Book Review: Like Moonlight at Low Tide

Like Moonlight at Low Tide: Sometimes the Current Is the Only Thing that Saves You by Nicole Quigley

I’m not entirely sure how to fairly review Quigley’s book. Missy, the main character, is compelling and I really cared about her. Her depictions of life in Florida rang true for me (I grew up there, although not in an island community as Missy does). Some aspects of the story felt incomplete, and Missy frustrated me at times with some of her decisions and actions. Were those really issues with the book, or were they merely issues for me because of my emotions when reading it?

There is definitely a Christian perspective to the book (not surprising with Zondervan as the publisher), but I generally found that it felt believable, except for the ending. So as to not completely spoil the entire book I’ll skip detailing why I had some quibbles with it.

Due to some of the topics discussed, I wouldn’t recommend the book for tweens or young teenagers. It’s got some heavier material in it, and you may want to preview the book before handing it off to your teen.

Since I’m uncertain how to write more about this book without including spoilers, if you are at all opposed to learning about certain events that take place in the story, please don’t read this any further.

I thought the book might be somewhat difficult to read because it addresses bullying in high school, and while I was never bullied, high school still has some negative memories for me and I’m sometimes sensitive to reading about students dealing with difficulties in school.

The bullying in the story wasn’t the problem for me. This is the first book I read after my brother’s death, and it was the death of her brother that almost kept me from finishing the book. My problems with the characters or events in the book, or even the ending – I’m really not sure how much my own situation was coloring my impressions and feelings toward the book.

I wouldn’t even review it at all, because I’m so uncertain about how to fairly evaluate it, except that I accepted it from the publisher with the expectation that I’d publish a (reasonably timely) review. I have no idea how long it might be before I could reread the book with a more impartial frame of mind (if ever; it’s more than likely always going to remind me of my emotions in the immediate aftermath of losing my brother), and don’t feel like it’s fair to the author and publisher to ignore the book simply because of the horribly bad timing of when I read it.

Publisher’s Description:
When high school junior Melissa Keiser returns to her hometown of Anna Maria Island, Florida, she has one goal: hide from the bullies who had convinced her she was the ugliest girl in school. But when she is caught sneaking into a neighbor’s pool at night, everything changes. Something is different now that Melissa is sixteen, and the guys and popular girls who once made her life miserable have taken notice. When Melissa gets the chance to escape life in a house ruled by her mom’s latest boyfriend, she must choose where her loyalties lie between a long-time crush, a new friend, and her surfer brother who makes it impossible to forget her roots. Just as Melissa seems to achieve everything she ever wanted, she loses a loved one to suicide. Melissa must not only grieve for her loss, she must find the truth about the three boys who loved her and discover that joy sometimes comes from the most unexpected place of all.

Book Details

Title: Like Moonlight at Low Tide: Sometimes the Current Is the Only Thing that Saves You
Author: Nicole Quigley
Category: Young Adult Fiction
Length: 256 pages
Format: Trade Paperback
Release Date: 2012
Publisher: Zondervan
ISBN: 0310723590 / 978-0310723592

Disclosure: I received this book for free from the publisher for review. I was not required to write a positive review. All opinions are my own. This post contains affiliate links. Thank you for supporting The Deliberate Reader!

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