Thanks to NetGalley for the review copy. I can’t wait to buy a copy for my collection and hope she does a book tour.

Victoria Benton Frank is the daughter of the treasured author Dorothea Benton Frank who passed away a few years ago. This debut novel felt like it had high expectations around it, and it delivered! This story is set in the South Carolina Lowcountry. Magnolia (Maggie) arrives back home after receiving news of her mother and grandmother's car accident. Maggie had been advancing in her career as a chef in New York City, but that hometown pull is strong once she pulls back into South Carolina, and after she sees some of the changes that have been done over the years at her family's restaurant, the Magic Lantern. She and her sister Violet have to face several things head-on - the recover of Gran, their mother's dealing with various vices, the future of the restaurant, and relationships past and present.

I was tickled pink when I was granted a copy of this ARC for review. My Magnolia Summer is a beautifully written story about family ties, the good and the bad. Told with all the charm and sass of a true southerner, this book pulls you in from page one. For all the fans of DBF, Victoria Benton Frank has done her mama proud. I have a new author to add to my favorite list. I loved this book. Thanks to Victoria Benton Frank, publisher William Marrow, and NetGalley. I received a complimentary copy of this ebook. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.

My Magnolia Summer is Victoria Benton Frank’s debut novel after the passing of her mother who I loved, Dorothea Benton Frank. She takes us to the lowcountry of South Carolina where it tells a story of 4 southern women and her lives. It was well thought out and I loved all the charming characters. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this early release in exchange for my review. Looking forward to her next novel.

I really enjoyed this book. So well developed and so many little extras. Characters had different levels to them. A very pleasant surprise!

My Magnolia Summer is the debut novel by the daughter of the beloved low country author, Dorothea Benton Frank. Having read all DBF’s novels, I was curious to see how this author would wear the mantle (and the burden) of her mother’s legacy. I’m happy to report that she succeeded in blending the best elements of her mother’s writing with her own unique style.

Drawing on her own experience as a chef, the author created an enjoyable, if not original, storyline centered on a well-respected Sullivan Island restaurant that has been in a family for four generations. The protagonist, Magnolia (Maggie), is the great granddaughter of the restaurant’s founder who returns from New York when her grandmother is seriously injured in a car accident. Unbeknownst to her, her mother and a new boyfriend have stripped the restaurant of its charm and authenticity turning it into a tacky, pirate-themed tourist mecca complete with frozen foods and canned sauces. Maggie’s dilemma is compounded by the breakup of her relationship with a fellow chef and being passed over for a promotion with the eventual loss of her job. Torn between her dream of being a New York chef and the pull of her familial roots deep in low country plough mud, she is compelled to sort out her priorities to choose her home and career.

There are many evocative lyrical passages that make this novel interesting and satisfying. My only criticism is the ending. After exploring all the family dynamics for many pages, the conclusion felt rushed and a little too perfect for real life…but then this is fiction. Overall, this is a great beginning for the author, and I look forward to more of her books.

My thanks to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for the privilege of reviewing this book. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

This review is being posted immediately to my GoodReads account and will be posted on Amazon upon publication.

A beautiful homage to the author's talented & much-missed mother, Dorothea Benton Franks!
A charming & entertaining summer read set in the iconic South Carolina lowcountry. Heartfelt, engaging, funny & relatable.
Especially liked the DBF references sprinkled throughout!
An impressive debut--look forward to reading more.

With great thanks to NetGalley & William Morrow for this e-ARC!

I"m thrilled that DBF's daughter is taking over her Sullivan's Island stories. This was great! I wasn't sure how well she could write, but I maybe even liked this better than some of Dottie's books! A family of girls named after flowers are all together for the first time in 10 years. Each dealing with their own issues. Pregnancy, jobs, addiction, etc. How will they all ban together to be a true loving family again? I powered through this. it was so good! the first of my summer reads for this year.

Huge thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow for the opportunity to read My Magnolia Summer by Victoria Benton Frank. I predict great things for this young writer. I was both excited and somewhat cautious about reading Ms. Frank's debut, but found myself slowly savoring the words and phrases and hoping the story would never end. Bravo!!

Told mainly in the voices of sisters Magnolia (Maggie) and Violet Adams, My Magnolia Summer is the lyrically told story of two women finding themselves and their futures over the course of a hot South Carolina lowcountry summer. Maggie returns to her childhood home on Sullivans Island when she learns that her beloved grandmother Rose, who raised her, has had a stroke. At first, not much has changed. Her mother Lily is still dealing with bitterness and alcohol abuse and her sister Violet has not yet convinced her boyfriend Chris to marry her…not for any lack of trying. But it is The Magic Lantern, the family restaurant for generations, that has been changed. Lily and her boyfriend Buster have turned the quaint family style dining room into a touristy, pirate themed horror featuring not Maggie’s grandmother’s homestyle cooking but instead fast foods and canned sauces. Maggie is facing problems with her mother, her grandmother’s health issues and money problems at the restaurant. A chance meeting with a doctor/farmer, however, adds interest to what she plans will be a brief stay. And Violet has interesting problems of her own. It takes a lot but the women finally learn the importance of family.

So we all know that Victoria is the daughter of beloved Southern writer Dorothea Benton Frank. What we didn’t know is that she can write! My Magnolia Summer is a beach book, a rainy day book, a curl up by the fire book…you get the picture. This is a story about strong women and the men who love them, about hard work, choices and the beautiful marshes and creeks of the lowcountry or as Maggie says “this place was the landscape of my soul.” Victoria Benton Frank, your mother is so proud of you! I can’t wait to read what comes next! 5 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley, William Morrow and Victoria benton Frank for this ARC.

I’m not going to lie. I was a huge fan of the late great Dorothea Benton Frank. I swallowed up her novels like bowls of grits. When I read that her daughter Victoria was going to try to write a novel, I was excited. Last night, I received the arc for Victoria Benton Frank’s My Magnolia Summer, I was thrilled, but also apprehensive. I wanted this book to be good. I started reading this book at nine o’clock this morning. I could not put it down until I finished it seven minutes ago, at two-thirty. I LOVED THIS BOOK! Yes, she has some of her mother’s voice in her writing, but Victoria has her own style! The “Easter Egg” tributes to her mother brought a smile to her lips. Victoria, you have done your mother very proud! I look forward to reading her next novel!

I was saddened by the passing of Dorothea Frank so I was excited to see a new novel by her daughter. Set in the Low Country of South Carolina, the first chapter immediately drew me in with descriptions of the area; the smell of plough mud, the waves of the Atlantic Ocean, etc. However as I read further in the book, the story seemed to take a familiar theme. Home town girl leaves the south to pursue her love of cooking in a famous NYC restaurant
A tragedy brings her home where she finds out how important family is and what it means to be part of a community. That said, I did enjoy the book and look forward to reading more from this new author.

The first paragraph of this book is written beautifully, evoking the feel and smells of the low country. There is one sentence in particular I find incredible, “ If you were to cut me open, you’d find the water of the Atlantic instead of blood, driftwood instead of bones, and seashells in place of everything else.” Pure poetry.
That’s why I found it disappointing when the characters were so over the top, creating a southern caricature in my mind. The plot was nothing new, woman leaves the south for New York City, something happens so she must return, realizing this is where she really belongs.
The inevitable comparison to her mother has to be mentioned as I find the style of this book very similar to hers, but all through this novel I found little gems, like the first paragraph, reminding me of Anne Rivers Siddon and this makes me interested in reading her next book to see how Victoria comes into her own as a writer.