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Capturing the Texas Rancher's Heart

An amusing yet poignant tale set in Georgia's Lowcountry...

A Lowcountry Tale
Putnam
August 2004
Featuring: Brad Jackson; Linda Breland
368 pages
ISBN: 0425196089
Hardcover
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Dorothea Benton Frank

Dorothea Benton Frank
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Linda Breland has no experience managing a restaurant, but
then neither did Brad Jackson, and he owns the place.

Meet Linda Breland, single parent of two teenage daughters.
The oldest, Lindsey, who always held her younger sister in
check, is leaving for college. And Gracie, her Tasmanian
devil, is giving her nightmares. Linda’s personal life?
Well, between the married men, the cold New Jersey winters,
her pinched wallet and her ex-husband who marries a
beautiful, successful woman ten years younger than she is—
let’s just say, Linda has seen enough to fill a thousand
pages.

As the story opens, she is barreling down Interstate 95,
bound for Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, the land of her
ancestors. Welcomed by the generous heart of her advice
dispensing sister, Mimi, Linda and her daughters slowly
begin to find their way and discover a sweeter rhythm of
life.

And then there’s Brad Jackson, a former investment banker
of Atlanta, Georgia who hires her to run his restaurant on
Shem Creek. Like everyone else, Brad’s got a story of his
own—namely an almost ex-wife, Loretta who is the kind of
gal who gives women a bad name.

The real protagonist of this story is the Lowcountry
itself. The magical waters of Shem Creek, the abundant
wildlife and the astounding power of nature give this tiny
corner of the planet its infallible reputation as a place
for introspection, contemplation and healing.

As in all her previous work, you’ll find Shem Creek to be compulsively readable, irreverent but warm and blazingly authentic—and you’ll dread reaching the last page. It is her vivid writing, colorful characters and rich narrative that have made Dorothea Benton Frank one of our nation’s greatest storytellers. Shem Creek is a triumphant novel that proves we are all entitled to a second chance. The challenge is to learn how to recognize it when it comes and to know which chance to take.