Kiss River [Hardcover]

Diane Chamberlain (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1, 2003

In this exquisite new novel, Diane Chamberlain revisits the seaswept finger of land called Kiss River, where secrets give way to the amazing power of love.

Gina Higgins has come to the Outer Banks of North Carolina -- a stranger with a secret. But secrets are a fact of life for some of the residents of the close-knit community of Kiss River. Gina is about to learn that those secrets are tied to her own in ways she never could have imagined.

Kiss River's historic nineteenth-century lighthouse has all but fallen into the sea, taking with it the huge Fresnel lens that once served as its beacon. Gina is desperate to find a way to raise the lens from the sea. The glass holds the key to the one person who matters to herd: a child who waits for her halfway around the world.

Lacey O'Neill, a talented stained-glass artist with a troubled past, lives in the old lightkeeper's house, a home she shares with her brother, Clay, who is grieving the tragic death of his wife. When Lacey meets Gina, she invites her to stay with them, secretly hoping Gina will help pull Clay from this depression. Eagerly accepting the offer, Gina moves into the lightkeeper's house and begins her quest to raise the lens.

Most of the locals believe the lens should remain at the bottom of the sea. Clay O'Neill, however, finds himself drawn into Gina's struggle. Though he fights his attraction to this beautiful stranger, as he begins to understand her surprising connection to Kiss River, he too, starts to see things through a different light, and slowly begins to heal.

As Gina's story unfolds, so does the decades-old story of a courageous teenage girl swept away by love and plunged into the treacherous waters of espionage during World War II. The shocking legacy she left buried in the light reveals more than Gina expected . . . much more. And with it comes new hope for the future . . . and for love.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Alternating chapters tell the stories of 14-year-old Bess Poor, the daughter of the Kiss River lighthouse keeper on North Carolina's Outer Banks during World War II, and Gina Higgins, a contemporary schoolteacher who has traveled to Kiss River on a mysterious quest. When Gina arrives, she discovers that the lighthouse she has come so far to see was nearly knocked down in a storm and that its lens lies at the bottom of the sea. She's taken in by Lacey and Clay, a sister and brother saddled with some serious issues, and as Gina and Clay develop a complicated relationship, the narrative is broken by Bess' 1942 diary entries detailing her romance with a young Coast Guardsman. Taking a job at a local gathering spot, Gina begins to join the community, but she is harboring a secret related to her obsession with recovering the sunken Kiss River light. When all the secrets are revealed, they don't seem all that earth shattering, but Chamberlain does tie the two disparate stories together in a charming manner. Diana Tixier Herald
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Review

Alternating chapters tell the stories of 14-year-old Bess Poor, the daughter of the Kiss River lighthouse keeper on North Carolina's Outer Banks during World War II, and Gina Higgins, a contemporary schoolteacher who has traveled to Kiss River on a mysterious quest. When Gina arrives, she discovers that the lighthouse she has come so far to see was nearly knocked down in a storm and that its lens lies at the bottom of the sea. She's taken in by Lacey and Clay, a sister and brother saddled with some serious issues, and as Gina and Clay develop a complicated relationship, the narrative is broken by Bess' 1942 diary entries detailing her romance with a young Coast Guardsman. Taking a job at a local gathering spot, Gina begins to join the community, but she is harboring a secret related to her obsession with recovering the sunken Kiss River light. ...Chamberlain [ties] the two disparate stories together in a charming manner.-Booklist

"Diane Chamberlain's characters are so realistic that you feel you know them in person, and when you get to the end of the book, you miss them."

-Tatiana de Rosnay, New York Times bestselling author of Sarah's Key on The Midwife's Confession

"Diane Chamberlain's The Midwife's Confession is a compelling tale of friendship and motherhood told with compassion and vivid honesty. Chamberlain takes the reader on a taut journey filled with secrets, heartbreak and the power of hope. Impossible to put down The Midwife's Confession will break your heart and then mend it tenderly back together."

-Heather Gudenkauf, New York Times bestselling author of The Weight of Silence

"The Midwife's Confession is an engrossing tale, one that keeps you guessing to the end, with all its twists and turns. This is a novel you won't want to miss!"

-Eileen Goudge, New York Times bestselling author of Once in a Blue Moon

"Chamberlain weaves an intensely engaging story of three people with a tragic past, complicated present, and unknown future who must struggle with trust, betrayal, and forgiveness."

-Booklist on The Lies We Told

"The writing is at all times sure and polished, carrying the reader through a gauntlet of twists and complications."

