FFBC: Welcome to the club, Magnolia by Kristi Cook

Magnolia
by Kristi Cook
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Release Date: August 5th 2014


Synopsis:

In Magnolia Branch, Mississippi, the Cafferty and Marsden families are southern royalty. Neighbors since the Civil War, the families have shared vacations, holidays, backyard barbecues, and the overwhelming desire to unite their two clans by marriage. So when a baby boy and girl were born to the families at the same time, the perfect opportunity seemed to have finally arrived.

Jemma Cafferty and Ryder Marsden have no intention of giving in to their parents’ wishes. They’re only seventeen, for goodness’ sake, not to mention that one little problem: They hate each other! Jemma can’t stand Ryder’s nauseating golden-boy persona, and Ryder would like nothing better than to pretend stubborn Jemma doesn’t exist.

But when a violent storm ravages Magnolia Branch, it unearths Jemma’s and Ryder’s true feelings for each other as the two discover that the line between love and hate may be thin enough to risk crossing over.

As a child, Kristi Cook took her nose out of a book only long enough to take a ballet class (or five) each week. Not much has changed since then, except she’s added motherhood to the mix and enjoys penning her own novels as much as reading everybody else’s. A transplanted southern gal, Kristi lives in New York City with her husband and two daughters.

That’s the official version–here are some other fun facts:

~ As an undergrad, I majored in History and minored in English at the University of Southern Mississippi. While at Southern Miss, I was a member of Phi Mu sorority, and I was a Dixie Darling. And yep, Brett Favre was our quarterback at the time!

~ I studied American History in grad school at Columbia University. I *love* history, especially the Civil War era (U.S.) and Regency- and Edwardian-era British history.

~ My all-time favorite book *and* movie is GONE WITH THE WIND. My favorite literary characters are Rhett Butler, Atticus Finch, and Mr. Darcy. I kind of want to add Peeta Mellark to that list!

~Weirdly enough (or maybe not so weirdly?) I’m also a big fan of STAR TREK (the original series). I never can remember if I’m supposed to call myself a “Trekkie” or a “Trekker,” though!

GONE WITH THE WIND

Favorite current TV show is The Walking Dead. Past favorites include Battle Star Galactica (the newer version), Star Trek (Original Series), LOST, and The Office.

Gone With the Wind (again!)

OMG, I can only pick one?! I have *so* many favorites. I guess I’ll go with a classic—“Bittersweet Symphony” by The Verve. 

Vaca Frita—it’s a Cuban dish!

Ahhh, only one?! From books, I’ll probably go with Peeta Mellark (though Augustus Waters is a close second). From TV (that counts as fictional, right?!), Lee Adama aka Apollo.

Way too many things! Right now I’m still stuck in The Fault in our Stars movie fangirl mode-- I’ve seen it five times in the theater (so far!). And it’s weird, because I didn’t love the book—somehow the movie works *way* better for me.

Hi Kristi! We are really happy to host you in our FFBC. We are super excited to have Magnolia as part of our FFBC.

Magnolia is kind of a reverse of Romeo and Juliet—instead of feuding families trying to keep their kids apart, the families in Magnolia (the Caffertys and the Marsdens) absolutely adore each other, and have for generations dating back to the Civil War. So, they are *desperate* to get their kids together—to “join” their families. Jemma and Ryder—next door neighbors and born just six weeks apart—are their best hope. Only problem is, Jemma and Ryder absolutely hate each other. Or so they think. Throw in a family emergency, a massive hurricane, and some devastating tornadoes, and Jemma and Ryder learn that the line between love and hate is pretty thin.

Jemma: Stubborn, frustrated, self-reflective, feisty, and kind. Ryder: Frustrated, honorable, charming, talented, and selfless.

I would have to say the balcony scene--or perhaps I should say the reverse balcony scene, LOL! Though, the scene with the snake was pretty fun, too!

My 13-yr. old daughter and I already made a “dream cast” list, but it isn’t complete! This is what we have so far:

Ryder—Ansel Elgort, who just happens to be 6’4”, the exact same height as Ryder! Also, those brown eyes. ‘Nuff said.

Jemma—Anne Winters

Lucy—Aeriel Miranda

Morgan—Sasha Pieterse

Nan—Madison Beaty

Mason—Brandon Jones

Patrick—Lucas Till

And….

Jemma’s Dad—Norman Reedus (of course!)

I would have to pick Too Close by Alex Clare. I pretty much wrote the entire book with that song on loop!

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Win (1) $25 gift card to an online bookstore of choice (Amazon or BN) plus an entire paperback set of the Winterhaven series (Haven, Mirage, and Eternal)

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