The Beautiful Dark: A Review of Melissa Payne’s Novel

4/5 stars ★★★★☆

https://amzn.to/3E4LVhk

Ever since my parents have died, I’m fascinated with the thought that they are looking down on me and helping me through life. It is what attracted me to this book. In The Beautiful Dark by Melissa Payne is a mysterious and moving story at the same time. Sometimes my heart was racing. Other times, I wanted to reach out and hug the seniors that live at Sunny Pines Retirement Community.

About The Book:

Birdie fell in love with another woman, Allison, who was murdered at an early time in their relationship. Birdie ended up raising Alison’s son. This happens early in the book. The majority of the story takes place at the retirement community where a host of lovable characters live. Birdie is struggling with being retired and spends most of her time trying to solve the murder of Allison.

One of my favorite quotes from the book is, “…retirement is hard. You go from being important and needed to…” She swallowed. “Adrift.” I think many people that are retired can relate to this. Birdie struggles to find new friends and would rather spend her time trying to track down a serial killer. However, the people in the community finally break down Birdie’s walls. She learns to become an important part of their group. They set out on helping Birdie to solve the case of the serial killer.

Another point of view is the story of Allison, who watches Birdie “from above.” I found this part interesting as well. It was a great way to add in a third person point of view. She could give some background on the other characters in the story. A quote from Allison that I loved was, “Funny thing about promises and the dead: we don’t have the same attachment to them as the living.” Have you ever made a promise to someone that has passed away?

My Thoughts On The Book:

I loved so many parts of this book. I wish I had a Birdie in my life that I could visit weekly. I loved how spunky she was, and she had a heart of gold. I spent a lot of time thinking about how that later stage in life affects people. But this book was also a mystery. I thought I had the serial killer figured out early on, but I needed to keep reading to see if I was right. I was never totally sure.

Melissa Payne does a wonderful job of characterization. I felt like I knew the characters well. I had wondered, while reading, if she had a lot of experience at a retirement community. So many events and dialogue made me laugh out loud. Her author’s notes does answer my question. Make sure you don’t skip this section at the end of the book.

In The Beautiful Dark deals with a lot of real-life issues. Payne deals with these issues well. I like how she crossed realistic fiction with mystery throughout the story. I would definitely recommend this book to my friends. I loved the book. However, I gave it a four star because I felt the story was a little repetitive in the middle. Don’t let this stop you, though. It is worth reading!

Extra Info:

Here are some books that reminded me of this one:

1. The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife by Anna Johnston
2. The Five Wishes of Mr. Murray McBride by Joe Siple

You can buy this book at: https://amzn.to/3E4LVhk

*If you want to read more of my book reviews, you can find them at: https://judiholst.com/book-reviews/

*If you missed my post about my Top Books of 2024, you can find it at: https://judiholst.com/top-20-books-that-i-loved-in-2024/

Thank you to NetGalley, Lake Union Publishing, and Melissa Payne for my free copy of this book. This is my honest review.

Product of the Week That I Recommend – The LitBear Sleep Mask and Scrunchie

I have tried all different sleep masks, and this one is definitely my favorite. There are two reasons:

1. The whole sleep mask is silk. Most of the sleep masks I have tried are silky around your face, but not on the band. The band parts fits perfectly; it is not too snug, but it stays in place all night.
2. There is a nose rest! I found I can breathe so much better with this band. With the nose rest, it blocks out all of the light without pressing too hard on my nose. This is my favorite part.

It’s nice that it also comes with a silky scrunchie, which I use during my workouts. If you are giving it as a gift, it comes in a pretty box for presentation. It also comes with a travel bag to store it.

You can buy it at: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DLNZVZ5V?ref=t_ac_view_request_product_image&campaignId=amzn1.campaign.2Q15CUMVXV7Q6&linkCode=tr1&tag=tbdteacher-20&linkId=amzn1.campaign.2Q15CUMVXV7Q6_1745353149033