Larkspur Cove is the first of Lisa Wingate’s Shores of Moses Lake series.

Andrea Henderson has moved into her parents’ lake house in Texas with her teenage son after her husband’s betrayal and abandonment. She’s found a job as a social worker and wants to make a new start for herself and her son.

Her son, Dustin, is having a hard time making the transition. Left alone while his mom works, he ventures out with some new friends into an area of Moses Lake where boats are not supposed to go, ignoring the posted warning signs. Mart McClendon, the fish and game warden (or “boat cop,” as some call him), takes the teens in and calls their parents.

When Mart and Andrea meet, sparks fly. She thinks he is overreacting. He thinks she is some over-busy rich mom who doesn’t keep an eye on her son.

When Mart offers to let the teens take a water safety course in lieu of a fine, Andrea agrees despite Dustin’s protests.

Andrea’s work takes her into remote areas. One day when she sees an older man with a little girl in his truck, she suspects something is wrong. The little girl is not in a seat-belt and her hair is tangled with bits of leaves.

Later, Mart’s friends at a diner tell of seeing an old man with a little girl in the hills across the lake. The man, Len, is not known to have a family. He hasn’t been right mentally since he returned from Viet Nam. But he has seemed harmless. Yet, where had this little girl come from, and can a recluse like Len take care of her?

As Mart and Andrea investigate the situation, they learn more than Len’s situation. They discover their own purposes and more about each other.

I enjoyed this story. The little community around Moses Lake seems like real people, characters without being caricatures.

The Waterbird Bait and Grocery has a “wall of wisdom” where people write little sayings, and these proverbs and observations begin each chapter.

Some of the themes: first impressions aren’t always accurate; the best solutions are not always the most obvious; it takes time to heal from trauma, and others.

The audiobook was nicely read by two narrators, Johanna Parker and Scott Sowers. It was free from Audible’s Plus Catalog at the time I listened.

My only complaint is that this author has a penchant for putting several paragraphs of description or backstory in-between lines of dialogue. It can make discussions seem really stilted, especially while listening to an audiobook. I picture the other characters waiting patiently for the one with the next line to come back out of his or her thoughts and speak.

But otherwise, this was a great story. I’m looking forward to the rest.

(Sharing with Bookish Bliss)