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The Seascape Trilogy #2
Upon a Mystic Tide: A Seascape Novel
With their painful divorce looming on the horizon, radio psychologist Bess Cameron and her soon-to-be-ex-husband, John Mystic, meet at Maine’s Seascape Inn to finalize the terms of a property settlement. Bess believes John is in love with someone else, and she’s determined to move on without him. Their marriage appears doomed until the Inn’s matchmaking ghost, Tony, and its irrepressible owner, Miss Hattie, take matters in hand. Sometimes you have to leap upon a mystic tide and have faith the sand will shift and an island will appear . . .
The second book of bestselling author Vicki Hinze’s Seascape Trilogy brings readers back to the gentle magic of a place where love is always stronger than the fragile boundaries of life.
The second book of bestselling author Vicki Hinze’s Seascape Trilogy brings readers back to the gentle magic of a place where love is always stronger than the fragile boundaries of life.
294 pages, Paperback
First published December 1, 1996
9 people are currently reading
53 people want to read
About the author
Vicki Hinze
102 books328 followersVicki is the USA TODAY bestselling and award-winning author of nearly 40 novels, 4 nonfiction books and hundreds of articles. She's recognized as an author and as an educator by Who's Who in America and Who's Who in the World. For seven years, she was a columnist for Social-In Global Network; before then, a radio-talk show host for Everyday Woman.
The former VP for International Thriller Writers, consultant to the RWA Board of Directors, and a consultant to multiple other writing organizations. She's a member of International Thriller Writers, Mystery Writers of America, Novelists, Inc., ALLi, and Southern Independent Booksellers Assn.
The former VP for International Thriller Writers, consultant to the RWA Board of Directors, and a consultant to multiple other writing organizations. She's a member of International Thriller Writers, Mystery Writers of America, Novelists, Inc., ALLi, and Southern Independent Booksellers Assn.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
May 8, 2025
Well, I've read rubbish before (more's the pity) but this wins the award for it! And I get the Stupidity Award for reading it!
July 10, 2012
Not as Magical as the First
Dr. Bess Cameron is an excellent psychologist, counseling those who call in to her radio show on all matters of the heart. It's a career that fulfills her. One in which she excels.
Of course, if the station owner or her listening audience had any idea that she was in the middle of an acrimonious divorce and had been separated from her husband for years, she'd be out of a job. But that is a very closely held secret. Or it was, until a complete stranger calls and reveals that secret on air, throwing Bess' life into even greater turmoil.
She doesn't know who Tony is, or how he got his information, but she's completely shaken. She turns to a couple of good friends for support and ends up standing in their art gallery, staring at a painting that touches something deep inside her. It calls to her, drawing her to Maine and the Seascape B&B. She has no idea why she's so certain, but she's absolutely positive that she will find a precious sliver of peace there.
Private investigator John Mystic still loves his wife, knows he failed her as a husband just as he failed a dear friend as an investigator. He refuses to divorce Bess, though, until she agrees to take alimony, and she's being unreasonable on the matter. Now that news of the divorce has been made public, he's even more determined to make sure she's taken care of, no matter what it takes.
If he has to follow her to Maine and camp out at Seascape with her until she agrees to his terms, so be it. He just wasn't quite as prepared for dealing with a meddling ghost named Tony.
~*~
While the first book in this trilogy totally blew me away and appealed to me on many levels, I struggled with this second installment. Part of the problem is my own fault. I was pleasantly surprised and unprepared for the mystical elements and fabulous romance in the first, but I was expecting them in this one, and they just didn't live up to the expectation.
I was wise to Tony's story and his influence at Seascape, so that influence wasn't quite as mysterious here. It also lacked the darker edges of potential threat that kept me so off balance the first time around. He stuck his nose in a little too much for me, as well, until he seemed more like a secondary character than the briefly glimpsed guiding hand he was in the first. For me, less is more when it comes to Tony.
Then there were the main characters, Bess and John. I didn't like them and I hated the relationship conflict that was belabored throughout the book. That conflict is prevalent in second chance romances, one of the reasons I'm not a big fan of the theme.
