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The Guest Book

3.66 of 5 stars 3.66 · rating details · 178 ratings · 59 reviews

When Macy Dillon was five years old her father encouraged her to draw a picture in the guestbook of a Carolina beach house. The next year, Macy returned to discover a drawing by an unidentified little boy on the facing page. Over the next eleven years the children continue to exchange drawings ... until tragedy ends visits to the beach house altogether. During her final tr...more

Paperback, 352 pages

Published July 3rd 2012 by Zondervan (first published 2012)

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Feb 23, 2013 Margaret rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: didn-t-care-for

Reading the back cover of this book, I was caught up in the idea of a young Macy communicating with an unidentified boy through drawings left in a beach house guest book. As each child found a drawing, another one would be put in its place until the year Macy's father died. A final picture was left behind with a note telling the boy where to hide the book until she could return to find it.
Twenty-one years later, the drawings and the unknown identity of the boy she communnicated with still haunt...more

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Sep 12, 2012 Patty rated it 4 of 5 stars

The Guest Book
by
Marybeth Whalen

My "in a nutshell"summary...

Lots of dysfunction in this family tale...a father dies, a brother has drinking issues, a mother can't forget and a sister who is also a mother has to decide what she really wants out of life.

My thoughts after reading this book...

My thoughts are sort of simple, pleasing and profound ones. This was a lovely story of a family who had grieved over the loss of their father for many many years. A wife, a son and a daughter are all stuck in t...more

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Sep 03, 2012 Laura rated it 5 of 5 stars

Macy was a little girl, her family took an annual trip the Carolina beach. When she was too young to write in the guest book, her father encouraged her to draw a picture. For the next decade, she exchanged pictures with a boy who visited the beach house later in the summer. After a tragedy, her family quit going to the beach house, but Macy still remembers the guest book and wonders what happened to the boy she shared her heart with. Deciding to go back one more time to the beach house, Macy's f...more

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Sep 02, 2012 Candace rated it 4 of 5 stars

Marybeth Whalen's The Guest Book is a captivating story about love, loss, family, and new beginnings. Macy and her family went to the beach every summer growing up and stayed in the Time in a Bottle beach house. From the ages of five until sixteen, Macy corresponded with a boy through the pages of Time in a Bottle's guest book. Every year they would anonymously draw each other pictures of what was important to them at the beach. Through these 'letters', Macy and her mystery artist came to know e...more Marybeth Whalen's The Guest Book is a captivating story about love, loss, family, and new beginnings. Macy and her family went to the beach every summer growing up and stayed in the Time in a Bottle beach house. From the ages of five until sixteen, Macy corresponded with a boy through the pages of Time in a Bottle's guest book. Every year they would anonymously draw each other pictures of what was important to them at the beach. Through these 'letters', Macy and her mystery artist came to know each other better than anyone and they found that they developed feelings for each other. Unexpectedly, Macy's father dies and leaves her family in shock. Macy, her mother Brenda, and brother Max decide to return to the beach house that year when Macy is sixteen. Plans were made to meet her mystery artist that summer, but with memories of her father at every turn, Macy and her family leave the beach house before her meeting.

Ten years pass and Macy and her family are still mourning the loss of their father and husband. In an attempt to finally move on, Macy, her five year old daughter Emma, Max, and her mother decide to go back to Time in a Bottle. As they arrive it appears that not much has changed. Brenda soon reconnects with their neighbor Buzz, and Macy sets out on a quest to finally discover the identity of her mystery artist. After a heartfelt prayer to God, Macy finds herself with three men who come 'a courting' and have connections to Time in a Bottle. Pastor Nate, the young, artistic pastor that used to vacation at the beach house; Dockery, a volunteer at a local Art Camp that Emma attends; and Wyatt, Buzz's son that had easy access to Time in a Bottle while growing up. Could one of them be her childhood love?

In The Guest Book, Macy's passion is drawing. Macy discovered her love for sketching when she was a little girl drawing shells with colored pencils in a beach house guest book. Twenty-one years later, Macy finds herself as a Grocery Store employee. Macy's life is not how she envisioned it. Art school went out the window when she became a single parent. To satisfy her love of drawing, Macy creates signs and window scenes at the store she works in. Dreams of being a 'real artist' are all but gone.

Marybeth Whalen's The Guest Book is a great, feel good read. Once I started reading it I found I had to keep reading to uncover the mystery of who 'The Artist' was. I definitely recommend The Guest Book to anyone looking for a fun and touching story. Filled with romance, mystery, and healing, The Guest Book is the novel to pick up this fall!

