Revenge of the Kudzu Debutantes
By Cathy Holton
Ballantine, 2006, $23.95
As those of us who live in the South know, the kudzu vine is tough to kill — and these ladies are like the vine — tough as nails.
Eadie, Nita, and Lavonne are wives of partners in a law firm in Ithaca, Ga. Each is dealing with the fact that her husband is involved with another woman. When they discover that they are all going through the same trials and tribulations, the three decide to team up and take their revenge on those cheating men.
In a hilarious read, the women leave behind the conventions of society as they break out of the box to live their lives the way they really want.
Cathy Holton is a good old Southern girl who now lives in Tennessee with her husband and three children.
This is her first novel, but she is already at work on the sequel tentatively titled, “Return of the Kudzu Debutantes.”
The King of Lies
By John Hart
St. Martin’s Minotaur, 2006, $22.95
John Hart, who will be at The Country Bookshop Thursday, has written a stunning debut novel.
Set in Salisbury, the story focuses on Work Pickens, a lawyer whose family background is so dysfunctional that it’s downright scary.
Readers will be torn between feeling sorry for Work and angry at him for his actions — or inaction — over the years.
Work’s father, who has been missing for over a year, is found dead in the storage room of an old mall. Naturally, Work becomes the detective’s favorite suspect.
She’s sure he is lying about the night that his mother died and his father disappeared — and it’s true that Work isn’t telling the whole truth.
Work’s sister, Jean, who has been in and out of mental institutions, could also be a viable suspect as is her live-in girlfriend.
Although the book is a bit too graphic in places, the plot twists make it difficult to put down.
The Colonel and Little Missie
Buffalo Bill, Annie Oakley,and the Beginnings of Superstardom in America
By Larry McMurtry
Simon and Schuster, 2006, $14
Those who have recently moved to the area may not know that Annie Oakley once resided in Pinehurst, teaching shooting at the Gun Club.
This book by Larry McMurtry, whose latest claim to fame was a co-writer of the screenplay for “Brokeback Mountain,” details the lives of Buffalo Bill and Oakley, both of whom were famous in the 1880s and 1890s.
These two very different personalities appeared together for 16 seasons in Buffalo Bill’s Wild West. Cody was a bit of a show-off; Oakley competitive but quiet.
McMurtry looks at how this unlikely pair became “superstars” in a time when people looked elsewhere for their heroes and role models.
McMurtry’s love of the history of the Old West shines through in this volume.
Faye M. Dasen may be reached at fdasen@thepilot.com or at 693-2475.
