Publication: 4th August 2020 – Grand Central Publishing
When an elusive stranger arrives in 1960s New Rochelle, three generations of women are forever changed.When the heart finds its home, anything is possible.
Geraldine, Emilia Mae, and Alice Wingo couldn’t be more different from each other. Geraldine is a fiery beauty, turning heads while running the local bakery with her devoted husband, Earle-but she never quite takes to motherhood. Her daughter, Emilia Mae, spends her life chasing her mother’s affection and goes looking for love in all the wrong places. So when she gives birth to her own daughter, Alice-the girl with the quick laugh and music running through her veins-she vows to do things differently.
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Lost Souls at the Neptune Inn is a refreshing and engaging novel about three generations of women and their often complicated relationship.
The story is set in New Rochelle, outside New York City, starting in the 1920s when Geraldine Wingo is a young woman who makes men’s head turn. She gets pregnant, but she resents her new-born daughter, Emilia Mae, who she is convinced is the devil. As years pass, their relationship doesn’t improve, although the birth of Alice, Emilia Mae’s daughter, brings her back to live under the family roof.
Dillard Fox is a man with a talent for music looking for a bit of normalcy. When he arrives in New Rochelle, Geraldine, Emilia Mae, and Alice are all drawn to him, but could his refusal to talk about his past risk their chance to be a happy family?
I really enjoyed this novel. The characters are very likable and they feel authentic. Geraldine’s hope to be desired often alienates her from her family. All Emilia Mae wants is to be loved, but she often finds herself heartbroken. Alice looks for the father she never met. And Dillard is ready to sacrifice is true self to have a family and normal life. I loved these characters and I was completely drawn to their stories.
In Lost Souls at the Neptune Inn, Betsy Carter explores the complicated relationship between mother and daughter, people’s search for love, accepting one self, and the importance of family and close friends. It is a compelling, thought-provoking, immersive story with beautiful characters that come to life thanks to the author’s brilliant and addictive writing style and I couldn’t recommend this book enough, so please go and buy a copy!
A huge thank you to Grand Central Publishing and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of the novel.
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