Marybeth Whalen has provided me with a complimentary copy of her book, The Guest Book,, for the purpose of review. (less)

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Aug 14, 2012 Amy Bradsher rated it 4 of 5 stars

Macy Dillon has been drawing in the guest book of a beachside vacation rental for 10 years - and a young boy has been drawing her pictures in response. Until, that is, her father died and Macy's family stopped visiting the beach. Now, years later, they return to find closure for her father's death and Macy prays that she might find that boy who so ensnared her dreams years before. With everything in disarray and pain on every side, might the guest book provide the hope and healing that Macy has...more

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Jul 14, 2012 Iola rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012, christian-fiction, contemporary-romance, kindle, netgalley

Macy Dillon works in a local supermarket and satisfies her artistic bent by painting the store windows, because a single mother can't afford art school. She cares for her daughter, Emma, rescues and bails out her part-boy brother, Max, and spends time with her mother, who is still mourning the loss of her husband after ten years. But now her mother thinks it is time to move on, and proposes the family spend two weeks in their old vacation haunt of Sunset Beach, at Time in a Bottle, the house the...more

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Jul 10, 2012 cupcake rated it 4 of 5 stars

Well, what do you know. We have a summer beach read that is actually set at - GET THIS - the beach! Not that The Guest Book wouldn't work at any time of the year, but its arrival this summer fits rather nicely.

Macy is twenty-four, a single mother (the baby daddy hit the road when daughter Emma was an infant), works as a clerk at a grocery store, and basically has her life's gear set on idle. She's in a perpetual state of waiting. She waits for Emma's father to come back (he does, but is that wha...more

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Jun 27, 2012 Manuela rated it 4 of 5 stars

In the aspect of the novel’s structure, the story was solely told through the narrative of Macy. Although the story line was fun, witty and homey, it felt very one-dimensional. When the three men were introduced, on who could possible be ‘the artist’, it was very suspensful but it would’ve been much more enhanced if we as readers could have seen the thoughts of the men.Also, usually in most of the novels I read, minor characters do not play a major role in the novel, this fact remains true in Th...more In the aspect of the novel’s structure, the story was solely told through the narrative of Macy. Although the story line was fun, witty and homey, it felt very one-dimensional. When the three men were introduced, on who could possible be ‘the artist’, it was very suspensful but it would’ve been much more enhanced if we as readers could have seen the thoughts of the men.Also, usually in most of the novels I read, minor characters do not play a major role in the novel, this fact remains true in The Guest Book but I believe it is through Max’s brotherly camaraderie and her daughter Emma’s sweet, but yet “little dictator” character is what adds to the classic of a typical American family. Overall, the development of the characters was not clearly shown . The most evident is Macy’s mother Brenda who is finally moving past the death of her husband and is experiencing love again. Max, Macy’s brother eventually overcomes his alchohol addiction with the help of Pastor Nate. I would’ve liked to have seen more growth in Macy’s character through her personal relationship with God.

I touched on this in the earlier paragraph, but I think the author somewhat missed the mark in terms of the key element of faith in the novel. I felt that for the most part it was like any other secular romance novel and the parts about God are sometimes (not always) randomly added. I am sympathetic to the tough work it takes to create a novel with equal elements of faith and romance, but it is unfortunate to see in this case, that the romance element was the primary focus of this novel. Which it should not have been.

However in my honest opinion, this book was expertly written! Some authors struggle with keeping a reader strung one to the very end of a novel, without them skipping to the end because of the lack of suspense. Mary Beth Whalen on the hand is able to masterfully weave this story with suspense, love and wit. Asides from the one-dimensional plot story, the unbalanced portion of faith vs. romance, and the sub-par character development, this book was incredible!! Such a superb novel, and I encourage you all to go out and find it!! .

For more visit my website at; http://walkinginajourneyoffaith.wordp...(less)

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Jul 21, 2012 My Book Addiction and More MBA rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: christian-fiction

THE GUEST BOOK by Mary Beth Whalen is a christian fiction set in Sunset Beach,North Carolina. Follow Macy Dillion to Sunset Beach, North Carolina.Go with Macy with her struggles,grief,healing,regrets, a mysterious guest book,love,second chances, a few twists and turns. A great summer read! Of course, being from Eastern North Carolina myself,and knowing the area only made it seem more real. "The Guest Book" is a complex,compelling,story of childhood memories and God's neverending love. Macy gets...more

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Jun 23, 2012 Kimberly rated it 4 of 5 stars

Review written for www.books-n-kisses.com

I really enjoyed this book more than I thought I would. It does fall under Christian romance so there is quite a bit about God and returning to Him after a time when Macy let herself stop believing.

