Save What’s Left by Elizabeth Castellano
One consequence of spending more time on my writing this year is that I’ve read fewer books than usual for me. Now that Retire to An Island, They Said (Lighthouse Island Book 1) is in editing, and I’ve typed “The End” on the first draft of Salty Pause (Lighthouse Island Book 2), I should have some time to catch up. I started today, by reading a whole 295-page book in four hours!
Save What’s Left by Elizabeth Castellano was a Good Morning America Book Club pick in July 2023 and was well-reviewed by People, Time, Oprah Daily and many others. But that’s not how I discovered it.
When I started the first draft of Retire to An Island through the 52 Scenes Challenge, I purposely avoided reading other participants’ stories with coastal settings. I only had an idea, not a plot, and didn’t want to subconsciously steal someone else’s story, characters or setting.
But now I have to find books with similar themes to mine to use as “comps.” In other words, when I am ready to query agents to try to get my book to a publisher, I have to identify comparable titles published within the past two or three years.
So far, I had come up with Bad Monkey. Carl Hiaasen’s book was published in 2013, but luckily a television series was released in 2024 and I can use that. But I was having a hard time finding any books that hit the mark.
This morning I remembered having read a post on NextDoor.com over a year ago, when Tybee’s short-term vacation rental battle was raging, about an apropos book. I did a search, and voila!
Someone had posted a photo showing this excerpt:
Excerpt from Page 1 of Save What’s Left by Elizabeth Castellano (Sorry it’s blurry!)
That seemed promising, so I downloaded it onto my Kindle and read the whole thing in one sitting.
The protagonist, 60-year-old Kathleen Deane, moves from Kansas City to a converted oyster shack on the beach somewhere in Long Island. This was her reaction when her husband of 30 years announced he was divorcing her and embarking on an around-the-world cruise to find himself. She’s bought the house sight unseen. Much to her chagrin she finds upon arrival a glass McMansion on stilts under construction four feet away. Locals have nicknamed it “Sugar Cube.”
Thus ensues Kathleen’s crusade to hold someone accountable for all the rule and permit violations occurring next door while at the same time trying to make friends and establish herself in town. Some of the reviewers on Goodreads call her a “Karen,” but I disagree. She has legit concerns! The book is humorously written in a combination of first-person stream-of-consciousness and letters to the town supervisor. Because she dives right into local politics without learning the lay of the land, Kathleen makes numerous faux paus. The curmudgeonly busybody across the street is more helpful to her cause than Kathleen’s long-time friend whose presence in the town was what lured her there. There are obviously some “cahoots” happening, which are revealed in the final chapters.
I liked the book better than most of the reviewers on Goodreads did. I’m not sure they all understood satire requires some exaggeration and over-the-top scenarios. I enjoyed the humor. It was easy to visualize the characters’ activities and their specific houses, stores and offices. Elements of the story reminded me of both beach towns where I’ve spent the most time – Rockport, Massachusetts, and Tybee Island, Georgia. Small beach town politics at its finest!
Will my book appeal to the same audience? I think so! Save What’s Left was characterized on Good Morning America as an “un-beach read.” In Retire to An Island, one of my characters says “it’s not all dolphins and sunsets for the people who live here.” Castellano is overtly funnier than I am, but we both address some social issues with what I call a light touch. Quirky characters populate both stories. The central conflict in Save What’s Left pertains to building code variances and violations, while my book initally revolves around short-term rental disputes. Kathleen fights City Hall. My main character initially fights a neighbor. Save What’s Left zooms in on local politics. Retire to an Island zooms out, with outside forces including the characters’ pasts, a hurricane and a pandemic superseding the more insular, local controversies. I’m happy for these differences; I was afraid when I first saw the Save What’s Left excerpt posted on NextDoor that someone might have already written my story!
There is one mildly startling coincidence. In Save What’s Left Kathleen’s husband returns early from his cruise and has an accident on his bicycle. My main character’s husband also has a bicycle accident after an argument; I’m glad I can show I wrote the first draft of that scene before Save What’s Left was published!
A book club discussion would likely revolve around some of Kathleen’s behavior and decision-making. Why didn’t she get in touch with her friend sooner upon arrival? Why didn’t she do more due diligence before giving a large donation to a local non-profit? How realistic are the “cahoots?” (That’s a question that could also be asked about my book, in response to which I go back to Carl Hiaasen as one of my influences.) At least one Goodreads reviewer questioned the feasibility of her having bought the oyster shack unseen, but I know first-hand about instances of that happening in the recent coastal real estate market. I imagine book club members with grown children and grandchildren would have something to say about Kathleen’s relationship with her pregnant daughter. Personally, I had no problem with Kathleen just telling her daughter not to start a forest fire instead of traveling across the country for a gender reveal party. Sounded like something I would say!