This guest post is by  fiction author Charlotte Ehney.

Book Review:  Hissy Fit: A Novel by Mary Kay Andrews

Keeley Murdock is about to have it all.  She is one day away from marrying the handsome and rich A.J. Jernigan. Everyone who is anyone is at her rehearsal party at the country club.  But a fateful trip down the hallway on her way to the rest room makes Keeley suspicious about what is happening on the other side of a closed door.  Keeley opens the door to discover A.J. and her maid of honor Paige in a most compromising position.  What’s a girl to do?  Throw a huge hissy fit!  And that’s just what Keeley does.  Needless to say, the wedding is off.

Keeley tries to pick up the pieces after her dream life falls apart at her fiancé’s infidelity by losing herself in her interior design business.  Trouble is, work has dropped dramatically.  Keeley suspects that the Jernigans have pressured the town folks not to do business with her.  Since the Jernigans run the local bank, just about everyone in town wants to stay on their good side.

Fortunately, the wealthy Will Mahoney steps in to distract Keeley with a huge project.  He’s purchased Mulberry Hill, an abandoned antebellum mansion, in the hopes of winning the heart of a woman he’s never actually met.  As Keeley works with Will to renovate the majestic and dilapidated Mulberry Hill, he turns out to be something of a distraction himself.

Keeley struggles to move beyond A.J.’s betrayal but it reminds her of another loss she suffered long ago – being abandoned by her mother.   Although Keeley had heard the rumors that her mother ran away with another man, she has never discussed it with her father.  Finally Keeley decides to search for the answers behind her mother’s disappearance.

Overall, I would recommend Hissy Fit: A Novel.  There are a few scenes and subplots that are over the top.

Will Mahoney is a successful businessman.  He has purchased a local plant and meticulously researches options to bring the factory back to life.  Yet, he buys an antebellum house and sinks a large fortune into renovations and furnishings all for a woman he says he’s in love with but has never met.  This doesn’t fit with the image of Will as a logical professional.

Then there is Keeley’s failure to acknowledge her emotions regarding what she learns about her mother.

Despite this, I enjoyed Hissy Fit very much.  Author Mary Kay Andrews creates perfect small town, Southern characters.  She also nails the inner workings of small town society.  Hissy Fit is definitely Southern chick lit. Hissy Fit: A Novel is an easy read with some big laughs.  After all, you’ve got to root for a woman willing to pitch a justified Hissy Fit!

Charlotte Ehney is South Carolina native. She contributes to Lakelands Parents Magazine and Greenwood Magazine. Charlotte is the author of two novels, Blood Adversaries (print and Kindle) and Family Vows(Kindle) which are available on Amazon.com.  You can find her blog, Cosmic Chaos, at www.charehney.wordpress.com.