Patti Callahan Henry's THE IDEA OF LOVE

From Patti Callahan Henry's website:

"As we like to say in the south,

'Don't let the truth get in the way of a good story.'

Ella's life has been completely upended. She's young, beautiful, and deeply in love--until her husband dies in a tragic sailing accident while trying save her. Or so she'll have everyone believe. 

Screenwriter Hunter needs a hit, but crippling writers' block and a serious lack of motivation are getting him nowhere. He's on the look-out for a love story. It doesn't matter who it belongs to.

When Hunter and Ella meet in Watersend, South Carolina it feels like the perfect match, something close to fate. In Ella, Hunter finds the perfect love story, full of longing and sacrifice. It's the stuff of epic films. In Hunter, Ella finds possibility. It's an opportunity to live out a fantasy - the life she wishes she had because hers is too painful. And more real. Besides. what's a little white lie between strangers? But one lie leads to another, and soon Hunter and Ella find themselves caught in a web of deceit. As they try to untangle their lies and reclaim their own lives, they feel something stronger is keeping them together. And so they wonder: can two people come together for all the wrong reasons and still make it right?"

I have been a Patti Callahan Henry fan for an awfully long time.  She's an author who lives in one of the top spots of my "auto-buy" list.  Her stories remain fresh and surprising and leave me smiling.  Ms. Henry knows the south and brings it to her readers with a believable beauty and honesty, never falling into that stereotypical south that some writers expect readers to accept.  And she "gets" relationships.  Husband/wife, parent/child, best friends.  She gets them and delivers them to us with perception and clarity in heartbreaking and inspirational words that touch our hearts and stay there.

A tag line for her newest, "The Idea of Love," reads - "As we like to say in the south, 'Don't let the truth get in the way of a good story.'

When Ella and Hunter meet in the tranquil coastal town of Watersend, South Carolina, things start off with two good stories.  What happens next kept me happy, frustrated, sad, and all over the emotional map.  Just like a good story is supposed to!  In case you missed it - I loved this book to the moon and back.

Don't miss Patti Callahan Henry's "The Idea of Love."  Release date - June 23rd.

And - SURPRISE!Pre-order "The Idea of Love" and receive an exclusive short story!  How cool is that?!

Disclaimer:  an electronic arc of this book was provided by NetGalley.com.  No review was promised and the above is my unbiased opinion.

A perfect day in the mountains

I love living in Boone, NC

Spending a day downtown is one of my favorite things to do.

Toss in a book festival and boy howdy - what could be better?!

Saturday was the High Country Festival of the Book which you been  seeing me post about here and at Facebook.  Actually, there were some events on Friday, and a dinner on Friday evening, but I was unable to attend those.

And sadly, there were many writers here on Saturday that I didn't get pictures of.  There were wonderful things happening, and because there were so many people I wanted to spend time with, I just didn't get everywhere, but come along and enjoy my day with me - - -

I got into town early, wanting to make sure I missed running into the annual Blood, Sweat & Gears 100 mile bicycle race, which passes directly in front of our road.  I've been caught in it before and will now miss it at all costs.  I admire those bikers, but I do not want to be among them on these curvy mountain roads.

I parked behind the Jones House, which always makes me smile.  It's an important part of the Boone community and I was happy that some of the festival activities would be happening here.

Then walked down King St., admiring the flowers (I love this time of year in the mountains), and enjoying being right where I was.

I am not able to walk by our bronze of Doc Watson without taking a picture.  He was a much loved local figure, and will be missed by many for a long, long time.

And treated myself to breakfast at my favorite Boone restaurant, Melanie's Food Fantasy. 

and got to have a chat with the one and only Melanie.

Melanie rocks.

Then wandered back to The Jones House and Marcia had been busy setting up the book store.  Appalachian State's University Bookstore always does an excellent job of handling the festival book sales.

Our first two speakers of the day were two authors I have long admired.

I was over the moon to find out both of them would be participating in our festival.

Robert Inman

And

Patti Callahan Henry

Just so happens, both have new books out - Yay!!!!

