The Beach Trees

Julie first knew loss at the age of twelve, when her younger sister disappeared from a local park—never to be found. As her once close-knit family grew apart, Julie’s mother obsessively searched for the girl, and when her mother died, Julie took up the search. Even as she went on with life, discovering a love for art that she attributed to her painter grandfather, she never let go of the hope that she might find her sister.

Then, working at an auction house in New York, Julie meets Monica Guidry—a struggling artist and single mother who reminds Julie so much of her sister that she can’t help feeling drawn to her, and even a bit protective. Monica paints a vivid picture of her southern family through stories, but never says why or how she lost contact with them. And she has another secret: a heart condition that will soon take her life.

Feeling as if she’s lost her sister a second time, Julie inherits from Monica an antique portrait—as well as custody of her young son. Taking him to Biloxi, Mississippi, to meet the family he’s never known, Julie discovers a connection of her own. The portrait, of an old Guidry relative, was done by her grandfather—and unlocks a surprising family history…

The author does such a great job of making the setting a character in itself. The story is woven with past and present as the secrets of both families are intertwined. Karen has quickly become one of my favorite authors of Southern fiction.

Author: Karen White
Published: May 2011
Pages:403
Genre: Fiction
Source: Library
Finished: 6-11-11