The Sugar Queen

The last thing Josey Cirrini expects to find on the floor of her closet is a woman, and especially not Della Lee Baker. A brash and blowsy waitress, Della Lee is about as far away from meek Josey in lifestyle, class and personality as it's possible to get in their insular little Southern town, where their paths have seldom crossed.

Despite the weirdness of the situation, at first Josey is angriest at Della Lee simply for blocking access to her secret closet, the place where she stores her clandestine stash of candy and romance novels, and retreats from her self-imposed devotion to her manipulative, demanding mother. But she lets Della Lee stay, and having a observant, gregarious confidante in her closet soon exposes Josey to a new angle on her own life.

Employing both criticism and encouragement, Della Lee pushes Josey out of her comfort zones -- into a friendship with another young woman with her own emotional dramas, into a flirtation with the mailman she's been crushing on secretly for years, and into a realization of her right to live her own life.

Della Lee has many secrets to share with Josey, not all of them pleasant. But as surprising connections are revealed among the varied aspects of Josey's gradually unfolding life, it's clear that Della's presence in Josey's closet is more than just chance.

"The Sugar Queen" is a joy to read, populated with the sort of well-rounded characters that you want to both hug and yell at, often at the same time. Using touches of magical realism, Southern Gothic, family drama and contemporary romance, author Sarah Addison Allen mixes up a sweet fantasy that ends on a supremely satisfying note.

(c) 2008 King Features Synd., Inc.

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