Mailbox by the Sea

by Mark Grady

A LOVE STORY WITH SUSPENSE AND AN ENDING YOU WILL NOT SOON FORGET. THE ULTIMATE BEACH READ IS HERE.Amy Cole has her entire life mapped out by her mother, Catherine. Finish high school, attend Juilliard School in New York and become a famous concert violinist. Amy reluctantly agrees to her mother’s plans. Everything changes during summer break after her junior year of high school. That’s when she meets Mason at Carolina Beach. Mason is most unique guy she has ever known. Their innocent summer romance evolves into falling deeply in love.Amy and Mason are subjected to a series of schemes orchestrated by her mother to end their relationship. They are eventually torn apart.Years later, Mason receives a mysterious letter written by Amy’s aunt. The letter sends Mason on a quest to visit a mailbox on a beach Amy spoke frequently about. Known as Kindred Spirit at Sunset Beach, Amy and her aunt would frequently visit the mailbox to read the expressions of love and loss left by people from all over the world. What will happen when Mason accepts the letter’s request to be at the Kindred Spirit Mailbox on a certain day and time? It’s an ending that will stay with you a long time.

409 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 11, 2021

About the author

Mark Grady is an author, screenwriter and filmmaker. He lives on a 65-acre lake in southeastern North Carolina where he still writes first drafts on his trusty Smith Corona typewriter. He is frequently summoned out of his Little Writing Cabin on the Lake by ducks who demand he feed them the finest cracked corn money can buy.

Reviews

[Brandy · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story was great. This book gets three stars because of the story. The story has SO MUCH POTENTIAL to be a FANTASTIC love story. I LOVE the cover -- it's gorgeous. It's the reason why I picked this book up at the library. I recommend this book if you are looking for a good story that move quickly. The chapters are very short, and you do want to know what happens to the characters.

With that said - I'm trying my best to figure out how to review this book. The story was great. I loved the setting (Carolina Beach is one of my very favorite places). But, I just don't think the execution was that great. The writing was mediocre. At times, I felt that the author didn't know how to write women.....or teenagers...or adults at that matter. Amy's mother was so over the top, and absolutely not believable. She made me mad, but not because of the reasons why the author wanted me to be mad at her. I was mad at her because she was so unbelievable. The timing of the story was also off -- the author spent a lot of time talking about this dating relationship between these two teenagers (who really did nothing except see each other at the local donut shop, go for walks on the beach, and talk on the phone), and didn't spend a lot of time developing the plot. The ending was very rushed and I ended up feeling disappointed.

I just am a little disappointed. I had high hopes for this, but felt that I was reading a bad knock off of Nicholas Sparks' The Notebook.

[Connie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I visited the mailbox in 2018 and left a love letter for my lost love of 50 yrs ago. When I saw the book cover I immediately knew I had to read it. Very similar in that my mom interfered with my love story. She will never know how much she hurt me but she thought she was doing the right thing. Amy's mother was totally evil.
Good Book, read it in 2 sittings only because I was hungry. Wish I had some of those doughnuts! Next time I'm in Wilmington, I will track down the doughnut shop . Was surprised at the end and rightfully ended.

[Tammy Ellis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sweet coming of age story

Being from NC and knowing the local area of Carolina and Sunset Beach, the author vividly described the perfect seaside setting, including the Kindred Spirit Mailbox. This story was beautiful and full of emotion. I loved how Mark included Britt’s Donuts, and if you’ve never been there, it is so worth the wait! Well done, Mark.

[Maureen · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a predictable, schmaltzy romance which is not a genre I usually read. It could also have used some better proofreading as the name Amy was substituted for Joy a few times.

However, my family and I have been to Sunset Beach several times and the Kindred Spirit mailbox is a real icon. I believe I was told that the letters gathered are now archived at UNC.

[Becky · Rating 4 out of 5]

A love story that tugs at your heart strings and leave you not wanting the story to end. That there are still caring parents, that only want the best for children no matter what, and that young people can still depend on the adults around them. I true sweet love story.

[Nikali Benkert · Rating 1 out of 5]

Oof that was a tough read and threatened my must finish a started book streak. The writing was quite poor and unfortunately many of the characters were unbelievable. The dialogue was stilted and didn't convey emotion well.

[Cathy Guidry · Rating 4 out of 5]

An easy good read set in places familiar to me!

[Penny Culberson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome book

Great story of love and perseverance. Love happy endings.

First time reading this author but will definitely read more books by them.

[Avery Lagomarsino · Rating 2 out of 5]

Read this book this summer after visiting the mailbox. It was a cliché book, typical love story. Not the best writing but still a cute read.

[Patricia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well written about places I am familiar with. It made me sad and often mad, but it ended well.

[Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very easy read... Good story

[Marcia Valerie Helm · Rating 3 out of 5]

pretty good

It was a pretty good read, but was somewhat disappointing at times. Not bad, but definitely could have been better.

[Beth G. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great story, which is why I read to the end. But the writing, not so good. This book has potential.

[Jennifer · Rating 2 out of 5]

The storyline itself was good, however the writing style felt very amateur. For how much Amy's mother was made out to be horrible, I expected her to have a more horrible ending.

[jeanne tomsen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Young love

Beautiful story, young love can last forever Loved MAILBOX BY THE SEA. I will be reading more books by Mark Grady