What a nice story. Rae undergoes a lot of change in the book. First, her husband leaves her and then her mother passes away. She moves into her old home and rebuilds her life. The heart of the story were the older ladies who gathered around Rae and rallied Her with their wisdom, acerbic comments, and gossip. They were the highlight of the book.
It’s chock full of southern charm. There is a fair amount of religion sprinkled through, which I just ignored. I would have chosen a different ending, but That’s just me.

Raeley Ann’s mother has died and we are introduced to Rae as she informs her ex-husband who has brought his much younger girlfriend to her mother’s funeral, that it isn't okay to bring her, and she doesn’t care if he needs comfort.

He was the one who decided that he wasn’t in love with her anymore.

Rae is pulled into the Third Thursday group with Mrs. Dora, her Aunt Maxine, and Mrs.Frannie.It’s a bit of everything from gossip, a book club, and some ministry thrown in too.

Rae decides to move into her old childhood home and has started restoring it, and at Mrs. Frannie’s insistence, Kent Richardson, her daughter's basketball coach, has asked her out on a date.

Rae is trying to adjust to her new normal of being a single woman and an orphan.

Bless Your Heart, Rae Sutton shows us the life beyond a missed loved one, when the grief catches you when least expecting it, and moving on from a marriage that doesn’t last. Rae is able to see beyond her hurting heart.

I wasn’t sure if I would like this but I was sold on the title, how can you not like a title like that, and the story that is told beyond the cover is definitely worth your reading time. Recommended!

My gratitude to Netgalley and Thomas Nelson. All opinions expressed are my own.





1 like

Reeling from the recent death of her mother and the sting of her divorce, Raeley Ann Sutton, with her teenage daughter Molly, move into her mother’s house in Whitten, Alabama, to rebuild and update both her childhood home and her life. But Rae is not alone in her grief. Soon her Aunt Maxine and her mother’s friends, Mrs. Dora and Mrs. Fannie, take her under their wings and involve Rae in their monthly meetings, church and neighborhood and community activities. Rae’s brother and sister-in-law are also by her side and lend a great deal of support and before long Rae’s wounds hurt a little less and she begins to rebuild her life.

Rae’s daughter makes friends quickly among the basketball team and even the coach has taken a liking to Raeley Ann. With a gift for furniture restoration and home decor, Raeley opens Restorations by Rae and finds fulfillment and success in putting dreams into action. It would seem her family and new friends are proud of her changes and new achievements, but so is her ex husband, Carter. Only time can heal all wounds and it remains to be seen if time can heal theirs.

Written with all the charm of a southern novel, Bless Your Heart, Rae Sutton by Susannah B. Lewis is a delightful read that kept me turning the pages. I loved the characters and the way these elderly ladies took Rae under their wings and helped give her life meaning and purpose again. The characters were delightful and I felt as if I was sitting at the table with these ladies, drinking plenty of sweet tea while enjoying a rich southern dessert. This is a book to savor and enjoy with each turn of the page. You will feel Rae’s losses and her triumphs as she learns to Let God and Let Go and becomes the woman her mother always knew she could be. A delightful novel for anyone and just in time for spring.

I want to thank NetGalley and one of my favorite publishers, Thomas Nelson - Fiction for an ARC of Bless Your Heart, Rae Sutton by Susannah B. Lewis. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me a free e-copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Unfortunately, this one was among the DNFs of 2022 since I quickly lost interest in it when I got to 50%. It was very difficult for me to read about every little detail of the main character's life and although the atmosphere should have been calming and soothing, it ended up being plain boring.
I am convinced that people's lives in the South are much more exciting than how they're depicted in this book. I did like the first part where there's grief and coping involved, so we see the heroine dealing with such feelings and learning to live with them.
Everything else is just... not for me. I did give it a 2-star rating for the effort, though, since it could have been a lot worse.

The blurb caught my attention, but the story didn't quite live up to my expectations. It was a bit predictable at times. I didn't feel as connected to the characters as I would've liked. There is some overdetailing that stalls the plot at times. Overall, it's a sweet story of forgiveness and love.

