Rose of Old Harpeth

The mortgage is due on Sweetbriar, and Rose Mary Alloway has no one to blame but the men who squandered her father's inheritance. Now she manages the homestead alone, keeping the family together through sheer will and Tennessee pragmatism. When Everett arrives as a guest, recovering from illness and drawn to her practicality, Rose Mary keeps her distance. She has no time for romance when the roof needs mending and the bank is circling. But Maria Thompson Daviess writes with sharp wit and deep tenderness about what it meant to be a woman alone in 1911 Tennessee, fighting for land that carries her family's memory. Rose Mary is neither martyr nor saint. She is tired, determined, occasionally furious, and utterly compelling. The supporting cast of quirky neighbors and extended family rounds out a world where everyone knows your business and your troubles are community property. This is regional fiction at its finest: a love letter to the Tennessee hills wrapped in a story about one woman's refusal to surrender what matters most.