EXCERPT: Posey smiled wistfully as she recalled what had transpired while Frances was on the far side of the globe. Before Frances's plane had reached cruising altitude, CJ had whisked the then nineteen-year-old Posey Burch from her dumpy apartment and into his stunning home for seven whole days of uninterrupted passion.
CJ had downshifted the white Jaguar as he turned into the driveway that day, the growl of the engine thrilling her with its power. She gasped as the three-story house came into view, silently vowing to one day live there as CJ's wife.
'My God, it's a mansion.'
'Yep. She calls it Eden Hall.'
The last day of their weeklong rendezvous, CJ had been tense. He yelled up the stairs, 'Damn it, Posey, hurry! Her plane lands in twenty minutes.'
A lovestruck Posey lifted the flask from his dresser and tucked it into her suitcase before slamming the lid. Impulsively, she dropped one of her monogrammed earrings among the hand creams, pens and bookmarks in Frances's nightstand. Her mother had saved for over a year to buy them, but to get what you want to get, you have to do what you have to do.
Sure of her future, Posey gave the earring three full weeks to get the ball rolling. When she realized her plan had failed, that here would be no announcement from CJ that he was divorcing, she was equal parts furious and heartbroken. In an effort to lessen the sting, she vowed to possess a house even finer than Eden Hall. How to accomplish that goal was unclear, but if Frances could get a mansion, so could she. And once CJ saw her as a successful hostess in her own magnificent home, it would be only a matter of time before he came to his senses and married her.

ABOUT 'THE EMPRESS OF COOKE COUNTY': The chatter at the Curly Q beauty shop is about who'll be first to get a new blue Foodarama refrigerator from Sears in their small town of Spark, Tennessee, but Posey Jarvis and her daughter Callie Jane find themselves facing a crisis--one that will change both their lives forever.

Thirty-eight-year-old Posey Jarvis is the self-appointed "Empress" of rural Spark, in Cooke County, Tennessee. She spends her days sneaking nips of gin, following every word about her idol and look-alike, Jackie Kennedy, and avoiding her stalwart husband, Vern. She is also struggling to control her newly defiant daughter, Callie Jane, who finds herself accidentally engaged to Trace Humboldt. When Posey unexpectedly inherits a derelict mansion from her quirky old Aunt Milbrey, she finagles her way into hosting her high school's twentieth reunion there. Possums are nesting in the parlor and the stench of cat urine permeates the sunroom, but she must be ready for the big day, so she needs to work fast. She cares nothing about seeing her classmates, but she cares deeply about seeing the love of her life, a man who dumped her twenty years ago.

Callie Jane has had enough of her mother and working her boring job at Jarvis Emporium, a junk shop owned by her father. She breaks her engagement, moves out of her parents' house, and sets her sights on moving to California. Her domineering mother, stultifying future, and even the creepy peeping Tom terrorizing the town will be in her rearview. But then a shocking act of violence changes everything, and Callie Jane must determine how far she will go to save someone she loves.

MY THOUGHTS: A cautionary tale about greed, envy and being grateful for what you have.

Posey Burch Jarvis and her daughter Callie-Jane are polar opposites. To Posey all that matters is social standing and appearances. Callie-Jane is more realistic, down-to-earth. She loves her daddy, the Beatles music and her best friend, Trace. Posey is manipulative and a drunk. Callie-Jane doesn't like to make waves and wants, one day, to live in California. The only thing they have in common is that they both have goals and dreams, but the obstacles preventing them from being achieved seem insurmountable. Until one day something happens that changes everything.

I thought this was going to me a humorous book, and it does have its humorous moments, but mostly it's kind of tragic. Posey would have to be one of the most narcissistic characters I have read in a long time. She is impossible to like. She is mean, ungrateful, a snob and a liar.

The part of the story that doesn't focus on Posey is sweet and heartwarming. It's definitely a contrast!

I felt sorry for Callie-Jane. She has a daddy she adores and the mother from hell who is determined to rule her life. It's a wonder Callie-Jane is anywhere near normal! Her struggle to find a way to live her own life was the highlight of this read for me.

I liked The Empress of Cooke County, but I didn't love it. I did particularly enjoy the 1960s atmosphere, the small-town vibes and Callie Jane's story.

I was lucky enough to be granted access to both the audio and digital versions and, overall, I believe I preferred the audio. Brittany Pressley is an excellent narrator and made the characters come alive.

