Lucy Clarke's The Blue
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to get away from your everyday life for a while? Just pick up your bags and sail away into the arms of unexpected adventures? I would think that this would be a daydream familiar to most people. Lucy Clarke’s latest book The Blue follows one such journey. After an unexpected and shocking discovery on the home front, The Blue’s main protagonist and narrator Lana flees her problems and her life in England with her best friend Kitty in tow. While enjoying the exotic beauty of the far away Philippines the girls encounter and befriend a group of young people sailing on a boat called The Blue. Days spent exploring hidden beaches, basking in the sun and swimming in the ocean soon lead Lana and Kitty to become infatuated both with the boat and its crew. The Blue’s “sailors” hail from different countries and continents but they all have one thing in common: each one of them had a significant reason to leave their old life behind. When the girls are offered the opportunity to become a part of the crew they both jump at the chance.
What starts off as an ideal, almost dream-like arrangement that makes them blissfully happy soon starts turning into something bordering on sinister as it becomes quite obvious that someone is willing to go to extreme lengths to protect the secret they keep.
If you are one of those lucky ones, getting to enjoy some quality beach time this summer, I recommend you add this book to your beach bag. Beach and vacation are not a requirement but I believe they would definitely heighten the enjoyment of the subject matter. Even if you won’t be experiencing a conventional vacation this summer, this book will offer a convenient and pleasurable mind escape, especially if you are already a fan of this genre.
Lucy Clarke dives deep into the darkest corners of human psyche. The story moves along at a moderate pace (which I quite enjoyed) allowing the reader to get emotionally invested into the characters and the outcome of the story. Much more than just another light, enjoyable read, this book made me think deeper about what decisions I would’ve made if faced with similar situations. I have already added Swimming at Night and A Single Night (also written by Lucy Clarke) to my reading collection.
I was lucky enough to receive an ARC of this book from the publishers. And though getting awesome reads as freebies makes me infinitely happy, it in no way influences my impressions of the book itself.
