Kiss River

Kiss River #2

by Diane Chamberlain

Your future is within your grasp.

How far are you willing to go? Your adopted child is in an orphanage. Only you can save her. But you need money, a lot of money, money you just don’t have. Gina Higgins is on a desperate journey across the country.

To save her daughter she must find the Kiss River lighthouse that holds the answers she so urgently needs. But the lighthouse has been destroyed and now her only hope is to uncover the secrets hidden within an old diary, a Second World War love story that has the power to change her life forever…

Genres: Fiction, Romance, Chick Lit, Audiobook, Mystery, Contemporary, Womens Fiction

428 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2003

About the author

Diane Chamberlain is the New York Times, USA Today and (London) Sunday Times best-selling author of 28 novels. The daughter of a school principal who supplied her with a new book almost daily, Diane quickly learned the emotional power of story. Although she wrote many small “books” as a child, she didn’t seriously turn to writing fiction until her early thirties when she was waiting for a delayed doctor’s appointment with nothing more than a pad, a pen, and an idea. She was instantly hooked.

Diane was born and raised in Plainfield, New Jersey and lived for many years in both San Diego and northern Virginia. She received her master’s degree in clinical social work from San Diego State University. Prior to her writing career, she was a hospital social worker in both San Diego and Washington, D.C, and a psychotherapist in private practice in Alexandria, Virginia, working primarily with adolescents.

More than two decades ago, Diane was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis and lupus, which changed the way she works: She wrote two novels using voice recognition software before new medication allowed her to get back to typing. She feels fortunate that her arthritis is not more severe and that she’s able to enjoy everyday activities as well as keep up with a busy travel schedule.

Diane lives in North Carolina with her significant other, photographer John Pagliuca, and their odd but lovable Shetland Sheepdog, Cole

Reviews

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book just as much as the first in the trilogy. I'm looking forward to reading the last in the series.

[Taury · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kiss River by Diane Chamberlain. Wonderful sequel to Keeper of the Light. Excite to read the third in the sequel.

[Trish at Between My Lines · Rating 2 out of 5]

This review was originally posted on [Between My Lines]

Warning, rant ahead!

OK, you guys know I LOVE Diane Chamberlain.  I raved about Necessary Lies and The Lost Daughter.  And I'm going to continue loving her and reading all her books despite this rant about Kiss River.  The hate is for a topic that waves a red flag before my eyes as it turned me right off this book.

First Line of Kiss River by Diane Chamberlain

"The air conditioner in her aging car was giving out, blowing warm, breath-stealing air into Gina's face."

My Thoughts on Kiss River by Diane Chamberlain:

First the good -


Interesting characters including a catch up with the characters I loved in Keeper of the Light
Fab setting - the lighthouse just lends so much atmosphere to the book
Dual timelines - flashbacks to WW2 via diary entries and current day settings.  Both tie in really well together and keep the pace of the book lively and gripping.

 
Now the bad and why I feel all the rage for A CERTAIN PLOTLINE

If there is one thing I hate it's the stereotypical image of women who are desperate for a child, so desperate that they'll do anything.  I've been there, I've felt that grief (and still do) but I have never once been tempted to do anything immoral.  Like steal your baby or get involved in an illegal adoption.  But if you believed books, that's what all women in my shoes do.

I love how Diane Chamberlain writes about poignant social issues and I engage so much with her characters.  But rolling out this trope really annoyed me.  We are meant to believe that Gina who is depicted as a strong, compassionate, sensitive woman would do ANYTHING to adopt a child from India.

I have been in Gina's shoes (after a foreign adoption fell through due to changes in adoption law) and I just can't match up the choices she made with the way her character was portrayed.  Just because you are yearning to be a mother doesn't mean that your better judgement and your compassion has upped and left the room.  I'm sick of the one-dimensional characterisation; it's lazy and stereotypical and I just want to say enough already.

I would have loved if this story had gone down the road of Gina's life learning to live childfree after a failed adoption.  The pain, the all consuming thoughts, learning to accept and redefining who you are.  That to me would be a lot more realistic and relatable.  Infertility already has enough secrecy and shame surrounding it, this type of plot just adds insult to injury.

OK rant over.