⭐⭐⭐.5

#TheEmpressofCookeCounty #NetGalley

THE AUTHOR: Elizabeth Bass Parman grew up entranced by family stories, such as the time her grandmother woke up to find Eleanor Roosevelt making breakfast in her kitchen. She worked for many years as a reading specialist for a nonprofit, and spends her summers in a cottage by a Canadian lake. She has two grown daughters and lives outside her native Nashville with her husband and maybe Maltipoo, Pippin.

DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Harper Muse via NetGalley for providing both the digital and audio ARCs of The Empress of Cooke County by Elizabeth Bass Parman for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.

Oh goodness Posey is quite the character. All Posey wants is the recognition she thinks she deserves. Goals have been set and they must be accomplished. Sadly, she misses what she has in front of her. This book is fun and quirky. I love that it is written from the perspective of Posey and her daughter Callie. I think watching Callie grow and figure out that life only traps you if you allow it to be beautiful. There is just so much about this book to enjoy. This is a perfect book group book and one that I am looking forward to recommending.
Thank you so much to Harper Muse and Netgalley for allowing me to read an advance copy of this book.

Such a fun book! It perfectly captures the gossip and drama of a Southern small town. I loved the sense of place and time.

Another one of those books of which I let myself be guided by the cover and went blindly with the synopsis.

I am surprised with the story that I found in these pages, as it is a story of mother and daughter, where we see how both are sorting their lives.

On one end we have Posey Jarvis a married woman with an 18 year old daughter, who feels that her life is not as glorious as she wished and is still pining for a man with whom she had an affair 20 years in the past and who expects everything to be for her.

While on the other side, we have Callie Jane the daughter of Posey, who is looking for a way to get out from under her mother's rule and be able to experience her adult life.

This has been one of the few books in which I hated a main character from beginning to end, the author knows what she is doing, because I wanted to go in and pull Posey's ears, that desperate woman.

A good read that surprised me and took me out of my comfort zone a bit.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for this advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

ounty, Tennesse, one of those small towns where your neighbors are like family but on the other hand, everybody knows everybody else's business. Thus. the book is a mix of lovely found family vibes and small town narrow-mindness, Posey Jarvis struggles with the former. She never really fits into town nor does she want to. She is a spoiled selfish completely unlikable character. She thinks she is too good for everyone including her own husband. She wants to get what she thinks she deserves and control her daughter's life as well. Although her story may not go the way you'd expect it to or even the way you want it to, her surprisingly linear character arc does keep the story from becoming too cliche or predictable.

Her daughter, Callie Jane, is the other main character in the story. She is completely the opposite of her mother. She is the epitome of kindness and caring. Unlike her mother, her character is allowed to grow and change throughout the story, and her journey to become her own person and stop living her life according to what is expected and what other people want for her is admirable.

There are also a lot of side characters in the novel. For the most part, the author does a good job of differentiating them and keeping them distinguishable from each other. They really add to the story and help keep it moving along in an interesting way.

All in all the book is mostly a fun and engaging read except at times the character of Posey gets to be too much to take.

It’s 1960 and Posey Jarvis is the self appointed Empress of the small town Spark in Cooke County Tennessee - she started on the wrong side of the tracks and now has made it! Even though she got pregnant by a married man (for whom she still obsesses about daily and has plans to win him back) when she was young, she married and crafted herself into an appropriate southern woman. Now, years later, her daughter Callie finds herself accidentally engaged (everyone just expected it) but Callie she doesn’t want the appropriate Southern life of wife and mother that her mother spent so much time creating; she wants to be adventurous and move to CA. This is the story of the generational divide occurring in the 60s, told with humor, charm and fun characters.

This novel, while cute, does have some serious underlying themes; that being said I think the novel went deeper with the themes than any of the character dimensions. Posey especially remained one dimensional, although I believe her lack of character development was an intentional character flaw written by the author. Because of this I enjoyed the parts of the book with Callie more than the Posey chapters. I listened to about half of this one while cooking some of the last recipes of summer (I read the other half) and the audio was a pleasure to listen to. This is a cute book that has southern charm which I think was certainly captured by the narrator.

3.75 stars

Thank you to Harper Muse and NetGalley for the ARC

I really enjoyed this Southern tale of love, betrayal, and murder. While set in the 1960s, it wasn’t focused on the historical details but incorporated them in a way that was seamless in telling the story. I absolutely loved the “southernisms” - the funny phrases and quirky characters with which everyone who grew up in the South is familiar. I laughed out loud at some of the things said!

