The Saddest Girl on the Beach

by Heather Frese

Grieving after her father’s death, a young woman seeks solace in an Outer Banks beach town of North Carolina where her best friend’s family runs a small inn.   The family welcomes Charlotte with chowder dinners and a cozy room, but her friend Evie has a looming life change of her own, and soon Charlotte seeks other attractions to navigate her grief. Will she, like in some television movie, find her way back through a romance, or are there larger forces at play? Heather Frese, winner of the Lee Smith Novel Prize and author of The Baddest Girl on the Planet , sets Charlotte on a beautifully rendered course through human frailty, unrelenting science, and the awesome forces of the Carolina coast.

Genres: Fiction, Literary Fiction, Grief, Contemporary

280 pages, Hardcover

Published April 9, 2024

About the author

Heather Frese’s fiction, essays, and poetry have appeared in Michigan Quarterly Review, the Los Angeles Review, Front Porch, the Barely South Review, Switchback, and elsewhere, earning notable mention in the Pushcart Prize Anthology and Best American Essays. She received her master’s degree from Ohio University and her M.F.A. from West Virginia University. Coastal North Carolina is her longtime love and source of inspiration, her writing deeply influenced by the wild magic and history of the Outer Banks. She currently writes, edits, and wrangles three small children in Raleigh, North Carolina.

Reviews

[Catherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

“No one told me that I might travel through my grief and come back to myself, but that I wouldn't be the same. That there would always be a dividing line from who I am now and who I used to be. Who I was before.”

Summer may be slowly turning to Fall, but as our main character, Charlotte, knows, grief is a never ending spiral that knows no real end.  

Charlotte is a young woman who has decided not to go back to school, but instead heads off to the Outer Banks of North Carolina to visit her best friend, Evie, and her family at the Inn they run after her father's passing. 

Evie is dealing with some big life changes of her own, and in the midst of that, Charlotte gets entangled in a love triangle between Evie's brother, Nate, and her own cousin's boyfriend, Michael. 

The situation guarantees that she will hurt someone, but does she love either of them at all or is she just using this trip as a way to run away from real life and distract herself from her grieving? 

When you think of someone grieving, you probably think of them not being able to fully function in their daily life, but really it's a lot more complicated than that.

Her father was always on her mind, and her sadness expressed itself through different actions, not crying and being outwardly sad. She had a lot of internal anxieties only known to the reader, and it's scary how little we know about what people are thinking when their outward expression says otherwise.

This book was well written. I loved all the characters and everything felt so real. It was a deeply beautiful book about love, loss, and how to process it all.

[Stacey Lawrence · Rating 1 out of 5]

Overly flowery creative writing major descriptions with flat characters. I can’t believe I read the whole thing, honestly

[Melinda Goins-Fernald · Rating 2 out of 5]

I bought this book in Buxton while vacationing in OBX this past summer. For the sheer nostalgia of my vacation, I could not make this book a DNF. I enjoyed the description of the island’s topography, the mention of specific towns with landmarks, and the hint at historical facts. However, by the second mention of the Food Lion (in Avon) and the fiftieth reminder of the island’s narrow passage from Hatteras to Kitty Hawk, I was bored with the repetition. The constant attempt to compare grief with the ocean and the island, missed the mark for me. The metaphors were confusing, monotonous and left the characters undeveloped.
I wouldn’t read this book again, nor would I recommend it. If you find yourself at the charming, highly recommended Buxton Village Bookstore, choose another local author.

[Kyle Churman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Heather Frese has created a complicated and tragic heroine in Charlotte. Following her father's death, Charlotte drifts away from her mom and brother and moves to her best friend's family's inn on the Outer Banks. Charlotte must navigate her feelings for two different men as well as Evie's pending pregnancy. As she grapples with these changes as well as her own grief, Charlotte spends a year on a storm-battered island trying to weather her emotions. Punctuated with moments of immense sadness and longing, Heather Frese has written a beautiful book that is perfect for that sad girl summer.

[Mayce Tipton · Rating 4 out of 5]

a well written obx based book! I loved this sequel and loved to see the characters grow more!

[Sarah]

Didn’t finish. Too many god references in the first few chapters.

[Jenn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incandescent. Through Charlotte, Frese has written so authentically of the experience of grief and the subsequent inevitable growth and change that as I reader, I felt wrung out, raw, and ultimately hopeful. The novel about loss is at the same time a love story about the North Carolina coastline and the wonder and power of the sea. Fans of Frese's prior novel will appreciate the return of Evie. I loved this book.

