There is no one who can write about the South Carolina Lowcountry like author Dorothea Benton Frank. She revisits the coastal paradise in her new book, “Lowcountry Summer.”
Caroline Wimbly Levine finds herself in the position of family matriarch after the passing of her formidable momma, Miss Lavina. As the newly crowned head of Tall Pines Plantation, it’s up to Caroline to watch over her lively and feisty family and try and keep them on the straight and narrow. It’s a tough job, but somebody has to do it.
Caroline worries about her beloved college-aged son Eric, who is “dating” an older woman who has a two-year old child; she has to help her brother Trip keep his alcoholic wife Frances Mae out of jail and into rehab; she has four wild nieces, who seem to be the spawn of the Devil himself, who need her undivided attention; and she has a strawberry farm business to run with Miss Sweetie.
On top of all that, Caroline is in the midst of her very own romantic crisis with one boyfriend who nearly dies on her, another one who is a handsome, sexy sheriff, and a randy ex-husband who seems intent on winning her back.
It’s always a lively time at Tall Pines.
But when tragedy strikes, the otherwise dysfunctional Wimbly family pull themselves together and become a tight, cohesive family unit – well, sort of – the best they can.
“Lowcountry Summer” is Frank’s sequel to her bestselling novel, “Plantation,” a story that fans have eagerly awaited for years. With her uniquely charming Southern style of humor, Frank draws her readers into the heart of the Wimbly family, where you’re always welcome at the breakfast table for Millie’s lighter-than-air biscuits, Miss Sweetie’s strawberry jam and a slab of Bobby Mack’s melt-in-your mouth ham. Bless your hearts, you’ll find yourself just falling in love with the Lowcountry, I guarantee it!
