Fool Me Once

Well, here we have at the beginning of the twenty-first century a new writer, T. Lynn Ocean, who reminds this reader of the famous, cherished, prolific writers of the latter half of the twentieth century: Jesse Stuart and Wendell Berry. These three regional writers writing of Kentucky, the Ohio Valley, and the Appalachian culture (Stuart and Berry); and the region of Charleston, South Carolina and the Rice Plantation culture of the Low Country (Ocean) bear comparison...that is only if Ocean will remain a regional writer, sustain a prolific publication of quality works without losing the loving intimacy she gives in this first novel, FOOL ME ONCE. Dare the reader hope? Does one overestimate this writer. Well, yes, and well, no. Time will tell. Shall the reader hope for the same warm family, the funny, sad, good people who share the largess of life around a kitchen table (the deepest heart of any region of America) where the reader's most treasured values are protected and preserved. Shall we again encounter more of good characters who are put upon by life's villains? First, threatened by the monster of progress represented by big business with a voracious appetite that devours the treasured old ways; secondly, happiness endangered, by a familiar, repeated theme harkening from our collective past: innocent spouse betrayed by husband or wife which is ingrained in our mythology and in our reality. If the reader is approaching page 93, please wait until cocktail time, lift a glass and read aloud the heroine's remark, "You shallow piece of scum!" Then read aloud to one another. Continue the toast as one experiences his/her own expiation of the hurt as Carly (You GO girl, Carly) takes quick, assertive, thorough justice. Ocean ameliorates the collective conscious and unconscious universal wound with strong, healing justice. Carly never wishes she "had" done a thing: she did it all...all that one remembers he/she should have done and did not do. Because Ocean touches on IMPORTANT themes, creates strong, unforgettable characters (including coons, dogs, people, and especially a raunchy, alzheimers-affected hilarious grandmother who delivers unexpectedly a wisdom so simple and so wonderful that she lives forever. Grandma is old, demented, and strong: she can grab the "cat by the tail" and wrestle a danger to her family into a wounded pussy cat. Ocean knows her culture, makes you know and cherish it as she does, gives back to the reader of good and of right as Stuart and Berry did for the reader of an early time. Oh, please, Ocean, give more of the same, over and over and over. Give the reader hope for excellence in the regional writing of the twenty-first century. You GO girl, T. Lynn!

First chapter explodes with conflict and energy. This is a good summer read.

Don't be bamboozled; Southern author T. Lynn Ocean's debut novel, Fool Me Once, is anything but a mindless summer read. Though the plot appears formulaic--girl meets boy, girl marries boy, boy cheats on girl, girl leaves boy--Ocean makes it her own with an endlessly amusing parade of tenderly-rendered characters, a believable storyline and mediator Carly Stone, a saucy heroine who's no fainting flower. Stone, a native Charlestonian, finds herself in a bit of a fried pickle: She strolls into her newly-purchased New York home to find her new husband Robert "breaking in" her yellow cotton sheets with a neighbor. Heartbroken, she heads home to Charleston and finds things a little different than she left them. Her forgetful, randy granny has moved in and the family hardware store faces competition with a hardware megastore being constructed across the street. Armed with her University of South Carolina law degree and a fierce new attitude, Stone faces off with Protter Construction Company only to find herself falling in lust with Trent, the owner's hunky but stubborn son. (After all, what self-respecting summer novel wouldn't have a hunky stranger?) The sexual tension mounts as Stone and Protter engage in a deadlocked battle of wits . . . with surprising results. Though Ocean pumps her story full of intrigue (a crisis and a courtship), it's her vivid, unique characters that steal the show. There's Granny, Stone's aging but whip-smart and hysterical grandmother. (Watch for the scene when she tells Stone how to fix her philandering husband's "peg.") There's the Southern belle mother and the down-home patriarch. There's the outlandish drama queen sister and her loudmouth brood. There's even an ill-tempered poodle who nearly meets her maker after one too many growls at Granny. Carly Stone is the real star, though, with her razor-sharp wit, intelligence and tough but fair attitude. Here, Ocean redefines the Southern belle image, giving readers a strong, sassy and soft-hearted woman who sticks to her guns and never forgets her roots. Delicate? No way. Determined? Absolutely, bless her heart. Best of all, the dialogue is realistic, snappy, fast-paced and always hilarious. Forget Sweet Home Alabama; this is how Southerners really talk. For some trashy summer romance run, look to Harlequin. For light, breezy fiction with heart and smarts, give Ocean's Fool Me Once a try. Rest assured that Granny would approve.

"Fool Me Once" is fiction, but author T. Lynn Ocean's characters here ring true. And the plot zips right along, flavored with authentic dialogue, surprising twists and frequent references to down-home Southern cooking. Carly Stone is a South Carolina law school graduate whose conciliatory nature has led her to a career in mediation. When the usually well-grounded professional is swept off her feet, Robert persuades her to marry, leave the comfortable confines of her Charleston hometown and move back with him to New York City. She soon catches her new hubby in a compromising position and Carly flees The Big Apple for the more familiar environment of shrimp and grits. But she arrives back at her childhood home to find a family in crisis: The hundred-year-old hardware business that has supported three generations is threatened by a national-chain supply store set to open right across the street. Most of the rest of the story's drama revolves around Carly's clever attempts to defeat the corporate encroachment. When her main adversary turns out to be a hunky developer, their mutual lust-hate relationship is more spice than sugar. Haunting the plot like an evil apparition is Carly's unfaithful spouse, whose repeated attempts at reconciliation add to her moral dilemmas. But don't think that "Fool me Once" is just an emotion-fest of conflict. In fact, Ocean deserves particular praise for introducing one of the funniest characters in recent fiction: Granny has moved in with Carly's parents because her memory is failing, but her wit - intended or not - is sharp as a razor. Throw into the mix a psychotic poodle and a precocious two-year-old with a talent for inappropriate mimicry and there's plenty of comic relief even as tensions rise. "Fool Me Once" is a Southern-themed novel about a strong woman and her likeable family in the throes of transition. Some might call it "chick-lit" just because the protagonist is female, but good storytelling transcends such narrow classifications. My girlfriend and I generally have different tastes in books, but we both thought "Fool Me Once" was delicious.

Warm characters with a strong female heroine! You can almost feel the salt air and see the moss draped oaks! This book is an ideal companion to join you at the beach!