ABOUT THE BOOK:
From the New York Times bestselling author of The Night the Lights Went Out comes an exquisite new novel about best friends, family ties and the love that can both strengthen and break those bonds.It's been nine years since Larkin fled Georgetown, South Carolina, vowing never to go back. But when she finds out that her mother has disappeared, she knows she has no choice but to return to the place that she both loves and dreads--and to the family and friends who never stopped wishing for her to come home. Ivy, Larkin's mother, is discovered in the burned-out wreckage of her family's ancestral rice plantation, badly injured and unconscious. No one knows why Ivy was there, but as Larkin digs for answers, she uncovers secrets kept for nearly 50 years. Secrets that lead back to the past, to the friendship between three girls on the brink of womanhood who swore that they would be friends forever, but who found that vow tested in heartbreaking ways.
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MY REVIEW:
Dreams of Falling by Karen WhiteMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
Dreams of Falling by Karen White is a 2018 Berkley publication.
So far, my summer reading experience has been second to none. I’ve enjoyed some great romances, thrillers, mysteries, and even touched base with my favorite series, and beach reads. So, Karen White faced some pretty stiff competition by the time I got around to reading this book. But, hands down this is my favorite book of summer.
Larkin is called home, from New York, to South Carolina, after a lengthy absence because her mother, Ivy, suffered a horrible, life threatening fall, under mysterious circumstances, which opens up a Pandora’s box of old family secrets. Meanwhile, Larkin must confront her painful past, and come to terms with the complicated relationship she has with Ivy and her father, and the horrible embarrassment she suffered back in high school.
Along the way, she will embark on a journey of self-discovery as she begins to decipher a decades old mystery surrounding her late grandmother.
Southern lit is a lot like indulging in good southern food. It always feels a little more succulent, a little more decadent, a lot more sinful, and much heavier and meatier. It’s also very comforting and always leaves me feeling peacefully gratified. Karen White’s southern dramas has the same effect on me as having consumed a huge southern style meal, a nice bottle of red wine, a rich dessert, and lovely cup of strong coffee to sip on, while I kick back and savor the feeling of satisfaction, absorbing and digesting all the various angles of the story, the characterizations, and the big emotions her stories often bring to the surface.
This book is no exception- but, this time, Ms. White has taken it to a whole new level. I have often lamented the death of those fabulous family sagas, wishing that someday, someone would come along and refresh the genre to fit into our busy lives, where huge ‘doorstopper’ tomes don’t quite fit anymore.
Karen White pulls that off with a novel that covers several generations but manages to wrap everything up in one book in just a little over four hundred pages.
Only a veteran, seasoned author could pull off this type of prose, using a variety of narrative options, going back and forth in time. Again- White stitched together an intricate web that kept me transfixed from beginning to end. There was never even the tiniest blip. If I had to make a complaint, I have to say I wish I had gotten a clearer picture of Bitty, and I wish Ivy’s past had been a bit more fleshed out, with a deeper analysis regarding her flightiness.
Other than that, this is a near perfect representation of southern lit. Long buried family secrets, a mystery, a small paranormal tint, eccentric characters, a wide range of voices and moods, lots of high drama and waves of emotions, strong familial ties and equally strong bonds of friendship, with a tender and sweet romance to cap it all off.
Naturally, one doesn’t want to over indulge in large, heavy meals and rich desserts too often, because too much of a good thing can be bad. However, the opposite is true with good southern dramas. Over indulgence is good for you. It nourishes the mind, spirit and soul- so, in this case- you can never have too much of good thing.
GET YOUR COPY HERE:
https://www.amazon.com/Dreams-Falling-Karen-White/dp/0451488415/
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/dreams-of-falling-karen-white/1126791527
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
I grew up being a voracious reader and it was a natural step to turn my interest to writing. I have published 24 award-winning and bestselling novels including my latest release DREAMS OF FALLING published by Penguin Random House in June, 2018. Set in the South Carolina Lowcountry in the 1950s and contemporary time, this is a book about lifelong friendships and family, and the sacrifices we're willing to make for those we love.
I write what others have termed "grit-lit"--southern women's fiction, as well as a contemporary paranormal mystery series (The House on Tradd Street is the 1st book in the series) set in Charleston, South Carolina. All of my books are set in the US South, and feature a female protagonist at a crossroads in her life.
I have two grown children (one of whom appears in several of my books under the alias of Meghan Black), and live near Atlanta, Georgia with my husband and two of the cutest Havanese dogs, Quincy and Sophie Belle. Readers may recognize Quincy as General Lee in the Tradd Street series.
Happy reading!
For more about me and my books, please visit my website at www.karen-white.com or connect on social media: Facebook: Facebook.com/karenwhiteauthor, Twitter: @KarenWhiteWrite, Instagram: @KarenWhiteWrite and Pinterest: KarenWhiteBooks.
