The Book Diva's Reads

3.5 star read

Charlotte Evans and Nicole Carlysle have been friends since childhood. Their best memories were spent with Nicole's family in Quinnipeague, Maine. The last memory of the summer house was when Nicole married Julian. Unfortunately Charlotte doesn't have good memories of that event and her secret has kept her away from her best friend for more than ten years. Now Charlotte is a renowned travel writer and her travel keeps her on the move, a true globe-trotter. Nicole has a wonderful marriage and has made a success as a blogger promoting the merits of sourcing local foods and the farm-to-table movement. Now that Nicole is protecting a secret of her own, she craves the companionship of her best friend in what may be her final summer at Quinnipeague. Fortunately Charlotte agrees to spend the summer on Quinnipeague and help Nicole write a cookbook based on local cuisine. Can their friendship survive the revelation of their darkest secrets?

Sweet Salt Air is much more than a novel about the friendship between two women. It is a story about secrets, friendship, and family, as well as the lengths people will go to in order to protect those secrets and relationships. Charlotte has kept a secret from Nicole because she doesn't want to cause problems between Nicole and Julian nor does she want to lose her best friend. Julian is forcing Nicole to keep a secret about his health and while she's happy to be a support system for her husband, she doesn't have anyone to lean on for support during his illness. Charlotte and Nicole are both fighting deadlines . . . the deadline for the cookbook draft and the unspoken deadline hanging over their heads relating to Julian's health. If those issues weren't enough to deal with, they both must deal with the inherent privacy issues surrounding the legends of one of the Quinnipeague's own and the source for most of the local herbs. I enjoyed all of the characters and felt they were incredibly realistic, including the bad boy/loner-turned-author-turned love interest for Charlotte. In addition, the setting of coastal Maine came to life and was ideal for the action. Ms. Delinsky has provided a great read that incorporates friendship, family drama, and romance into one nice package with Sweet Salt Air. If you're looking for something delightful to read this summer, then I can recommend adding Sweet Salt Air to your reading list.