Mrs. Wiggins - by Mary Monroe

Book Synopsis

New York Times bestselling author Mary Monroe crafts a provocative story set in the Depression-era Deep South about a woman determined to get the life and respect she wants--at any cost...

Secrets, lies, and family drama in the Depression-era Deep South...

The daughter of a prostitute mother and an alcoholic father, Maggie Franklin knew her only way out was to marry someone upstanding and church-going. Someone like Hubert Wiggins, the most eligible man in Lexington, Alabama--and the son of its most revered preacher. Proper and prosperous, Hubert is glad to finally have a wife, even one with Maggie's background. For Hubert has a secret he desperately needs to stay hidden. And Maggie's unexpected charm, elegance, and religious devotion makes her the perfect partner in lies...

Their surprising union makes the Wiggins' the town's most envied couple--complete with a son, Claude, whom Maggie idolizes. Until he falls in love with the worst possible fiancée. Terrified, Maggie won't let Daisy destroy her son. And when her employer's brother sexually harasses her, Maggie knows something needs to be done about him as well. In fact, she realizes there are an awful lot of sinning "disruptive" people who should be eliminated from her perfect world.

But the more Maggie tries to take control, the more obstacles are thrown in her way. And when it seems like the one person she always expected to be there is starting to drift away, Maggie will play one final, merciless game to secure what she's fought so hard to earn...

Review Quotes

Praise for Mary Monroe

"Drama, suspense, small town charm...Mary Monroe packed it all into the finale of her beloved Neighbors series that transports readers back to 1930s Alabama."
--Woman's World on Across the Way

"Monroe brings her exciting Neighbors trilogy to a dramatic and memorable conclusion, as she explores how social tension and
conflict complicate jealousy and romance in an African American enclave in a small Alabama town during the Great Depression."
--Booklist on Across the Way

"In this first volume of her new series, New York Times bestselling author Monroe convincingly portrays a time and place where
desperation is the norm."
--Library Journal on One House Over

"A very believable portrayal of the African American experience in a hard place at a hard time."
--Historical Novels Review on One House Over

"Mary Monroe is an exceptional writer and phenomenal storyteller!"
--Kimberla Lawson Roby, New York Times bestselling author on One House Over

"Mary Monroe is a fantastic writer and has a real knack for creating characters with substance and dimension."
--This Black Girl Reads on Over the Fence

"Monroe brings the Deep South Prohibition-era world to life in a captivating tale of greed and consequences and primes readers to find out what happens among these complicated neighbors in the next book."
--Booklist on Over the Fence

"The holidays can bring the kind of chaos, good and bad, that occupies your brain. It's easy to forget to bring your gratitude. Remembrance has that covered."
--The Philadelphia Tribune

"Joyce believes she'd found the perfect man in Odell, but secrets and betrayals threaten their happiness, and send ripples throughout their neighborhood. Mary Monroe deftly captures the steamy intrigues of her characters' complicated lives in this Depression-era story that readers will find impossible to put down."
--Susan Holloway Scott, author of I, Eliza Hamilton, on One House Over

About the Author

Mary Monroe is the award-winning and New York Times bestselling author of over 20 novels, with over one million books in print. She is a three-time AALBC bestseller and winner of the AAMBC Maya Angelou Lifetime Achievement Award, the PEN/Oakland Josephine Miles Award, and the J. California Cooper Memorial Award. The daughter of Alabama sharecroppers, she taught herself how to write before going on to become the first and only member of her family to finish high school. She lives in Oakland, California and can be found online at MaryMonroe.org.