Review: Becalmed by Normandie Fischer

When a Southern woman with a broken heart falls for a widower with a broken boat, it's anything but smooth sailing.

Tadie Longworth doesn't mind acting the maiden aunt in Beaufort, North Carolina. She has a gift shop full of her own jewelry designs and a sweet little sailboat to take her mind off the guy who got away. But now he’s back . . . with the fashion-plate wife he picked instead of Tadie . . . and he’s hitting on her again.

When widower Will Merritt limps into town with a broken sailboat and a perky seven-year-old daughter, he offers the perfect distraction — until that distraction turns into fascination when Tadie offers shelter during a hurricane. Over candlelit games of Slap-Jack and Monopoly, Jilly becomes the daughter she could have had and Will the man she always wanted. Only, he’s sworn never to let another woman in his life. Any day now, he’s going to finish those repairs, and that ship's going to sail — straight out of Tadie’s life.

Paperback, 385 pages

Published July 1st 2013 by Lighthouse Publishing of the Carolinas              
Terri's Review

I won this book in a Goodreads giveaway in exchange for an honest review.

This was an interesting read to me as it gave me some conflicting feelings as I worked my way through it.

I will start with the good.  The absolute star of this book is not the main character Tadie but seven year old Jilly.  It was impossible not to like her from the get go.  From her red hair and spunky personality to match she was a gem and all other characters paled in comparison.  Looking at the world through her eyes makes the reader cheer for her from beginning to end. I also found it charming how Will always called her punkin and would grin whenever he said it. Another strong point was the town of Beaufort and the close knit group of friends and family that surrounded Tadie.  It was exactly what I would imagine any small town to be like where people are there for you no matter what.  Add the charm of the water and marina and it was the perfect setting for this story. 

The part that I found difficult in this story is that Tadie was described (admittedly by herself) as a spinster because she was not married at the ripe age of 35.  Much of her inner turmoil throughout the book was centered around this and her lack of life experience as a result.  Now I realize that Fischer most likely portrayed this to focus in on the impact that Will and Jilly had on Tadie's life and how she wanted more after meeting them.  As someone who is around the same age demographic I could not identify with this.  I felt that Tadie's self image was a little more destroyed than what it should be. 

Overall this was a heartwarming story of two people who cross paths and the journey that it takes them on.  I found that Tadie and Will's romance was very slow and agonizing to come to fruition and yet when it did I found myself saying "already?"  It was also nice that the storyline conclude around Christmas as the season is coming up upon us.

About the Author

Normandie Fischer writes from on board her sailboat or from on shore in coastal NC -- stories of women and families and the things that get to them. 


Website: http://www.normandiefischer.com     Twitter:  writingonboard