Okay, I just finished this one this afternoon…a great page-turning beach read! Perfect reading for my vacation – which is actually my “staycation”. I have to say that once I became involved in this story, I found it quite hard to put down. So, this one didn’t take me too long to read at all then now did it?
The Blue came to us courtesy of Simon & Schuster Canada and will be widely available in the beginning of August.
Lana Lowe and her best friend Kitty wish to escape after uncovering unsettling news which Lana has learned about her family, and is now furious with her father. Both the best friends flee their lives in London to the Philippines. There, they meet a group of travellers that are floating around the world on a yacht called “The Blue”. Both agree this could be the excellent adventure of a lifetime and agree to join the crew, follow its rules and the direction of its Skipper, Aaron.
The Blue alternates between two story timelines: “Then” and “Now” and are both narrated by Lana. It starts off in the Now since we are reading it at the time when Lana has left “The Blue” for many months at this point and has just learned that the yacht has sunk near New Zealand. This news begins to create questions in the reader’s mind, such as: Why did Lana leave “The Blue”, but not Kitty? What happened on board “The Blue” where Lana felt she must leave, start a new life that is in hiding in a way, in New Zealand?
The story then shifts backs to the “Then” part where Lana outlines how her and Kitty first met the five crew members while in the Philippines and how they came to sail with them. In the beginning, life is grand, Lana and Kitty couldn’t imagine spending life any other way than what they have found with the crew on the yacht.
Soon however, life on board begins to take its toll, especially on Lana and most certainly after one of their crew members mysteriously disappears overboard one night. From this point forward, Lana cannot dismiss the growing and deepening unease she feels, she begins to question the many secrets each crew member seems to be hiding from everyone and also questions the leadership of Aaron, their Skipper.
The “Then” chapters work up to a slow reveal as to all the troubles found on board, what happened up to the point where one member disappears overboard, and how the steadfast relationship between Kitty and Lana unravels. It comes to the point where Lana feels it becomes necessary to leave “The Blue” and its life behind.
During the “Now” chapters, the reader finds out in the same timeframe as Lana does what has happened to “The Blue”, what caused it to sink, and if there are any surviving members. During this time Lana begins to reflect upon her time spent on the yacht and her part over what happened with the missing crew member and her relationship with Kitty.
I can truthfully say that once this story gained its speed, I found it quite difficult to put down. I read the bulk of it in under two days. The Blue is a great page-turner, slowly building in suspense and ending with a greatly satisfying finale. While it may wrap up a little too neatly, there is that final chapter that comes with a bit of a twist in perspective that makes it all worth your while. I really enjoyed this one! It really would make a welcome addition to your beach bag, but it certainly confirms my uneasiness about the boating/yachting life. :-)
4 stars!
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