The Whiskey Sea

True love does exist, everyone deserves it. Looking forward to reading more books from this author, very imaginative and interesting

This is a novel that will take you slamming over the waves in more ways than one. And over more than one kind of wave.In the unfortunate but strong-willed Frieda Hope is a protagonist determined to realize a role not at all “fitting” a girl of her time and place: the Prohibition era of the early 1920s, in a fishing-and-clamming village on the Jersey Shore.With herself and little sister Bea left destitute and alone after their mother’s death, a reclusive fisherman named Silver is stirred by compassion to take them in (to his own surprise), and gives them a home. Young Frieda is driven to find her own way—by the need to shake her mother’s ill fame, take care of Bea and, after he becomes incapacitated by a stroke, Silver.Due to circumstances and temperament, Frieda has built defensive walls that initially allow only two avenues for escape and growth. Her love for Bea and her love for the sea thrusts her into a hazardous but lucrative occupation which puts her in the minds of some in the town only a notch or two above the one her dead mother chose. This is a fine irony rooted in character and resonant of theme.The sea path leads her first to becoming a boat-engine mechanic and then the member of a crew of rumrunners—against the wishes of Bea and Silver and the good-hearted young fisherman in whom she has sparked a romantic yearning that she does not return.Instead, she falls for an attractive but emotionally aloof and complicated ivy-leaguer with unhappy haunts who joins the booze-smuggling crew for adventure and laughs. The adventure gets rough, the laughs dwindle, and the romance becomes, yes, complicated.Thus the hard knocks aren’t limited to the material or social sort. In opening her heart to a man who fears love as much as she needs it, Frieda undergoes emotional hazards that rival the physical ones on the sea. Enlightenment comes at the end and with it, its own reward.An eloquent stylist, novelist Ann Howard Creel describes Frieda’s external and internal realities with clear and consummate skill. A few samples from a book rich with moving imagery:And yet this small, dark-haired girl [Frieda] was beautiful, a heavenly mistake, as if something had blown across the ocean on an errant breeze from the shores of the Mediterranean. She could’ve been from some noble Italian or Greek family rather than the bastard daughter of the town whore.Life had whittled out a little place for him [Silver] and painted the sea beside it . . .When the bay was furious and churning, those frothing waters pulled the resentment right out of her [Frieda] and fed it to the waves. And when the tides stopped surging and the bay became silver and flat, it was as if some almighty power had smoothed her rough edges while leveling the surface of the sea with big, broad hands.. . . [Bea] carried her sweet disposition like a bouquet of sunlight.And Ann Howard Creel writes a story that rolls and tumbles and shines like the many moods of the sea.

I'm am so torn on this book. On one hand, I literally stayed up all night reading it from cover to cover. I loved the first half of this book. I loved her struggles with being a woman in a man's world, I loved her struggle of trying to provide for her family, and I loved the romance she had with Charles.My beef with this book is the end. The author spent so much time making me also fall in love with Charles and zero time convincing me of what Hicks has to offer. Imagine my surprise when PLOT TWIST Charles is just a f***boy and leaves Frieda high and dry (or should I say wet and drowning?). Yeah, Bye Felipe.To top it all off, Frieda is just as terrible of a person because only after Charles is out of the picture does she decide she'll just un-friend-zone Hicks. Yeah, Bye Felicia.It's like this author thought, "Hey, let's take young adults growing up in the 1920's and make them act like young adults in the 2000's!" I didn't like it. I think my title sums it up.

This was the first book I've read by Ann Howard Creel. I will definitely read more of her works. The Whiskey Sea held me in its spell as I couldn't wait to see what happened next. One of those books I couldn't wait to she how it ended but didn't want it to! Thank you!!

Frieda was a born sailor, then later a skilled bost mechanic. She put both skills to profitable use, and then to tragedy. Still alive, still free, a life yet to be lived.

I was immediately drawn to this book because of the time period, and I became more enthralled when I realized that this is not the story of a stereotypical, carefree flapper of the 1920s, but instead is about a young woman struggling to survive in the male-dominant world of a decidedly un-glamorous fishing village along the Jersey shore. Frieda's life couldn't have been more in contrast to what we usually think of as the Roaring Twenties; that is, until one day everything changes.Lured in by the adventure and money of illegal rum-running, Frieda reluctantly joins the crew of a "contact boat," and not only does she begin to make money that can help her sister go to college and provide care for their ailing adoptive father, she feels a part of her town for the first time and finds comrades among her fellow rum-runners. But things get complicated when a handsome, suave, wealthy young man from Princeton joins the team for a summer of fun and rebellion. Against her will, Frieda falls hard.So as not to be a spoiler, I'll simply say that her love for "Princeton" is complicated, problems arise all around her, and rum-running gets more and more dangerous. An old friend (who also carries a torch for her) tries to help her get out, but to no avail until fate intervenes. What follows is one of the best-written, captivating and heart-in-your-throat "chase scenes" I've ever read, and it ultimately changes everything again.This was a thoroughly enjoyable read that entertained me, made me think about the choices we make in our lives, and also taught me a great deal about rum-running during Prohibition. Highly recommended.

It was everyday life for a young girl and she finally found her way.. it was a long road but, she made it.

What a great story a real page turner the characters are great and a realistic story.i couldn't wait to get to the end to see how things turned out for the main character and it also pulls the heart strings.if certainly a great read and highly recommend l hope to read some more of her books.

Took me a while to get into this book , it is a good story but somehow I just couldn't get started,I kept going and got to the end but felt disappointed with it .

Very enjoyable. I couldn't put this down for the last two thirds. Realistic characters and life affirming plot though the ending felt a bit too...

I would very much recommend this novel. The historical setting is accurate and well researched, and the plot is captivating.

I read mainly for relaxation, I found this book fitted that bill admirably, very easy reading.