Just Beachy
- Judith D Collins
- Jun 9
- 7 min read
Updated: Jul 21
Ten Beach Road Series
By: Wendy Wax
Narrator: Amy Rubinate
Penguin Audio
ISBN: 978-0593335963
Publisher: Berkley
Publication Date: 06/03/2024 Just Beachy
Format: e-book
My Rating: 5 Stars (ARC)
BLOG TOUR
A former actress in need of a reset reunites with her grandmother, her first crush, and the ladies of Ten Beach Road in this escapist novel from USA Today bestselling author Wendy Wax.
After losing her long-time acting gig on the hit show Murder 101, Sydney Ryan decides she needs a break from Hollywood politics.
She heads to Treasure Island, Florida where her grandmother has been visiting and now refuses to leave. Sydney’s plan to lie low for a bit quickly goes awry though, as she is swept up in her grandmother’s now flourishing social life—Grand not only bought a new house in Casas de Flores, she’s also helping her neighbor Myra open a bookstore in Pass-a-Grille. But when someone breaks into Grand’s house repeatedly Sydney realizes her grandmother is keeping something from her.
Determined to ferret out the truth and protect her grandmother, Sydney enlists the help of the Ten Beach Road ladies and Luke, a local police officer who was once her high school crush. While Sydney puts her television crime-solving skills to the test, she decides to act on the sizzling chemistry between herself and Luke. And as Sydney spends more sunsets toasting to true friends and new romance, she begins to wonder if the sun is setting on her time in Hollywood and if this town could be the dawn of a new chapter.
My Review
Welcome back, Wendy and the Ten Beach Road Gang in JUST BEACHY!
Talented Wendy Wax is a long-time favorite GA/FL author, and Ten Beach Road is one of my favorite beach read series. I was delighted to catch up with my favorite ladies and attend the nightly sunset cocktails and traditions, where the women share their 'one good thing' of the day, a practice that helps them stay positive and grateful.
“DAZZLING! A perfect beach read. Long-time Wendy Wax and Ten Beach Road FANS (like me) will devour JUST BEACHY! New characters, a new bookstore, a new house, a hot cop, a spunky Grand, celebrities, reno, art, mystery, romance, the Ten Beach Road ladies/cast, and best of all— the SETTING: Treasure Island, Pass-a-Grille, Florida!” (a favorite)
About...
Sydney Ryan plays Cassie Everheart, a heroic LAPD detective on Murder 101 who lives in Hollywood Hills. However, the producers decide to have her on-screen love interest, Jason, dump her for the new cookie cop and send her to rehab as an alcoholic. She thinks it may be temporary, but they canned her for good! Her last episode. Her career as a detective is over.
Only age thirty, now what? Maybe she can visit her family in Atlanta. What a disaster. Soon, she learns the public thinks she is her screen character, Cassie, and no one will serve her alcohol, which is desperately needed at the moment.
However, her mother says she needs her to go to Treasure Island, FL, to see what her 83-year-old grandmother (known as Grand), Lillian Louise Wilde, is up to, who has been a widow for six years and refuses to return to Atlanta.
She had come to visit a friend at Treasure Island and had not returned home. Now she wants to live in Florida full-time, and Sydney's mom wants her back in Atlanta, in a senior living facility, so she doesn't worry. Trust me, Grand is not ready for the old folks' home.
Sydney thinks that since she has no career and no life, she can also visit her friend, Kara, her mother, Maddie, and the ladies of Ten Beach Road in Treasure Island at Bella Flora while she is there. (the perfect place for do-overs).
Grand is a spunky live wire and has a more social life than Sydney, dating someone, and spends the night with Brian. Can he be trusted?
When her condo gets broken into several times, they are worried. But appears they are looking for something. A stolen painting? Grand is a successful artist, and she knows all too well what they are looking for, but it is not stolen. It is hers, and someone stole it, and no one is taking it. She has her secrets.
Grand not only bought a new house in Casas de Flores, a charming neighborhood in Treasure Island, but she’s also helping her neighbor, Myra, open a bookstore in Pass-a-Grille, a personal favorite area of mine. The bookstore, named Sandcastle Books and Arts (We're Just Beachy), will be a cozy space after renovations, filled with the latest bestsellers, artwork, and possible art and acting classes. All the ladies are helping out.