Did I even attempt to resist buying both?

Pfft!

No way!

And both were gracious enough to sign their books and have their picture made with this gal who thinks authors are rock stars.

Then I wandered over to our library where even more festival activities were taking place.

More books, more authors, music on the lawn, food tents, children's activities - all on a perfect mountain day.

Outside - 

And, inside - - 

(here's my friend, Paul Benson - Hi, Paula!)

And, I have to tell you.  I was so happy to see Jane Edwards, one of the authors of Jelly Bean Finds Her Special Place. 

AND, she brought along some of her Jelly Bean toys.  These are the sweetest, the softest, the most lovable little lambs on God's green earth.  I tried just as hard to resist buying one of these as I did buying books - which means, not one whit.

this is the real Jelly Bean.  Do read her story!

Then I wandered back to The Jones House in time to hear Lynn Cullen talk about her new book, Mrs. Poe

I had received an advance copy of Mrs. Poe and loved it.  Now I'm ready to read it again because Lynn's talk was so fascinating.  One thing I'm sad about is that I walked out of the house and forgot to take my copy of Mrs. Poe with me to have signed.  But, maybe, just maybe, I'll cross paths with this lovely woman again on down the road.  

Next up.  The Mystery Panel which I was asked to moderate.  I was tickled pink (and scared to death!).  Panel members included two authors I call friends, who write books I have recommended and given as gifts to many friends and family members over the years.  Vicki Lane and Mike Orenduff, along with Sean Keefer, whose work I now know and won't hesitate in recommending.  Millie West had planned on joining our panel, but things didn't work out.  Millie broke her leg, quite badly.  She was able to participate in the festival, but as a speaker rather than a panelist.  And darned if I didn't miss her talk while I was buying fluffy stuffed Jelly Bean lambs at the library!

Life I said earlier, unfortunately,I missed several of our authors - several of whom I had very much looked forward to meeting.  

Our mystery panel moved out to the front porch (thank you, Suzanne! The best festival chair festival ever), and we had a wonderful time just talking books.  I got over being scared (but not over being a bit nervous, I'm afraid), and a good time was had by all.  

My thanks to the panelists for making it so easy, and my thanks to the readers and writers who joined us.  It was a perfect day.

(photo by Paula Benson)

And here's a picture of the treasures that came home with me

some very cool swag from my friend, Georgia author, Elaine Drennon Little (whose Book I *did* remember to take, but then forgot to ask her to sign.  aargh).

Thanks, Elaine!!

AND - my very own baby Jelly Bean, along with two books I cannot wait to read!!!!  squeeee!

Note:  Vicki Lane has done a blog about the festival.  Check it out!  http://vickilanemysteries.blogspot.com/2014/06/high-country-festival-of-book.html

Summer Reading - Part One

Seems it's that time of year when we start seeing Summer Reading Lists all over the place. And - - since I'm one who cannot for the life of me resist a list, I, of course, have my very own summer reading list. ta da!

The one book I'm really impatiently awaiting and tapping my toe for is Pat Conroy's newest. SOUTH OF BROAD. This surprises no one, I'm sure, after the love note to Pat Conroy I left here awhile back. If I were a wealthy woman, I'd buy one of those ARCs available at abebooks.com for somewhere between $50-$75.00. But, big sigh, I'm not. So I'll just continue the toe tapping thing till August 11th when it will finally be released.

This from patconroy.com:

