Flies on the Butter

When Rose Fletcher left Mullins, South Carolina, she shook the dust off her feet. But now she's got her car pointed South and her foot on the gas, racing for the past hoping to leave her present troubles behind.

Can you ever really go home again?

Rose Fletcher’s come a long way from her South Carolina up-bringing of Sunday church and Mamaw’s fried chicken. As a high-powered lobbyist in Washington, D.C., Rose has put the South behind her. But the peace and happiness she has sought eludes her. With her marriage on the brink of disaster, her mind races with the chaos her life has become.

Now Rose must head south for home. She’ll face her demons, relive her coming-of-age, and confront the issues that have kept her away all these years. It’ll take the intervention of strangers and a painful miracle of grace to help her find that place called "home" once again.

Hildreth, author of the popular Savannah series (Savannah from Savannah, etc.), sets her disappointing new stand-alone in a car. When Washington, D.C., lobbyist Rose Fletcher is called home to South Carolina, she takes the long drive as an opportunity to reflect on the mess she's made of her life: she's estranged from her mother; she has deceived her husband, using birth control while pretending to try to get pregnant; and she's been having an affair. Will the trip home give her a new perspective? But of course. The book is organized in flashbacks, each inspired by someone Rose meets during her daylong drive home. This structure is irksome and distracting (as is the question of why a high-powered professional who's attached at the hip to her BlackBerry didn't fly in the first place). Character development is weak, too: Rose's contradictions (a children's rights lobbyist who is too wrapped up in her own career to have kids) can be heavy-handed, and the Southern eccentrics she meets on the way home, such as the wise and fulfilled working-class mom, are caricatures. The happy ending is also predictable. Still, as with many of WestBow's other offerings, this novel is edgier than much Christian fiction, with its frank discussion of adultery and its somewhat subtle, though nonetheless central, treatment of faith. (Feb.) Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

As the author of several successful Southern-themed novels and a resident of the South herself, Denise Hildreth brings that region, complete with its most charming foibles, to vibrant life through the edgy and witty prose of her most recent triumph, Flies on the Butter.

Rose Fletcher, a hardened businesswoman, has spent most of her adult life running from her native South and its painful memories. But circumstances unknown to the reader have Rose returning to her hometown of Mullins, South Carolina for the winter. With each mile her chic Lexus covers, Rose is forced to deal with more and more of the pain-filled past to which she thought herself long hardened. Along her journey, Rose encounters a potpourri of colorful Southern characters, ranging from the nostalgic and elderly gas station employee, Herschel, to a plump and pushy diner waitress named Daisy, all of whom propel Rose along her spiritual, as well as geographical, journey. In the end, Rose must come to realize that no matter how fast she may run, she will never be able move into her future without first mending the fragments of her past.

Because Rose is an unbeliever, readers can expect to encounter material falling short of biblical standards. Rose, however, is a powerful illustration of the brokenness of the world outside of Christ’s touch. This story provides readers with useful insights into the hearts of those for whom Christ most persistently reaches. And it is the very darkness of Rose’s character that, in the end, so beautifully highlights God’s restorative light and love.

Flies in the Butter quickly engages readers in its colorful setting through the use of quirky dialogue, vivid descriptions and humorous colloquialisms that capture the unique spirit of the South. Though at times Hildreth’s use of stereotypes may cross the line of plausibility, it nonetheless provides Flies in the Butter with a delightful aura of its own, complete with fried chicken, glass-bottled Coca-Colas, and collard greens, against which Rose stands in humorous contrast.

The novel also uses flashbacks in order to peel back Rose’s hard exterior and reveal the unraveling of her initially happy childhood. Rose is a character for whom the reader, upon first glance, would grant little sympathy, and she would certainly ask for none. But as stories of Rose’s past are unveiled, the reader catches a glimpse of the broken woman beneath her no-nonsense exterior. In addition to offering valuable insight into Rose’s character and choices, the flashbacks also keep the novel’s pace fast and energetic and offer an ever-varying backdrop against which Hildreth stages her novel.

Overall, Flies on the Butter is an engaging and worthwhile reading experience. Although completing the novel requires wading through some uncomfortable territory, persistent and hopeful readers won’t be disappointed by its resolution. To those seeking a well-written story that is both humorous and heart-wrenching, Flies in the Butter is an excellent choice and will leave the reader grateful for the touch of God’s redemptive love. – Lauren Peltier, Christian Book Previews.com

Average Rating:

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Reviewed by adrienne (U.S.), October 03, 2009

I have read all of Denise Hildreth's books and not one has disappointed me. This was a brilliantly woven book that reflects the song sung by Wynonna Judd, You Can't Go Home Again(Flys on the Butter). I enjoyed it immensely and would recommend it to anyone that is wanting a good read about forgiveness, love, and redemption.

