Hissy Fit: A Novel

Welcome to the world of Mary Kay Andrews, where manners are polished, reputations are tarnished ... and revenge issweet. Keeley Murdock's wedding to A. J. Jernigan should have been the social event of the season. But when she catches her fiance doing the deed with her maid of honor at the country club rehearsal dinner, all bets are off. And so is the wedding. Keeley pitches the hissy fit of the century, earning herself instant notoriety in the small town of Madison, Georgia. Even worse is the financial pressure A.J.'s banking family brings to bear on Keeley's interior design business. But riding to the rescue -- in a vintage yellow Cadillac -- is the redheaded stranger who's purchased a failing local bra plant. Will Mahoney hires Keeley to redo the derelict antebellum mansion he's bought. Her assignment: decorate it for the woman of his dreams -- a woman he's never met. Only a designing woman like Keeley Murdock can find a way to clear her name and give her cheating varmint of an ex-fiance the comeuppance he so richly deserves. And only Mary Kay Andrews can deliver such delicious social satire. With Hissy Fit, she's created a story as outrageous, dishy, and true as Savannah Blues and Little Bitty Lies. Title Page......Page 3 Contents......Page 9 1 If it had not been for my fiance’s alcoholic cousin.........Page 14 2 Paige darted around to the far side of the table,.........Page 20 3 I’d never seen this guy before. He certainly wasn’t from.........Page 27 4 Gloria had a key to my apartment, and she never.........Page 33 5 Eventually I stopped crying and went back upstairs and tried.........Page 38 6 “Keeley!” Gloria exclaimed, sweeping past me.......Page 44 7 In a perfect world, on what would have been my.........Page 50 8 I clutched the door frame for support. “He took Nick?.........Page 55 9 On Sunday I slept.......Page 56 10 Daddy called at noon on Wednesday. “You’re coming tonight, aren’t.........Page 64 11 I yanked the kitchen door closed behind me and then.........Page 70 12 Will sipped his coffee slowly while Daddy lit into the.........Page 76 13 Red clover carpeted the meadow, and fat fuzzy bumblebees hovered.........Page 82 14 “Let’s get one thing straight,” I said, once we were.........Page 91 15 I took a long sip of beer and considered this.........Page 97 16 He calls himself Austin LeFleur, and he owns Fleur, the.........Page 103 17 Thursday morning I got downstairs early, but my aunt was.........Page 110 18 I heard the barking ten yards from her front door..........Page 118 19 Erwin’s nose quivered with anticipation. Stephanie’s eyelids fluttered.......Page 124 20 It was getting late. I needed to get back to.........Page 128 21 I stepped inside the shop and flicked on the lights,.........Page 133 22 “Jeez-o Pete!” I cried, letting my weapon drop to the floor.........Page 138 23 I was in a funny mood after Austin went home.........Page 144 24 It was only ten o’clock in the morning, but by.........Page 148 25 Will made a big show of locking the bathroom door..........Page 155 26 Gloria wrinkled her nose as I slathered lotion on my.........Page 163 27 Austin jumped out of the Volvo before I’d even turned.........Page 170 28 A faint breeze ruffled the leaves on the limb of.........Page 177 29 “Next time I need help with an installation, I’ll hire.........Page 183 30 I jounced the car back onto the tarmac and turned.........Page 191 31 Wednesday morning I got up and brewed a pot of.........Page 197 32 Supper at Daddy’s looked like it would be what it.........Page 204 33 We sat in the dark at the picnic table, looking.........Page 211 34 On Friday afternoon I had a pounding headache. This should.........Page 216 35 Will’s face blushed so deeply it was hard to tell.........Page 224 36 On Saturday morning I watched as a steady stream of.........Page 232 37 Kathleen’s wasn’t one of those snooty antiques shops where you.........Page 236 38 Austin waved at me from a booth tucked into the.........Page 243 39 I stopped at the Minit Mart on the way out.........Page 249 40 I took a deep breath of air and sank to.........Page 257 41 Gloria glanced over at me from her drawing board and.........Page 263 42 When I got back to the studio, I went directly.........Page 269 43 It had been nearly a month since I’d seen my.........Page 272 44 “Will! Stephanie!” My voice was registering just the eensiest bit.........Page 279 45 In August Daddy had a surprise for me. Two surprises,.........Page 285 46 Thursday morning Austin and I picked up an eighteen-foot panel.........Page 291 47 At six A.M. I heard the click of the key.........Page 300 48 Austin helped me wrap the console table in a mover’s.........Page 305 49 “I’ll drive,” I told Austin. I needed to be in.........Page 312 50 We found a motel just off the Interstate in Mobile,.........Page 316 51 “A flea market in Metairie, when I could be wandering.........Page 322 52 Austin and I were still arguing as we drove back.........Page 331 53 Will had decided that the first big official event at.........Page 340 54 I was upstairs in my apartment, finishing up the covered.........Page 343 55 The kitchen was full of people. The caterers were bustling.........Page 349 56 “Let me get you some aspirin,” A.J. said, looking concerned..........Page 358 57 I dreaded returning to Loving Cup on Tuesday, but there.........Page 365 58 A week later, when I went back to Loving Cup.........Page 370 59 Austin and I sat in my car outside Vince Bascomb’s.........Page 376 60 “Your mother’s dead,” Vince Bascomb said. “So you can tell.........Page 382 61 It was Wednesday night. Salmon loaf night. After I dropped.........Page 387 62 I threw myself into my work. All the structural and.........Page 390 63 “So far, so good,” I told myself as I drove.........Page 397 64 A cold front moved in overnight. Saturday morning I woke.........Page 405 65 Saturday night I threw a pity party for myself. The.........Page 412 66 “All of this?” Will asked, peering into the open cargo.........Page 419 67 On Wednesday Gloria came back from the post office with.........Page 421 68 We held Mama’s memorial service on the Saturday after Thanksgiving..........Page 424 Grits n’ Greens Casserole......Page 433 Acknowledgments......Page 434 About the Author......Page 435 Also by Mary Kay Andrews......Page 436 Credits......Page 437 Cover......Page 1 Copyright......Page 438 About the Publisher......Page 439