These two characters supposedly love one another, always have, but they destroyed their relationship on the first go-round because they were completely incapable of honest communication, refused to show any sort of potential vulnerability, and wouldn't know how to express an honest emotion if it was beating them over the head. Like I wanted to do to them both. Often.
That's not relationship conflict, that's cowardice. I don't find emotional cowards to be all that romantic, and it was the main issue between them throughout the whole book, coming up in the story again and again with equal intensity and fervor. The unnecessary angst of it all overwhelmed the good points to such a degree that the romance was an utter fail for me.
Had there been a more gradual arc of acknowledgement, communication, and resolution throughout the narrative - and there could have been, there certainly were enough issues - I would have felt much differently about the whole relationship between them. I would have liked the characters more, too. Bess is supposed to be a psychologist, after all, but there was no professional light turned on the shadows of her personal life. And John was oblivious to the concept of healthy relationships. He could have used her professional advice, instead of letting his case come between them for so damn long. Man, they frustrated me.
Parts of this book were deeply emotional and poignant. Not all of it was disappointing. The town and the characters in it were just as charming as they were in the first book, and the plot threads surrounding the missing persons case John's been stuck on for years were interesting, if a little too abruptly resolved. The writing, too, was just as strong and the magic just as warm and heartening.
Unfortunately, not even all of that could balance out how much I disliked the relationship conflict or how disappointed I was in the main characters and their romance. But it did leave me with hope for the next book. I'll go in with fewer expectations, maybe, but I do believe the magic can be recaptured.
Disclosure: An ARC of this book was provided to me by Bell Bridge Books via NetGalley. This rating, review, and all included thoughts and comments are my own.
~*~*~*~
Reviewed for One Good Book Deserves Another.
Dr. Bess Cameron is an excellent psychologist, counseling those who call in to her radio show on all matters of the heart. It's a career that fulfills her. One in which she excels.
Of course, if the station owner or her listening audience had any idea that she was in the middle of an acrimonious divorce and had been separated from her husband for years, she'd be out of a job. But that is a very closely held secret. Or it was, until a complete stranger calls and reveals that secret on air, throwing Bess' life into even greater turmoil.
She doesn't know who Tony is, or how he got his information, but she's completely shaken. She turns to a couple of good friends for support and ends up standing in their art gallery, staring at a painting that touches something deep inside her. It calls to her, drawing her to Maine and the Seascape B&B. She has no idea why she's so certain, but she's absolutely positive that she will find a precious sliver of peace there.
Private investigator John Mystic still loves his wife, knows he failed her as a husband just as he failed a dear friend as an investigator. He refuses to divorce Bess, though, until she agrees to take alimony, and she's being unreasonable on the matter. Now that news of the divorce has been made public, he's even more determined to make sure she's taken care of, no matter what it takes.
If he has to follow her to Maine and camp out at Seascape with her until she agrees to his terms, so be it. He just wasn't quite as prepared for dealing with a meddling ghost named Tony.
~*~
While the first book in this trilogy totally blew me away and appealed to me on many levels, I struggled with this second installment. Part of the problem is my own fault. I was pleasantly surprised and unprepared for the mystical elements and fabulous romance in the first, but I was expecting them in this one, and they just didn't live up to the expectation.
I was wise to Tony's story and his influence at Seascape, so that influence wasn't quite as mysterious here. It also lacked the darker edges of potential threat that kept me so off balance the first time around. He stuck his nose in a little too much for me, as well, until he seemed more like a secondary character than the briefly glimpsed guiding hand he was in the first. For me, less is more when it comes to Tony.
Then there were the main characters, Bess and John. I didn't like them and I hated the relationship conflict that was belabored throughout the book. That conflict is prevalent in second chance romances, one of the reasons I'm not a big fan of the theme.
These two characters supposedly love one another, always have, but they destroyed their relationship on the first go-round because they were completely incapable of honest communication, refused to show any sort of potential vulnerability, and wouldn't know how to express an honest emotion if it was beating them over the head. Like I wanted to do to them both. Often.