Who should read Kiss River by Diane Chamberlain?
 

I can't in all honesty recommend this one as I'm too mad.  Instead maybe try book 1 - Keeper of the Light - I really enjoyed that and wish I had wrapped up the series there.

Talk to Trish: Do you have a trope that puts you right off books as it affects you in a personal way?

[Korey · Rating 1 out of 5]

I am totally shocked by my reaction to this book. I have been on a Diane Chamberlain tear lately and every book of hers I've read I've adored. I loved the book this is a sequel to, Keeper of the Light. This book was so unsatisfying it is hard to believe it is from the same author. Chamberlain usually rights rich, three dimensional characters with fascinating interior lives. Maybe because many of them were defined (better) in a previous work, these characters are cardboard and totally uninvolving. Both plots, the contemporary one and the WWII era one revealed in diary chapters, are very, very silly.

Really, when trying to adopt a child from India and encountering problems, the best plan is to purchase the services of a baby broker with a bribe obtained from getting money from your supposed German spy grandfather whose name has been carved into a lighthouse lens? You travel across the country without even taking the time to google the current state of the light house based on an old diary? I can't imagine any person with more than two brain cells to rub together executing this plan. This combined with the thin characterization makes this book an uncharacteristic misfire.

[Rhonda Rae Baker · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm seriously going to collect ALL of Diane Chamberlain's novels...she is the absolute best author, one never knows what she's going to come up with next...WOW.

This story had me from the beginning and I simply couldn't put it down!

The quote before chapter one is something that my oldest daughter gave me under a collage of my five children for a Mother's Day present. "The bond that links your true family is not one of blood, but of respect and joy in each other's life." but Diane included the rest of it..."Rarely do members of one family grow up under the same roof." ~Richard Bach

Isn't that what we all want...family? I've always wanted to feel connected with someone unconditinoally and thought that having children would guarantee me that but it doesn't. Children grow up and they are individuals just like the rest of us and there is no guarantee of their love in return no matter how much a parent tries to love and nurture them. We make decisions every day...many times I was ambivalent in what to do for my children. I tried to do the best that I could with the knowledge I had at the time.

The novel isn't about rejection or anything by family, but shows that those that are your 'true' family may or may not be blood relatives. I'm shocked how many years it has taken me to figure this out. I've always wanted to be a part of some family...even thought that if I could find 'blood' relatives, they would embrace me but again this is never a guarantee. I originally wanted only three children and was ambivalent in making a decision about having more. Didn't know if I could afford them and yet somehow I knew there were more to be part of my life. A quiver full of children seemed to be the right number for me even though I had grown up with only one brother. Now, I can't imagine my life without all five of them...they are all very special and yet they're not always willing to communicate with mom. I'm also the step-mother of two other children with many in my life that call me Momma Rae because they were part of our lives while the children were growing up and some were music students of mine. They all are very special to me.

With that, every family has secrets and usually more secrets than we could ever imagine. I even allowed three apple boxes of 'notes' be taken to the dump when trying really hard to start my life over. Thinking that by allowing them to be taken away would allow water to flow under the bridge, never to be addressed again. But, our past always comes back to us. I was ambivalent and couldn't make up my mind at the time and of course have regretted my decision to let them go. I've never written in an official diary, but within those 'notes' that were thrown away were hidden messages to myself. In fear that they would be discovered, my private thoughts made public, I turned my heart and let them go. Now, I wish that I had them back...hindsight with many regrets. I'm currently working to 'remember' some of the things that were written because they could help me now find my way.

In this story, there is a diary that tells a story which is powerfully important and holds the key to someone's happiness and hope for a future. I totally understood the heartache of trying to make the right choice for family...should I or shouldn't I...then later maybe could have, should have, would have...we all deal with this.

The heart of this novel is a hunger for unconditional love, wanting family, wanting to feel like you belong somewhere. So much happens in life that we have absolutely no control over and it's important to learn to let go of the past. Let the water flow under the bridge...let things go. Know that you did the best you could do and when you find out secrets that have been kept from you, try to forgive, press forward and find your own path in life. There is healing from grief that touched my soul...I've been there on too many levels myself. I could feel everything these characters were experiencing.

