Last Light over Carolina

Every woman in the lowcountry knows the unspoken fear that clutches the heart every time her man sets out to sea. Now, that fear has become a terrible reality for Carolina Morrison. Her husband, shrimp boat captain Bud Morrison, the only man she’s ever loved, is lost and alone somewhere in the vast Atlantic fi shing grounds, with a storm gathering and last light falling.

As the action unfolds on this one terrifying, illuminating day, Carolina and Bud Morrison look back across thirty years of love and loss, joy and sorrow. Carolina walked away from a well-to-do upbringing to marry Captain Bud Morrison. She embraced his extraordinary lifestyle by the sea and the customs of a historic shrimping village. Yet lately, hard times and the loneliness of long separations have driven them apart—and driven her to make a mistake that threatens to shatter their onceunbreakable bond forever.

When Bud Morrison is overdue at the docks, the closeknit community rallies together to search for one of its own. But Carolina knows that it is their love that must somehow call him home, across miles of rough water and unspeakable memories. And she swears that if she is given one more chance — for love and for forgiveness - nothing will ever take her from this man’s side again.

In Last Light over Carolina, Mary Alice Monroe once again explores a vanishing feature of the southern coastline, the mysterious yet time-honored shrimping culture, in a convincing and compelling tale of an enduring marriage.

Publishers Weekly

From the bestselling author of Time Is a River and Swimming Lessons comes a serviceable novel set in present-day coastal South Carolina. The tale follows shrimp boat captain Bud Morrison, and his wife, Carolina, through one eventful day. Despite their ardent love for one another, and how wildly passionate their love affair began, after 33 years of marriage, imprudence, distrust, financial strain and poor communication have clouded their relationship. When Bud's deckhand is a no-show for work, Bud decides to take his boat out alone, despite a fast approaching storm. After he's injured in a boating accident, he begins to reflect on his life and love. Meanwhile, Carolina has had a premonition and spends her day reminiscing about her marriage and analyzing the missteps. Although the story is a frank and easy to relate to look at a long-term marriage, some maudlin passages and uninspired thematic work can make it feel borrowed from a Lifetime movie. (July)

Mary Alice Monroe is the New York Times bestselling author of ten novels, including Sweetgrass, Skyward, The Beach House, The Four Seasons, and The Book Club. She is an active conservationist and lives in the low-country of South Carolina.