Sweet Magnolia Norma L. Jarrett ISBN: 0767921429 Format: Paperback, 352pp Pub. Date: June 6, 2006 Publisher: Broadway Books List Price: $12.95 BBP Price: $10.36 Save 20%
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FROM THE PUBLISHER

Everything is not always sweet on Magnolia Lane, where the Ledoux clan gather under the watchful eye of the family matriarch, Hannah. Years later, Hannah's granddaughter, Summer, a soon-to-be bride, has planned a weekend event that has prompted a major family reunion. On the surface, the Ledouxes live an idyllic life among the upper-echelon of New Orleans' most powerful. But once relatives come together to celebrate Summer's wedding, generational secrets that have spanned decades slowly come to the surface.

Blowing in belatedly and stoking long-standing resentments is Summer's older sister Misa, a hard-living international model. Unbeknownst to them, the sisters share something besides a feud: they have inherited the depression that had darkened the life of their mother Elizabeth. While Summer relies on God to keep her from the abyss, Misa drowns her demons in designer drinks. But neither can avoid what happens when, after a particularly vitriolic argument, one of the sisters flees in anger and into the fateful darkness of a rain-swept night.

The aftermath leads the sisters to uncover the truth about their family and themselves, testing their spiritual reserves. And along the way, God and Hannah's spirit continue to send them messages about the beauty of faith and love.

Spiritual, dramatic, and a memorable tribute to the beloved New Orleans, Jarrett's second novel is a confident step forward in an already bright career.