More Sweet Tea

Sweet Tea #2

by Deborah Smith, Sandra Chastain, Virginia Ellis

Settle back into that comfortable chair and enjoy a second helping of poignant, humorous and nostalgic tales about how things used to be in the legendary South. From vindictive mules and small town marriage rituals that include a pig, to Grandma's story of how a quilt square got her a husband and a home remedy of the hemorrhoidal variety that goes awry, More Sweet Tea delivers what readers have been thirsting for since the first in the Sweet Tea series, Sweet Tea and Jesus Shoes. Other books in the On Grandma's Porch and Sweeter Than Tea (now available for preorder).

Genres: Short Stories, Fiction

213 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 2005

About the author

aka Jackie Leigh
aka Della Stone
aka Leigh Bridger

Bestselling Author
Co-founder, co-publisher
Vice-president, Editor in Chief
BelleBooks, Memphis, TN

Deborah Smith is the New York Times bestselling author of A Place to Call Home, and the No. 1 Kindle Bestseller The Crossroads Cafe, A Gentle Rain and other acclaimed romantic novels portraying life and love in the modern Appalachian South. A native Georgian, Deborah is a former newspaper editor who turned to novel-writing with great success.

With more than 35 romance, women's fiction and fantasy novels to her credit, Deborah's books have sold over 3 million copies worldwide. Among her honors is a Lifetime Achievement Award from Romantic Times Magazine and a nomination for the prestigious Townsend Literary Award. In 2003 Disney optioned Sweet Hush for film. In 2008 A Gentle Rain was a finalist in Romance Writers of America's RITA awards.

For the past fifteen years Deborah has partnered with Debra Dixon to run BelleBooks, a small press originally known for southern fiction, including the Mossy Creek Hometown Series and the Sweet Tea story collections. As editor, she has worked on projects as diverse as the nonfiction Bra Talk book by three-time Oprah Winfrey guest Susan Nethero, and the In My Dreams novella by New York Times bestselling author Sarah Addison Allen.

In 2008 BelleBooks launched Bell Bridge Books, an imprint with a focus on fantasy novels and now expanded to include multi-genre fiction--mystery, suspense, thrillers, women's fiction, nonfiction and other. In 2013 BelleBooks acquired the late Linda Kichline's paranormal romance press, ImaJinn Books, and hired legendary editor Brenda Chin, formerly of Harlequin Books, as editorial director. Chin will expand the imprint to cover a diverse mix of all romance types.

Deborah's newest books are the Crossroads Cafe novellas: THE BISCUIT WITCH, THE PICKLE QUEEN, THE YARN SPINNER, and THE KITCHEN CHARMER (2014). She released a mini-short story, SAVING JONQUILS, in March 2014. A sexy romantic novella, A HARD MAN TO FIND, is scheduled for later in the month.

Reviews

[Fourkid · Rating 2 out of 5]

These are tales from the old South in short story format. Some were better than others. Overall I enjoyed the tales, but I got frustrated at times by unnecessary vocabulary, too graphic a description in a couple cases (no one in the South would have talked like that!), and some strange (possible) typos. In the last story I was so confused by the back and forth of the "him" and "her" as to the sex of the baby - even with the name "Paul" I am still not sure the intention of the author. Her geography of Florida was also impossible to follow - Weeki Watchee is not especially close to St. Pete and Tampa. And how did she get from there to the east coast and back to the panhandle? It was just to confusing to follow. Even so if you enjoy the tales of the old South, you will find plenty to enjoy.

[Daisey · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this collection of short stories. So many of the characters in these stories reminded me of people in my family. Lucille in "Hair Today Gone Tomorrow" is so like my husbands grandmother in that she knows everyone and all their "people" and could give you a geneology lesson on every family in three counties. And in "The Sunday Dress", the story of the class reunion is so spot on; the description of the families bringing the graduates to the reunion outnumbering the graduates is exactly what happened at Mimi's 60th high school reunion. From then on the reunions happened yearly as the graduates were dwindling every year. All of these stories conjure up pictures and voices that are so dear and familiar. I am a Floridian born and raised and I grew up dreaming of being a mermaid at Weeki Wachi so the "Mermaid of Cow Pie Springs" was especially touching to me.

[Stacey · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wonderful collection of stories that makes you look at that old blue haired lady at church just a little differently. Each short story gives a clear window into what a charming and devious world the 'old' South really was.

As is no surprise, food plays a great role in many of these tales and the very best part may in fact be the inclusion of all the recipes mentioned. I can not wait to make some divinity candy, vinegar pie and just maybe try my hand at some real southern biscuits. What a wonderful way to pass a rainy summer day.

[Micky Cox · Rating 2 out of 5]

This one wasn't my cup of tea. I actually gave up on this book of short stories. I just couldn't keep reading it. The first short was about a family who lost their husband/father and whether or not mom was going to off herself. The second was about an old lady whose hairdresser died and the old ladies all worry who will do their hair now. It was supposed to be this moralistic story of having to embrace change, but ugh....

I can't tell you what the rest of the short stories were about as I threw in the towel and tossed the tea down the drain!

[Katie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm not a huge short story fan, I just got this because it had a story by Sarah Addison Allen and I've read all her novels already.

I was pleasantly surprised by the reading though. Most of the stories were actually pretty entertaining and it was fun to just catch a glimpse of each character's life, so none of it was too wordy. There were also some southern recipes at the back that I'm going to try.

[Diane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyed the many stores that are in the book.Wonderful Enjoyed this book very much.Wonderful stories if you like the old south charm. If you enjoy this you have to read her other book Sweet Tea and Jesus Shoes. Wonderful stories written by Southern Women. Will remind you of Chicken Soup For the Soul. Also encludes family recipes that are in the stories.

[Zep · Rating 2 out of 5]

some of the stories are alright, some seem to be half baked high school attempts, some seem to have been written by people I wouldn't trust to pour pee out of a boot with instructions on the heel.

It seems as if I'm alone in this assessment.

[Janice · Rating 2 out of 5]

I actually didn't finished the book. I got bored with it. It's very rare that I don't finish a book once I start it. At the most maybe only twice have I quit a book.

[Bridget Mayes · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love Southern based books especially with Southern humor!

[Relyn · Rating 2 out of 5]

I absolutely love some of Deborah Smith's books. This collection was... meh. Deborah's story was better than the others, but not great.

[Elizabeth · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great collection of southern short stories