Newly single at sixty, Elin Anderson decides it’s finally time for an adventure of her own. With her marriage to tedious Tom now officially over, Elin plans to visit the family she hasn’t seen in years. First stop: Australia!

But going home is harder than Elin thought. Everywhere she turns Elin sees brightness and colour, which only makes her own life seem even more drab and beige. How has she let herself fade away?

Determined to have some fun, Elin reluctantly agrees to join The Silver Surfers – a group of seniors who travel the coast, only caring about their next big adventure. Because life’s too short to watch the ocean when you could be making waves…

There’s only one catch – her road trip companion, Kit Pascoe. Kit is a man who doesn’t know the meaning of the word fun and makes it clear to Elin that this adventure will be subject to his own strict rules.

But with every new day, Elin slowly begins to rediscover who she really is. And she’s certain that rules are meant to be broken…aren’t they?”

Sunrise with the Silver Surfers (Amazon UK) (Amazon US) is another winner from Boldwood Books. Once again, I found a book with an older woman at the center, trying to live her best life after divorce, and finding love again. It’s refreshing to read because so many books concentrate on couples in their mid-20’s or early 30’s.

I had a friend who spent a semester in Australia in a student exchange program, and later returned to visit for a year around the time of the 2000 Sydney Olympics. When she moved back to the U.S., she lived with my husband and myself for a while and told us many stories about the land down under. But with this book, I felt I actually got a better feeling of portions of the country through the vivid descriptions of locales.

The choices Elin makes as an older woman with years of experience, yet years of a dominating husband, make sense within the context of the story. That is to say, she doesn’t do anything that seemed out of character for a 58-year-old woman. The contrast with her sister, who has always lived life a little more carefree, was both refreshing and frustrating because of her sister’s lazy boyfriend.

I thought the slow burn of the relationship with Kit was handled well, especially because of Elin’s previous relationship with ex-husband Tom. And while there’s romance in the book, there’s no graphic sex scenes if you’re worried about that. I knew there was going to be some conflict that the two would have to overcome, because that’s how these sorts of books work out, so I wasn’t surprised when it happened, and I knew there would be a resolution in the right direction, but I was surprised at how long it took to get there. Elin made the smart choice to take her time, and I applaud her for it.

Surprisingly, the part of the book with the Silver Surfers was remarkably small, all things considered. Makes me wonder why that title was chosen. Also makes me wonder if there really is a Silver Surfers group that has clubs around Australia.

The sight-seeing around Australia was great, I really got a feel for some of the areas discussed. I know almost nothing about the country so it was a great little travelogue like a Nancy Drew book. 🙂

Elin’s ex-husband was a piece of work, for sure. Reminds me of someone close to me who had a domineering, belittling husband who made her feel like she had no self-worth. She and Elin stayed because of the kids, but eventually had the strength to break free from the toxicity of the partner in her life. The fact that Elin’s ex-husband moved on so quickly with another woman and a new child, then keeps reaching out to Elin when things don’t work out so well with the new wife is telling. I’m so glad Elin was portrayed as a woman who had found the strength to tell her ex to bugger off and stay out of her life.

Once again, I’ve found a great read at a reasonable price. Highly recommend!

I received an Advanced Reader’s Copy of this book from NetGalley and Boldwood Books in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

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