Sweet story but not my glass of sweet tea. I found the story line superficial and characters unbelievable. The moral of the story, I think, is forgiveness, which is a good thing.

Bless Your Heart, Rae Sutton is a sweet tale of love and forgiveness in small town, Alabama. The story is quite light and fun, especially for those of us that have grown up in the South, and love our sweet tea, fried green tomatoes, and First Baptist Church. It's filled with lots of witty dialogue, which probably could have been edited down quite a bit. It's got a lovely love story running through it, which was somewhat predictable. Forgiveness is the ultimate theme of the book as the story ends.

Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to read and review Bless Your Heart, Rae Sutton.

Rebuilding is the theme of this book. Rae’s husband left her for a very young woman, and Rae is hurt badly. She decides to move back to her hometown and build a new life for her and her daughter. This was a sweet story of forgiveness and God-seeking. I really enjoyed it.

A sweet, quick read about loss, grief, and renewal. A bit predictable, but not a bad thing for light reading. I loved the older group of women and how they welcomed and supported Rae .
All in all, a light and fun read.
I received an ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

I wasn't quite sure what to expect from Bless Your Heart, Rae Sutton, as Susannah B. Lewis is a new to me author, but I thought the synopsis sounded interesting, and I wanted to give it a try. I have to say that I was not prepared for just how much I was going to love this particular title, and I don't think I've ever truly read anything like it before.

This beautiful story focuses around grief, healing and redemption, and the reader feels like they are following right along with Rae Sutton as she navigates both her husband leaving her for another woman, and her mother's sudden death from cancer. I loved how relatable, well developed and likeable the characters truly were, and I adored the southern flair present throughout the majority of the story. As Rae struggles with everything dropped on her plate, she develops a strong friendship with three elderly ladies who her mom considered her best friends. They give her an escape from her loneliness, and encourage her back into the arms of the only one who can truly heal her heart, our Heavenly Father.

With beautifully written prose, a lovely small town setting, and characters that had me drawn into the story right from the opening pages, Bless Your Heart, Rae Sutton is definitely one of the best books I've read so far this year. It made me both laugh out loud, and genuinely tear up, and I loved the growth we see in Rae's character, and the way she truly resolves to have Jesus at the front and center of everything going forward.

This book felt both authentic and realistic, while still providing a nice escape into the literature world, and I love when books can manage to do both.

I'd highly recommend this one, and I look forward to reading more from this author in the future!

Final Rating: 5/5.

Thanks so much to Thomas Nelson for allowing me to advance read and review this one!

I voluntarily read and reviewed a complimentary advance reader copy of this novel from the publisher (Thomas Nelson) via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. I was not required to give a positive review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This is an absolutely heartwarming, delightful, beautiful story of loss, forgiveness, redemption and hope.

Upon the death of her beloved mother, Rae Sutton is horrified and angry all at once when she see her ex-husband, Carter at her mother's funeral with his twenty-three year old girlfriend who is dressed in a green spaghetti strap dress. She definitely does not hold back how she feels about the situation.

Rae decides to move, along with teenage daughter, Molly, back to her hometown, and into her Mother's house. She's invited to join her mother's friends who meet monthly for what they call their "ministry." Besides sending out get well cards and flowers they discuss what's going on in their small town, read books and do plenty of arguing along with praying for their family and friends. These dear women have proved to be Rae's life-line as she heals from her divorce and grieves the loss of her mother.

These very interesting and delightful characters are so skillfully developed that I can vividly picture all of them. Each personality is unique and they often clash but also love each other and mostly importantly they love the Lord. And my goodness, do they every love to bless the hearts of others!

Because there are a number of moving parts to this heartwarming story, I could hardly wait to see what was coming next. I lost count of how many times I had to pause my reading because I was laughing out loud. Such a feel-good, heartwarming, delightful story!