Without giving you the resolution or summation of what actually happens, it's hard for me to tell you how intimate this novel was. I love these characters and want to know more. I want their story to continue. I want to be a part of their family!

Thank you Diane...as I try to share my heart here, I'm sobbing. I totally understand the genetics involved with how we turn out as adults and I agree that environment has a lot to do with it as well. When the truth comes out and skeletons are revealed, only then can we move forward with hope of a brighter future. We can find family and live a happy life as the people we were meant to be. Whole and completely free.

Another quote from the novel, “Only recently, she’d discovered that she was a pretty good liar. She’d lived her entire life valuing honesty and integrity. Suddenly, she’d become manipulative, a master at deceit. She could, when pressed, travel far outside the law.”

This struck me hard and I immediately related to this protagonist! I have lived my entire life valuing honesty and integrity, hating liars more than anything but found myself willing to lie in order to get information, even willing to cover for someone I knew was breaking the law. I have became manipulative, a master at deceit at times, in order to bring something about that I was confident was best for all. This quote was early in the first chapter and kept me on my seat the entire novel. Wanting to know what is going to happen and how in the world she was going to get the answers she needed. Mystery and suspense, twists at every turn and revalations that you would never expect. That is Diane Chamberlain. She knows how to weave the most incredible stories. You will NOT want to miss this one!!!

[HippieWitch · Rating 4 out of 5]

A really sweet love story.

[Giedre · Rating 4 out of 5]

very nice and emotional read. a bit too much fluff at times and it did drag on in the beginning but once it took off it took off. Looking forward to read the third book.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting read. Gina arrives in Kiss River to try to have the lens of the old lighthouse raised, she has her own reasons for wanting this. She makes friends with Clay and his sister Lacey. She is determined to keep her secrets.
The story follows Gina’s desperate quest and delves into her connection to a young girl during wartime. Written with warmth and understanding of human emotions and the secrets that are not shared.

[❤Marie Gentilcore · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. This book wasn’t quite as good as the first book, Keeper of the Light, which was written 11 years prior to this book, but it was still very good. I love the way Diane Chamberlain writes characters, they feel so authentic to me. And, now I must read Her Mother’s Shadow to finish off this trilogy.

[Sue Gerhardt Griffiths · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 ⭐️s


Kiss River is book #2 in the Keeper trilogy. Kiss River continues on from The Keeper of the Lighthouse.

Different but still as good as the first book.

Same characters from the previous instalment though older, and a new character, Julia, whom I had trouble connecting with, too secretive for my liking and something else I can’t put my finger on, but she did come good in the end and the secrets revealed were like, woah, holy crap. A couple of good twist and turns.

The backstory was well developed. Loved the present chapters and the past chapters really enhanced the storytelling.

Can’t wait to see how the story ends in the final instalment!

[Joan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not *quite* as good as the first book in the series but still very much enjoyable. A lot of pieces from the first book fall into place in this one.

[Judy Collins · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this second book in the Kiss River series as a sequel to the much loved characters in Keeper of the Light. Diane Chamberlain is one of my favorite authors with a wild imagination, taking readers far beyond the norm for page turners you will not want to put down -- twists, turns, and plots which keep you engaged from the beginning to the end!

Being a native of NC, always love the setting and especially the Outer Banks area and the subject of lighthouses - fascinating along with history of generations past… and WOW…the diary…Amazing!

This book introduces a new character coming from the Pacific Northwest in search of the Kiss River Lighthouse, a diary from her grandmother, and secrets from the past she desires in order to help her with her future. The wonderful characters from the first book-Lacy, Clay, Olivia, Alec are of course the center of the book. After more than 10 yrs. has passed since the hurricane which caused the upper half of the Kiss River Lighthouse to tumble into the ocean.

Setting the stage for this stranger, Gina to find hope in the past and the rebuilding of the future with a new family along the way and secrets to uncover. Another 5 Stars +++++ A must read series – (I have already purchased Nook Book-the third in the series “Her Mother’s Shadow”) which I cannot wait to start this evening!

[Tatiana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Вот и подошло к концу моё знакомство с шикарной трилогией #KeeperOfTheLight американской писательницы Дианы Чемберлен. Это было отличное приключение наполненное драмой, романтикой, тайнами и невероятным запахом моря!

