Carolina Moon (Ballantine Reader's Circle) - Softcover

McCorkle, Jill

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0449912809 ISBN 13: 9780449912805

Publisher: Ballantine Books, 1997

Synopsis

"DELIGHTFUL CHARACTERS, LIVELY DIALOGUE AND GOOD STORYTELLING."
--The Washington Post

Energetic, voluptuous, and well past sixty, Queen Mary Purdy opens a smoke-enders clinic in the resort town of Fulton, North Carolina. Her unorthodox approach (aroma therapy? Massage?) provides much grist for the rumor mill.  

But Quee's new venture is the least of the many scandals brewing in Fulton: a happily married woman entrusts her illicit secrets to a dead letter file; a mad-as-hell property owner seeks revenge for his recently-submerged investment; a radio talk show host longs to hit the big time, by any means. Quee knows these folks need help with more than their nicotine fits, and their troubles are all tied to that resilient little muscle known as the heart. . . .

"Has the elements of a mystery, a comedy and a small town soap opera. In fact, it's all three and more, a book about loss and recovery, grief and resolution, meddling and responsibility."
--San Francisco Chronicle

About this title

Review:

Jill McCorkle entered the publishing world with a splash, sending her first two books to the press simultaneously. Her latest work, Carolina Moon, revolves around a circle of folks united not so much by their knowledge of one another but by a certain kindred spirit. The setting, as in McCorkle's earlier book July 7th, is a small North Carolina town. There, the charismatic widow Quee Purdy intercedes in the lives of a number of young couples, creating several mysteries, the details of which are disclosed from varying points of view.

From the Publisher:

Excerpts from reviews of Jill McCorkle's Carolina Moon

"Once again, Jill McCorkle works her wizardry as she drags the Southern
novel kicking and screaming into the late 20th century....McCorkle blends
traditional story elements with contemporary twists."

--Winston-Salem Journal

"The behavior and speech of Carolina Moon's cast of characters is
so spontaneously human that we can't fail to recognize through them that
we're all a little crazy, all engaged in little breakdowns all the time.
It's just that some people are more noticeable than others."

--The Clarion-Ledger

"McCorkle skillfully intertwines characters and narrative styles in a way
that propels the story along quickly....She can squeeze reams of meaning,
emotion, and humor into deceptively short, clear stories."

--Salisbury Post (NC)

"What distinguishes Carolina Moon from an ordinary mystery is how
well it holds up on second reading....The reader can appreciate the craft
of the book."

--San Francisco Examiner & Chronicle

"It is a rare book that spurs the reader from its last page back to the
first, and then straight through again, telling a different story this
time, full of new complexities and unanswerable questions."

--Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

About this edition

• Publisher: Ballantine Books
• Publication date: 1997
• ISBN 10: 0449912809
• ISBN 13: 9780449912805
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 288