The Sweet Taste of Muscadines by Pamela Terry ~ a Review

by Donna Huber

I'm still working my way through my March ARCs so I checked out the audiobook from the library to help speed up the reading. If you enjoy southern fiction and looking for an audiobook, The Sweet Taste of Muscadines is well done. The story was easy to follow even when mildly distracted.

Amazon affiliate links are used on this site. A free book was provided for an honest review.

March 2021; Ballantine Books; 978-0593158456
audio, ebook, print (304 pages); southern fiction

I keep trying to like southern fiction so every few years I pick up a book in the genre in hopes it will be the one that makes me fall in love with the genre. I'm feeling like I miss out on a lot of great stories because I shy away from this genre. I saw many bloggers talking about The Sweet Taste of Muscadines a few months ago and I gave into FOMO in hopes it would be the one.

The plot sounded good

A woman returns to her small southern hometown in the wake of her mother's sudden death--only to find the past upended by stunning family secrets (Goodreads).

I love women's fiction and family dramas. Perhaps this would be a winning combination for me.

Gorgeous cover

I love nature on covers and this one kept drawing my eye. It probably why I noticed so many people talking about it months ago and decided to request it. 

Great writing

This is Pamela Terry's debut novel and if she wrote something other than southern fiction I would not hesitate to pick up another book by her. The writing was really great (I fully agree with Susan's review of the writing). The descriptions of the weather in Scotland made me feel like I was there - sunny and warm here I could feel the cold and rain.

The characters...

I think the reason I don't like southern fiction is the characters. They make my teeth hurt - like way too sugary sweet tea. I probably should mention that I live in the south (I'm in Georgia), but I'm a Yankee transplant. I've met too many southerners who hide behind polite manners and southern hospitality when what they really think of you are not too nice of thoughts. So when characters exude that southern charm, it is an immediate turn-off for me. About halfway through The Sweet Taste of Muscadines, I was reminded of Sarah Addison Allen's The Peach Keeper, and when I looked back at my review for that book I basically said the same thing about the characters being the turn-off. I know a bunch of people loved The Peach Keeper so if you were one of them, then you should definitely pick up The Sweet Taste of Muscadines.

Buy The Sweet Taste of Muscadines at Amazon

Donna Huber is an avid reader and natural encourager. She is the founder of Girl Who Reads and the author of how-to marketing book Secrets to a Successful Blog Tour.

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