Rating: 
Summary: A great first novel
Review: A very good first novel from Cindy Eppes. The story starts when Kayla and her parents move back to their childhood home. Her father gets a transfer there, and they buy a home next door to a high school friend, Lou Jean. Kayla's grandmother comes over, after they move in. And Kayla overhears her grandmother and her mother talking in low voices, as to why they moved here in this house, next to Lou Jean in the first place. Kayla doesn't understand and starts to set out and find out why all the whispering and secrets. Soon, her family is falling apart. The the reason's why become all to clear to her. And her friendship with Lou Jean doesn't help the matters. Kayla starts to realize that the boy next door has a very good resemblance to her father. And her mother becomes very "nice" to him, yet won't speak a kind word to Lou Jean. This book takes you on a journey through the life of a thirteen year old and how she comes to terms with all the secrets. Kayla is mature beyond her 13 years. Read the book, I don't think you'll be disappointed. I hope Eppes will write a sequel to Kayla's life after that summer. There are more unanswered questions.
Rating:
Summary: A great first novel
Review: A very good first novel from Cindy Eppes. The story starts when Kayla and her parents move back to their childhood home. Her father gets a transfer there, and they buy a home next door to a high school friend, Lou Jean. Kayla's grandmother comes over, after they move in. And Kayla overhears her grandmother and her mother talking in low voices, as to why they moved here in this house, next to Lou Jean in the first place. Kayla doesn't understand and starts to set out and find out why all the whispering and secrets. Soon, her family is falling apart. The the reason's why become all to clear to her. And her friendship with Lou Jean doesn't help the matters. Kayla starts to realize that the boy next door has a very good resemblance to her father. And her mother becomes very "nice" to him, yet won't speak a kind word to Lou Jean. This book takes you on a journey through the life of a thirteen year old and how she comes to terms with all the secrets. Kayla is mature beyond her 13 years. Read the book, I don't think you'll be disappointed. I hope Eppes will write a sequel to Kayla's life after that summer. There are more unanswered questions.
Rating:
Summary: Pure Pleasure
Review: Although this work is set in a fictitious small, South Texas town which is palpable in its colorful description, the REAL environment is the human mind and soul. That's why it transcends Rosalita. The characters allow us to see how, and why, they feel- in a way that makes the reader understand their own life better, and perhaps why we are drawn to and put off by certain people in our world. The reader will first wonder what drives certain people to behave so badly, others so heroically. When more and more of their driving force is revealed, you quite likely still feel no less good or ill toward that character that you now understand deeply. Doesn't matter if you are in South Texas or the South Bronx - you will enjoy knowing these characters and relating to them. And the ending is like a great live performance... You will be pleased, but wanting just a little more.
Rating:
Summary: Into the consciousness
Review: Although this work is set in a fictitious small, South Texas town which is palpable in its colorful description, the REAL environment is the human mind and soul. That's why it transcends Rosalita. The characters allow us to see how, and why, they feel- in a way that makes the reader understand their own life better, and perhaps why we are drawn to and put off by certain people in our world. The reader will first wonder what drives certain people to behave so badly, others so heroically. When more and more of their driving force is revealed, you quite likely still feel no less good or ill toward that character that you now understand deeply. Doesn't matter if you are in South Texas or the South Bronx - you will enjoy knowing these characters and relating to them. And the ending is like a great live performance... You will be pleased, but wanting just a little more.
Rating:
Summary: An author's soul is on the pages of a first novel.
Review: Cindy Eppes' debut novel is not the sort of book I normally read...but the jacket copy and the beauty of the language on the first few pages drew me in. And what a world Eppes creates, filled with the secrets that houses and families hide, the mundane places where the best of intentions can have the worst of outcomes. I've been recommending this book to friends and other authors and hope that Eppes will get the recognition she deserves for a novel so beautifully done. Bravo!
Rating:
Summary: remembering the dependencies and betrayals of childhood
Review: For anyone who remembers being conflicted and confused by a mother's irrational behavior, or half in love with someone else's mother, look no further than South of Reason. It's the era of lawn sprinklers and bicycles and marshmallow salads and adolescence without sex, drugs and Britney. Even a stranger to South Texas will feel its heat and dust, its mixed cultures and rituals of food, in Cindy Eppes's wonderful novel. Strong, memorable characters populate the town of Rosalita, and young Kayla Marie's daily life. And characters with pasts, and secrets. Experiencing Kayla's adoration and heartbreak and wonder is a pleasure. Highly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: A skillfully narrated story!
Review: I love Southern fiction and Eppes's new novel fulfilled all my expectations. South of Reason is the story of Kayla Sanders, 13 years old in 1967 when her parents move back to their hometown of Rosalita in Texas. A secret lurks and simmers in the heat that summer and as the months unfold Kayla is made aware of what it is. Details--of the heat of a Texas summer; of mouth-watering food that comforts; of a small-town life, where everyone knows everyone else and their secrets--are vividly painted with Eppes's skillful use of language, as she takes us through Kayla's life in this summer of madness when everyone seems to be south of reason.
Rating:
Summary: Reader from Frankston TX
Review: I loved this book! I couldn't put it down and finished it in two days, reading through the night. My heart went out to the characters who worked their way through their problems. Many of us come from disfunctional families these days and can easily relate. Can't wait to see what Ms. Eppes writes next!
Rating: 
Summary: good book to read before bed
Review: I was literally dozing off while reading this book. It goes nowhere. Would have been more interesting if there was a big, explosive secret exposed near the end.
Rating:
Summary: Pure Pleasure
Review: In Kayla, Cindy Eppes has created a young narrator who's smart, sassy, articulate and a joy to be with. The story - not an easy one to pull off - is skillfully crafted and precisely told with humor and warmth, in memorable fashion. I read right though it, and can't wait to see what Ms. Eppes will pull off next.
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