This is a very melancholy book. The character is still in, I think, a depression from the last few years of her life. Her father passed away and she got pregnant by a boyfriend who then ran off and she has raised her daughter on her own. Macy’s brother Max is g...more Review written for www.books-n-kisses.com

I really enjoyed this book more than I thought I would. It does fall under Christian romance so there is quite a bit about God and returning to Him after a time when Macy let herself stop believing.

This is a very melancholy book. The character is still in, I think, a depression from the last few years of her life. Her father passed away and she got pregnant by a boyfriend who then ran off and she has raised her daughter on her own. Macy’s brother Max is going through a depression as well but has turned to drinking and maybe even her mother is too since she has kept a shrine to her late husband for 10 years. Most of the book is spent with Macy looking back at her father and the time they spent at the beach when she was young. And while she wonders who the artist is that has left her the pictures for years the story feels more like a homage to the father she misses. I wonder if the author recently lost someone herself to feel this melancholy and put it in writing. But what is interesting is the book is not a downer. The memories that Macy has are good memories, most of the time, so you do not feel like she has been in a deep depression just a functioning one.

I do not want to give the wrong impression. This is a REALLY good book but it is not all love and sex. It feels more like what a real person goes through after a rough time. Wanting to come around and change her life. All the characters are very interesting in the book from Brenda (mom), the neighbor (Buzz), the three men who enter her life and especially Max her brother. I really enjoyed the playfulness of Max especially when he is around Emma (Macy’s daughter). The author really writes Emma’s part well. Emma is supposed to be 5 years old and she acts it. So many times authors put in a child about this age and the child either speaks like a 2 year old or like a 10 year old. You really feel that the author has had these conversations with a 5 year old and wrote them down.

While, like I said, there is quite a bit of God and religion in the book (including a handsome pastor) it is not shoved down your throat. This is a wonderful Christian story of a woman who is ready to turn her life around and is just trying to figure it out and hoping to get led in the direction she is supposed to go. I do, however, wish we had an epilogue to this book (you will understand when you read it).

NOTE: After reading the extra note about the sculpture used in the story I went all through the internet looking for a picture. Even going to the website of the city it is located in and when one was not there I actually sent them an email telling them that they needed one because the book was coming out. I finally found it on a Pinterest site made up by the author. http://pinterest.com/marybeth6/the-gu...(less)

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Aug 17, 2012 Cafelilybookreviews rated it 4 of 5 stars

If you haven’t yet found your perfect summer read, RUN and grab yourself a copy of The Guestbook. Marybeth Whalen stole my heart again with a beautiful, heartfelt romance. I first discovered her when I reviewed The Mailbox, and ranked THAT book as my favorite summer read of 2010.

Similar to The Mailbox, this story takes place on Sunset Beach and involves a young woman finding her way, after some heartbreaking losses in life. Macy Dillon returns to the beach hoping to find solace for her heart. Du...more

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Aug 04, 2012 Glenajo rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: christian, fiction, romance, uplifting

Budding artist, Macy Dillion drew her first picture in the guesthouse at a vacation beach house when she was five. Over the years, a young boy drew pictures back to her, and they developed a line of communication that followed them through the years. Then Macy’s father died, she got pregnant, and the father of her child left her. Now five years later, her child’s father returns, but her mother plans another vacation to Sunset Beach. Macy is determined to find the artist from the guestbook to see...more

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Jul 13, 2012 Pamela Barrett rated it 4 of 5 stars

An easy summer read that I finished in a couple of days. Single mom Macy, has been raising her daughter ever since Emma’s dad, Chase, left Emma when she was a baby. Macy’s life is finally on the right track when Chase shows up wanting to start over. Macy’s mom and brother don’t trust him, but Emma wants her dad to stay. Macy’s own father died when she was young and his death deeply affected all of them—her mom is stuck in the past, her brother drinks too much, and Macy carries a lot of guilt fro...more

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Nov 18, 2012 Ibjoy1953 rated it 5 of 5 stars

My Thoughts On This Book

The Guest Book was truly a delightful and enjoyable read. The fact that Macy Dillon left these drawings in a guest book, and had someone reply with drawing of his own was so very sweet and heartwarming. And to come back ten years later looking for this guy makes for a really awesome story. With believable characters that will sure capture your heart, author MaryBeth Whalen gives readers a warm and interesting story you will love. And with the many twists and turns, you wi...more

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Apr 16, 2012 Tonya rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012-reads

I love how Marybeth takes things that she seees and creates a story from them. Macy's family used to go the beach all the time. Macy started drawing in the guest book and leaving pictures for an unnamed boy who would leave one as well for her. After Macy's dad died, they stopped going to the beach.

