Rachel Hawkins is the bestselling author of several novels that have delivered attention-grabbing mysteries to readers. “The Storm” tells a generational story set in a small coastal town in Alabama that has been devastated over the years by destructive hurricanes. Major events occur during some of these storms that may not be a direct result of the storm itself.
The Rosalie Inn, located in St. Medard’s Bay, has been in Geneva’s family for three generations. It has miraculously survived major storms that have ravaged the town. Geneva has been the owner of the Inn since her mother was diagnosed with early-onset dementia and placed in a facility. The multiple timelines and narrators unravel a web of friendships, secrets, affairs, and murder.
Forty years ago, the son of Alabama’s governor, Landon Fitzroy, was killed during a brutal hurricane that hit St. Medard’s Bay. The governor did not believe his son died as a result of the storm, but was murdered by his teenage mistress, Gloria (Lo)Bailey, who stood trial for his murder. She was acquitted when Landon’s death was ruled an accident. For the following 40 years, Lo has lived with the backlash and gossip surrounding that case.
Geneva is presently struggling financially to keep the Inn running, so when journalist August Fletcher reaches out to her, offering to pay double for two rooms, she, of course, accepts his offer. He has partnered with Lo Bailey to co-write her memoir. Now, at age sixty, Lo is as beautiful and sassy as ever and wants to tell her own story.
As Geneva grows closer to August and Lo, she learns that Lo and her mother were close childhood friends and shared secrets that they didn’t tell anyone else. Why didn’t her mother ever talk about Landon’s trial or her friendship with Lo? It begins to occur to her that her own life might be tied to a past that she knows nothing about.
Just as Geneva, August, and Lo are beginning to understand what happened so long ago, the inevitable happens. A storm is descending upon St. Medard’s Bay, making Geneva wonder if she is trapped at her Inn with a killer.
Not an exciting thriller, but a good story connecting the past with the present. Knowing what your parents’ childhood was like may be beneficial to your relationship with them.
It is not my favorite Rachel Hawkins book, but it is still a good read.
REVIEW
“The Storm”
By: Rachel Hawkins
Rating: 3.6
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Jacquie O’Neil and her daughter, Times Leader Media Group Publisher Kerry Miscavage, contribute to this column.