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MWSA Review
A city couple retire to Staffordshire, a small town in the Tidewater area of North Carolina, only to find out they are expected to host their neighborhood’s annual Independence Day potluck celebration. Relative newcomers to the community, they are forced to adapt and conform to local expectations of the event while navigating a minefield of traditions, customs, and taboos.
Cathy and Mark Nelson have been married for more than forty years. Their professional careers—Cathy’s as a nurse and hospital administrator and Mark’s as a public relations officer—have not prepared them for the pressures they encounter from an overwhelming cast of eccentric local characters. The cultural history of the close-knit yet racially divided community add to the tension.
As the couple works through the process of planning and coordinating the celebration event, they also must struggle with Mark’s recurring flashbacks to his service as a war correspondent in Vietnam along with marital anxieties.
This novel captures a unique sense of place while providing a challenging timeline and intricate relationships. Readers should prepare for a roller-coaster ride with surprises at every turn.
Review by Peter Young (July 2025)
Author's Synopsis
Staffordshire, a village of 2000 on an inland bay of a North Carolina river, attempts to continue the fifty-year-old tradition of a July 4 block party. Some think a celebration that usually focuses on past achievement should emphasize future service. The military veterans in the community feel contribution to the national good means sacrifice, especially in the aftermath of 9/11.
Format(s) for review: Paper and Kindle
Review Genre: Fiction—Literary Fiction
Number of Pages: 255
Word Count: 66,370