The story is serious, though, with a frustrated woman in midlife who will stop at nothing to get what she wants and her daughter who is trying to find her voice. I loved most of the characters and thought they were well developed. There was just one storyline that wasn’t for me but otherwise, it was a well plotted and rollicking Southern tale that I read in one sitting!

This book just kept getting better! I really loved the characters, the setting and the story. I was not at all expecting the last part of this book's story or how it ends.

This book is full of small town gossip. With a mother trying to force her dreams onto a daughter that has much bigger dreams. It is a quick read and worth your time.

This is the story of the antics of a mother who drinks gin and a daughter who wants her own life. The daughter is engaged to the guy that everyone wants her to marry. She works at the emporium owned by her father. She wants more. The mother wants to impress everyone so when she inherits a mansion in town, she goes about fixing it up.

t's the 1960s in small-town Tennessee and Posey is not satisfied with the life she has found herself in. Her 18-year-old daughter is also not happy. This book's marketing and cover made it seem like it would have wit and humor in it, but it really didn't. I think if I had been expecting something different, I would have appreciated the book a lot more than I did.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for gifting me this book for free in exchange for my review! All opinions are my own.

This is a delightful women's fiction novel set in the south in the 1960s. I really enjoyed the characters and I thought the story had a lot of charm to it. Some parts of the story were a little over the top, but I think that were most likely written to be that way on purpose.

If you like audiobooks, the audiobook version of this book is narrated by the fabulous Brittany Pressley who happens to be one of my favorite narrators.

This is a very delightful and charming book and I will be definitely on the lookout for more books by Elizabeth Bass Parman in the future!

Many Thanks again to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with this book in exchange for my honest review.

********


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This was great! Posey Jarvis seems at first just like a busybody woman in rural Tennessee that’s not too likable. As the story grows, Posey reaches for her gin more and more, and she becomes more unlikeable. All the while, Posies daughter Callie Jane and her husband Vern continue to grow and seek their own happiness, apart from Posey.

Eventually, after inheriting a large home from her aunt, Posey sets a new plan into motion. She manipulates those in her life to get what she wants. Except her plans don’t work out and sadly, every one of the Jarvis’ pay the price.

Advance reader copy provided by Harper Muse and NetGalley but all opinions are my own.

ℝ𝕒𝕥𝕚𝕟𝕘: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ | 𝔽𝕠𝕣𝕞𝕒𝕥: 𝐸-𝐵𝑜𝑜𝓀 & 𝒜𝓊𝒹𝒾𝑜𝒷𝑜𝑜𝓀

ℝ𝕖𝕧𝕚𝕖𝕨: 𝟑.𝟓 ⭐️ 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑬𝒎𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝑪𝒐𝒐𝒌𝒆 𝑪𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒕𝒚 𝐢𝐬 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐬𝐞 𝐞𝐧𝐣𝐨𝐲𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞, 𝐬𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐜 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐬 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐚 𝐰𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐞 𝐥𝐨𝐭 𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐬, 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐢𝐭’𝐬 𝐟𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐝 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐬𝐮𝐜𝐡 𝐦𝐞𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐞𝐧𝐣𝐨𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐧𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬. 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐢𝐬 𝐢𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐚 𝐬𝐦𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐠𝐨𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐩𝐲 𝐬𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐧 𝐭𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝟏𝟗𝟔𝟎𝐬. 𝐓𝐨𝐥𝐝 𝐢𝐧 𝐦𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐢𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐬, 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐰𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲 𝐥𝐚𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐟𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐉𝐚𝐫𝐯𝐢𝐬 𝐟𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐲, 𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐫𝐭𝐲-𝐞𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭-𝐲𝐞𝐚𝐫 𝐨𝐥𝐝 𝐏𝐨𝐬𝐞𝐲 𝐉𝐚𝐫𝐯𝐢𝐬 (𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐧 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐐𝐮𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐁𝐞𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐬𝐦𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐨𝐰𝐧) 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐫𝐞𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐝𝐚𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐞𝐫, 𝐂𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐞 𝐉𝐚𝐧𝐞 (𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐧 𝐭𝐨 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐬𝐦𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐒𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐬, 𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐣𝐨𝐛 𝐚𝐭 𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐟𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫’𝐬 𝐣𝐮𝐧𝐤 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐩, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐟𝐢𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞).