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Bless Your Heart, Rae Sutton is a delightful southern read. Susannah B. Lewis is a new to me author and I was so impressed with her writing. I literally had tears running down my cheeks while reading one sentence and the next sentence I was laughing out loud! The protagonist, Raeley Ann Sutton is recently divorced by her husband of seventeen years and her dearly loved mother just passed away. She is raising a fourteen year old daughter and decides to move into her childhood home. Rae's Aunt Maxine and and her mother's book club/gossip club immediately take her into their embracing group. I loved every single character. I connected so well with them because my parents are from a small town in northeast Mississippi. In fact, I wondered did Ms. Sutton use my Mawmaw and aunts for inspiration?
The letters from her mother about did me in. But in a good way. This is a romantic, heart-wrenching, heart-warming story that has kept me in Whitten, Alabama long after I finished reading it. I thoroughly enjoyed it, and will make this my third Thursday book club pick in June.
*I was given a copy of the book by Thomas Nelson Publishers and this is my honest opinion.
4.5 stars

This was a cute story. I wanted the pace to be a bit different, but it was okay. I felt like it was a bit jumpy, and I wanted a smoother transition from scene to scene. I liked the characters, and I enjoyed the friendships that are created. I think it had a great message of healing and moving forward.

This book was a great book. It was a breath of fresh air compared to my romance and thriller novels. This novel followed the life of recent divorcee Rae Sutton and her daughter Molly. Rae’s mother recently passed away and Rae inherits the house. She decides to fix it up & starts going to church. She relies on the family she received by surprise and grows closer to God and herself.

Ok.

Let’s start with the fact that this book started with a funeral. Ummmmmmm

Overall, this was a cute story about second chances.
Raeley Ann Sutton’s Mother passes away and leaves her the house where she grew up. Recently divorced, and still mourning that loss, she takes the house, settles into small town life with her fourteen-year-old daughter, Molly Margaret, and their overweight dog.

Her mother's close-knit circle of friends, the Third Thursday ladies: Mrs. Fannie, Mrs. Dora, and Aunt Maxine embrace her and she joins their circle and begins to heal.

I can appreciate the process and healing that Rae went through, and i really was rooting for her. But What I didn’t like was how the story jumped around so much and some story lines felt like they went nowhere or left me hanging.

Overall, I’d give it 3 stars.

I received an ecopy from the publisher through Net Galley. All opinions expressed are my own.

Bless Your Heart, Rae Sutton is a sweet book that has some insightful lessons on grieving, forgiveness, and self-care. Unfortunately, the story between those lessons is a bit shallow. Rae herself is overshadowed by Dora, Fannie, and Maxine and their antics, and despite the level of detail (which is sometimes overdone), the characters still don’t feel fully developed. The story jumps about, and several storylines seem to go nowhere, almost as if they were added in just to meet a word count. Overall, this is a cute story about second chances and finding peace in God’s plan, but the shallowness of the characters kept this from being a standout read for me.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. This books is about reconciliation after divorce and also a second chance romance story. Once I started I could not put it down. I loved every second of it.

Bless Your Heart, Rae Sutton
⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2

This book is about overcoming grief and giving forgiveness. After her husband and love of her life asks for a sudden divorce, and her mom passes away from cancer, Rae is stuck figuring out what is next for her.

The beginning had me rooting for Rae and hoping for her to find a real gentleman. I wasn’t a huge fan of the second half of the book. "I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own."

Thank you @netgalley #netgalley for the ARC! @thomasnelson

3.5 stars
This was an interesting book, a refreshing look at reconciliation after divorce.

The book opens with a funeral – a surprising choice and one that left me feeling a bit down. However, the event is something that blesses Rae a few chapters in. Having to pick up the pieces of her life, Rae Sutton moves back into her family home with her teenaged daughter and settles in. There’s a lot of focus on how Rae deals with the death of her mother, so at times it’s an emotional read. However, there are enough quirky characters and awkward situations to make the story lighter.

Rae struggles with her faith even though the women in her life are strong in theirs. They provide a lot of truth, and help her learn to live without her mother’s encouragement.

It turns out to be a second chance romance story, though there is another love interest that gets plenty of page time.

I received an ecopy from the publisher through Net Galley. All opinions expressed are my own.

I loved this story set in present-day Alabama. The setting, the quirky characters, as well as the colloquialisms used by the characters made me feel like I was reading a book set in my hometown. The protagonist's journey of self-discovery and healing were genuine and kept me turning the pages. I look forward to reading more books by this author.