A wife, mother, and aspiring filmmaker clings to the pursuit of perfection only to have fate play with every plan she’s made in this quirky, contemplative, and empowering novel.
Holly Banks is on a desperate mission to have it all, but nothing in life goes according to plan. She’s quickly learning that keeping up with the Joneses is a full-time job, especially when the women of Primm, her new neighborhood, seem to have it together all the time.
With her husband’s job in flux, her daughter’s difficulty with learning to read, and her mother’s new zest for dating, Holly’s life is already anything but picture perfect. Then her dog digs up an old artifact in the village center, and the mishap draws the attention of local media. Because of course it would.
Holly finds herself at the center of a mystery between two rival towns that, if solved, could change the Village of Primm forever. Attention is the last thing she needs as she’s launching a new business, the village-wide “Parade of Homes” is approaching—though she’s hardly unpacked—and she needs to submit her entry for an upcoming film festival. Can Holly still create her perfect (looking) life? Or is fate about to go off script and give her a story she never could have imagined?
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“Picking up where Valerie’s first novel, Holly Banks Full of Angst, left off, this will fit right in with loyal Kinsella readers, fans of Tom Perotta’s Mrs. Fletcher, and those who enjoyed the suburban intrigue of the Netflix show Dead to Me.
— Booklist
Valerie combines laugh-out-loud situations with heart as Holly navigates her newest challenges…Recommended for those who enjoy reading about relatable heroines and parents who are trying to have it all.
— Library JournalBoth down to earth and beautifully surreal, Holly Banks’s latest adventure is a story about courage, family, and friendship that had me hooked from the very first page.
— Lea Geller, author of Trophy LifeBe the first to write a review about this audiobook!
Julie Valerie is the founder of the 85K Writing Challenge and serves on the board of directors of James River Writers. Julie earned an editing certificate from the University of Chicago Graham School and has a master’s degree in education, a bachelor of fine arts in fashion, and certification in wilderness first aid. She enjoys books, the study of wine, hikes on the Appalachian Trail, and travel. Julie married her college sweetheart, and they live in Virginia with their four children and two English labradors. Holly Banks Full of Angst is her debut novel.
Kathleen McInerney won the prestigious Audie Award for Best Narration in 2011 and was a finalist for the Audie in 2010 and 2015. Her narrations have also earned several AudioFile Earphones Awards. She has performed in New York and around the United States in both classical and contemporary theater. Her credits also include television commercials, daytime drama, radio plays, and a broad range of animation voice-overs.