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Carley Reed’s childhood was anything but idyllic, but she determined to rise above the troubles and misfortunes and make a better life for herself. And she did, developing a strict moral code along the way. When the headmistress at the prep school where Carley teaches asks Carley to look the other way when spoiled, rich students cheat, Carley is faced with a dilemma. Should she adapt her moral code to allow for judgment errors? Coincident with this choice, Carley receives a visit from a private detective, searching her out to deliver mixed news: Her grandmother has died and she’s an heiress.
Without realizing the extent of her bequest, Carley quits her job, standing by her moral code and travels to Mississippi to settle her grandmother’s estate and meet the family she never knew she had. She prepares herself for the possibility of greedy relatives who might feel snubbed at her portion of her grandmother’s estate, but instead she finds herself welcomed into a warm family unit. But Carley is skeptical. Good times have turned bad quickly in the past, so she sticks to her plan to settle her grandmother’s estate and hustle back to California to look for a new teaching job. Even from a distance, her family extends themselves to her, and when the lease on her California apartment runs out, Carley makes the trip back to Mississippi to pick up a new thread to her life.
Small town life embraces her and Carley feels warm and safe for the first time in her life. But even small towns hide their ugly little secrets in unexpected places. She is pursued by the chief of police, a local hero, but Carley’s history with men keeps her cautious. With a new career, Carley befriends a young girl who reminds her of herself at a young age and remembers the positive influences in her life, hoping to give this girl the same chances that helped her rise above the bad things that threatened her. She doesn’t realize that this girl holds the key to some of the small town’s secrets.
A TABLE BY THE WINDOW is a triumph over all the things in life that threaten to weigh us down. It’s also a triumph of family lost and found and the value of mentoring. Ms. Blackwell has an easy writing style that keeps you turning pages and an upbeat tone that leaves you cheering the human spirit. Ms. Blackwell’s literary references (in keeping with Carley’s character) keep Carley looking for the positive spin on questionable situations, in spite of caution learned from experience. Filled with optimism and the fortitude to push through negative fears, this is a novel to share with the whole family.
Reviewed by Karla Brandenburg
for The Road to Romance
April 24, 2005
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