-Raleigh News and Observer on The Lies We Told --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 384 pages
• Publisher: Mira (February 1, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1551666642
• ISBN-13: 978-1551666648
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.4 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #427,757 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I grew up in Plainfield, New Jersey where, at the age of twelve, I wrote several dreadful novellas, read and admired only by my family. When college rolled around, I forgot about writing and received my bachelor's and master's degrees in Social Work from San Diego State University. I was a hospital social worker in San Diego, and later in Washington DC. I also had a private psychotherapy practice working mainly with teenagers. All the while, I was writing on the side. I viewed my writing as a hobby, but it quickly became a passion. I finally decided to take a class in 'writing the novel.' I was very shy about showing my work to the instructor, but when I finally did, he loved it! He encouraged me to aim for publication and I decided to go for it. A few years later, my first novel, PRIVATE RELATIONS, was published.

Since then, I've written about a book a year-eternity-one at last count. I now live in North Carolina, the beautiful state where many of my books are set and where I'm ten minutes from my grandbabies. I share my life with my soulmate, John, who's a photographer as well as my muse, and with my two shelties, Keeper and Jet.

Are you wondering what my books are about? One of my readers in Japan had this to say about my work: "You make me believe life is beautiful even if it is full of pain and rage." Her words touch me deeply. They hang on the wall above my computer and help me remember exactly what it is I'm trying to achieve in my stories. I hope you'll enjoy them.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Kiss River, January 31, 2003

By 

Huntress Reviews (United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Kiss River (Hardcover)

Gina has made it her quest, her very life's work, raise the Fresnel lens that lit up the lighthouse beacon on the historic and beautiful Kiss River, despite the fact that most of the local residents believe it belongs at the bottom of the sea. She does find allies in the form of the O'Neills, Lacey, a troubled artist with a promiscuity problem, and her brother, widower Clay, who is lost in grief for his late wife. Lacey takes Gina into their home, hoping against all odds that she will be the one to light up her brother's darkened soul.

Gina's quest to raise the beacon involves not only locating it, but delving into the secrets of the small town's past, that tie in with her own heritage. Long buried truths are to be painfully revealed, and the true nature of her desperate search will bring about pain and healing both. It is a race against time, for a child's life is hanging in the balance.

**** Interspersed with the main plot in the present is the diary of a young woman who lived and loved over half a century ago. To some, these entries will be tender and insightful, adding richness and color to the already moving story. Others will find them distracting and hard to integrate into the main story. In either case, the primary characters are ones to agonize with and whose hurt screams across the pages, so vividly are they drawn. No one can be unmoved by the all too real tale herein. ****

Reviewed by Amanda Killgore.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Outer Banks Revisited, August 19, 2003

By 

M. Rondeau (West Springfield, MA United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Kiss River (Hardcover)

Having read the first book of this proposed trilogy - KEEPER OF THE LIGHT - which captured me from the very first pages, I was anxious to return to the locale of the Outer Banks to continue the story. This story comes across in a much slower vein with a female lead, Gina, in her thirties, divorced, with a mysterious diary that switches back and forth along in the chapters. The diary turns out to be written 60 years earlier during WWII and it was written by a 14 year old girl who was the daughter of the lighthouse keeper. Throughout much of the story you have to figure out the mystery of why, Gina, is so intent on raising the Fresnal lens of the partially destroyed lighthouse from the sea, and what the connection is to a small child in India.

The son and daughter of the first book, Clay and Lacey, are the other leads and they each are dealing with issues. Clay is now a widower of less than a year carrying baggage of guilt, etc. Lacey seems to be following in her mother's footsteps after learning `some' truths about her parentage. Lacey seems to be trying to perpetuate the Saint Anne persona that her mother had acquired yet her promiscuity keeps her at odds with her brother Clay. Although the two siblings have their problems neither seems to be featured as prominently as Gina and the young girl, Bess from the 60 year old diary.

There was very little romance in this book, but more a story of healing, trust, issues and the mystery of why it was so important to have the Fresnal lens resurrected from the sea. This was a good story, a little slow for my taste, but again exquisite writing that gives you a good flavor for the marvelous setting of the Outer Banks of North Carolina. Because, the author gave little attention Lacey's problem who by the end of the book was left with a whole new outlook on who her mother really `was' I would predict that she will give us this story in the last book of this trilogy in order to wrap things up. While the book does stand up alone, you will get more enjoyment from it should you read the KEEPER OF THE LIGHT first.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Very good book, February 8, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Kiss River (Hardcover)

I love "Diane Chamberlain" books so this was no surprise that is was another hit. I found it a little hard to get started but then it just kept getting harder to put down. This is the second book in her trilogy and I can't wait for the last one.