Reviewed by Deena Peterson (Marysville, CA), March 06, 2007

I first discovered Denise Hildreth when I picked up and read "Savannah from Savannah" and I was hooked. That southern flavor permeated the pages, and I adored the quirky family she had created. Denise gave me three wonderful Savannah novels. So I was a little disappointed when I found out "Flies on the Butter" was a departure from the beloved characters I had grown to love. But, as Denise herself says, "...sister needed to know that she could write about something other than crazy people from the South." Well, sister can know for sure...she can write, powerfully write. "Flies on the Butter" is the story of Rose Fletcher, both who she once was and who she is today, and how the two finally merge into the person she was meant to become. The story bounces between present day and Rose's memories of her childhood growing up in the South. A stark contrast is created immediately between the two, and it is obvious that Rose is running from the girl she once was, creating a new and improved Rose that is sleeker, sharper, and able to keep her emotions under tight reign. As the novel unfolds, we learn slowly (isn't that how everything is done in the South?!?) just why Rose feels this need to be so different, and why anything reminiscent of her childhood sends her running the opposite direction. You can sense foreshadowing of events to come...like a spectre of hope tinged with foreboding...And I love it. It kept me reading long past lights out, and longing for more of Rose's memories. How sweet to picture her wrapping her arm around her granddaddy's head and rubbing that soft spot on his ear, falling asleep as he rocked her on his lap on the porch swing...but Denise writes it so much better than I do! There's a sense of something highly spiritual (the world would describe it as mystical) going on as well...divine encounters with strangers that leave glory-bumps on your arms and a longing for God to love you like He obviously loves Rose.

Reviewed by Deborah (Portsmouth, VA), February 18, 2007

If you liked the Savannah series, you'll like this book one too. While it doesn't have the humor or eccentric characters as the Savannah books, Flies does have that southern charm and great storyline that draws you in. Rose is a character that slowly grows on you. I didn't like her at first but then as more of her story is revealed, I felt more sympathetic towards her. Although I do not agree with her reasons for having an affair, it is understandable why a working woman in the prime of a budding career would not want to have children. I liked also the characters Rose met along the way, each realizing that they met her for a reason and then chose to pray for her. I also enjoyed reading about the food. Southern food is the absolute best, fried chicken and pork chops. I live in Virginia but not in the part that's considered real southern. My boyfriend on the other hand lives in that southern part so a lot of what happens in the book happens in his hometown. So I found a bunch of familiar things that I could relate too such as the boiled peanuts, Fun Dip, and the ice cold coke. And I really want to go to one of those roadside diners one day. That meal that was given to Rose at the diner sounds so good. While reading this book, I was reminded of the movies Elizabethtown and Junebug . The whole southern bit about slowing down. This book really moved me. I laughed and I cried. It's definitely one of the best books I've read this year so far. Denise Hildreth has once again written an excellent novel, one I couldn't put down. If you want a story that will move you and touch your life, then I highly recommend this book for you.

Reviewed by D Burns (Charleston SC), February 04, 2007

Beautiful! I couldn't put it down. This book will stay with you for days after you've finished the last page.

Reviewed by Harriet Klausner (Morrow, Ga), December 08, 2006

Asked to come home by her family Washington D.C. based children’s rights lobbyist Rose Fletcher drives to Mullins, South Carolina though she prefers not to go. As the miles pass, she reflects back on decisions she made that feel hollow and dishonest no matter how she rationalizes them. Rose thinks about what caused the estrangement with her mother and fears a confrontation when they see one another. She ponders why she deceived her husband, who believes they are trying to have a baby instead of telling him she is not ready for a child. She secretly used birth control to insure she does not become pregnant. Besides which, since she is having an affair, short of DNA testing, she would not who sired her offspring. Feeling morally bankrupt, Rose considers how to regain the high road she used to travel in her relationships. Rose being a paradox of conflict makes for a fascinating look at a woman whose moral compass is pointing in a negative direction. Though readers will wonder why she failed to fly home, which would have somewhat devastated the premise of the open road meeting of stereotypical people, fans will appreciate her self analysis via flashbacks as to how each of her key relationships have recently been filled by mendacity on her part. LIES ON THE BUTTER is a deep character study of how easy a person can make wrong decisions because in the short run that is the easier path to take. Harriet Klausner

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