"Against the sumptuous backdrop of Charleston, South Carolina, SOUTH OF BROAD gathers a unique cast of sinners and saints. Leopold Bloom King, our narrator, is the son of an amiable, loving father who teaches science at the local high school. His mother, an ex-nun, is the high school principal and a well-known Joyce scholar. After Leo's older brother commits suicide at the age of thirteen, the family struggles with the shattering effects of his death, and Leo, lonely and isolated, searches for something to sustain him. Eventually, he finds his answer when he becomes part of a tightly knit group of high school seniors that includes friends Sheba and Trevor Poe, glamorous twins with an alcoholic mother and a prison-escapee father; hardscrabble mountain runaways Niles and Starla Whitehead; socialite Molly Huger and her boyfriend, Chadworth Rutledge X; and an ever-widening circle whose liaisons will ripple across two decades-from 1960s counterculture through the dawn of the AIDS crisis in the 1980s. The ties among them endure for years, surviving marriages happy and troubled, unrequited loves and unspoken longings, hard-won successes and devastating breakdowns, and Charleston's dark legacy of racism and class divisions. But the final test of friendship that brings them to San Francisco is something no one is prepared for South of Broad is Pat Conroy at his finest; a long-awaited work from a great American writer whose passion for life and language knows no bounds."

In the meantime, I have some additional books on my Summer Reading List. These are only some of the novels I'm looking forward to reading - we'll do another list in a week or so. But for today, I'm going to kinda stick with a theme - beach related, and southern. Two of my favorite things, in reading and in life.

Here's another August release. One of my favorite series ever. I look forward to Margaret Maron's newest "Deborah" every August. As soon as I get my hands on one, I race through it to see what Deborah's latest adventure entails, then sit down and read it again savoring each word. I welcome Deborah Knott and her family into my home with open arms and talk about her like she's a real person.

SAND SHARKS takes Deborah to Wrightsville Beach. I'm particularly looking forward to this one. Wrightsville Beach isn't far from Topsail Island, where Donald and Harley and I spent a week in May, and blogged about right here. Twice! I'm still finding myself looking at the pictures we took while there and dreaming about being back. It's a beautiful part of North Carolina, and since no one captures atmosphere, or writes a better sense of place than Ms. Maron, I'm especially excited to see what SAND SHARKS brings us. The series remains at the tippy top of my "auto-buy books."

Speaking of Topsail Island. Diane Chamberlain writes beautifully about this enchanting spot. Her latest, SECRETS SHE LEFT BEHIND, is ABSOLUTELY on my list of Summer Reading.



Surprisingly, I've heard very little chatter about the new Rebecca Wells novel. THE CROWNING GLORY OF CALLA LILLY PONDER will be released in July. I'm thinking perhaps Ms. Wells' last novel, YA-YAs in BLOOM was a bit of a disappointment to some fans of the earlier Ya-Ya novels. I liked it just fine. Mostly, I think I was especially blown away by the fact that Ms. Wells was able to even write that book while she was suffering dreadfully with Lyme's Disease. I'm excited about reading this one. Amazon.com says "The novel is chock-full of Southern charm and sassy wisdom." Sounds good to me. I'm a fan of Southern charm and sassy wisdom, for sure.

Sticking with my whole "wishing I was still at the beach" theme I can't seem to move beyond this year, I'm also looking forward to reading Patti Callahan Henry's DRIFTWOOD SUMMER where three sisters reunite to save the family’s beach-community bookstore.


One of my favorite writers of "All Things Southern" is Dorothea Benton Frank. She has written a sequel to her very first novel, SULLIVAN'S ISLAND. RETURN TO SULLIVAN'S ISLAND promises a return to a breathtakingly beautiful place, with some of the most eccentric, wild and funny characters you'll ever hope to meet. If you're not familiar with Ms. Frank, do check out her webpage and learn how she came to write her first novel. It's quite the story.

Another perennial favorite of mine is Mary Kay Andrews. Her newest, THE FIXER UPPER finds us carrying on with another of her courageous, outrageous southern women characters who is, by God, going to show the world just how strong she really is. And will have everyone falling completely in love with her while doing it.

AND I'm excited about the next Bobbie Faye adventure. Toni McGee Causey's WHEN A MAN LOVES A WEAPON comes out in August. Bobbie Faye is a HOOT and I love her.



You know who is missing from this list? A woman whose writing I love more than I can even say - Anne Rivers Siddons. I haven't seen any mention of anything new from her, but we'll just cross our fingers and hope it'll be soon.

O.K. - that's a partial list of what I plan on reading this summer. Now let's hear what's on your list!