That's not relationship conflict, that's cowardice. I don't find emotional cowards to be all that romantic, and it was the main issue between them throughout the whole book, coming up in the story again and again with equal intensity and fervor. The unnecessary angst of it all overwhelmed the good points to such a degree that the romance was an utter fail for me.
Had there been a more gradual arc of acknowledgement, communication, and resolution throughout the narrative - and there could have been, there certainly were enough issues - I would have felt much differently about the whole relationship between them. I would have liked the characters more, too. Bess is supposed to be a psychologist, after all, but there was no professional light turned on the shadows of her personal life. And John was oblivious to the concept of healthy relationships. He could have used her professional advice, instead of letting his case come between them for so damn long. Man, they frustrated me.
Parts of this book were deeply emotional and poignant. Not all of it was disappointing. The town and the characters in it were just as charming as they were in the first book, and the plot threads surrounding the missing persons case John's been stuck on for years were interesting, if a little too abruptly resolved. The writing, too, was just as strong and the magic just as warm and heartening.
Unfortunately, not even all of that could balance out how much I disliked the relationship conflict or how disappointed I was in the main characters and their romance. But it did leave me with hope for the next book. I'll go in with fewer expectations, maybe, but I do believe the magic can be recaptured.
Disclosure: An ARC of this book was provided to me by Bell Bridge Books via NetGalley. This rating, review, and all included thoughts and comments are my own.
~*~*~*~
Reviewed for One Good Book Deserves Another.
March 13, 2016
Title: Upon a Mystic Shore - Seascape Trilogy Book 2
Author: Vicki Hinze
Published: 12-8-11
Publisher: Belle Books
Pages: 296
Genre: Sci Fi & Fantasy
Sub Genre: Series, Ghost; Romance
ISBN: 9781611940794
ASIN: B006LTIY0M
Reviewer: DelAnne
Reviewed For: NetGalley
.
Bess Cameron is a radio psychologist who helps hundreds who call in for help but no one knows the shambles her own personal life is in. Bess is married to John Mystic, a private investigator. They each have lived separate lives after their first year of marriage. Now after six years of separation Bess believes John is seeing someone and wants a quiet divorce before her bosses and audience find out and she is fired. Then a mysterious called announces her divorce on the air. While visiting Maggie and TJ she sees a painting that when she looks at it fills her with a since of peace and feels the need to go there. She decides to go to Seascape in the hope that she can make some decisions about her future. to John still loves Bess and knows he has let his obsession with a case destroy his marriage. He wants Bess to split the marital assets in half and Bess is refusing, wanting absolutely nothing from him or the marriage. He tracks her down to Seascape Inn and makes a bargain. Go over the terms of a divorce and come to an agreement and he will stop fighting her and sign on the dotted line.
I found book two easier to follow and understand since I knew what was going on at the end. Although references are made to the characters in book one it does not distract from Upon a Mystic Shore. Although you would greatly enjoy Beyond the Misty Shore, it is not a prerequisite to reading Upon a Mystic Shore. I got to visit the beautiful Maine scenery and Miss Hattie and the others again and I did not have to drive eleven hundred miles now that is magical. I would love to stay at the Seascape Inn for a long and relaxing vacation. Since that is not possible I will visit through the Seascape Trilogy. I look forward to reading Beside a Dreamswept Sea the last book in the Trilogy.
Amazon link: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...
Barnes and Noble link: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/upon-...
Goodreads link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...
The Reading Room link: https://www.facebook.com/permalink.ph...
Author: Vicki Hinze
Published: 12-8-11
Publisher: Belle Books
Pages: 296
Genre: Sci Fi & Fantasy
Sub Genre: Series, Ghost; Romance
ISBN: 9781611940794
ASIN: B006LTIY0M
Reviewer: DelAnne
Reviewed For: NetGalley
.
