Elizabeth and Jo are friends who live in a small town on Ireland's west coast. When Elizabeth's physician husband dies and leaves her with a mountain of debt, Jo asks her daughter, Lucy, to take over his surgery while Elizabeth sorts things out. Lucy arrives from Dublin with her teen son and seems in need of healing herself. Jo lets the two in on her secret: midnight plunges in the ocean bring peace.

As the three try to sort out their lives, the midnight swims become central--and become a community focal point when Jo has her own challenges to face. Charming, heartwarming, and filled with wonderful friendships.

Faith Hogan wrote The Ladies Midnight Swimming Club, a feel-good book about women’s friendships and I loved the fictional, coastal Irish town of Ballycove where her novels are set. This one is about a guest house in Ballycove and the aging owner, Esme, who is losing her sight–but is a keen observer of her guests. She gives them not just a place to stay, but a place to find their next steps in life.

While the guest house and setting are indeed dreamy, this story unfortunately just didn’t connect like Hogan’s previous novel did. The owner seemed to have some sight (though it was fading) at the start, then had an ankle injury, then was suddenly almost fully blind–this small point was disorienting. This is an easy, cozy read, but some of the backstories and relationships just didn’t quite gel for me.