Под русским названием «Дурочка, или как я стала матерью» скрывается очередная увлекательная история о жизни жителей Северной Каролины. История получилась очень многогранной и интересной. Тут вам не просто история центровых героев Клея и Джины, тут перемешиваются судьбы множества жителей Внешней отмели. Прошлое тесно связанно с настоящий, драма и любовь идут рука об руку. До самой последней страницу автор заставляет вас сидеть на краешке стула и лихорадочно перелистывать страницы. Даже у меня захватывало дух, хотя я уже отличилась, прочитав вперед третью книгу трилогии и знаю, чем к примеру закончится история Клея и Джины. Но все равно, автор заставила меня по переживать. Большое сердечко 💗 от меня достается маяку и завсегдатаям «Шорти».

[Eileen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is my second Diane Chamberlain book and I am really enjoying them.. She has great characters and is a fantastic storyteller

[Shelleyrae at Book'd Out · Rating 2 out of 5]

The Keeper of the Light was first published almost twenty years ago as a stand alone but was revived in the early 2000's when Chamberlain decided to use the novel as a springboard for a trilogy, writing Kiss River and Her Mother's Shadow. This year, the series is being reissued in both print and digital formats to the delight of her fans.

Set twelve years after the events of Keeper of Light, Kiss River introduces Gina Higgins, a science teacher from Washington DC, who has has come to the Outer Banks looking for the miracle she needs etched on the Fresnal lens of the town's lighthouse. She is devastated to find that the lighthouse was destroyed in a storm, the lens buried in the sea's sandy depths and desperate, begins to campaign the community to rescue it.

Unfortunately, I was disappointed with the story of Kiss River. Primarily, I didn't understand why Gina felt it necessary to lie about her motivation to raise the lens or hide her connection to Kiss River and thought that her deceptions undermined both her character, and the story as a whole.

Even the romance in Kiss River failed to convince me of its sincerity. Clay O'Neill, who lost his wife just eight months earlier, succumbs to Gina's charms with little more than a token protest despite his grief and her lies. To be fair he doesn't over extend himself until he learns Gina's secret, which does evoke sympathy, but it just didn't work for me.

With the core of the novel so compromised I found it difficult to involve myself in the story and would have given it up if it weren't for Bess's story as related through her journal extracts. I thought the historical aspects interesting of this storyline and Bess's personal tale touching. Bess is a fifteen in 1942, the bright, precocious daughter of Kiss River's lighthouse keeper. Her diary reveals a tumultuous year of love, betrayal and heartbreak as German U-Boats haunt the North Carolina coast.

I have enjoyed several of Chamberlain's newer titles like The Good Father and Secrets She Left Behind so perhaps the flaws in Kiss River can be attributed to it being penned not only early in her career but also under some pressure. Kiss River isn't a complete disaster, and I think the author's stalwart fans will be satisfied with it, but I thought it a weak example of Chamberlain's storytelling gifts.

[Cara · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'd read nine of Diane Chamberlain's books before picking up Kiss River, and I really enjoyed all nine. They've been very entertaining blends of suspense and character development, or moral issues and character development. But Kiss River was kind of a disappointment for me.

Kiss River is first and foremost a romance novel, which is really not my thing. There is a mystery element, but it doesn't make a lot of sense. A woman, Gina, drives across the entire US to check out a lighthouse, hoping to find a clue mentioned in an old diary. Gina didn't even verify that the lighthouse still exists before setting off thousands of miles to see it. And if she does find the clue, there is only a very slim chance that it would benefit her. And she could have simply made a phone call to ask the historical society or whoever if the clue exists.

But if Gina didn't drive to the east coast to see the lighthouse in person, she would not have met her hunky lighthouse guy. And the romance really is the main point of the novel.

My favorite parts of Kiss River were the sections from the old diary Gina had found. It was the diary of a teenage girl, and her sometimes awkward experiences with the local boys, and some wartime intrigue.

Disclosure: I received a pre-release electronic version of this book in exchange for an honest review.

