Book Review
Bittersweet passages
By NAN PATTON EHRBRIGHT
SUN HERALD
There's no scarcity
of suspects when Sheriff Andy Washington investigates the murder of
James Boudreaux after his body is found lying among the vegetables in
the garden at his Tallula, La., home.
Who hated the S.O.B.
enough to kill him? Everyone in town.
Including his widow
and her sisters. Including his mother-in-law. Including Nadine, who was
cast out of the family at age 15 when Mama Guliano discovered Boudreaux
kissing her youngest daughter on the very day that he and Lucie Galiano
announced their engagement.
Nadine, disguised as
a nun, returns home after a 19-year absence to "make sure he's actually
put in the ground," she says at the beginning of "The Sisters: Murder by
the Bayou," a mystery/comedy/romance by L.L. Lee.
Lee, a Bay St. Louis
resident and a former registered nurse turned author, has done it again.
Faithful readers
will relish the return of the crazy Guliano women whose adventures were
previously described in "Taxing Tallula," "The Sisters: Lost in
Brooklyn" and "The Sisters: Found in San Antonio." New readers will make
haste to catch up with the earlier books.
Annie has a new
husband, but her crucifix remains her most constant companion. Fran, the
man-crazy, wild sister, is sporting flaming red hair. The sisters - and
Mama, when one of them remembers to pick her up - still gather for
morning coffee klatches at Diana's, where Cora, the long-time
housekeeper, serves up delicious meals and regales them with complaints
about their behavior.
Mama has aged. She
uses a walker now, but her staccato tongue's still strong enough to
knock down bricks.
Her first words to
Nadine: "Madeline told me you were a doctor. When did you become a nun?
Never mind. I've had so many heart attacks, I don't think you'd do me
much good as a doctor. Much better if you prayed for me, since it won't
be long now, you know."
Aside from worrying
that someone she loves has slain her hated brother-in-law, Nadine is
confused about her sudden passionate feelings for Dr. Steve Rose, former
fiance of her niece, T.J. Marino. Is he really, as rumor has long had
it, a hit man for the mob?
Despite her
misgivings, Nadine follows Steve on two occasions to Bay St. Louis,
where he practices medicine.
The first time, they
eat boiled crabs and drink Barq's root beer at a picnic table at Lil
Ray's.
The second time,
Nadine walks to Old Town, examines a plaque on a bench outside Bay Town
Inn, then goes across the street to enjoy a bowl of Melva's gumbo on the
deck at Dock of the Bay. There are several families on the beach, and
Nadine thinks that they are locals since most tourists visit the bigger
beach at Da Beach House in Waveland.
After her meal,
Nadine walks by Trapani's, stops to admire the old Hancock Bank at Beach
Boulevard and Main Street, then stops in at Serenity Gallery.
Lee wrote this book
before Hurricane Katrina battered the Coast and destroyed or severely
damaged these landmarks. So these are bittersweet passages for many
South Mississippians.
But not, I assure
readers, bittersweet enough to deter them from a thoroughly fun read.
The Sisters:
Taxing
The Sisters:
How To
Survive Menopause Without Going Crazy
The
Sisters: