The Island Club
- Judith D Collins
- May 2
- 5 min read
Narrator: Raven Wildewood
Dreamscape Media
ISBN: 9781250277404
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Publication Date: 04/28/2026
Format: Other
My Rating: 5 Stars ARC)
An unputdownable novel of loves lost and found, shocking secrets—and the power of female friendship.
1956: On idyllic Balboa Island, just off the California coast, life seems peaceful and welcoming. But when the lives of three women begin to unravel in shockingly different ways, an unlikely friendship—and the game of tennis—may be the only thing that can save them.
Milly Kinkaid's plan to fix her crumbling marriage seems to be falling apart before it even begins. She believed that moving her young family from Hollywood to Balboa Island might entice her increasingly distant husband to come home earlier after work. Instead, he's barely coming home at all.
Society matriarch Sylvia Johnson and her husband have been pillars of their community for decades, and have just recently begun a new business venture: The Island Club, a place for members to swim, play tennis and dine in style. But when she learns that he has been risking their financial security and putting their family's future in grave danger, she's not only poised to lose the club, but the entire community she holds dear.
Meanwhile, standoffish loner Adele Lambert's entire world is on the brink of being destroyed if the dark secrets of her past and her hidden identity is revealed. Twenty years ago, she ran from a shameful scandal and left behind the only thing she ever loved. Now, terrified that the anonymity she's spent decades guarding will be exposed, but desperate to stay afloat, she risks everything to return to the game that brought her to her knees all those years before.
Set against the sun-drenched beaches of Balboa Island, with its prim and proper 1950s facade, The Island Club is a story of love, loneliness and the lies we tell ourselves—and what can be gained when the truth is finally revealed.
My Review
The vibrant 1956 Balboa Island sets the stage in Nicola Harrison's captivating new novel, THE ISLAND CLUB, following three women—Milly, Sylvia, and Adele—whose lives unravel and intertwine through a shared connection to a new local tennis club. Through friendship and tennis amid crumbling marriages, financial ruin, and hidden pasts. (stunning cover!)
Highlights...
The author expertly captures the color of the sun-drenched 1950s California backdrop setting, with glittering high-society parties and the shimmering surface of the characters' lives, a nostalgic Old Hollywood" coastal vibe, where the women find strength in their shared connection to defy 1950s societal expectations, secrets, and betrayal, resulting in personal empowerment.
Characters...
~Milly Kinkaid’s Marriage Crisis:
Milly moves her young family from Hollywood to Balboa Island, hoping the change will save her crumbling marriage. Instead, her husband remains distant, rarely coming home, forcing her to confront her deep isolation and loneliness.
~Sylvia Johnson’s Financial Peril:
As a society matriarch and co-owner of the newly opened Island Club, Sylvia discovers her husband has been gambling and risking their entire financial security. This recklessness puts both her family's future and her standing in the community at grave risk.
~Adele Lambert’s Secret Identity: Adele is a reclusive loner living in fear that her true identity—as a former world-class tennis star who fled a shameful scandal 20 years ago—will be exposed. She eventually risks her anonymity by returning to the game as a tennis coach to stay financially afloat.
My thoughts....
Nicola Harrison delivers an engrossing cinematic journey to 1956 Balboa Island, where the glittering surface of high society masks the messy, poignant realities of three women's lives. The vibrant setting of sun-drenched beaches and a pristine new tennis club serves as the backdrop for a story that is as atmospheric as it is emotionally charged.
In the summer of 1956, the glittering facade of Balboa Island is the perfect hiding place for three women with everything to lose. Milly, a lonely Hollywood transplant; Sylvia, a society matriarch facing ruin; and Adele, a reclusive former tennis star, find their lives intertwined through the opening of a new tennis club. As their secrets threaten to surface, they must choose between maintaining their atmospheric 1950s perfection or embracing a subversive, sisterly bond that offers a path to true resilience.
As long-buried secrets surface, the women drop their 1950s pretenses of perfection. They form a powerful bond that helps them navigate their individual crises and the societal expectations of the era.
The tone and the plot have a cinematic feel like a movie, filled with stunning mid-century fashion and high stakes. Propulsive, the uncovering of the secrets keeps you turning the pages, while the moments between the women are poignant, sharing their deep loneliness and emotional honesty.
The women find that their unexpected bonds provide the strength to survive when their individual lives begin to unravel. Through the game of tennis and the club, the characters find a path to reinvent themselves.
Themes...
~The Power of Female Friendship
~Appearance vs. Reality
~Defying Societal Expectations
~The Weight of Motherhood and Marriage
~Resilience and Second Chances
At its heart, this is a sisterly tale of how women find strength in one another when their traditional support systems fail. Harrison’s writing captures the "lies we tell ourselves" and the beautiful growth that occurs when the truth is finally revealed.
THE ISLAND CLUB is a must-read for fans of Elin Hilderbrand or anyone looking for a poignant story about second chances. The ultimate takeaway is that true strength is found in vulnerability and community, rather than the pursuit of a "perfect" image.
Recs...
If you enjoyed the mid-century nostalgia, coastal setting, and deep female bonds of The Island Club, you might like these similar historical and contemporary novels:
~A Map to Paradise by Susan Meissner
~The Briar Club by Kate Quinn
~City of Girls by Elizabeth Gilbert
~The Swans of Fifth Avenue by Melanie Benjamin
~Ace, Spy, Marvel by Jenni L. Walsh
~Carrie Soto Is Back by Taylor Jenkins Reid
~Apples Never Fall by Liane Moriarty
~The Singles Game by Lauren Weisberger
~Game, Set, Match by Christine Laki
Special thanks to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for sharing an advanced reading copy in exchange for my honest thoughts
@JudithDCollins | #JDCMustREadBooks
My Rating: 5 Stars
Pub Date: April 28, 2026
Praise
"The Island Club is a Carrie Soto is Back meets Big Little Lies delight that will exceed all reader expectations!"
―Lynda Loigman
"A story of the power of friendship, the defiance of societal expectations, and the finding of one's true self."
― Kristin Harmel, New York Times bestselling author
"A beautifully written nuanced story that explores the power of female friendship."
―Fiona Davis, New York Times bestselling author
"The perfect summer read . . . for anyone who loves a smart, juicy escape!"
―Kristy Woodson Harvey, New York Times bestselling author
"No beach bag will be complete without this."
―Steven Rowley
About the Author
Born and raised in England, she moved with her family to Southern California when she was 14. She is a graduate of UCLA and received her MFA from Stony Brook University. Prior to writing novels she worked as a fashion journalist in New York City, where she lived for 17 years. Now she resides in Manhattan Beach, California, with her husband and two sons and a high-maintenance chihuahua named Lily.
