The Second Life of Alice Shaw

Alice has built a quiet life by the sea, teaching art and trading her past for a new name in a town that never asks questions. But peace is a fragile thing. When a stranger arrives, drawn by the whispers of an old tragedy, Alice finds herself pulled into a connection that feels both fated and dangerous. Theo Hale claims to be researching coastal disasters, but his questions cut too close. Their shared loneliness draws them together, even as the secrets between them breed suspicion.

As fragments of the fire that destroyed Alice’s world begin to resurface—a scorched lighter, a photograph marked with both their names—the lines between truth and invention blur. Each revelation tightens the bond and sharpens the risk, until love and survival become a single, impossible choice. Guilt becomes a language, tenderness a disguise, and Alice must decide who she is willing to betray: the man she loves, or the woman she used to be.

Slow story with psych thriller in the mix

This isn't quite a psychological thriller as a pastoral story. It is longish, mildly entertaining. The virtual voice used in the Audible format isn't the most elegant. I would skip this for a more tightly plotted thriller, and there are plenty of those set by the water.