[Melissa Dally · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, it was all right. You do spend a goodly amount of the book wondering just how Gina plans to make a bunch of money of a 3000 lb lighthouse lens. It's not like she could steal it and sell it on the black market. LOL. Still really underwhelmed with Annie O'Neill, but she's a central character in all three books of this trilogy. Maybe I'll like her better in the last one?

Also, the whole "OMG, I have to tell you your Mom was promiscuous" thing...really? Did her adult son and daughter REALLY need to know Annie was giving it up to random tourists in the lighthouse keepers house? I would honestly say that is something I would NOT want to know, even if it was true. My parents' sex lives are their own business and I, their daughter, am very content to know as little about it as possible!

[Darby · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this in one night. It was a very easy read. I enjoyed the diary entries mixed into this book. I think I liked Keeper of the Light better and liked the characters better but this was still really good plot and had me engaged and wanting to know where it was going to end up. Enjoying this series and this authors book -- definitely one I will keep reading.

[Glynis · Rating 2 out of 5]

What a disappointment. I have read a couple of Diane Chamberlain´s books and really started to feel that here I had a new author with something to give. I am sorry but this book was boring and just didn´t ring true. Perhaps because it was written in 2003 the author has improved her style but certainly cannot recommend this.

[Kelly (miss_kellysbookishcorner) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Title: Kiss River
Author: Diane Chamberlain
Series: Kiss River #2
Genre: Women's Fiction
Rating: 2.75
Pub Date: January 1, 2003

T H R E E • W O R D S

Deceptive • Mysterious • Underwhelming

📖 S Y N O P S I S

The arrival of Gina Higgins, a mysterious stranger who is determined to restore Kiss River's historic nineteenth-century lighthouse, profoundly impacts the lives of Lacey O'Neill, a talented stained-glass artist with a dark past, and her brother Clay, who is trying to rebuild his life after a devastating tragedy.

💭 T H O U G H T S

For July, our monthly Diane Chamberlain buddy read group decided to continue with book two in the Kiss River series. After having a less than stellar experience with book one, I really didn't know what to expect and went in with low expectations.

Diane definitely has a signature way of creating mystery, which is the reason I have loved so many of her more recent books. Unfortunately, there seemed to be a theme of second-chance romance for widowers and deception in this series. Honestly, I didn't understand Gina's lies and deception at all. It's quite possible this is just not a trope for me. But it kind of felt like reading the same book - just written eleven years later. The romance aspects felt forced and insincere.

Overall, I just couldn't get into this story and wanted to finish as quickly as possible. I think I enjoyed it a tiny bit more than book one in the series, and I am still intrigued to know where book three is going to go, but I am also not holding my breath for a masterpiece.

📚 R E C O M M E N D • T O
• hardcore DC fans

⚠️ CW: sexual content, rape, sexual assault, adoption, death

[Anna Crenshaw · Rating 2 out of 5]

I recently discovered Diane Chamberlain's books and have loved them with their multiple timelines and characters; however, I had to rate this book as lower than the others. I was rather appalled by how a couple of the women characters are labeled as "promiscuous" and how terrible that supposedly was. It also blamed the woman who was the victim of assault because (I'm paraphrasing here) "she had already let him in the house and had already slept with him before". Once she changed her mind and he hit her, it was obviously her fault. She needed to be more careful about who she brought home. Please, Ms. Chamberlain, do better for your women characters. Don't blame women, ever. Wanting to have sex with multiple men is not a reason to be shamed, assaulted, or anything else.

[Shelley · Rating 3 out of 5]

I appreciated that this book picked up with several of the characters who were introduced in the first book and introduced a character who had an unclear backstory of raising a fresnel lens that had been washed to sea in a storm. It took a long time to understand why the story of Bess was even told during this story. I felt like it took too long to get to the point of that. I did appreciate the way things wrapped up in the end, however I would have liked to have known what became of Rani at the end of this story. For these reasons, I give this story a 3/5: good but not great.

[Margaret Mullis Preston · Rating 2 out of 5]

It became so sorted with characters it almost gave me a headache. Emotionally roller coaster. I cared about the history of the characters and the main romance, but other parts of the story seemed to just drone on. Why talk a story of then and now then proceed to add in yet another story that pops up randomly. Wish I could rewrite the ending myself. Just an apple basket turnover of emotions. Definitely not interested in the slightest to read book #3. Exhausting! Disappointed! I love her books however this series I wish I could take back the hours I invested in them-honestly!

