Sandpiper Drift

South Africa #2

by Vanessa Del Fabbro

When journalist Monica Brunetti enters the town of Lady Helen, she is awed by its beauty. A tiny jewel on the west coast of South Africa, its bright tin roofs and swaying palms seem made for picture postcards, not the real-world problems that have led her there.
But the village takes hold of her heart, especially the beleaguered residents of Sandpiper Drift, who are threatened with eviction from their tranquil neighborhood beside the lagoon. And so Monica packs up her laptop, her adopted sons and housekeeper Francina, who's wrestling with a major decision of her own, for the journey of a lifetime.

Genres: Fiction, Christian

390 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2006

Reviews

[Claire Teggin · Rating 1 out of 5]

What a shame - I really wanted to like this book, I’ve never read any South African fiction similar to this before and although I was warned it wouldn’t be dazzling it defiantly just continuously disappointed.

The premise isn’t bad, it has potential to be an interesting story depicting themes that would highlight South African culture and create discussions, but everything was just plain hollow.

From the characters, who seems to want to be built with depth but end up having random thoughts that are never explored and end up plain whims, to the setting which is just described as a sleepy seaside town with a ton of flowers - there is much more to South Africa than that.

[Rebecca · Rating 3 out of 5]

When Monica, a (white) journalist, lands a new job in Lady Helen -- a tiny town in South Africa, which was once ruled by an apartheid government -- she must move Sipho and Mandla, her 2 (black) adopted sons, and Francina, her (black) nanny/housekeeper. There, they start a new life together. Will Monica's new job at a local newspaper fulfill her needs, or will the unconventional family need to move yet again? When Francina meets a man, will she choose a future separate from the people she has come to call family?

I am enjoying this book series but am struggling on whether it deserves 3 or 4 stars. I'm going with 3 stars for the formal rating, but wish I could give it 3.5 stars. Looking forward to reading the last 2 in the series ...

[Alison · Rating 4 out of 5]

“ second book in a series of 4. The continuing story of Monica and her two adopted sons as they move from Johannesburg to a small town called Lady Helen on the west coast of South Africa along with the housekeeper Francina. Monica starts to run the newspaper for the town and had to go up against a land developer, trying to displace quite a few of the poorer families.”

[Melissa (Always Behind) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Set in South Africa. Better than the first book in the series. Could have used some romance, but otherwise good.

[Tracy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not as good as the first book in the series, but an okay follow-up.