Wild Dark Shore - Charlotte McConaghy

Wild Dark Shore

By Charlotte McConaghy

  • Release Date: 2025-03-04
  • Genre: Fiction & Literature
Score: 4.5
4.5
From 1,946 Ratings

Description

REESE'S BOOK CLUB PICK • INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • BOOK OF THE MONTH CLUB'S BOOK OF THE YEARLONGLISTED FOR THE WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION

A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR (NPR, TIME, USA Today,
The Economist, Scientific American, Good Housekeeping, Reader's Digest,BuzzFeed, BookRiot, HuffPost, Jezebel, The Globe and Mail, Kirkus, and more!)

"A breathtaking novel of ROMANCE, MYSTERY, AND TWISTS that will shock you...I love this book so much." —Reese Witherspoon
"A WILDLY TALENTED writer."
―Emily St. John Mandel
“Absolutely ASTONISHING. McConaghy's writing knocks me over every time.” —Fredrik Backman
“SPELLBINDING...Exceptionally imagined, thoroughly humane.” —Washington Post

A family on a remote island. A mysterious woman washed ashore. A rising storm on the horizon.

Dominic Salt and his three children are caretakers of Shearwater, a tiny island not far from Antarctica. Home to the world’s largest seed bank, Shearwater was once full of researchers, but with sea levels rising, the Salts are now its final inhabitants. Until, during the worst storm the island has ever seen, a woman mysteriously washes ashore.

Isolation has taken its toll on the Salts, but as they nurse the woman, Rowan, back to strength, it begins to feel like she might just be what they need. Rowan, long accustomed to protecting herself, starts imagining a future where she could belong to someone again.

But Rowan isn’t telling the whole truth about why she set out for Shearwater. And when she discovers sabotaged radios and a freshly dug grave, she realizes Dominic is keeping his own secrets. As the storms on Shearwater gather force, they all must decide if they can trust each other enough to protect the precious seeds in their care before it’s too late—and if they can finally put the tragedies of the past behind them to create something new, together.

A novel of breathtaking twists, dizzying beauty, and ferocious love, Wild Dark Shore is about the impossible choices we make to protect the people we love, even as the world around us disappears.

Reviews

  • One of the best books I’ve ever read

    5
    By scuba linda
    Part mystery, part historical fiction. Her character development is amazing. And the plot moves along. Should be a book club favorite Scuba Linda
  • Loved this book

    5
    By ldsk;dskf
    Wow. An amazing story of love, strength, and resilience. A story that will stay with me.
  • Excellent, exciting and adventurous!

    5
    By Singersongwritter
    Love the way the author presents the story, depth of characters and makes you feel as though you’re on this remote beautiful island.
  • Gripping

    5
    By kid lex
    This is a deeply moving tale of love, survival, grief and parenting. The characters and the setting are brought fully to life. The writing is exquisite and these folks and their story will remain with you long after the read is finished.
  • Enjoyed

    5
    By Mahone67
    This was a wonderfully written book. Definitely not the type of book I would read normally, but so glad I did. Would love to read another book about this family and where they settled. Each sibling was such a surprise especially Orly!!!
  • Loved

    5
    By shans ipod
    The writing in this book was as beautiful as the images I conjured up from it. I loved how the natural beauty, animal and plant life were all described and more than that the characters in the book.
  • Seeds

    3
    By Pepino53jh
    Interesting story; I figured out where the storylines were going. Could not really connect with any of the characters, however.
  • Love

    5
    By mts456
    Breathtaking!
  • Wonderful Book

    5
    By Alan Walter
    Just a terrific read. An amazing blend of fiction and unfortunately non-fiction. Never have read anything quite like it but this will not be my last read from this amazing author.
  • Loved!

    5
    By eh1571
    Absolutely stunning!