While I enjoy fiction, I mostly read non-fiction business books. So it was fun to take a break and read Kathryn's Beach. With the first person, present tense angle I felt right there with her as she processed her experiences, rekindled old friendship, made new ones and unravelled a mystery that was heart-wrenching yet true-to-life. And like real life there is both bitter and sweet in the end, and it leaves you wanting more. Fortunately, there IS more, with her adventures continuing in the next in the trilogy! Laman can definitely turn a tale.

Nadine Laman’s book, Kathryn’s Beach, is the eloquent story of a woman who is finding her way home to herself. It is a journey that all women, if they have the courage, must undertake at some point in their lives if they are to truly live a fulfilling life. In the process of Kathryn’s search for herself, the author also gives us an intimate look at the life of a social worker and the sensitivity, vitality and caring that goes into a career that has a front row seat to the suffering in the world. Indeed, all the characters in Kathryn’s Beach are courageous to different degrees.

One of my favorite lines (of many) in the book is: “Maggie continues to write through the nights and days of the darkness until she writes herself into the light.” I think this is the author’s call to action for the reader and is something that she herself has done. It is in those darkest hours that the gold of the psyche is found. Indeed, “It isn’t how long one lives, it is how wise that really matters.”

Nadine Laman’s wisdom passes to the reader like a gentle rain. I highly recommend this book and I look forward to reading the entire trilogy.

Who says, “You can’t go home again?” Sometimes that is exactly what must be done. But, is it worth it?

I say—yes, it is. Once home, Kathryn is catching up the past five years of her absence. Her friends and colleagues welcome her as if she never left. Life seems to get back on track, slowly but steadily, though the chill Kathryn feels when thinking about her last case fades too slowly.

With several unexpected twists, a sweet romance, a tragic loss, a group of incredibly dexterous nuns, and a lot of compassion, Kathryn’s Beach is one of those books you wish were longer. You simply don’t want it to end. Maybe that’s the reason why it took me two days to read the last five pages. I didn’t want to let go. Developing a strong sympathy to Kathryn is inevitable, just as feeling with her. There is no violence, no sex, no bad language and no cheap and pretentious clichés, humorous in a refreshing, witty way. Needless to mention, all the female characters are strong women, but Nadine shows their fragile side as well. They all seek refuge on their beach, which is beautifully and expertly described.

The social component-Nadine’s profession-is presented with all the faults and flaws of the system, but leaving strong hope for change and improvement. Nadine leaves you several loose ends as invitation to read High Tide and Storm Surge.

The words coming to my mind when thinking about Kathryn’s Beach are unpretentious, gentle, caring, compassionate, hopeful, realistic and LIFE with all its highs and lows. You lose some, you win some. Forgiving thy neighbor is sometimes difficult, forgiving yourself sometimes impossible-even when there is nothing to be forgiven.

Reviewed by Cherie Fisher for Reader Views

Nadine Laman’s “Kathryn’s Beach” is a very well written story about human pain and tragedy and the ability to not only survive but to learn to live again. Laman’s story captures your attention from the first page and keeps it right through to the end.

The main character, Kathryn, was a social worker who specialized in sexual abuse cases. Her last case was five years ago and ended very badly when the judge involved sent the child back to live with her abuser. The child ended up murdered by the perpetrator in a very short period of time. Kathryn is haunted by the last time she saw the little girl in the court room. The little girl screamed when the ruling came down and begged Kathryn to help her. Filled with guilt and horrified by what happened, Kathryn ran from the L.A. area and moved to Nebraska. After 5 years in a mind numbing existence Kathryn decides it is time to move home and pick up her life.

As Kathryn picks up the thread of the life that she left behind, she is thrilled to be back at her beach. The beach has always been therapeutic and important to her and she realizes just how much she has missed it over the last five years. Her old boss, Karen, offers Kathryn her old job back, but she realizes that it comes with too high of a price. Karen helps her find a position working with homeless families in a new program. She loves the feeling of helping people in such a positive atmosphere.

As she moves into her new life, she is given a letter left by the Judge Jones, the judge who sent the little girl back home. The judge writes this letter to Kathryn right before he kills himself. Kathryn and the others from her old job realize that the case is not closed and that they must find out what the letter means to put it to rest. They bravely follow the leads in the letter, find more tragedy and the reason the judge was so difficult to work with.

At the same time, Kathryn reacquaints herself with her best friend Maggie, finds love for the first time in years with an Irishman named Ioseph and once again faces tragedy in her life. She finally decides that her friend Maggie is right “Life is good; not always easy, but good”. This book captures human heroism and strength at its best and I highly recommend it.

I’m an avid reader and I read all genres, from sci-fi to biography, novels to history. I love to read and the key to me is a great story and ‘engagement’. Even if you don’t like the characters, you have to engage with them.

That’s what I loved about Nadine’s trilogy – I read Kathryn’s Beach and I felt that the active, first person style was very engaging. You are right there, in the moment, seeing the world through her eyes. The upsets, the challenges and the drama all feel very real when you are reading from the first person point of view, even though it is not that common a form. The story in Kathryn’s Beach is also one that engages – you understand the distress she feels and why she had to ‘run’, the curiosity as strange events unfold, and grief and joy as different action takes place in Kathryn’s life.