New Mercies

by Sandra Dallas

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Editorial Reviews
Product Description

Natchez, Mississippi, in 1933 is a place suspended in time. The silver and china is still dented and cracked from Yankee invaders. And the houses have names...and memories. Nora Bondurant is running away--from her husband's death, from his secrets, and from the ghosts that dog her every step. When she receives a telegram informing her that she has an inheritance, Nora suddenly has somewhere to run to: a house named Avoca in Natchez, Mississippi. Now, she’s learning that the lure of Natchez runs deep, and that, along with Avoca, she’s inherited a mystery. Nora's aunt Amalia Bondurant was killed in a murder/suicide, and the locals are saying nothing more--except in hushed, honeyed tones. As Nora becomes more and more enmeshed in the community and in her family’s history, she learns surprising things about the life and death of her aunt: kinship isn't always what it seems, loyalty can be as fierce as blood relations, and every day we are given new mercies to heal the pain of loss and love.

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All Customer Reviews
Average Customer Review: 4 out of 5 stars

0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:

5 out of 5 stars

Nailed Life in Natchez, 2008-11-10
New Mercies is the first book by Sandra Dallas I've read. I plan to read others by her. Nora Bondurant is running away from a divorce, the secrets about which we are not privy. She receives a telegram that informs her she has inherited a house named Avoca in Natchez, Mississippi. Intriguing place. The setting is 1933 and Sandra Dallas gets the language and ways of the South down pat. We follow Nora as she travels from Colorado to Natchez and is challenged by the place and people there. Dallas weaves bits of Nora's past into the story but just segments here and there, enough to keep you wondering what is in her head that motivates her to be who she is. She peels away secrets throughout the story as Nora faces monumental decisions about her future and the future of Avoca. Good read, strongly recommend.

1 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

1 out of 5 stars

Formula for Poor Writng, 2008-03-08
Sandra Dallas tells good tales. The Diary of Mattie Spenser has intriguing turns. New Mercies has southern charm. Unfortunately, Dallas succumbs to decorating her books with the bric-a-brac of pseudo research--without integrating it into the tale. It glows like Mattie's silver spoons in a sod house. Dallas demonstrates no mastery of letting her characters speak --choosing rather to sprinkle the dialog with newspaper headlines and abrubt colloquialisms. One does not have to include every historical figure, building, or event in a book. Dallas has the talent to write well; it is unfortunate that she chooses formulas which no doubt drive and satisfy publishers but do not create good writing. A warning to readers--positive reviews can indicate that others have abandoned a book because it was not worth reading. Before you waste money on Dallas books, sample her writing from the local library.

0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:

3 out of 5 stars

It's ok, 2008-01-18
This book is not as good as/doesn't come close to "Buster Midnight's Cafe" and "Chili Queen". They were very good books.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4 out of 5 stars

Dallas never disappoints!, 2007-04-21
Sandra Dallas has a unique talent, and her readers are the lucky participants. _New Mercies_ is no exception. The characters are finely drawn, making the reader want to meet every single one. The underlying themes of suspense and mystery - even murder - keep this story interesting from the first page to the last.

My only nit to pick is that Nora seems unrealistically enlightened for the time period. She is a divorced career woman in 1933. She has surprisingly modern attitudes about bi-racial relationships, homosexuality, and social equality even though she is an old-money former Junior Leaguer. Not totally realistic for the time period, IMO.

That said, I love Southern literature - particularly set during the Great Depression - and Sandra Dallas offers a story that contains these elements and also kept me glued to my chair for the better part of two days.

Definitely worth the time and money. You will remember these characters for a long time. I would give it five stars except for my reservations about Nora's enlightenment, and because I don't think this one quite measures up to _The Persion Pickle Club_.

4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5 out of 5 stars

Another Sandra Dallas Hit, 2006-08-25
Once again Ms Dallas has provided us with an insight into the every day lives and the life style of the folks from the era. In the tradition of Persian Pickle Club,The Chili Queen and The Diary of Mattie Spenser we have the weave of characters and history. Ms Dallas is also proof that a story can be well told without being offensive to anyone. Highly recommended!!

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