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In high school Sugar Beth Carey was the girl almost everyone wanted to be or wanted to be with. She was beautiful, powerful, rich, and her boyfriend, Ryan Galantine, was the football star. Sugar Beth was the leader of popular girls click known as “The Seawillows.” The person she hated most was Winnie Davis. Poor Winnie caught her wrath constantly. No one crossed Sugar Beth without suffering the consequences. Sugar Beth ain’t
sweet; she’s the girl we all loved to hate in high school.
Sugar Beth left Parrish, Mississippi with big dreams, but the beautiful, spoiled, rich girl has come home after fifteen years with her tail tucked behind her. In college things began to fall apart for Sugar Beth. She dropped her friends The Seawillows, she cheated on Ryan and lost him, married and divorced three times and made other mistakes too numerous to mention. She’s broke, looking older than she should and has more last names than she’ll ever need. Her plans are to find a missing painting that could bring her a lot of money, and then be on her way again, but you know what they say about the best laid plans.
Colin Byrne is also back in Parrish. In fact, he’s been back for five years
living a peaceful life. He bought and lives in “Frenchman’s
Bride,” the house that was Sugar Beth’s pride and joy. Colin is well
aware of Sugar Beth’s misfortune and he can make his revenge as sweet as
he wants since Sugar Beth is living in the cottage house out back of
Frenchman’s Bride. His first step is to block off her access to the
driveway, which crosses his property, so that she has to walk to get to
the cottage house. After that, the revenge takes hilarious turns that
will keep you in stitches.
Winnie is married to Ryan Galantine and now The Seawillows are her friends. But when Sugar Beth returns to Parrish, so do all Winnie’s old insecurities. Even though she and Ryan have been married for thirteen years, Winnie is uncertain about her marriage since she got Ryan by default. There are also deeper issues which Winnie and Sugar Beth never resolved. Can two fierce adversaries ever find their way to friendship?
Sugar Beth is probably the bravest character I’ve ever read. She hurt these
people very badly, but she’s truly sorry. She knows by coming back to
Parrish, she will have to surrender to a lot of ridicule and payback,
but she’s ok with that. The fact that she has nothing left but her pride
isn’t very comforting though. Her selfishness caused her to lose all the
things she loved and make really poor choices in her life, but those
choices gave her the one person who truly loves her and Sugar Beth would
do anything for this person. Sugar Beth’s relationship with this person
is a very touching part of the story and it proves to the reader that
Sugar Beth has changed. We see into her past and we know how selfish and
mean she was, but now we see a different person.
The central romance runs the emotional gamut, but it’s worth every word. The hero and heroine couldn’t be more perfect for each other. They just have to wade through a lot of garbage and hurt feelings before they see what’s right there in front of them. Colin makes Sugar Beth suffer a lot before he allows her to see what’s really in his heart. They are a hilarious couple and one of my all-time favorites. The Seawillows are not glad to see Sugar Beth and the payback they dish out is classic. Ryan and Winnie must face their own issues, as they determine if their marriage is strong or wrong.
I’m an avid fan of Susan Elizabeth Phillips and AIN’T SHE SWEET is at the top of my favorites. There are countless twists and turns that keep the reader fixated on the story. Just when you think you’ve got things figured out, you’re thrown another curve. It’s a non-stop…can’t miss romp with one of the best storylines I’ve ever read. As usual, the trademark SEP one liners are side splitting and memorable and the secondary characters are awesome, including The Seawillows and Winnie and Ryan’s daughter who proves to be the surprise catalyst. I highly recommend AIN’T SHE SWEET for any reader. It ain’t just a sweet romance, it’s an all around delightful story that will have you laughing until you cry and crying until you laugh and in the end you leave feeling good.
Reviewed by Jennifer Ray
for The Road to Romance
March 24, 2005
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