Title: Jasmine Sea
Author: Phillipa Nefri Clark
Published: November 14 2017
Publisher: Self published
Pages: 298
Genres: Fiction, Romance, Susepnse
Rating: 4 stars
Sometimes facing the past is the only way forward.
Starting over never felt better. Christie Ryan adores the little cottage she’s renovating, the seaside town that embraced her, and Martin Blake, the man she longs to marry. Ex-fiancé Derek Hobbs is finally out of the picture, and there are no more secrets in her life or mysteries to solve.
Will the arrival of a mysterious woman who commissions a portrait from Martin under a cloud of secrecy break her after all? Unrest and suspicion remind Christie that happiness can be fleeting, and when the peaceful town is shattered by crime, her past is again thrust into the limelight.
With one chance and only minutes to save those she loves, Christie comes face to face with her greatest fear—and there is no way around it.
Jasmine Sea follows on from The Stationmaster’s Cottage, set shortly after its stunning conclusion.
My review:
Following immediately on from the events that occurred in its predecessor, The Stationmaster’s Cottage, Jasmine Sea is book two in the River’s End Romance series. Australian author Phillipa Nefri Clark successfully combines a love story and a suspense filled tale, populated by endearing characters, all set to a stunning seaside location.
For Christie Ryan, life is starting to take shape after the split from her controlling ex, Derek. She has now settled into a cottage by the sea, a cottage that she is slowly renovating. Love has also entered Christie’s life again in the form of talented artist Martin Blake and marriage soon looms on the horizon for this couple. When a strange woman appears on Martin’s doorstep, to commission a portrait, the woman’s request for secrecy has Christie rattled. In addition, Christie, Martin and the residents of River’s End are shook up when a series of crimes are committed in their once safe town. Christie’s past comes back to haunt her at the same time, which she must uncomfortably confront, head-on.
What a lovely story and welcome experience to revisit the wonderful character set from a book I thoroughly enjoyed earlier this year, The Stationmaster’s Cottage. It is nice to follow straight on from the events that occurred in The Stationmaster’s Cottage. We are treated to an insight into the lives of leads, Christie Ryan and Martin Blake in Jasmine Sea. We are also able to catch up with dear old friends from the last novel, such as Thomas, Martha, Randall the dog. Furthermore, meet some new characters along the way.
Phillipa Nefri Clark presents her readers with a full bodied narrative. Jasmine Sea combines a beautiful, romantic and slightly complicated love story, with a strong line of suspense. I enjoyed the suspense and crime scenes very much in this novel, which were well written. There are plenty of secrets to shake up this narrative and to keep your eyes continually glued to the page, for the entire length of this novel.
Christie the leading lady of Jasmine Sea, is a superbly drawn character. I liked how Nefri Clark allowed us to see her strengths and vulnerabilities. Christie goes through quite the character journey over the progression of the novel. She is faced with love and relationship issues, as well as some difficult problems from the past that come back to haunt her. Along the way, Christie grows as a person and the final result, after a thrilling build up, was a satisfying indeed.
What continued to resonate with me with Phillipa’s writing and her books, is her knack for depicting her setting. I just adored the detailed and vivid descriptions of life at the seaside locale of River’s End. The insertion of the yacht that is gifted to Christie, provides Nefri Clark with the material to include some further wonderful coastal based prose, which I appreciated very much.
Jasmine Sea is the perfect sequel to Phillipa Nefri Clark’s first novel, The Stationmaster’s Cottage. It is a book that combines a number of engaging themes and genres, to form one compelling read. I do hope there is more on the horizon, story wise, for Christie, Martin and the residents of River’s End.
Jasmine Sea by Phillipa Nefri Clark was published on November 14th 2017 by the author, details on how to purchase the book can be found on the author’s website here.
*With thanks to the author, Phillipa Nefri Clark, for providing me with a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.
