"A solid marriage, a thriving business, and the esteem of their close-knit Alabama community--Joyce and Odell Watson have every reason to count their blessings. Their marriage has given well-off Joyce a chance at the family she's always wanted--and granted Odell a once-in-a-lifetime shot to escape grinding poverty. But all that respectability and status comes at a cost. Just once, Joyce and Odell want to break loose and taste life's wild side, without consequences...When their new neighbors turn out to be high-steppin' bootleggers Milton and Yvonne Hamilton, the Watsons plunge headlong into good times and fast living. For Joyce, Yvonne is someone she can show off to--and look down on. And Odell won't introduce crude, unsophisticated Milton to his friends--but is happy to let Milton ply him with free booze. As much as the Watsons want to get along with their new neighbors, the gradual revelations of Yvonne and Milton's seedy past make them think twice about how much time they spend together. But the Hamiltons won't be dismissed so easily. The Watsons soon find them invading every area of their lives and discovering their long-held secrets. Now, the Watsons must tread carefully to keep the Hamiltons from destroying their perfect world. . ."--From dust jacket. - (Baker & Taylor)
Longing to live a little on the wild side, Joyce and Odell Watson engage in a friendship with their new neighbors Yvonne and Milton Hamilton. - (Baker & Taylor)
Longing to enjoy life on the wild side without consequences in their 1930s Alabama community, spouses Joyce and Odell forge a secret friendship with a pair of successful bootleggers whose resentment over being marginalized leads to the exposure of Odell's scandalous double life. - (Baker & Taylor)
New York Times bestselling author Mary Monroe returns to the 1930s era of her acclaimed novel The Upper Room with a dazzling portrait of two very different couples whose friendship and fast times are no match for shattering betrayal . . .
A solid marriage, a thriving business, and the esteem of their close-knit Alabama community—Joyce and Odell Watson have every reason to count their blessings. Their marriage has given well-off Joyce a chance at the family she’s always wanted—and granted Odell a once-in-a-lifetime shot to escape grinding poverty. But all that respectability and status comes at a cost. Just once, Joyce and Odell want to break loose and taste life’s wild side, without consequences . . .
When their new neighbors turn out to be high-steppin’ bootleggers Milton and Yvonne Hamilton, the Watsons plunge headlong into good times and fast living. For Joyce, Yvonne is someone she can show off to—and look down on. And Odell won't introduce crude, unsophisticated Milton to his friends—but is happy to let Milton ply him with free booze.
As much as the Watsons want to get along with their new neighbors, the gradual revelations of Yvonne and Milton’s seedy past make them think twice about how much time they spend together. But the Hamiltons won’t be dismissed so easily. The Watsons soon find them invading every area of their lives and discovering their long-held secrets. Now, the Watsons must tread carefully to keep the Hamiltons from destroying their perfect world . . . - (Random House, Inc.)
MARY MONROE, the daughter of sharecroppers, is the author of the award-winning and New York Times bestselling God series that includes God Don’t Like Ugly and God Don’t Make No Mistakes, among other novels. Winner of the AAMBC Maya Angelou Lifetime Achievement Award and the PEN/Oakland Josephine Miles Award, Mary Monroe currently lives in Oakland, California, and loves to hear from her readers via e-mail at AuthorAuthor5409@aol.com. Visit Mary’s website at MaryMonroe.org. - (Random House, Inc.)
Booklist Reviews
When Odell meets the daughter of the owners of the shop where he works as a stock clerk in 1934, he knows he has found his future. Joyce has a good job at a respected school for African American children, and he enjoys spending time with her. After they marry, he becomes manager of her parents' store, but Joyce cannot sustain a pregnancy. Odell secretly meets a young beauty, has three children with her, and justifies his embezzling from the store as necessary to support them. When Yvonne and Milton move in next door, Joyce and Odell enjoy going to their speakeasy, though something seems off. When Milton sees Odell with his other family, Odell knows his instincts were correct about the man who is now blackmailing him. This launches Monroe's (Never Trust a Stranger, 2017) Neighbors series, and she reveals sympathetic aspects and complex motivations for each character in this engrossing setting. Joyce, in particular, is fascinating in her love for her husband, tempered by what seems like a growing willingness to investigate his absences. Copyright 2018 Booklist Reviews.