𝐅𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐝 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐟𝐮𝐧 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐮𝐧𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐧𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬, 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑬𝒎𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝑪𝒐𝒐𝒌𝒆 𝑪𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒕𝒚 𝐦𝐚𝐝𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐚 𝐝𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐟𝐮𝐥 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝! 𝐈 𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐞𝐧𝐣𝐨𝐲𝐞𝐝 𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐚𝐮𝐝𝐢𝐨𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐧𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐛𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐚𝐥𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬-𝐚𝐦𝐚𝐳𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐁𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐲 𝐏𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐥𝐞𝐲.

𝒯𝒽𝒶𝓃𝓀 𝓎𝑜𝓊 𝓉𝑜 𝒯𝒽𝑜𝓂𝒶𝓈 𝒩𝑒𝓁𝓈𝑜𝓃, 𝐻𝒶𝓇𝓅𝑒𝓇 𝑀𝓊𝓈𝑒, 𝐻𝒶𝓇𝓅𝑒𝓇 𝒞𝑜𝓁𝓁𝒾𝓃𝓈 𝐹𝑜𝒸𝓊𝓈, & 𝒩𝑒𝓉𝒢𝒶𝓁𝓁𝑒𝓎 𝒻𝑜𝓇 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝒜𝑅𝒞! 𝒜𝓁𝓁 𝑜𝓅𝒾𝓃𝒾𝑜𝓃𝓈 𝒶𝓇𝑒 𝓂𝓎 𝑜𝓌𝓃.

3.5⭐️ rounded up

This is an unconventional story of a mother and daughter living in the Deep South during the 1960s. Judging by the cover and blurb, I expected a lighthearted, gossipy southern drama, but the reality was much darker.

The story is told from two points of view. Posey Jarvis is truly wicked. Her day is filled with sips of gin, rumination on her own importance, and manipulative plans to get what she wants even at the risk of destroying others. Callie Jane is Posey’s daughter. She has lived under her mother’s domineering control and longs to escape her and the small town she calls home. Both women have dreams. The cost of achieving them is quite high.

I alternated between audio and print versions of this book and found both held my interest. Brittany Presley’s narration captured the southern charm of the Cooke County setting.

Thank you to NetGalley, Harper Muse, and Harper Muse Audiobooks for the opportunity to access advance copies in exchange for my unbiased review.

A really fun debut novel. I loved the sassy characters and the Southern vibe.
Thank you, NetGalley and the publisher for access to this eARC.

Eighteen years later, Posey is still pining after the same guy, and not the man she married. This is the main part of every decision she makes, and boy are there plenty of dumb ones. Through all this she alienates herself from everyone. I was never able to understand or connect with Posey and that made the whole book pretty confusing as she is the title character. Now, viewing Callie Jane as the main character makes for a much better story! She changed and grew during the course of the story, came into her own, and was a much more relatable character. That was the saving grace of this book for me!

It's been so long since I've found a southern "voice," in the vein of Fannie Flagg. Holy heck. This is IT. I laughed, I felt sadness and was sorry when it ended. Posey Jarvis came from the wrong side of the tracks, and she's harbored an obsession over someone she'd been with years ago (let's call it what it is...stalking.). She doesn't see the love that's right in front of her. Told in the alternating dialogues of Posey and her 18-year-old daughter worked really well, because you could see Posey from the outside in. Her daughter is also able to give us some insight into other characters, including her dad. I can't say enough about this book. Preorder it.

Thank you to Harper Muse and NetGalley for a digital ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

Posey may be one of my least favorite characters in literature. Yikes! Her daughter and husband though were so kind.

This book is marketed as light hearted fun but it's really not. It's a decent enough read but I simply couldn't laugh at it. I really only laughed when a young CJ confused impress with empress and thats how her mother got her nickname.

2.5 stars

Posey and her daughter Callie Jane tell this tale set in a small town in 1966. Posey is, if not a villain, an incredibly unlikable woman who continues to pine after Callie Jane's father - the man who left her pregnant- even as her long suffering husband Vern puts up with her nonsense. Now she's inherited a big house and is planning to host her high school reunion with the goal of showing off and getting CJ back. Not so fast. Callie Jane doesn't want to get married- she wants California. Can she finally stand up to her mother? This is one unhappy family. I enjoyed the atmospherics and rooted for Callie Jane (and Vern). Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. A good read.

The cover and synopsis of this book didn’t match the actual reading experience for me. I thought this would be a lighthearted literary fiction, but instead it was filled with characters I found rather flat and unlikeable with no solid plot driving the story forward. It was a bummer