Review: Beach Vibes by Susan Mallery – When Family Ties Are Tested

Beach Vibes is a heartfelt story about love, loyalty, and the emotional fallout that comes when family secrets threaten new beginnings.

Summary:

Beth is proud of her Malibu sandwich shop and even prouder of her brother Rick, a surgical resident who rose from foster care to success. Life seems perfect when Rick starts dating her best friend, Jana, and sparks fly between Beth and Jana’s brother. But Beth’s happiness shatters when she catches Rick cheating. Now, she’s torn between protecting her brother or revealing the truth, risking her relationships with Jana and the man she loves. In this emotional and witty story, Beth must navigate love, loyalty, and betrayal to decide how far she’s willing to go for family.

My Thoughts:

What happens when loyalty to your family clashes with the loyalty you feel toward a friend—and maybe even the person you’re falling for? In Beach Vibes, Susan Mallery serves up a thoughtful, emotionally layered story that explores just that, with a generous helping of charm, romance, and heart.

Beth is proud of the life she’s built, running her beachside sandwich shop in Malibu and maintaining a close bond with her brother Rick, despite their difficult start in the foster care system. When Rick starts dating Jana—a single mother Beth knows from the local food bank—and introduces her to Jana’s widowed brother Teddy, things begin to fall into place. Beth and Teddy quickly connect, and there’s real potential for something lasting. The relationships between these two sets of siblings develop naturally, and I found myself rooting for them all.

But things take a turn when Beth catches Rick being unfaithful to Jana. She’s suddenly caught in a painful bind: should she protect her brother’s secret, or risk everything—including her budding relationship with Teddy and her friendship with Jana—by telling the truth?

This emotional tug-of-war is at the heart of the novel, and it’s one of the things I appreciated most. Mallery doesn’t shy away from the complexities of love, family, and forgiveness. Beth’s struggle felt very real, and as someone who enjoys a good family drama, I was thoroughly invested.

The story also shines a light on found family and support systems. Jana lives with Teddy and his three kids, and their household dynamic was one of my favourite parts of the book. The children, all distinct in personality, brought warmth and humour to the narrative and made the story feel grounded in real life.

The Narration:

And as always, Tanya Eby’s narration was spot-on. I love how she brings each character to life, from the adults to the precocious children. Her performance added so much depth and emotion to the experience—she really knows how to enhance a story.

Final Thoughts:

Beach Vibes is about secrets and second chances, about the people we love and the mistakes we make. It’s a story with heart, and I truly enjoyed it.

Some of the Other Books I’ve Reviewed Written by Susan Mallery:

One Big Happy Family

For The Love of Summer

The Summer Book Club