[Ruth · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another enjoyable book in the trilogy as Gina Higgins arrives in Kiss River. She arrives at the Lighthouse and with no place to stay is invited to take a room in the Keeper's house. As time passes, secrets are revealed affecting the lives of Lacey, Clay, and Gina.

[Donna · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't realize this is the second book of a trilogy. ;o(
It still was an engaging story of a 15 yr old girl living on the Outer Banks of North Carolina in 1942. And a present day woman from Bellingham, Washington, who has read her diary and has returned to North Carolina to discover her secrets.

[Liz · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the second book in the Kiss River trilogy and although an enjoyable read, in my opinion, it had nowhere near the intensity as Keeper of the Light. Although the main characters reappear in this second book, the plot centres around new characters. Good but not brilliant!

[Daria · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nothing exciting. Plodded through it. Got better toward the end but basically a rather boring book.

[Courtney Curtis · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a DNF for me. I went 100+ pages in and didn't feel any connection to the plot.

[Ginger · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great read by this author!! Not sure how I missed reading this one, but so glad I was able to find it. 😊

[Pamela · Rating 2 out of 5]

Gina Huggins needs to see the Kiss River Lighthouse. After driving across the country (from Washington to the Outer Banks), she discovers the top part of the lighthouse -- including the lens -- was destroyed in a storm years ago. For some reason, Gina is intent on raising that lens.

While trespassing to see the lighthouse, Gina meets Lacey and Clay, brother and sister living at the keeper's cottage. They invite Gina to stay with them while she's in Kiss River. And conveniently enough, Clay and Lacey's dad, Alec, was on the committee to raise the lens. However, for some reason he is no longer interested in doing so. So... Gina attempts to enlist the help of Walter and Brian, two old timers who hang out at Shorty's, the neighborhood dive. Gina needs money so gets a job as a server at Shorty's and becomes part of the Kiss River family. Part of the reason Gina needs money is to get 'her daughter', Rani, out of an awful Indian orphanage.

Will Gina get the lens raised? And will she ever get Rani?

This book was ok but was definitely my least favorite of all Chamberlain books I read. While most of Chamberlain's books have some kind of mystery, this one just didn't seem the same... the 'mystery' was more inane and unbelievable and the book kept delaying and delaying revealing the secret so I was sooo deflated when I found out (because the secrets weren't really as big as we thought they would be!) The whole premise was kind of weird... here's this lady who needs to raise the lens and portrays herself as some kind of lighthouse historian instead of JUST TELLING THE TRUTH. Ummm... the truth would have been so much easier.

Then there's this guy and his sister who live at the cottage although the guy has plenty of money to live wherever he wants. And the guy is really into this woman he's never met before and invites her to stay... probably because she keeps being described as 'beautiful' (although I could never get a clear picture of what she looked like). And even though Gina lies to the people who took her in, it's like everything is totally fine. No big deal. And even though no one in Kiss River knows Gina or her background, they all immediately become her Kiss River family. I'm not buying it.

Also, what's up with sisters and brothers living together? Clay and Lacey live together at the cottage (which can get uncomfortable given Lacey's slut status). Dennis Kittering lived with his sister in High Point back in the 40s. So weird.

And then there's the BIG secret Alec O'Neill doesn't want to tell his kids. Guess what kids? Your mom was a slut. Oooh... Seriously? What was the point of that? The woman has been dead for years... do you really need to reveal that big secret?

I did like how they had Bess's chapters from the 40s interspersed with current day. Although since we don't know the connection between Bess and Gina until 3/4 or so into the book, it seems kind of weird.

Basically, in most Chamberlain books, I feel like I'm right there with the characters... Like I know them intimately. In this book, I was more like 'meh'... take them or leave them. I didn't really like any of the characters enough in this book to want to get to know them much better. They just seemed like a bunch of big dummies... especially Gina who portrays herself as the lighthouse historian that doesn't even know the lighthouse no longer exists.