I really enjoyed the book Sweet Vidalia by Lisa Sandlin!Eliza Kratke is a 57 year old living in Texas in the 1960’s.She is blindsided when her husband Robert dies and she finds out he has been hiding secrets fromher.She builds a new life in the Sweet Visalia Residence Inn and enrolls in business college.The book follows her adventures.I found the book very insightful and well written!I enjoyed it immensely!I plan to read more of her books! Thank you Little, Brown and Company and NetGalley for allowing me to read an ARC of this book!

One crisp February afternoon, Eliza Kratke’s life changes in an instant. When losing her husband isn’t enough, shocking secrets of his past come piling on. Forced to power through, Eliza moves away from the only life she’s known for 30 years and calls the Sweet Vidalia Residence Inn home. In an effort to make ends meet, Eliza enrolls in business courses at a local college. While there, she meets a crew of unlikely characters; some becoming almost like her new found family.

From the start, Sweet Vidalia felt like a rollercoaster of emotions. I felt deeply for Eliza; cheered her on, became cautious of those entering her bubble, and felt constant anger towards Robert.
The trajectory of her life and the events she faced felt very authentic. I found myself deeply curious as to what would become of Eliza and those around her.
At times, the pacing of the novel felt rushed; jumping right ahead to new events in Eliza’s life without closure in other areas.


Thank you to Little, Brown and Company, NetGalley, and Lisa Sandlin for the opportunity to read this ARC and share my honest review

In a Texas town in 1964, 57-year old Eliza Kratke gets a series of unpleasant surprises when her husband of 30 years dies suddenly. Robert had taken out a mortgage on their paid-off ranch house for one thing. Remember, back in 1964, a woman couldn’t have their own credit or get a mortgage, but a man could, and could take out a mortgage on the family home without the wife knowing a thing about it. Eliza’s next surprises are that Robert had another family and that his second, bigamous wife has managed to put a lien on the house so that Eliza can’t sell it. Her cherry-on-top surprise is that Social Security surviving spouse benefits won’t start paying out until she reaches age 60. Eliza hasn’t held a job for decades. Now what?

Amazingly, it’s an encounter with a repo man that jars Eliza out of her shocked stupor. She sells everything she can and moved to a tiny efficiency apartment in the Sweet Vidalia Residence Inn. It’s on the wrong side of the tracks, but its residents are mostly students. Of course, they think she’s ancient, as do the other students at the business school where she decides to go to get qualifications for a job, but she slowly manages to make some unusual friendships with people at the Inn and from school. More importantly, she learns to take care of herself, identify what she’s good at, and take advantage of those skills to make a new life. Not at all the kind of life she’d imagined, but you have to grow up sometime, and she’s done it in her late 50s.

This is a book I forgave for a sometimes meandering plot, with some threads that didn’t get resolved, because of its humor, warmth, and insight.

This book about Eliza, a woman in her 50's whose husband suddenly dies and then finds out he had a second wife, started quite slow for me. However, I'm glad I stuck with it. Eliza uses pure determination to survive and gets herself into some interesting situations. By the end of the book, Eliza became one of my favorite book characters of the year.

This is a great story for anyone looking for a strong female heroine in a historical setting. The plot points are unexpected and the characters are interesting. It's easy to root for the main character as she goes on this transformational journey, and it's so good to see older heroines.

Nicely written historical fiction but not much happens. I enjoyed the storyline and the characters, but didn't love it.

I really enjoyed “Sweet Vidalia” by Lisa Sandlin. This is a haunting and thought-provoking novel about a woman who has to suddenly reinvent her life in 1960s Texas; this will stay with me a long time. I appreciated the themes of redemption and reinvention as well as the main character Eliza’s ability to meet others where they are at. She is a resilient and quietly fierce character. Parts of the book are laugh-out-loud funny as well. I can understand the comparison of the writer to Elizabeth Strout and Anne Tyler. However, I didn’t understand why some characters disappeared without their storylines being resolved. Overall, I really enjoyed the book. Thanks to Little, Brown and Company and NetGalley for the eARC.

I had really high hopes for this story, Sweet Vidalia, by Lisa Sandlin. I had read quite favorable reviews and started out truly enjoying the tale. Unfortunately, the story grew a bit tiresome for me midway through, and it became a struggle to read. That being said, there were definitely parts I enjoyed, especially the beginning where the adventure seemed non-stop. As the story unfolded, however, it didn't seem to keep the pace that was promised at the beginning. Nevertheless, as a simple story of a woman finding herself after unbelievable trials and tribulations, Sweet Vidalia is sure to please many readers.

I would like to thank Net Galley and Little, Brown and Company for the opportunity to read this book as an ARC. Eliza is a marrried woman in her late fifties. Her children are grown , and she lives in Texas in the 1960's. As the book opens, her husband dies suddenly. As she grieves, she finds that he had another wife. This is a slow moving, sweetly told story of a woman coming to terms with an upheaval that she could never have been prepared for , or expected. It is sad, and slow moving, and the first 25% or so drags a bit. However, as Eliza begins to take charge of her life, it became faster paced. The writing is good, and the story line intriguing. I kept reminding myself not to look at her situation thru current day eyes, but try to understand from a past perspective.60 years ago was a different time, and sometimes it is good to remember. Eliza's story , although told from a past, resonanted long after I finished the book.

This book was a little depressing. A woman's husband's secrets destroys her life as she knows it. She must fight to take back her life.

