The Sweetgum Ladies Knit for Love by Beth Patillo is the first of three books in a Back-to-School Fiction blog tour by Waterbrook. It caught my eye because it’s about six ladies in a book club studying some of my favourite works of literature.
Eugenie, the town librarian, is newly married, and in her excitement about that, decides their group should study some of the greatest love stories in literature. Her five friends—one married, one widowed, and three avoiding love from fear of getting hurt—are a little less than enthusiastic about the idea.
One thing I found amusing was the Pride & Prejudice subplot in the story, especially since the group studies Jane Austen’s classic. Maria is the town spinster, owner and manager of the struggling five and dime store, and is forced to sell the family farm. Evan, the buyer, and James Delevan, his lawyer, are a perfect Mr. Bingley and Mr. Darcy to Maria and her sister Daphne’s Elizabeth and Jane. Patillo doesn’t completely wrap up this story at the end of the novel (perhaps leaving room for a sequel), but the subplot is strong enough that readers should know what happens next.
I had this book with me when we visited my in-laws, and my father-in-law picked it up and finished it before I did. He said he didn’t like it—there were too many main characters. I agreed with him on that point; following the stories of six ladies was a bit confusing in the first few chapters, until you got to know them all. Patillo handled it well, providing flashbacks in a few sentences to provide key information that couldn’t always be included in a scene itself because of the number of characters.
The characters’ stories were also very similar. Only Esther, the widow, and Merry, a wife and mother of four children, had unique situations. The other four had similar stories of high school romances returning to woo them again years later (up to forty years later, as in Eugenie’s case) and of not wanting to fall in love for fear of getting hurt. Overall, I enjoyed seeing how the characters supported each other and were able to find solutions together for their struggles.
I was halfway through the book before I realized it was a sequel. Readers of The Sweetgum Knit Lit Society may have less trouble with the multiple characters, because most (except for Ruth, who is replaced by Maria) return in the sequel. The Sweetgum Ladies Knit for Love stood well on its own because of Patillo’s skill with flashback. Overall, it was a quick and enjoyable—if somewhat predictable—read, and one that fans of Christian chick lit should be sure to enjoy.
Beth Patillo grew up in Texas and now lives in Tennessee with her husband and children. She has a Master of Divinity degree and is the author of ten novels.
Back-to-School fiction from Waterbrook:
- The Confidential Life of Eugenia Cooper by Kathleen Y’Barbo
- Rose House by Tina Ann Forkner
This book was provided for review courtesy of the publisher or publicist. This post contains affiliate links; as an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
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