However after 10 years Macy's mom wants them all to go back. Macy feels like maybe she will have a chance to find the boy. Also she needs time to think if her ex-boyfriend Chase, who is also the father...more

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Jun 28, 2012 JoyAnne rated it 5 of 5 stars

There have been so many books that I've enjoyed reading over the years but every once in a while there is one that just stands out and this is that book! What a fabulous story! I read it in one day. Yes, I spent hours reading and couldn't put it down! It's not your typical romance and that's what I loved about it.

Not only is there romance but mystery as well, I couldn't figure out who the anonymous artist was. There were times when I thought I knew but then something would happen that changed my...more

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Jun 10, 2012 Captivated rated it 4 of 5 stars

Twenty-six-year-old Macy Dillon is a single mother of one. She doesn't love her job, she isn't sure if she should take back her daughter's father (that left them when Emma was born), and she just has a general feeling of being unsettled. Add on to that a brother that she has to bail out of jail quite frequently and a mother who can't get over Macy's father, that died ten years ago, and you've got a family that needs some healing.

So they decide to head back to the family vacation spot that they s...more

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Jul 30, 2012 Casey rated it 3 of 5 stars

A beach read…set on the beach. It was like slipping away to my own “Time in a Bottle”, with the crash of waves ripping across the sands and the squall of birds riding the air.

There is much to be said for the “flavor” of a book. This novel definitely carries that flavor and tone of finding oneself. It’s a journey of change and discovery for many of the characters giving it more than a shallow one-dimensional feel.

Over all, I wasn’t as taken with this novel as I expected, which surprised me. It...more

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Nov 11, 2012 Samantha rated it 5 of 5 stars

Marybeth Whalen spins a truly splendid romantic tale in The Guest Book. It reminded me slightly of The Lake House (only without the strange time travel) with it's extremely likeable characters and the mysterious drawings that Macy and "The Artist" have been coversing with over the years.
The pain the family feel over the loss of their father many years before is portrayed so well, from Macy's mother's act of holding a birthday meal for her husband over 10 years ago, to Max's drinking problem.
Ove...more

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Jul 07, 2012 Melissa rated it 5 of 5 stars

This is a great modern romantic read for any time of year - in the summer, it'll have you longing for some time at the beach, and in every other season, it'll have you looking forward to the fun possibilities that every summer brings. The characters are fun and full of life, and there is a sweet, very romantic mystery involving the Guest Book that had me guessing all the way to the end and left my heart happy. I found myself identifying with and really rooting for Macy, the protagonist. The only...more

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Aug 17, 2012 Briana rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: water

I liked this book. I found it to be very drawing so to speak. I had a hard time putting it down because I wanted to find out who the artist was. I loved the love life she had. It wasnt a normal typical love life. I dont want to give too much away though. So I'll stop there. :)

Whalen did a good job with letting you in Macy's head. I do think that Macy thought alittle too much but at the same time I could relate to her. Which I found to be comforting. Ok. That's all Ive got without giving anything...more

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Mar 18, 2013 Mandy rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: kindle, galley, 2013

This review can also be found at Book Boudoir.

I don't usually read books with a religious undertone. And every time I say that I roll my eyes at myself because I seem to read them randomly -- even though they are on my "don't read" list. Yeah, it makes no sense. The summary of The Guest Book was enough to catch my attention and I decided to give it a try anyway. Part of me is glad I did. I'll explain why.

I'm a big believer in things happening for a reason. Whether it's a conversation you are hav...more This review can also be found at Book Boudoir.

I don't usually read books with a religious undertone. And every time I say that I roll my eyes at myself because I seem to read them randomly -- even though they are on my "don't read" list. Yeah, it makes no sense. The summary of The Guest Book was enough to catch my attention and I decided to give it a try anyway. Part of me is glad I did. I'll explain why.

I'm a big believer in things happening for a reason. Whether it's a conversation you are having making you realize something, or even reading a book that makes you realize things won't always be tough. However, I don't like for religion to be the forefront of anything I read or listen to. Mostly because there is such a fine line between sharing your views and pushing your opinion on people to try and make them believe it too. TGB straddled that line for me.

It started out without any mention of religion and I thought maybe the other reviews I'd read were just flat our wrong. Then about half way through it seemed to just pop up...followed by it being mentioned what sometimes felt like every other page. It was borderline too much. That aside, I really did enjoy the book. [Don't look at me like that! I'm a woman and I have every right to like something even when it is full of things I don't connect with.]

