• Sweet Tea and Sympathy

  • By: Molly Harper
  • Narrated by: Amanda Ronconi
  • Length: 9 hrs and 27 mins
  • 4.4 out of 5 stars (9,823 ratings)

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Sweet Tea and Sympathy  By  cover art

Sweet Tea and Sympathy

By: Molly Harper
Narrated by: Amanda Ronconi
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Publisher's summary

Beloved author Molly Harper launches a brand-new contemporary romance series, Southern Eclectic, with this story of a big-city party planner who finds true love in a small Georgia town.

Nestled on the shore of Lake Sackett, Georgia, is the McCready Family Funeral Home and Bait Shop. (What, you have a problem with one-stop shopping?) Two McCready brothers started two separate businesses in the same building back in 1928, and now it's become one big family affair. And, true to form in small Southern towns, family business becomes everybody's business.

Margot Cary has spent her life immersed in everything Lake Sackett is not. As an elite event planner, Margot's rubbed elbows with the cream of Chicago society and made elegance and glamour her business. She's riding high until one event goes tragically, spectacularly wrong. Now she's blackballed by the gala set and in dire need of a fresh start - and apparently the McCreadys are in need of an event planner with a tarnished reputation.

As Margot finds her footing in a town where everybody knows not only your name but what you had for dinner last Saturday night and what you'll wear to church on Sunday morning, she grudgingly has to admit that there are some things Lake Sackett does better than Chicago - including the dating prospects.

Elementary school principal Kyle Archer is a fellow fish out of water who volunteers to show Margot the picture-postcard side of Southern living. The two of them hit it off, but not everybody is happy to see an outsider snapping up one of the town's most eligible gentleman. Will Margot reel in her handsome fish, or will she have to release her latest catch?

©2017 Molly Harper White (P)2017 Audible, Inc.

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What listeners say about Sweet Tea and Sympathy

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

I usually want Molly's books to go on forever....

This had a similar writing style as the Half Moon Hollow series (which I adore) minus the humor and loveable main characters. Honestly, I found myself not liking the MC for well over half the book. Margot came off as cold, snobbish and arrogant well into the story. Even when she softened a bit, she lacked qualities that made me want to know her better or cheer her on in anyway.

Molly's books usually leave me laughing and happy as I click replay for a second, third and even fourth time. But for me, this book lacked humor and the usual compelling characters I would love to meet or hang out with in real life if they existed. As one of Molly Harper's longer books, I kept checking to see if it would be over soon even napping for half an hour while it played. I didn't hate the book. But I don't think I will be replaying it either.

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149 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

God bless southern hospitality

This is a mature romance story about a family reunion, building old relationships and beginning new ones. We first meet Margot Cary at the height of her career as an elite event planner in Chicago where everything goes spectacularly wrong. Margot loses her job and accepts a job offer from her estranged father’s family, the McCready, to join the businesses of the McCready Funeral Home and Bait Shop.

This is a story of people of Lake Sackett. They are families, neighbors and town folk where high school dreams and embarrassments are still relevant 20 years later. The story speaks about family loyalty, legacy and people with names like Tootie, Grand pap E.J.J. (for Earl Edward McCready III), Sarah Lee, Sarah Jane, Sweet Johnnie, a woman, with female cousins, who were all named after Grandpa John since there were no boys.

In Lake Sackett, the doors of homes are never locked, just come on in; ice tea is as sweet as maple syrup and everything is deep fried from ice cream to twinkies.

Margot, a big city girl, finds herself knee deep in Southern hospitality. Yet, she finds it difficult to build a relationship with a father who she does not remember, who never made an effort to see her, and only remembers that she loved sweet tea as a child. She finds the informality of the south slightly off putting. After pontoon boat rides, organizing the founder day celebration, arranging a funeral package, and hooking up with the single male principal. Margot finds her new path in her life.

If you love small-town tales featuring family, character growth, humor and heart with a dash of romance, then grab a tall glass of sweet tea and enjoy SWEET TEA AND SYMPATHY. I’ll save a rocking chair for you.

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69 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Thank you Ms. Harper

Not a book for everyone, but Molly Harper always manages to bring a smile to my face and the occasional LOL. Her writing is sharp, clever and creative. She brings larger than life characters to life, albeit unbelievable, but reality isn't always the point. The point is this book makes a good little escape.

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58 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

glad I didn't listen to reviews

I went back and forth over getting this book based on previous bad reviews, I'm SOOOO glad I took the plunge and purchased it. I loved all the characters,the story,the narrator, absolutely everything. I totally recommend giving it a try!

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50 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

DELIGHTFUL AS ALWAYS MH ENTERTAINS!

I thought this was a great story...and I think I am going to really like this new town of people..It does lack the Supernatural twist we normally get with MH but still super cute and humor filled....Molly Harper is a one click for me...I will read anything she writes!!!

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47 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

Tired, Humorless Let Down

As a devoted Molly Harper fan I expected much better.
I won’t include spoilers, don’t worry. Also, I understand that any devoted fan is absolutely going to listen. It’s what we do. :)
The standard Molly Harper “formulas” was there ... but this was SO similar to “Undead Sublet” in context, plot and main character development that it was like reading a non-paranormal rewrite.
Most disappointing though was that this work just wasn’t funny and the characters lacked the usual charm that Molly Harper usually delivers. Who doesn’t finish a Molly Harper book feeling like they’ve made new friends or that their family has been extended?
Will I buy the next book? Of course. Just don’t save this book for a special occasion, get it over with and move on.

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44 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Perfect Amount of Sweet in the Tea

Molly Harper has created yet another enjoyable world that I'm glad to spend see time in. It's not as quirky as the Half Moon Hollow series and the humor's not as dark. But it shouldn't be given this world is southern Georgia. That said the book still contains all the hallmarks of a Molly Harper romance- strong female characters, intelligent humor, and a genuine appreciation of small town life. The plot is predictable but that's okay. It's not really about the plot. It's just admit hanging out with some people you like and feeling good as they get their happy ending. And listening to Amanda Ronconi is a joy, as always. I personally can't wait for Frankie's book!

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43 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

✫✫ 3.5 Stars ✫✫

I love Molly Harper and Amanda Ronconi together. I enjoyed this book, it was a light contemporary romance for sure. The characters were realistic but not as funny as I normally expect from this author. I also thought the "closed" door sex scenes were surprising, I'm not a fan of this type of tease, I'd rather either have the sex scenes or don't have them but that is just a personal opinion. I loved the family dynamic in this book. The small town southern setting was great. I also love a single dad who starts to find his way. I will definitely continue with this series on Audiobook.

The narration was great but that is not a surprise! Amanda Ronconi is a great narrator!

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22 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

So sweet

So good. So sweet. So snarky. So funny. I love these characters and the world Molly created for them. Can’t wait for the next book in the series. Also, Amanda Ronconi rocks as one of the best narrators there is. Just sayin’.

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17 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Molly writes the South as only Molly can

I enjoyed this lovely little romance a great deal. It is a girl-meets-boy romance, but it's also a girl-meets-family "romance" and a girl-meets-her-roots "romance."

Molly Harper clearly loves the culture of the American South and it shows in most of her novels. This one welcomes home a Southern girl from Yankee country and steeps her in the sweet tea that is the deep South until she recognizes what is valuable about family and community.

And Harper does it with honesty, humor and her incomparable dry wit.

And, as always, Amanda Ronconi renders each voice with her incomparable voice and range.

I love Molly Harper's work and this is just one more example of why I love her work.

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16 people found this helpful