#51: Backseat Saints - Joshilyn Jackson

Rose Mae Lolley is a fierce and dirty girl, long-suppressed under flowery skirts and bow-trimmed ballet flats. As "Mrs. Ro Grandee" she's trapped in a marriage that's thick with love and sick with abuse. Her true self has been bound in the chains of marital bliss in rural Texas, letting "Ro" make eggs, iron shirts, and take her punches. She seems doomed to spend the rest of her life battered outside by her husband and inside by her former self, until fate throws her in the path of an airport gypsy---one who shares her past and knows her future. The tarot cards foretell that Rose's beautiful, abusive husband is going to kill her. Unless she kills him first.
Hot-blooded Rose Mae escapes from under Ro's perky compliance and emerges with a gun and a plan to beat the hand she's been dealt. Following messages that her long-missing mother has left hidden for her in graffiti and behind paintings, Rose and her dog Gretel set out from Amarillo, TX back to her hometown of Fruiton, AL, and then on to California, unearthing a host of family secrets as she goes. Running for her life, she realizes that she must face her past in order to overcome her fate---death by marriage---and become a girl who is strong enough to save herself from the one who loves her best.
BACKSEAT SAINTS will dazzle listeners with a fresh and heartwrenching portrayal of the lengths a mother will go to right the wrongs she's created, and how far a daughter will go to escape the demands of forgiveness. With the seed of a minor character from her popular best-seller, GODS IN ALABAMA, Jackson has built a whole new story full of her trademark sly wit, endearingly off-kilter characters, and utterly riveting plot twists.

• Publisher: Hachette Audio; Unabridged edition (June 8, 2010)
• ISBN: 9781607882220
• 11 CD'S

Author Bio:
 Joshilyn Jackson is the New York Times Bestselling author of three novels:
GODS IN ALABAMA, BETWEEN,GEORGIA, and THE GIRL WHO STOPPED SWIMMING.
She lives in a small town west of Atlanta with her husband, their two kids, a hound dog, 2 legally separated beta fish, a scurrilous kitten and a morbidly obese Main Coone cat named Franz Schubert.
Her fourth novel, BACKSEAT SAINTS, is forthcoming from Grand Central in spring of 2010.

My Opinion:
The author is the narrator on the audiobook, which I really liked. She has a southern twang in her voice that is amusing and yet, easy to listen to.
At times I laughed out loud while listening to the phrasing the author used to describe things. I really loved the Cheerleader Sex reference... but you'd have to read or listen to the book to know what I'm talking about there.
And yet on a very serious note, I had to take time during the domestic violence parts of the story, since they hit so close to home for me. I really hated Tom, and with good reason.
I did feel a little taken aback by the close-mindedness in regards to religion. To state that Presbyterians do not understand penance is a bold statement, even for a story. I was mildly offended by it.
I didn't let it take away from most of the story though. It was really quite enjoyable, and one I would recommend to chick-lit fans.

3.5/5

Recommend? Yes, to chick-lit fans.


DISCLAIMER: I received an audio copy for review. I was not compensated for this post or my opinion.