As I wept for and cheered for the plucky heroine in Sweet Vidalia, I realized how powerful this book is to teach us we can survive the worst things that happen to us. We can even thrive with wisdom, grace, courage and planning. Lisa Sandlin has written a beautiful story, deftly building a character who will stay with me for a long time.

Thanks to NetGalley and Little, Brown and Company for the opportunity to read this ARC.

SWEET VIDALIA grabbed me from the opening scene and never let me go. There were times when the story wasn’t quite as unpredictable or fast as others, but generally, I was captivated. Lisa Sandlin created characters that jumped from the pages directly into my imagination and they lived there for days. This was not quite a 5 star book, I was able to put the book down and carry on with my normal life, but it percolated inside my brain when I was doing other things. I kept wondering what would happen next. And so will other readers. Go grab the book; you won’t be sorry!

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Eliza, a woman in her mid-fifties, faces the daunting challenge of overcoming a betrayal that leaves her nearly penniless and on the brink of losing her home. While it may not fit the traditional mold of a found family story, it certainly comes close. Throughout her journey of self-discovery, Eliza encounters several intriguing individuals who contribute to her transformation, although the narrative still feels slightly distanced from the warmth of a true-found family.

I found myself wholeheartedly rooting for Eliza and eagerly wanting her to succeed, which speaks to the author’s ability to engage readers with a compelling storyline. However, the pacing of the narrative fluctuated at times, which led me to deduct a star.

The supporting characters in the book were both unique and captivating; I would have loved to see more of them throughout the story, as they truly added depth and richness to the narrative!

This book was not the best read for me. It's about a woman who suddenly finds herself alone after the unexpected death of her husband and as secrets and unfortunate events unfold, she finds a way to ground herself and slowly find ways to move on. It's a story of perseverance. There isn't much that happens in this story and the writing isn't as strong as I wish it were. It wasn't the best fit for me.

with gratitude to netgalley and Little, Brown and Company for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

This book is perfect. I have no notes. It reminds me of a classic USA Network show. I felt like I could have known our main characters. I oftentimes found myself reading pages of the book over and over again just to make sure I was certain about what I'd just read. Apologies for the vague review—I literally just devoured it in one sitting and I had to get this review up. I cannot wait until December to buy multiple copies for the adults in my life and for the folks that love good writing, a good story, and great prose.

Thank you to Netagalley, Little Brown and Company and Lisa Sandlin for allowing me to read an advanced copy of Sweet Vidalia.
I really enjoyed reading this book once I gave it a chance and kept reading. I had a hard time getting into it.
Eliza went through a lot in this story and always stayed strong. When her husband of 30 years suddenly dies and she finds out all kinds of secrets, she has to work very hard to rebuild her life in her late 50’s, from the bottom back up. She decides to go to business school and ends up moving into a hotel filled with all sorts of interesting people. Eliza finds it hard to move on from her past as the memories are so strong.
Glad I did not give up on this book as it ended up being a really good read

Eliza Kratke is a woman whose life will never be the same. She is going to have to rebuild that life from the ground up - and she will do so, no matter what it takes.

The first part of Sweet Vidalia was both shocking and heartbreaking, yet I didn't feel drawn in. I couldn't shake the feeling that Sweet Vidalia just wasn't my kind of book. Part of my struggle was due to sentences like: " She heard the articulation of this desire as clearly as if it had come from her mouth, which it had not. It had traveled upward from her spine, through her other bones, through and around organs, through blood, through skin, and then that desire had voiced itself in the vicinity of her neck, halfway between her heart and her ear. A voice without a voice! And she heard it. Clearer than a school bell, than a siren. Closer. Inside her, outside her but intimately near. She wanted her own, whatever that meant."

However, I kept reading, and about a quarter of the way into the book, I started liking it more. I loved the wisdom and kindness Eliza treated people with, whether they deserved it, or not!

TRIGGER WARNING:
Eliza's sweet, elderly dog dies in the book. It's handled tastefully and with SO MUCH love and compassion. He, sadly, had just reached the end of his time on earth.

Many thanks to both #LittleBrownandCompany and #NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review an early copy of Sweet Vidalia. It has an expected publication date of December 03, 2024.

Sweet Vidalia is the perfect title for this story! Eliza Kratke finds out how she has been betrayed by her husband at her husband’s funeral. She is devastated by his betrayal and because he has left her financially unstable, and she is a middle-aged housewife. All she is left with are her pride and her dog, but she picks herself up and moves forward. This story is perfect for the reader who wants a little drama but a lot of kindness, perseverance, and courage. Eliza meets and befriends people she would have never met, and her friendships are sweet. She must defeat a few hardships, but she finds that she is able to do so.

The story is sweet, and the reader applauds Eliza as she builds a new life for herself. Nothing terribly complex about this novel, but it is an easy, pleasant read!

Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Sweet Vidalia is the motel where Eliza ends up after life deals her a series of blows.
Eliza is happily married with children. Then her husband dies, and she discovers he was living a secret life.
Approaching the age of 60 she has to grapple with so many things to ground her life again. Poverty is just one of the issues she faces, thus she ends up in Sweet Vidalia.

A story of resilience and the strength of women in the face of adversity. Loss, grief, and a journey of self-healing drive the narrative of this thoughtful book.

I was excited to read this book when I read the description. I thought it would be super interesting to read about what could be real life events. Unfortunately, I got 24% in and just could not read much further. The were so many things that were repeated just in different ways, and some parts that I don’t think should have even been in the book but that is my opinion. I did dnf the book and I was not looking forward to it. I wanted to like this book and get to know more about Eliza Kratke, but I couldn’t take it anymore.