Bess Cameron is a radio psychologist who helps hundreds who call in for help but no one knows the shambles her own personal life is in. Bess is married to John Mystic, a private investigator. They each have lived separate lives after their first year of marriage. Now after six years of separation Bess believes John is seeing someone and wants a quiet divorce before her bosses and audience find out and she is fired. Then a mysterious called announces her divorce on the air. While visiting Maggie and TJ she sees a painting that when she looks at it fills her with a since of peace and feels the need to go there. She decides to go to Seascape in the hope that she can make some decisions about her future. to John still loves Bess and knows he has let his obsession with a case destroy his marriage. He wants Bess to split the marital assets in half and Bess is refusing, wanting absolutely nothing from him or the marriage. He tracks her down to Seascape Inn and makes a bargain. Go over the terms of a divorce and come to an agreement and he will stop fighting her and sign on the dotted line.
I found book two easier to follow and understand since I knew what was going on at the end. Although references are made to the characters in book one it does not distract from Upon a Mystic Shore. Although you would greatly enjoy Beyond the Misty Shore, it is not a prerequisite to reading Upon a Mystic Shore. I got to visit the beautiful Maine scenery and Miss Hattie and the others again and I did not have to drive eleven hundred miles now that is magical. I would love to stay at the Seascape Inn for a long and relaxing vacation. Since that is not possible I will visit through the Seascape Trilogy. I look forward to reading Beside a Dreamswept Sea the last book in the Trilogy.
Amazon link: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...
Barnes and Noble link: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/upon-...
Goodreads link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...
The Reading Room link: https://www.facebook.com/permalink.ph...
December 31, 2011
5 STARS
This is the second of three books in Seascape Inn series. Well scince I cried in it I have to say I was feeling this story. Was not sure how much I would like this one but I did.
Tony the matchmaking ghost is back and so is the townsfolk who we met in the first book.
Dr. Bess Cameron is getting divorce really soon even though only lived with her husband one year but seperated 6 years. She was seperated when she got her job at a radio dJ she is psychoiogist and cancells on talk radio her boss lets her know that the owner will let her go when she finds out.
Right after that conversation Tony calls the show live and lets everyone know her divorce will be final soon. Tony also talks to her in her head at same time.
Bess visits her friendsT.J. and Maggie finally look at seascape painting and feels she has to go their right now. T.J. & Maggie fell in love at seascape inn with Tony's help.
John Mystic still listens to his wife radio show and feels concern about the weird telephone call Tony had made. He never wanted the divorce and does not why Bess left him. He has had a case over 6 years ago to find Elise's daughter she thinks was kidnapped but Bess & FBI think she eloped. John has put Elise's case first in his life even over Bess. Elise has been more to a mother for John and she dies and Bess does not even go to funeral.
John & Bess fight through their lawyers about who wants what. Bess nothing John wants her to have half. Their Judge is ready to put Bess in jail or pay 10,000 fine. John can't pay it for her. So John follows her up to Maine and Tony starts to talk to him in his mind and fixes Bess car so she can't leave.
I can't wait to read the last book next. Hope I don't cry in that one too.
I was given this ebook too read in exchange of honest review from Netgalley.
12/15/2011 PUB Bell Bridge Books
This is the second of three books in Seascape Inn series. Well scince I cried in it I have to say I was feeling this story. Was not sure how much I would like this one but I did.
Tony the matchmaking ghost is back and so is the townsfolk who we met in the first book.
Dr. Bess Cameron is getting divorce really soon even though only lived with her husband one year but seperated 6 years. She was seperated when she got her job at a radio dJ she is psychoiogist and cancells on talk radio her boss lets her know that the owner will let her go when she finds out.
Right after that conversation Tony calls the show live and lets everyone know her divorce will be final soon. Tony also talks to her in her head at same time.
Bess visits her friendsT.J. and Maggie finally look at seascape painting and feels she has to go their right now. T.J. & Maggie fell in love at seascape inn with Tony's help.
John Mystic still listens to his wife radio show and feels concern about the weird telephone call Tony had made. He never wanted the divorce and does not why Bess left him. He has had a case over 6 years ago to find Elise's daughter she thinks was kidnapped but Bess & FBI think she eloped. John has put Elise's case first in his life even over Bess. Elise has been more to a mother for John and she dies and Bess does not even go to funeral.
John & Bess fight through their lawyers about who wants what. Bess nothing John wants her to have half. Their Judge is ready to put Bess in jail or pay 10,000 fine. John can't pay it for her. So John follows her up to Maine and Tony starts to talk to him in his mind and fixes Bess car so she can't leave.
