The Silver Boat by Luanne Rice

". . . an in-depth exploration of a family . . ."

Over time, this bestselling author has brought extraordinarily beautiful stories to the market, and this new novel – an in-depth exploration of a family – is no exception.

Dar McCarthy is a resident of the stunning Martha’s Vineyard. Sitting on her front steps with her black lab, Scup, Dar relaxes beside the wonderful gray cottage that looks out across the froth and foam of the high-cresting waves. The frost is still on the ground, but it’s soon to be gone with the arrival of spring right around the corner.

Dar is waiting for her two beloved sisters, Rory and Delia, to come home for a visit. Unfortunately, it’s not a completely happy visit. They are all coming together to pack up the house they spent their summers in; the cottage that their mother loved so much she couldn’t leave. The taxman is breathing down their necks, and the sisters have to sell the property in order to keep their heads above water. Dar is the one who really can’t stand this. She’s the one who stayed on the Vineyard and helped her mother through the rough patches of her illness. Dar is also the one who always looked out at the waves, wishing and wondering what happened to their father when he disappeared so long ago.

Dar has had issues over time coming to terms with the fact that her father, an Irish boat-builder, sailed off one day to go across the Atlantic – by himself – to find a document that was signed by the King of England. This document had supposedly granted the McCarthy family the land in Martha’s Vineyard. Dar’s father was a prideful man and he wanted to prove himself; he wanted to take care of his family without having to accept money from his mother-in-law. But…he never came back home. Dar loves her father, and will never believe that he actually abandoned his family.

Her sister Rory has her own problems. She has three loving children, but a husband who seems to want to bed young, blonde assistants instead of his wife. And Delia, sister number three, is a woman who is missing her son, Pete who disappeared into Alaska and has yet to see or take responsibility for his own daughter.

When the three women get together and talk about the past, their parents, the cottage, secretive husbands, and children who have to deal with drug abuse – the sisters find themselves looking back on memories that, perhaps, should’ve been left alone.

Soon the sisters decide to take off to Ireland in order to find the truth about their father‘s disappearance, and this brilliant author’s work turns from great into fantastic. What is most amazing about these incredible stories is that, when readers get done with a Luanne Rice novel, there is always a feeling of “honor” to have been able to be a part of her incredible journey. A truly magnificent read!

Reviewer: Amy E. Lignor