Scan barcode
twotoes's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
A love story that isn't. A romance novel built around characters who know nothing about love. The writing feels like this should be taking place 75 years before it does which gives it a strange vibe that I enjoyed. This isn't a dark comedy but it certainly has those moments.
jimmypat's review against another edition
4.0
A story of a love triangle that involves a wide array of characters (many of whom are terribly unscrupulous) who get what they deserve in very surprising ways. Excellent character-driven drama.
rme93's review against another edition
4.0
This was my second foray into Foote's fiction, having grown up reading his historical books (I write a little more about this in my brief review for Follow Me Down). Basically, I expected good writing from a southern author going in. And after his other novel, I realized that he was unafraid to discuss issues in his novels plainly.
This book was another gritty take on the Southern heyday lit, and again was unexpectedly enjoyable. Unlike Follow Me Down, this novel doesn't permanently change points of view (it just shifts around the main characters). For those who love a romance story, this is NOT it. But for those who don't mind a more cynical story about conmen, broken relationships, changing times, and unhappy folks than this will be for you. I thought the form was less exciting than Foote's other major novel and the plot less cohesive. But I enjoyed his dark take on the romance novel. I found it much more modern in tone than expected, and that Foote was unafraid to "go there" with his characters. It's a book you think about after reading it.
As I warned in my Follow Me Down review, this is very much a book of its time and place (and all that entails) so just be aware going in.
This book was another gritty take on the Southern heyday lit, and again was unexpectedly enjoyable. Unlike Follow Me Down, this novel doesn't permanently change points of view (it just shifts around the main characters). For those who love a romance story, this is NOT it. But for those who don't mind a more cynical story about conmen, broken relationships, changing times, and unhappy folks than this will be for you. I thought the form was less exciting than Foote's other major novel and the plot less cohesive. But I enjoyed his dark take on the romance novel. I found it much more modern in tone than expected, and that Foote was unafraid to "go there" with his characters. It's a book you think about after reading it.
As I warned in my Follow Me Down review, this is very much a book of its time and place (and all that entails) so just be aware going in.
asiajane's review against another edition
3.0
Definitely engrossing, in the way that eccentric, wealthy, and largely unlikeable characters tend to be. The narration is suitably caustic, though a real affection for the Deep South is readily apparent.
tiptoeingthroughmystacks's review against another edition
DNF. Mr. Foote’s writing style is not for me.
konkie44's review against another edition
4.0
I really enjoyed this book. I liked the way Shelby Foote wrote and the story held my attention. I would have liked more closure at the end but overall I still thoroughly enjoyed it.
lrgoris's review
5.0
I loved this book with its strange group of characters. The heat and humidity of the south made it that much more intoxicating. One of my favorite southern novels!
erinbottger's review
4.0
I listened to "Love in a Dry Season" on Hoopla and enjoyed it very much. The two families the book follows give insight into the Southern Gothic Consensus. The well-drawn characters are certainly flawed, but interesting, as they play out their little drama for us. And the overarching, ever-present Southern reality dooms them all to a kind of tragic ending.
This is my first Shelby Foote novel, and it demonstrates his grasp of historic details, centered on Mississippi. We are presented with two main female leads: the aging, plain, isolated and introverted daughter of wealth who is denied her man of choice by her domineering dad. And then we have the wealthy, worldly and restless Amy, who finds both small-town Southern life and her cousin-husband boring, stirs up interest and trouble with a charming traveling salesman from the North. He settles temporarily in a small Arkansas town to wait out the death of the old judge in order to marry his daughter and get his hands on some money. After long-term courting the one heiress and carrying on with the other, in the end, the charming banker gives up on them both and moves away to Memphis.
Foote brings to life a small, sleepy Southern town and its high and low social life, not to mention church and civic clubs. Both sexual passion and lonely expectation fill the pages of this story and keep the reader turning the pages. Some readers felt let down by the non-romantic ending, but I didn't; each character's destiny fitted them and was believably realistic.
This is my first Shelby Foote novel, and it demonstrates his grasp of historic details, centered on Mississippi. We are presented with two main female leads: the aging, plain, isolated and introverted daughter of wealth who is denied her man of choice by her domineering dad. And then we have the wealthy, worldly and restless Amy, who finds both small-town Southern life and her cousin-husband boring, stirs up interest and trouble with a charming traveling salesman from the North. He settles temporarily in a small Arkansas town to wait out the death of the old judge in order to marry his daughter and get his hands on some money. After long-term courting the one heiress and carrying on with the other, in the end, the charming banker gives up on them both and moves away to Memphis.
Foote brings to life a small, sleepy Southern town and its high and low social life, not to mention church and civic clubs. Both sexual passion and lonely expectation fill the pages of this story and keep the reader turning the pages. Some readers felt let down by the non-romantic ending, but I didn't; each character's destiny fitted them and was believably realistic.
More...