Deep in the Shade of Paradise

<p>Welcome to Shiver-de-Freeze a boot-shaped precinct deep in the Louisiana swamp famous for its healing waters and curious fauna. Grisham Loudermilk is marrying Ariane Thevenot at Paradise the family's ancestral home and we're here for the wedding. But reason and love it would seem keep little company in Paradise these days: Grisham's cousin Adlai Birdsong has fallen desperately in love with the bride-to-be. Adlai's ill-advised courtship proceeds even as his daddy Royce struggles to recall his past in the face of Alzheimer's; as Father Pat McDermott realizes his passion for the mother of the bride; as the conjoined twins Tous-les-Deux train their eyes on Boudou Fontana the last of the star-crossed Fontana clan. And just when it seems that Adlai must resign himself to a prolonged season of bachelorhood Miranda Ferry Grisham's recent lover wanders into town unawares. With his signature tragic-comic voice and cast of unforgettable and lively characters Dufresne explores love death imagination and memory. Reading group guide available.</p>