Flies on the Butter

Denise Hildreth is a novelist and international speaker. Her first novel, Savannah from Savannah, and her recent novel, Flies on the Butter were both featured in Southern Living. Three of her novels have been Pulpwood Queens Book Club Selections. She lives in Nashville, Tennessee

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