Beyond the Tides charmed me from the opening page. This is my first time reading anything by Liz Johnson, but it won’t be the last. This book is the start of a new series and I’ll be watching for the rest as they release.

The story is set on Prince Edward Island and centered around Whitaker’s, a lobster fishing business run by Walt. His daughter Meg, a High School science teacher is horrified to learn her father is planning to sell the license to fish to her former nemesis, Oliver Ross. To try and stop him, she quits her job and goes to work on the boat, planning to show her father she should have the business instead. Unfortunately, Meg has terrible sea sickness and hates the smell of bait.

Oliver Ross knows his only chance of any success is if Walt Whitaker sells him the lobster license he’s scrimped and saved for. Owning the business would mean Oliver could do a better job of supporting his mom and brother after their father left them high and dry. But he never expected Meg, a girl he did a terrible wrong, to pull on mud boots and get in his way.

A lesson in lobsters…

The only thing I know about lobster fishing is that I like to eat the end result. But throughout the story I could almost feel the string of spray and the sway of the boat. The background detail, woven through the fishing scenes is meticulously researched. Oliver and Meg are both likable characters and I was firmly team both of them.

The message of hope in Christ is central, but at no point is the book preachy, a trick in itself. And the love story is tender and unpredictable. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and hope you do too.