“Let me start with what drew me into the setting. I didn't grow up on Long Island. I've never been to Mattituck or Riverhead or any of the towns that populate these pages. But by the time I was fifty pages in, I felt like I had. The novel is very detailed. The music, the cars, the drive-in theaters, the diners, it's all so lovingly rendered that I found myself Googling "1961 Chevy Bel Air" just to see what Tommy's car actually looked like. That's immersion.
 Reading Bailie Beach is like looking at an old photograph of someone you used to know. I found myself caring about these people more than I expected. Tommy frustrated me. I wanted to grab him by the shoulders and tell him to stop being such an idiot. But I also understood him, the rush of being young and desired, the inability to say no to something that feels good in the moment. He's just a kid making mistakes that adults pay for later.
 The women in the book Joan, Mary, and Debbie, each left a mark on me in different ways. I won't say more than that, because I want you to discover them for yourself. But I will say that one of them, in particular, has lodged herself in my heart in a way I didn't expect. She's the kind of character you wish you could warn. The kind you wish you could protect.
 The sense of place is extraordinary. I've never been to Bailie Beach, but I can picture it clearly. By the end, it felt like I had been there myself, sitting on that blanket, watching the sky change colors.”

-Sara