The Light Between Oceans

RATED: 5 OUT OF 5

What an amazingly devastating read. Such great writing. Such beautiful atmosphere. Such emotional turmoil.

I did watch the movie a few years before i picked up the book and I loved it. It was one of my favorites of 2015/16? But the book added so many extra layers for me and am so glad that I read it. For me, it was a fast read as the story went from part to part (before, during and after Lucy) fairly fast. The book is only about 365 pages long.

Okay, first things first. No! It is never okay to find a baby and to never report it. I can understand why they did what they did but no. I will never condone the behavior or say it was okay (Tom and Isabel's lived would have been easier) BUT...it wasn't glorified in the book. I have read a lot of reviews about people disliking this because of that (fair enough, each to their own). But, this book did not condone nor glorified the behavior, unlike other books with say cheating. There were dramatic and life changing consequences for Isabel and Tom's choices. They did not get off lightly. They had to suffer for the rest of their lives. Which was heart breaking and made me feel the feels.

I like the characters. I didn't love tom or love Isabel. Actually I much preferred movie Izza Bella as I felt in the book she seemed older, more controlling, less gentle towards Tom. Tom as a character was a bit bland but I still found his monologues interesting and very sentimental to the Australian male. I loved Lucy. If I had a fictional daughter it would be her. She was fun but gentle and smart. So curious of her little world and had so much love for her Mumma and Dudda. What I did love was their family dynamic. Tom and Isabel though different. She naming everything, while he just going with the wind. Loved one another so much. I think today's couples need to learn "through thick and thin" as Isabel and tom knew it. Such great lessons in this book. Mainly, I loved how they loved Lucy. Sorry not sorry, but they were amazing parents to that little girl. There was great character development through the chapters where It focused on a characters previous lives as well, even side characters. Which added more to the book. I felt like I knew the people which made me more inclined to keep reading.

How I wish I grew up on an island with a light house away from the world. I would even live there now. The book pulled me in with the exceptionally atmospheric writing. I could feel the wind on my body, I could taste the salt on my tongue. I heard Lucy's laughter. Most of all it made me feel like I was home. It made me fell some nostalgic part of me had just read about my past and now I was living that life all over again. It was such comfortable writing. Read this book for the exceptional writing. Great quotes and passages that anyone could relate to.

All in all this book pulled at my heart strings and made me ball my eyes out. So much love and then having all of that taken way. I learnt so many valuable lessons from this book and it will stay with me forever.