Making Waves (41 page)

Contact the author at her website:
cassandrakingconroy.com

ALSO BY
Cassandra King

The Sunday Wife

The Same Sweet Girls

Queen of Broken Hearts

Previously published by Black Belt Press in 1995.

Copyright © 2004 Cassandra King.

All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher. For information address Hyperion, 114 Fifth Avenue, New York, New York 10011.

The Library of Congress has catalogued the original print edition of this book as follows:

King, Cassandra.

Making waves / Cassandra King.—1st ed.

p. cm.

ISBN 0-7868-8793-1

1. Inheritance and succession—Fiction. 2. People with disabilities—Fiction. 3. Married people—Fiction. 4. Beauty shops—Fiction. 5. Alabama—Fiction. I. Title.

PS3568.A922 M34 2003

813'.54—dc21

2002038792

eBook Edition ISBN: 978-1-4013-4298-2

Hyperion books are available for special promotions and premiums. For details contact the HarperCollins Special Markets Department in the New York office at 212-207-7528, fax 212-207-7222, or email [email protected].

First eBook Edition

Original paperback editions printed in the United States of America.

www.HyperionBooks.com

“Cassandra King has written a wonderful and uplifting tale about women helping other women in a small Alabama town. Full of romance and surprises along the way.”

—Fannie Flagg,

author of
Can't Wait to Get to Heaven

“This novel about friendship, heartache, self-discovery and love—in all its wounding, wacky, and wonderful forms—had me laughing out loud, and then moved me to tears.”

—Sandra Brown,

author of
Ricochet

“
Queen of Broken Hearts
is an absolutely fabulous story of healing and hope, filled with irresistible characters that are beautifully drawn and have great insights into life. I laughed and cried, and you will too … I absolutely adored this book! Congratulations, Cassandra King, on a monumental success!”

—Dorothea Benton Frank,

author of
Full of Grace

“These are not ‘
The Same Sweet Girls
,' but all those who loved that novel will love this one even more. Cassandra King's characters are fully drawn, richly imagined human beings, whose lives will continue to resonate long after you've turned the last page.”

—Mark Childress,

author of
One Mississippi

“King brings sympathetic characters to vivid life and explores the bonds of friendship. This winning tale should make her a household name.”

—
Booklist

“The story's gentle Southern humor and warmth shine. The characters are true to life, and readers will sympathize with their struggles.”

—
Publishers Weekly

“[King] has an eagle eye for life as we are living it right this red-hot minute … a talent for creating memorable characters who reveal themselves in juicy dialogue and smart-talking commentary.”

—
Mobile Register

“King's previous novels,
The Sunday Wife
and
Making Waves
, have been praised as ‘rich,' ‘lush,' and ‘enticing.' Overall,
The Same Sweet Girls
is no different. Its emotional depth is apparent on almost every page, and it lends itself to the kind of immersion many readers desire in a novel.”

—
Denver Post & Rocky Mountain News

“If anybody has written a better book about the power of women's friendships, I haven't read it. Cassandra King has caught the timbre and import of women's voices as they speak to and of each other so perfectly that her jersey should be retired.
The Same Sweet Girls
is tender, funny, heartbreaking, and astoundingly unsentimental. Over all their lives together, these women have felt everything for each other but regret. I really, truly love this book.”

—
Anne Rivers Siddons

“Cassandra King has the gift of telling stories that sweep you away; settling in with a new book from her is like a weekend in the country. This novel of women's friendship is as original, eccentric, funny, and touching as any in recent memory, and you'll be missing those Same Sweet Girls long after they've taken their vivid lives and loves and left you.”

—
Beth Gutcheon

“Just try and resist the allure of
The Same Sweet Girls
. First of all, you get to sit in the company of a group of colorful, funny, highly opinionated, and infinitely real Southern women. On top of that enough, they will tell you the whole truth, and nothing but, about their loves, deceptions, and struggles. But above all, these women will capture you with the powerful, indelible bond that lies between them.”

—
Sue Monk Kidd

“A wonderful book. Cassandra King catches these quirky, complex people and their world fl awlessly.”

—Anne Rivers Siddons

“Kept me up till 3 …
The Sunday Wife
is a tasty, irresistible treat.”

—
BookPage

“As slice-of-life stories go, this is an extraordinarily generous one: rich, dense, and satisfying.”

—
People

“
The Sunday Wife
is an intelligent, witty novel, skillfully written.”

—
Boston Globe

“A charming read … [King] has a sure winner here.”

—
Publishers Weekly

“King explores the nature of love—the destructive power of addictive love, the healing power of mature, mutual love, and the blind worship of an adoring congregation.”

—
Birmingham News

“
The Sunday Wife
… delivers some haunting messages about the nature of love and freedom and forgiveness.”

—
Orlando Sentinel

“
The Sunday Wife
is a complex novel alert to the nuances of the Bible-Belt South.”

—
The Daily Courier

“King's unique characters and artfully constructed story are prizes.”

—
The Houston Chronicle

“
The Sunday Wife
is a dazzling tale of deception, heartbreak, and transcendence. Cassandra King has written a novel that sparkles with vitality and truth. Readers will not soon forget this moving story of one woman's journey toward independence and the amazing people who help ferry her toward freedom.”

—Connie Mae Fowler,
author of
When Women Had Wings

“From the perspective of a minister's spouse,
The Sunday Wife
unflinchingly explores the hypocrisy, vanity, and cruelty of leaders and members of a mainstream religious denomination. It's a wake- up call like that of Elmer Gantry. From page one, the reader will be rooting for the liberation of the courageous and talented wife, Dean, from her repressive husband, as Cassandra King's enticing novel challenges the reader to avoid the crippling effects of denial and obsession.”

—Sena Jeter Naslund,
author of
Ahab's Wife

“
The Sunday Wife
is a stunner, a page-turner of a story that's at the same time smart and funny and alert to the nuances of the complicated South. Dean Lynch in the title role will absolutely steal your heart.”

—Josephine Humphreys,
author of
Rich in Love