There was a lot of repetitiveness. I felt like "the artist" was being drilled into my head every page or two. But it was a neat idea for a story. I just didn't feel like it was solid enough to grab me and not let me go. There was something that I didn't connect with. Possibly because I haven't gone through the major things that Macy had? I don't know. I can't say for sure.

I'd have liked to have learned more about certain characters. I enjoyed Macy's daughter, mother and brother .Really curious about him by the end of the book. Enough so that I'd be willing to read a book about him probably, even though I felt like his life was being groomed into something religious.

At the risk of spoiling it, Macy does meet three men, all very different, and all being set up for romance. I found myself unable to decide who to "root" for when it came to them. Usually I have a pretty solid idea of who I want the heroine to end up with in a romance based novel. Not so with this one. I kind of enjoyed that! All three men were sweet and caring at the core, which was a huge bonus. No jerks with ulterior motives in-sight. Phew! That was a breath of fresh air since some romance novels lean on that a lot. I definitely enjoyed that the people Macy meets come into her life for a reason. Some stay for longer than others, but they all helped her grow and see what she wanted out of life.

Ms. Whalen's writing style and voice was nice and I'm curious enough to check out other books by her. I think The Guest Book would be a great beach read, if you're planning on stocking up on books for summer vacation!(less)

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Jul 09, 2012 IrenesChristianReviews rated it 4 of 5 stars

The concept of this book is interesting. Communicating with another person by simply drawing a picture in a book. This takes place at a beach house where a girl and a boy draw the pictures. They draw in the guest book at the house. There are some twists and turns along their journey and that is what makes the story interesting.

The main character, Macy, is complex and the author does well at making her intriguing. The other stories that make up the book also entice you to keep reading. I thought...more

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Sep 02, 2012 Carla rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: pleasure-reading

Another great beach read by Marybeth Whalen!

I enjoyed this book as much as I enjoyed her first two novels, The Mailbox and She Makes It Look Easy. Great story, characters and setting...love how Marybeth winds faith as well as music into her books. It's like hearing the soundtrack playing while you are reading along - with the sounds of the ocean blending in for that perfect beach read.

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Oct 02, 2012 Tamara rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: books-i-own, books-i-read-in-2012, she-reads-bk-club-selection

This is a fiction book, but with Christian tones. I wasn't sure what to expect at first- but I liked it. It wasn't preachy- it was just a good story. The story-line dealth with love, loss, moving on, faith and finding the strength to stand on your own.

The ending was good- things were wrapped up; but not perfectly. Would be nice to have a sequel to see what happens next in this family's life.

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Apr 22, 2012 Carla Stewart rated it 5 of 5 stars

Marybeth Whalen is masterful at setting the stage and drawing the reader in. A trip to Sunset Beach for a family stuck in regrets and sorrow is a journey for the heart that kept me in suspense until the very last page. The Guest Book is lovely. Uplifting. Satisfying. A must-read!

I was delighted to endorse this book.

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Sep 03, 2012 Jackie rated it 3 of 5 stars

Probably a 3.5. A tale of loss, love and redemption. A great reminder to have faith and follow your dreams, even if you screw some things up along the way. I would have given it 4 stars, but I felt the ending was a little rushed to get to the happily ever after, and I would have loved to know more about Max and Nate.

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Jul 24, 2012 Kellie Coates rated it 4 of 5 stars

For a few days, I got to escape to a Carolina beach house and journey with Macy Dillon as she pieced together a bit of mystery and the deep longing of her heart. Marybeth Whalen paints realistic family relationships against the backdrop of a beautiful setting. THE PERFECT SUMMER BEACH READ!

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Aug 12, 2012 Kandy Streety rated it 4 of 5 stars

A nice, easy beach read. I enjoyed the storyline and the mystery throughout the book. It felt a little rushed at the end and made me feel a little disappointed that Whalen didn't add a few more pages to finish up. All in all however, it was pretty good.

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Jul 22, 2012 Nancy Moritz rated it 4 of 5 stars

Marybeth Whalen is a Christian fiction author. This is her third novel. They are beach reads (light summer reading) but I really enjoy the characters and the plot lines. It only took me a few days to get through this one on vacation.

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About Marybeth Whalen

Marybeth Whalen is a member of the Proverbs 31 Ministries writing team and a regular contributor to their daily devotions, which reach over 350,000 people each day. Her first novel, The Mailbox, was released in June 2010. Her next novel, She Makes It Look Easy, was released in June 2011. Additionally, she serves as director of She Reads, Proverbs 31 Ministries’ fiction division. Marybeth is the wi...more

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