In the hills of Eastern Kentucky, Melinda Campbell lived in
a mining town. When her father became ill with Black Lung
Fever and could no longer work, her mother worked 50 hours a
week in a grocery store/garage. She mopped floors, cleaned
toilets, ran errands, and stocked shelves for a minimum wage.
They struggled, close and loving. Melinda cared for her
father and books played an important part in her upbringing.
One day, when she was 12, she took a shortcut through the
woods to school. There she met Daniel Clausen, the son of the
most hated man in Walker County. Clausen made his living
traveling around the country closing mines, putting men out
of work. At school, Daniel was always surrounded by his
classmates and Melinda thought he was a stuck-up, rich
kid. As they walked toward their homes, they talked.
Melinda decided he was just a nice, very lonely kid. They
became friends and as time passed, they became lovers.
Daniel confided that his home life was unbearable. His
father had already gotten rid of his brother and sister. He
was cruel and abusive to Daniel.
When Daniel drove his car off the bridge, it was rumored to
be suicide. Broken hearted, Melinda soon discovered she was
pregnant with his child. She left town and delivered a
daughter in Mississippi. A daughter she held for a few
hours before she had to give her up for adoption. It was
the only possible decision for Melinda. She had no money,
needed home to care for her failing father. This was a
chance for her daughter to have a loving home and a happy
future. If Grandfather Clauson discovered her, he would
take her away and ruin her life like he did his children.
Georgia Bockoven tells a story that will touch your heart.
Melinda is a strong and sassy heroine that you cheer and
root for. She held on to the dream of being reunited with
her daughter for 13 years. When the call came from Jeremy
Richmond, the adoptive father, inviting her to Santa Cruz,
California to meet her daughter, she did not hesitate.
Arriving at the beach cottage, she waited for the call to
come from Jeremy. Instead, he arrived in person. Tall,
handsome, with sun bleached hair, a GQ unshaven face, and
dark brown eyes. He was bitter as he told how his wife
left their daughter, Shiloh, the day before her 7th
birthday because she had Lupus and her mother did not want
to care for a sick child.
Shiloh was in the hospital and plans were made to meet her
there the next day
Her meeting with her daughter, Shiloh, was sweet. Melinda
took her hand, smiled and said, "It's been a long time."
Their journey back together was special filled with
surprises and an ending, that to me, was the icing on the
cake. THE BEACH HOUSE: COMING HOME is a gentle read that
will make you cry and smile
especially at Heidi, the kitten that came from the dumpster
to heaven on earth! I loved this book.
Bestselling author Georgia Bockoven is at her powerful
and emotional peak in this novel perfect for fans of
Nancy Thayer and Elin Hilderbrand.
Unlock the door to the beach house…a place where life
slows down, people come together, and love is the
strongest force of all.
After you’ve given your baby to strangers, what do you
say when someone asks if you have children?
Fourteen years ago, Melinda Campbell was fifteen and a
half, pregnant and terrified. Desperate to protect her
baby from a malicious grandfather and needed at home to
take care of her own critically ill father, Melinda makes
the most generous, heart-wrenching choice of all:
adoption. Now she’s living the successful life her father
struggled to give her, but missing her daughter with a
longing that shadows every joy.
Jeremy Richmond knows the beach house the way a painter
knows his canvas, intimately and focused on detail. His
life revolves around his adopted daughter, Shiloh, the
girl who’s owned his heart from the moment he first held
her as an infant. They were a picture-perfect family
until Shiloh was diagnosed with pediatric lupus and
Jeremy’s wife walked away.
When Shiloh tells her father she’s tired of fighting her
illness and wants to meet her biological mother before
it’s too late, Jeremy agrees to find a woman he has no
desire to meet.
From the moment Melinda and Jeremy come face-to-face,
they realize their worlds will never be the same. Will
the beach house that has harbored troubled hearts for
decades prove to be the balm they need to heal…?