[Carson · Rating 5 out of 5]

“I’m glad my father didn’t die in a hospital. I’m sorry he didn’t get to die at the ocean as he wanted. I wish that he didn’t have to die at all”

Experiencing a similar journey in relation to grief as the protagonist, a lot of her insights of her loss were very relatable in my opinion. She’s not a perfect person and doesn’t have everything figured out, but I enjoyed the story of her trying to navigate her life. I cannot speak enough praises for this novel. I didn’t realize there was a related book that I should’ve technically read first, but I didn’t think it impacted my experience with this book at all. This was beautifully written and I look forward to reading more from this author.

[Parker · Rating 4 out of 5]

Somewhere between 3.5 and 4, so I rounded up. As someone who calls the Outer Banks home, I truly appreciated the scenic details that were painted with such accuracy. It was really what kept drawing me in. I liked the characters and the story, but throughout the book, and even the ending, I often found myself wanting more depth, especially when I came to relationships amongst the characters and Charlotte’s own self realizations.

[Allie · Rating 2 out of 5]

bad. bad bad bad. paper thin characters. probably the worst first person POV i’ve read in a novel. repetitive. take a shot every time she says “want to feel alive.” totally ruled by circumstance with no one having any tangible personality. and very weird conservative undertones

[Sydney · Rating 4 out of 5]

I did read another chunk of this book a couple weeks ago but forgot to update here woops.

I thought the whole relationships thing was weird, but now that I've gotten thought the book I really liked it. A genuine look into someone processing grief. I also really liked the characters - they seemed real, genuine, and natural.

[Susan Ballard (subakkabookstuff) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Charlotte is a young woman navigating her way through the depths of grief as she recently watched her father die. Struggling to focus on her coursework at college, Charlotte receives a frantic call from her friend Evie. Evie is pregnant.

Charlotte decides to leave school to spend time with Evie at the charming inn Evie’s parents own. It’s located on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. She hopes the water, sand, and Evie and her family will help clear her mind, but a storm is brewing over the sea and in her heart.

The beautiful setting is such an active and stirring part of the narrative. The coastal sounds, the waves' rhythm, and the storm's tempest all reflect the characters' emotions.

The story explores Charlotte’s grief with authenticity. But I loved the friendship between her and Evie. Both girls are facing a future they hadn’t foreseen - a future they are uncertain of - yet together and with honest assertions of sadness and longings, they move forward; their friendship is an anchor as the storm blows around them.

The writing here is comfortable, with much sincerity and heart. Character growth, friendship, a little romance, and the vivid coastal setting make me want to call this a beach read - just know that it's a little more about loss and love than happily ever after.

Thank you @kayepublicity for this gifted book.

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Grieving the recent loss of her father 19-year-old Charlotte leaves college and her home state of Ohio behind seeking solace with her best friend, Evie, and her family on the tiny island of Hatteras on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. But the tranquil seashore Charlotte recalls from childhood vacations remains out of reach as things on the island are in flux: Evie's life is upended by an unplanned pregnancy, Charlotte finds herself in something of a love triangle, and a hurricane is brewing in the Atlantic.

The Saddest Girl on the Beach is a metaphor rich exploration of grief, a coming-of-age highlighting enduring and evolving friendship. The sense of place is well developed and central to the story including interesting sprinkles of local lore and oceanography. This would make an excellent beach read if you enjoy a more melancholy story with your sun and sand, especially if you find yourself on OBX and can appreciate some of the references first hand.

The Saddest Girl on the Beach is something of a companion novel to The Baddest Girl on the Planet, which tells Evie's later story.

Thanks to the publisher for providing a complimentary review copy

[Virginia · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book surprised me! I expected a beach read (which, yes, would be a lovely place to read it--but I was in the desert) then a young person's coming of age story (which, yes, it is) but it's so much more than that. Besides admiring Frese's well-developed characters, each of whom I grew to care about a great deal, I felt saturated in incredible descriptions of place and landscape. Having lived in North Carolina for many years, and now living in the high desert of New Mexico, I especially appreciated the ever-varying portrayals of ocean and sand in a fragile landscape. The outer banks and the descendants of people who have lived there for many generations are slowly but surely shifting and changing, the perfect setting and metaphor for all that happens in people's lives. Heather Frese's novel is compulsively readable. Her characters soon feel like friends or family, and I was bereft of them when the novel ended.

[Chris Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Saddest Girl on the Beach hooked me immediately with the Outer Banks setting (a place I adore) then got me with Frese’s book dedication then captivated me without pause as she navigates through grief, romance and the fear of uncertainty all at the same time! Her mastery goes even further, weaving in snippets from the book Charlotte and Michael are reading (How to Read a North Carolina Beach) that metaphorically mirror their very lives. “…the beach protects the island by changing shape to better absorb the storm waves.” “…when one inlet forms, another usually closes.” Indeed, wave crests coincide and become one wave along the shore and within the hearts of Frese’s unforgettable, heroic characters. Read this one slowly to absorb every moment of this literary treasure.

