The Light Between Oceans
A captivating, beautiful, and stunningly accomplished debut novel - the story of a lighthouse keeper and his wife who make one devastating choice that forever changes two worlds.
BUY THE BOOK
Community Reviews
What Bookclubbers are saying about this book
✨ Summarized by Bookclubs AI
Readers say *The Light Between Oceans* is beautifully written, emotionally wrenching, and set on an Australian island where WWI trauma and love collid...
I discovered this gem through the Historical Fictionistas group; it was nominated as their April group read. The book summary basically lays out the prologue where, in 1926, the MC’s, Tom and Isabel, discover a baby on their shore in a dingy with a dead man. They bury the man and keep the baby. Chapter one then jumps back to 1920 when Tom first meets Isabel shortly after he returns home from WWI for a job as a lighthouse keeper. It’s supposed to be a six-month assignment, but he loves it and decides to stay. A couple of years later, he and Isabel marry, and she moves out to the lighthouse.
For Tom and Isabel, the first few years of their marriage prove to be difficult in starting a family (2-miscarriages, 1-stillbirth), and then there is the discovery of the baby. It’s here that Tom and Isabel vehemently disagree on what to do about the dead man and the baby. Two years later, their differences on what to do and say about the baby begin having detrimental effects on both their day-to-day life, their marriage and peace of mind for them both. As the years move on, the chasm between Tom and Isabel widens and the consequences and repercussions of the decisions they made irrevocably changed lives forever.
I have mixed feelings about this story. While the story was beautifully written, I found the telling of most of it just sad and depressing. I’ve since discovered that there was actually a movie adapted from the book. I have absolutely no desire to see it. If I could have given it 2.5 stars, I would have, but I’ve rounded up to a 3star rating, which is generous. The ending was nice, which, for me, can be the difference between a 2star or a 3star rating.
For Tom and Isabel, the first few years of their marriage prove to be difficult in starting a family (2-miscarriages, 1-stillbirth), and then there is the discovery of the baby. It’s here that Tom and Isabel vehemently disagree on what to do about the dead man and the baby. Two years later, their differences on what to do and say about the baby begin having detrimental effects on both their day-to-day life, their marriage and peace of mind for them both. As the years move on, the chasm between Tom and Isabel widens and the consequences and repercussions of the decisions they made irrevocably changed lives forever.
I have mixed feelings about this story. While the story was beautifully written, I found the telling of most of it just sad and depressing. I’ve since discovered that there was actually a movie adapted from the book. I have absolutely no desire to see it. If I could have given it 2.5 stars, I would have, but I’ve rounded up to a 3star rating, which is generous. The ending was nice, which, for me, can be the difference between a 2star or a 3star rating.