has done her usual great job of developing her characters in this WWII-era story. The real mystery of the story is in the journey of how it ties together. Telling that story takes the up the majority of the book.

Nicely researched and executed; a definite departure from other stories about that time.

I absolutely loved the current timeline in the book but struggled with the WW2 alternate storyline. All in all a good read.