I can't wait to read the last book next. Hope I don't cry in that one too.
I was given this ebook too read in exchange of honest review from Netgalley.
12/15/2011 PUB Bell Bridge Books
January 31, 2016
This is the second book in the trilogy. In this book we meet psychologist Bess and her investigator husband John. The biggest problem here is one that is so ironic. Bess and John are in the process of a divorce. You would think that Bess, as an on air radio psychologist, who gives out advice daily, wold be able to find a way to straighten out her own marriage. You would think that John who has been over zealous in trying to solve a case would have gotten the clues that his marriage was in trouble. But, neither of them did this. For many this may be a sticking point. For me I see it as a way of setting this wonderful story up. I chalk it up to the fact that they were working so hard to keep other people from knowing the truth about them that they were blinded to solutions. John still loves Bess and both of them end up at Seascape Inn. Bess end up there after seeing the painting in a gallery and John follows her to square some things away. Hattie and the townspeople we met in the very first book are there to add the local color and flavor to the book. Of course a lot of this would not have happened if it hadn't been for John, the resident ghost helping things along. After all he is the one who made things known on air during one of Bess's shows about her divorce, something she'd kept secret not only from her listeners but also from her boss.
Like the first book, it is packed with emotions and the hope that things will work out for our two main characters. But, as you read you see Bess kicking the whole journey. Will their relationship be healed? This is a book you must read to find the answer to the question, because I won't give it away.
Like the first book, it is packed with emotions and the hope that things will work out for our two main characters. But, as you read you see Bess kicking the whole journey. Will their relationship be healed? This is a book you must read to find the answer to the question, because I won't give it away.
February 6, 2012
3.5 Stars
Like the first book in the series, this one offers readers an intriguing pair as heroine and hero, but their lack of communication becomes irritating when it goes on and on. Bess particularly seems immature at times; I found it difficult to believe that a professional with her credentials would behave as she does. John is the second hero who is moved to tears a bit too frequently for my taste. Still, Seascape Inn is a lovely setting, Miss Hattie and the quirky villagers are as appealing as ever, and Tony the ghost is more active and more human than in the first book. And the ending is enough to satisfy the most romantic readers.
See full review at Just Janga:
http://justjanga.blogspot.com/2012/02...
The edition reviewed was the Bell Bridge reissued ebook.
Like the first book in the series, this one offers readers an intriguing pair as heroine and hero, but their lack of communication becomes irritating when it goes on and on. Bess particularly seems immature at times; I found it difficult to believe that a professional with her credentials would behave as she does. John is the second hero who is moved to tears a bit too frequently for my taste. Still, Seascape Inn is a lovely setting, Miss Hattie and the quirky villagers are as appealing as ever, and Tony the ghost is more active and more human than in the first book. And the ending is enough to satisfy the most romantic readers.
See full review at Just Janga:
http://justjanga.blogspot.com/2012/02...
The edition reviewed was the Bell Bridge reissued ebook.
January 30, 2017
Review featured at www.books-n-kisses.com
This is one of my favorite series of all time. There is just something special about this story, this series and the Seascape Inn.
This trilogy is about love. Love that transcends time. I could talk about this book for pages and pages but it really just comes down to if you enjoy a romance book with everything you could ever ask for than this book is it.
Get these books and just know you will want to read them over and over.
Disclaimer:
I received a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
This is one of my favorite series of all time. There is just something special about this story, this series and the Seascape Inn.
This trilogy is about love. Love that transcends time. I could talk about this book for pages and pages but it really just comes down to if you enjoy a romance book with everything you could ever ask for than this book is it.
Get these books and just know you will want to read them over and over.
Disclaimer:
I received a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
January 27, 2012
'Upon a Mystic Tide' continues the trilogy well; it is really enjoyable. I liked the supporting characters and it was interesting to re-visit them. If the two main characters had communicated more effectively, I would have given it 5*; I thought their continued miscommunication slowed down the plot. Nevertheless it is a book well worth reading.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews