Full of Grace: A Novel [Bargain Price] [Hardcover]

Dorothea Benton Frank (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 2, 2006

The rich atmosphere of South Carolina, Hilton Head and Charleston, is brought vividly to life by Dorothea Benton Frank, a South Carolina native who, with her exquisitely evocative prose, makes you smell the sea air, see the palmettos, and savor the sweet tea, but this time it comes with a side of antipasti.

Hilton Head, a South Carolina retirement heaven—at least it's supposed to be, but for Big Al and Connie Russo, the move from New Jersey to this southern paradise has been fraught with just a few complications. Especially for their daughter, Grace.

Well, that's what she likes to be called. Her family insists on Maria Graziella. Seriously, enough with the Neapolitan. That might have been okay in New Jersey, but now it's just plain silly, and Grace at thirty-two is, horror of horrors, still unmarried. No wonder her family drives her crazy. Well, that and the fact that she's living with the man she would marry if they both weren't so commitment phobic. Michael is a doctor and a scientist and Grace is pretty sure he's also an atheist. Over the years, Grace has become a bit ambivalent about her faith, but her family is as old-fashioned Italian as they come. So the stage is set for a major showdown that just might change Grace's outlook on life, family, and the New South.

--This text refers to the Mass Market Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Meet the Russos: Big Al and Connie, former New Jersey-ites who, in their Hilton Head retirement community, stick out like cannolis on a plateful of biscuits; Nonna, Connie's mother, who took Cinderella's wicked stepmother as her parental role model; and Grace, their dutiful daughter living in nearby Charleston with her lover, Dr. Michael Higgins. Michael, however, has not met the Russos. More than his Irish heritage, Michael's work in stem-cell research and his lapsed Catholicism make him persona non grata at Casa Russo. Constantly at her mother's beck and call, Grace unselfishly travels home whenever there's a family crisis, but when Michael is diagnosed with brain cancer, Grace desperately needs her family's support. Will their devout faith prevent them from giving it, and can Grace resolve her own religious doubts in the face of this challenge? A masterful storyteller, Frank specializes in resilient characters who survive thanks to a saucy combination of grit and humor, and her vibrantly eccentric Russo clan may be her most endearing creation yet. Carol Haggas
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

About the Author

New York Times bestselling author Dorothea Benton Frank was born and raised on Sullivans Island, South Carolina. She resides in the New York area with her husband.

--This text refers to the Mass Market Paperback edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 317 pages
• Publisher: William Morrow; 1ST edition (May 2, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060892358
• ISBN-13: 978-0060892357
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 5.8 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (70 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #941,516 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I am the author of eleven novels placed in and around the Lowcountry of South Carolina and thanking God for my chance to speak. When I'm not writing, I'm reading or gardening or cooking. Love to travel, shoot the bull with people and most of all, be with my husband, children and dogs - not always necessarily in that order. Just finished my eleventh book - Lowcountry Summer for William Morrow and it will come out June 15, 2010. Love to have company so come visit at www.dotfrank.com. And by the way, serious huge gushing thanks for everything - your kind words and emails. Writing saves me, but without your support it wouldn't mean much. (So I'm a little sappy and sentimental - big deal.) xxoo Dot

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Full of Grace, July 18, 2006

By 

Tonya Speelman "Hoarder of books" (Goldendale WA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Full of Grace: A Novel (Hardcover)

We have Grace, who's family is Italian and devoted Catholics. Grace is living in a place that is paid for by her parents. However, she is living with a man, and they are not married. Michael let's just say has issues with church and believing. However when Michael is diagnosed with brain cancer everything changes.

Are miracles real? Should we have to give up science in order to follow what the church says? This book was an outstanding book. I loved the family life and I loved all the food descriptions and traveling.

This was my first book by Ms. Frank, but it won't be my last. It caught my attention and I couldn't put it down until I found out how Michael was if they were going to ever marry!

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars 4.5 stars, May 2, 2006

By 

Julie W. "Jules" (Charlotte, NC USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Full of Grace: A Novel (Hardcover)

I stayed up all night just to finish this! It was well worth the baggy eyes I'll be suffering from tomorrow. The characters are fantastically flawed, the setting is gorgeous(only Frank does justice to coastal Carolina), and everyone can relate to the search for something to believe in. I won't write any more because I hate plot spoilers, but I know this story will haunt me for days. The only reason I rated it 4.5 stars is because I wasn't the vintage Dot I adore. Nonetheless, this is a book well worth reading. I can't wait until my book club members finish it so we can discuss this savory story over a bowl of she-crab soup.

26 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Mamma Mia! What Happened to Dot Frank?, May 25, 2006

By 

Antoinette Klein (Hoover, Alabama USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Full of Grace: A Novel (Hardcover)

A transfusion of Italian blood? A religious experience? Whatever it was, it works! She takes an unexpected, but totally endearing, turn from her normal writing to bring us this tale of transplanted Yankees who bring their traditions south with them.

Big Al and Connie leave New Jersey for retirement in Hilton Head. They lure their unmarried daughter Grace to join them by dangling a lovely carriage house in Charleston under her nose. Though Grace is basically ashamed of her parents and can't quite appreciate the warm and fuzzy family gatherings, she gladly accepts the house. Of course, her parents didn't expect her to live in sin with Michael, a character they consider on the fast track to hell due to his work in stem cell research. Michael is warm, Michael is brilliant, and before long Michael is diagnosed with brain cancer.

The book is filled with a lot of stereotypical Italian things which as a granddaughter of Italian immigrants I found misleading and atypical. However, the characters are what they are and I enjoyed sharing Thanksgiving, Christmas and Big Al's Birthday in their chaotic household. Sometimes, I wanted to shake Grace and make her less ashamed of her father or more accepting of her future sister-in-law, but on the whole I found this an interesting family to spend time with. The author hasn't lost her knack for utilizing local color. Because Grace is a travel agent, Ms. Frank is able to expand her descriptive abilities to include Sardinia as well as Mexico City. I had some problems with the too pat resolution of the story's major conflict, but hey . . . God works in mysterious ways.