I JUST CAME HERE TO DANCE

by Susan Mary Malone

Genre: Literary Fiction

Publisher: White Bird Publications

Date of Publication: September 15, 2016

Number of Pages: 340

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Paula Anne Fairbanks understands all about the unexamined life. And she likes hers that way—until her world gets ripped smooth apart.

Running from reality, Paula falls under the mythological yarns being spun on Diana Maclean’s porch. Surely Paula’s own choices aren’t to blame for the summer of insanity she spends under the spells of Diana…who is, after all, known as the White Witch of Sociable, Texas.

I JUST CAME HERE TO DANCE, a modern allegory, waltzes atop the line between the creative and the crazy, the sacred and the maligned. Through myths it weaves together the multi-layers of personal Self with that of the collective whole. And finally, Paula Anne and the townsfolk learn the simplest of truths: that the fire’s ashes produce wisdom and courage, just as the stories say.

PRAISE FOR I JUST CAME HERE TO DANCE

“Malone’s voice is one of the most charming I’ve read.  It brings the story and her characters to life.  I feel like I grew up with Paula right over the hill from the lively little town of Sociable, Texas.”  –New York Times bestselling author M. Leighton

“Susan Mary Malone pens well-crafted characters that are so vivid you can picture them in an award winning movie or television series.” –New York Times bestselling author Mary Honey B Morrison

“. . . a magical story about love ripped apart, a life examined, and then healed.  To be read slowly, to savor as one would a tall cool glass of lemonade, on a hot afternoon, watching the world become new.”  –Ginnie Siena Bivona, author of Ida Mae Tutweiler and the Traveling Tea Party, made into a Hallmark TV film, Bound by a Secret

This book will twirl you around while whispering secrets of life, love, loss and the future. After all, life is a dance that is always changing. It is up to you to catch the rhythm.

I’m not even sure where to start on my thoughts of this book! The book centers around Paula Anne Fairbanks – a not quite 30 year old woman that got pregnant in high school (or soon after) and has spent her days raising her son while her husband, Marty, was on the rodeo circuit. He was injured and moved home but their life was never really the same. Or perhaps it was but neither wanted to admit that what they had wasn’t what they really wanted from life. It seems that Paula was having a mid life crisis early, or perhaps it was avoidance of life by seeking out good times, flirting with other men and perhaps wishing her life was different. But she and Marty seemed to have an unspoken understanding and would do their own thing and neither would complain about what each other was doing. This was working well until Paula Anne comes in to find her husband in bed with her best friend. I did see that one coming and that was even before a clue was dropped!

This affair seemed to have woken Paula Anne up from her life that was on auto-pilot. However, she can’t seem to make heads or tails of what she wants or how she should proceed. I imagine that it was a lot to take in after catching your husband cheating on you, and from all that we could infer from the book, it was probably a blessing in disguise. It just takes her awhile to realize that fact. Luckily she has the help of Diana, Lola and even Sleepy to guide her and make her face life. Even her mother, Bonita, reveals some tidbits that are wise in their own way.

The book reveals a lot of truths about Paula Anne, her mother and father, Diana (the proclaimed town witch) and even Marty and Melinda. Along with these characters, there is the small town of Sociable Texas that is destined to implode due to a feud – not unlike that of the Hatfield and the McCoy families of TN. And of course being a small town of around 200 or so, everyone is intertwined with each other and no one seems to truly mind.

Overall, the story is engaging and if nothing else, it reminds us to remember to enjoy life while you have it to enjoy. Whether that is dancing, telling stories or finding your true self. But it isn’t always easy and you might have to deal with crazies before you figure out where you are supposed to be in life.

We give this 4 paws up.

Texas native Susan Mary Malone has published two novels, co-authored four nonfiction books, and written many short stories. Her happiness is fiction, wine, and Labrador Retrievers, the latter of which she raises, trains, and shows. Literature is her love. In addition to writing, she edits; fifty-plus Malone-edited books have sold to traditional publishers, and one of them was made into a Hallmark Hall of Fame film (while another is in production, set to be released in 2015). Her stories revolve around the passions and purpose, the myths and meaning of women’s lives. Which often involves wine. She does, however, try to keep the Labradors out of that.

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