Leaving Carolina
About the Book:
Piper Wick left her hometown of Pickwick, North Carolina, twelve years ago, shook the dust off her feet, ditched her drawl and her family name, and made a new life for herself as a high-powered public relations consultant in LA. She’s even “engaged to be engaged” to the picture-perfect U.S. Congressman Grant Spangler.
Now all of Piper’s hard-won happiness is threatened by a reclusive uncle’s bout of conscience. In the wake of a health scare, Uncle Obadiah Pickwick has decided to change his will, leaving money to make amends for four generations’ worth of family misdeeds. But that will reveal all the Pickwicks’ secrets, including Piper’s.
Though Piper arrives in Pickwick primed for battle, she is unprepared for Uncle Obe’s rugged, blue-eyed gardener. So just who is Axel Smith? Why does he think making amends is more than just making restitution? And why, oh why, can’t she stay on task? With the Lord’s help, Piper is about to discover that although good PR might smooth things over, only the truth will set her free.
To learn more about Leaving Carolina, along with numerous other titles, head to the Random House website. I'd like to thank Liz from Multnomah Books, a division of Random House for sending me my review copy of this book.
My Review:
I know you may question me because I'm reviewing a book that was given to me by the publisher, but I absolutely LOVE Tamara Leigh! Her writing is easy and moves along so smoothly you don't realize you've become absorbed in the story!
Meet Piper Wick, formerly Piper Pickwick, who dropped the "Pick" along with the Southern drawl and country ways. And it cost a pretty penny to get rid of that part of her life. Now she's being drawn back into these uncitified ways of life and Piper would like to carefully avoid anything that might cause her to backslide into her country ways!
Well, apparently landing in North Carolina, on a mission to find out what's up with Uncle Obe, has opened the well-spring of countriness Piper thought she'd left behind in L.A. She keeps catching herself using phrases she long ago abandoned and berates herself every time she makes a slip!
One part I love about Tamara's writing is that she allows the reader to know what Piper is thinking while she's in the middle of any situation. Seriously, who doesn't love a healthy dose of sarcasm? Poor Piper has to deal with all of those Pickwick relatives who made her life miserable growing up. But then there's Axel, who isn't the Congressman she might just be getting engaged to. He's supposed to be the gardener, and the garden does look well taken care of, but she can tell there's more to him than meets the eye.
Will she be able to figure out what is up with Uncle Obe before he possibly dies, or before some dark secrets come out and changes the lives of the Pickwick family? Will Piper be able to leave North Carolina with a shred of Los Angeles still left in her? Ah, family...can't live with them. Let's just leave it at that. :)
About the Author:
After Tamara Leigh earned a Masters Degree in Speech and Language Pathology, she and her husband decided to start a family, with plans for Tamara to continue in her career once she became a mother.
When the blessing of children proved elusive, Tamara became convicted to find a way to work out of her home in order to raise the children she and her husband longed to have. She turned to writing, at which she had only ever dreamed of being successful. Shortly thereafter, her agent called with news of Bantam Books offer of a four-book contract. That same day, Tamara's pregnancy was confirmed. Within the next year, she gave up her speech pathology career, committed her life to Christ, her first child was born, and her first historical romance novel was released.
As Tamara continued to write for the secular market, publishing three more novels with HarperCollins and Dorchester, she infused her growing Christian beliefs into her writing. But though her novels earned awards and were national bestsellers, she knew her stories were lacking. After struggling with the certainty her writing was not honoring God as it should, she made the decision to write books that not only reveal Christianity to non-believers, but serve as an inspiration for those who have accepted Christ as their Savior. Her inspirational romances are peopled with characters in varying stages of Christian faith, from mature believers to new believers to non-believers on the threshold of awakening.
Tamara Leigh enjoys time with her family, reading, and--of course--writing. She lives near Nashville, Tennessee with her husband and two sons.
1 comments:
I have read numerous reviews for this book over the past few days, and have now added it to my 'to-read' list, which is getting longer by the minute because of all the book blogs I have recently been turned on to. I am so glad I found yours quite by accident last night. :O)
BTW~I responded to your comment on my blog. ;O)
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