Determined to get to the truth and solve the mystery of the break-ins, with, of course, the help of the resilient Ten Beach Road ladies (Kara, Maddie, Nicole, Avery, and Bitsy).
And of course, to make things more interesting, there is Luke the hot cop who was once Sydney's high school crush to spice things up.
As Sydney delves deeper into the mystery, she finds herself in increasingly dangerous situations. But with a few tricks up her sleeve, learned from her onscreen character, Detective Cassie, she might make it out alive and save her Grand.
Let the fun games begin, and new chapters to be written!
My thoughts...
To new beginnings! Oh, how I loved JUST BEACHY! I am so glad Wendy Wax is back and delighted to meet some new characters and cameo appearances from the Ten Beach Road ladies (one of my favorite series). Please let this series continue!
Wax always knows how to entice and charm readers from architecture, renovations, TV stars, vintage fashion, nostaglia, art, and now a book shop on the beach, plus do not forget these strong women, Cheese Doodles, and cocktails on the beach at sunset with one good thing they are grateful for.
This is what I call a BEACH READ! From charm, romance, wisdom, humor, female friendship, family, mystery, suspense and highly relatable well developed characters with heartwarming stories and courageous witty women all set in the perfect idea spot of Treasure Island, FL and Pass-A-Grille (my favorite places) as you can see from all my past reviews below of Ten Beach Road series.
I hope we see more of Sydney, Luke, Grand, and the Ten Beach ladies in the future, and always the daily sunset traditions, margaritas, and good conversation. I love catching up with everyone.
The only thing I would have liked to see (perhaps in the mass paperback edition) is the cover. I realize the author has little choice in the matter, but this cover does not fit the sophistication, flair, and glamour of the book (as the sensational usual covers from Berkley and the Ten Beach Road series). I would have liked to see some architecture, watercolor sketches, a cozy beach bookstore, art classes, or colorful Adirondack chairs lined up on the beach with cocktails and cheese doodles to draw you in. This is so much more than a beach read with a woman on a float (more depth). This book needs to be in front of the right readers.
However, this does not change my opinion of the book. 5 STARS as always! I love how the author portrays intelligent women, friendship, and sisterhood that find themselves in horrific situations, but ultimately, when they come together, they emerge stronger than ever. And they never give themselves up for a man. Perfect pick for book clubs! You will fall in love with these characters.
See all my reviews below of the Ten Beach Road Series. Although this one can be read as a standalone, I highly recommend starting from the beginning and reading them all in sequence. Thank me later. Do not leave for the beach without this series.
Recs...
JUST BEACHY is for fans of the author and those who enjoy books by Southern authors, Kristy Woodson Harvey, Mary Kay Andrews, and Karen White. Also for fans of Elle Cosimano's Finlay Donovan Series, as well as the shows, Virgin River, and Chesapeake Shores. I would love to see this one and the Ten Beach Road in a Hallmark movie series or an ongoing TV series, please.
Thank you, Berkley and NetGalley, for a gifted advanced reading in exchange for an honest review. (Love the new author photo.)
@JudithDCollins | #JDCMustReadBooks
Pub Date: June 3, 2025
My Rating: 5 Stars
My Reviews of Ten Beach Road Series
They are all on my top books of the year (already archived on my blog)
but here are the Goodread Links:
Praise
"Reading Wendy Wax is like discovering a witty, wise, and wonderful new friend."
—New York Times bestselling author Claire Cook
"Fans of Mary Kay Andrews, Elin Hilderbrand, and Nancy Thayer's coastal fiction will appreciate Just Beachy's compelling combination of humor, heartfelt vulnerability, and unexpected connection, all offering the comforting embrace of beach-town charm.”
—Booklist
About the Author
Author Portrait by Joanna Souza © 2025
Wendy Wax, a former broadcaster, is the USA Today Bestselling author of sixteen novels and two novellas including the popular Ten Beach Road series.
Her novels revolve around journeys of self-discovery and the bonds of friendship that get us through the toughest times.
And while her characters deal with real life issues, Wax, like Mary Poppins, believes that a spoonful of humor helps the harsh realities go down. Booklist refers to her novels, which are intentionally light, as ‘her trademark form of fiction, the beach read with substance.’
After thirty plus years in Atlanta, she once again lives on the water on the west coast of Florida near the home she grew up in and Ten Beach Road’s fictional Bella Flora. WEBSITE
