The Official Website Launch!

Hey there!

If you’re reading this, then you’re experiencing the official launch of my website. Thanks for stopping by. I’m so glad you’re here!

My talented designer – also known as my sister Vail – and I have been having a ball creating things to keep you informed and entertained about my new novel, Never Sit Down in a Hoopskirt and Other Things I Learned in Southern Belle Hell.

How about a quick tour? First, I suggest you watch Never Sit Down in a Hoopskirt, the book trailer, and see for yourself where the idea for the title came from. Then go read about the book and browse through the reviews that are coming in. Under About Me, you will find stuff, well…about me. Under Fun Stuff, you’ll find some of the books that inspired me the most and links to my favorite websites. And don’t forget to stop by the Southern Belle Hell Forum to see my definition of Southern Belle Hell and to lodge your own tales about its sizzling flames!

Before I go, a big shout out to all the wonderful people who have been involved with the website: my talented sister Vail Rumley, for her beautiful design, to Rachel McIntire for the fleur-de-lis art work, to Marilena Peretti for the gorgeous belle on the book cover, and to Oliver Joliffe and Carolyn Kund for their consultations and inspiration. Couldn’t have done it without y’all!

Have fun!
Cheers,
Crickett

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Book Review ~ Voya

Seventeen-year-old Jane Fontaine Ventouras begrudgingly moves back to Bienville, Alabama, after being kicked out of thirteen boarding schools. Jane is a girl with issues: her mother died of ALS, her father has checked out, and she has never forgotten Luke Churchville, the boy she was caught kissing when her father sent her away. As a way to rehabilitate Jane, her grandmother convinces her to try out for the Magnolia Maid pageant. It should be every southern girl’s dream to wear a $7,000 antebellum dress and serve as “Bienville’s ambassadress to the world,” but Jane is the anti-belle who lacks all grace and femininity. Southern pandemonium erupts when the judges diversify the sixtieth court and choose unseemly Jane and a few other unconventional finalists, including the first African American maid. Jane is an apathetic maid until the head advisor, unhappy about the ill-advised selection process, asks her to quit, igniting Jane’s combative nature. She decides to fight fire with fire by undergoing a Southern Belle makeover and becoming the most perfect Magnolia Maid that ever existed. This fun and fast-paced book reads like a Reese Witherspoon movie, complete with Southern drawl, angst-filled romance, and happy ending. While both cliche and predictable, it easily engages readers who will root for Jane. By the end of the book, Jane drops her tough girl facade and productively deals with her issues. Themes like standing up for what you believe in, being true to yourself, and working as a team resonate. It contains some adult language and underage drinking, but nothing too mature for the middle school crowd. Reviewer: Sarah Cofer

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