[jossy · Rating 4 out of 5]

hmm i have conflicting thoughts on this book but not in a bad way. i think if i were in the midst of grief, this would’ve hit really hard but also would’ve felt like a warm hug. grief is so universal yet presents itself so differently that i think it would be easy for people to see themselves in charlotte. the setting of the outer banks really spoke to the themes of the novel and was the perfect place for charlotte to find her footing again. i liked how the author brought us back to the ocean, sand, landscape, and just nature in general to relate it back to us as people. the earth and us are one and i like to think we can look to it when we are feeling a bit unsteady.

[Sarah Mims · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really really didn’t like some of the choices Charlotte made, but the central theme here is grief - & that was written pretty well. (Bought this at Buxton Village Books on Hatteras Island, when I visited Walker for New Year’s 2026. This is set on Hatteras).

“Me, always looking for the poetry and the metaphor, always searching for the why, for the inexplicable and irrational and impossible, was it so hard for me to believe for a moment that the column of our grief had risen to the sky, had met the lingering energy from the leaping synapses in my dad’s brain and refracted into magic…”

“How could I love someone else when I didn’t know who I was anymore?”

[Jazisunray Skillern · Rating 4 out of 5]

Charlotte is grieving the loss of her dad. She decides to leave her mother and brother for her best friend's family at their Inn on the outer banks of NC. She spent a year there battling her grief and maneuvering through feelings for two men. The story is a tale of grief, yearning for her father and trying to work out her life. The writing is incredible. It is well worth the read.

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a heartfelt story about a young woman trying to find herself again after her father passed away. The ups and down of her emotions were like a rollercoaster. Will she be able to move on or be stuck in the past? This story hits all feels and you feel her pain from grief. This book is a continuation of her first book and I loved them both. I highly recommend this series.

[Cindy Bonner · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a page-turner for most of the way through. There are some truly poignant passages that express the loss of someone dear in utterly true prose. Having just lost, less than a year ago, the love of my life these passage brought tears with them. There is a part in the later middle where the storyline drags a bit but keep reading. The ending is not what you expect! Recommended.

[Renee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Immediately gravitated to the book living on the Outer Banks and having stayed recently at the Inn at Pamlico. I really enjoyed reading all of the familiar places, that was really well done. I also became invested in all of the characters. A bit too heavy on the grief for me, even after losing a parent myself, but still really liked the book as a whole.

[Erin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this book up at little bookstore while visiting the NC coast, and I’m glad I did. It’s a heartfelt story of grief and learning to live in the aftermath of loss. The NC coast is its own character in the story, and this book reminded me of everything I love most about it.

[Lindsey Sanford · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was my first book by Heather, and boy does she know how to make you feel the emotions of the characters. It wasn't that I was sad while reading the book, but the grief the MC was going through, I was experiencing. Heather's writing is poetically beautiful and has a way of hooking its claws into you.

This book was an honest reflection on grief, and how it comes and goes. It's a wave, and the only thing you can do is try not to drown in it.

But it's also really important to let yourself to grieve. You have to allow yourself to move through it and then learn to navigate the pain.

There's a quote toward the end of the book that really sums up the overall story.

"No one told me that I might travel through my grief and come back to myself, but that I wouldn't be the same. That there would always be a dividing line from who I am now and who I used to be. Who I was before."

I did receive an early copy from the publisher. All thoughts and opinions are my own

[Nate Hawthorne · Rating 3 out of 5]

If it weren’t for the setting of this book, I probably wouldn’t have liked it as much. Knowing some of the exact places on the Outer Banks that the characters exist in definitely drew me in. The plot was good, but the characters were a little undeveloped. A lot of the motivations were assumed.

[ReaiJah Livelsberger · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book so much better than the baddest girl! The grief was deep and well done, the main characters thoughtful moments were entertaining and the romance twist added extra to the overall story. And again, who doesn’t love the OBX setting. 🐚🦪🦀

[Kelley Dykes · Rating 3 out of 5]

The writing in this was absolutely stunning, and so was the location. The plot, however, did not resonate with me at all, sadly.

[Evie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved the description of the location in North Carolina.

[Jennifer Kanke · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great companion novel to Baddest Girl on the Beach. I loved getting to know Charlotte better and the grief was just absolutely palpable in some spots. A wonderful read.

[Mary Palmes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love reading about Hatteras and places we have been. Perfect read after being in Frisco for a week. Well written about real life from a locals perspective.

[Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Heather Frese writes characters so well that you feel like they're people you know, and this is one of the best depictions of the inner turmoil of grieving the loss of a parent that I've ever read.