Family saga set in Florida in a small town near St Augustine. I picked this up after reading Laura Lee Smith’s Ice House several years ago (which I loved), but this one is not in the same league. I found it long and dreary. The characters are an unlikeable bunch. It is mainly about life in a small town, where developers want to buy up the land and turn it into a tourist trap. I could not muster much enthusiasm for it. ( )

Heart of Palm started off so promising, but in the end through a lot of plot contrivances just ended in a whimper.

We begin with the marriage of Arla and Dean Bravo which from the beginning was doomed. We then fast forward decades to one of the main characters of this novel, Frank Bravo. The other main character is Carson Bravo (both of them are Arla and Dean's sons).

The Bravo family lives in Utina, Florida, trying to make ends meet after Dean walked out on his family years earlier.

Frank the peace maker in the family is the one that holds everyone together wishes to escape from the town and his family. Carson feels as if he is losing his family and is trying everything he can to keep them together.

The Bravo family is offered a development deal if they sell their house. Frank and his mother do not want to sell, though Carson does want to sell.

This disagreement about what to do is ultimately what the main plot of the novel is about though other things from the past and present are causing the family to finally come apart at the seams.

I wish that I could have liked this novel more than I did. Laura Lee Smith can write. There is no doubt about it. When she first began describing Dean and Arla and how they fell in love and the beginning days of their marriage I was fascinated. I thought I be in for a roller coaster ride and was prepared to settle in with the book. I was hoping that I had found myself a new author to read in the future.

However, when the novel switched to Frank's point of view and then switched to Carson I found myself getting frustrated. Shifting from Dean and Arla to the boys took me out of the novel especially since you never got go get back into Arla's head at all and see what the years were like for her at the house. I wish Ms. Smith had let us see the Bravo family through the first child at least before moving onto the boys.

I ended up not liking Frank or Carson at all when we switched to their points of views. Actions that both of them took just made them crappy brothers', sons', friends', etc. In the end, secrets come out, and the end of the novel was downright anti-climatic when it did come.

Received this book for free through the Amazon Vine Program. ( )

Brand new author - loved this book. It revolves around the Bravo family of Utina, FL (near St. Augustine). As someone who has lived in this area, it was great to read about life in the small Florida town where the Bravo's have lived for generations. Alma, the tall, beautiful redhead who comes from money and marries the wild, blue-collar Dean. Right off the bat they have trouble. Lots of drinking, running around, crazy behavior that makes for a great story. My only regret is not having it on my Kindle. Lots of funny one-liners that I would have loved to highlight. I am looking forward to her next book!

I received this book from Goodreads as an Advanced Reader Copy. ( )

This was a really good first write and the plot and characters held me to the end! ( )

What a marvelous first book ! I hope Laura Lee Smith is writing another. A southern novel set on the coast and intercostal near St Augustine, Fl , with a dysfunctional family that all love and hurt each other continually . Good family story telling, good characters and a sure feel for the places and people this author brings to her readers. ( )