Welcome to the world of Mary Kay Andrews, where manners are polished, reputations are tarnished ... and revenge issweet.

Keeley Murdock's wedding to A. J. Jernigan should have been the social event of the season. But when she catches her fiance doing the deed with her maid of honor at the country club rehearsal dinner, all bets are off. And so is the wedding. Keeley pitches the hissy fit of the century, earning herself instant notoriety in the small town of Madison, Georgia.

Even worse is the financial pressure A.J.'s banking family brings to bear on Keeley's interior design business. But riding to the rescue — in a vintage yellow Cadillac — is the redheaded stranger who's purchased a failing local bra plant. Will Mahoney hires Keeley to redo the derelict antebellum mansion he's bought. Her assignment: decorate it for the woman of his dreams — a woman he's never met.

Only a designing woman like Keeley Murdock can find a way to clear her name and give her cheating varmint of an ex-fiance the comeuppance he so richly deserves. And only Mary Kay Andrews can deliver such delicious social satire. With Hissy Fit, she's created a story as outrageous, dishy, and true as Savannah Blues and Little Bitty Lies.

Publishers Weekly

Interior decorator Keeley Rae Murdock has designed her whole life, right down to the antique Oriental rug planned for the foot of her bed. What she never counted on was discovering her fiance, A.J. Jernigan, cavorting with her maid of honor in the middle of her rehearsal dinner. She pitches a hissy fit that reverberates through her tiny hometown of Madison, Ga., and captures the attention of Will Mahoney, a newcomer who recently purchased an antebellum plantation house. Headstrong, freckled Will pressures Keeley to restore the rundown mansion within six months. His plan: to woo a woman whom he has seen only on television by designing the house of her dreams by Christmas. Keeley knows it's an insane plan, but the Jernigans are now trying to put her out of business, so she begrudgingly accepts. As the house comes together, Keeley discovers links between the Jernigan legacy of infidelity and her mother's disappearance many years ago. Darker than the book's fluffy title suggests, this black comedy is riven with shocking secrets. And Keeley's vast knowledge of all things antique offers a fascinating peek into the luscious world of designer home furnishing, sure to make readers drool with envy over sideboards and sofas. Agent, Stuart Krichevsky. (Aug. 22) Forecast: Andrews's Little Bitty Lies built on the success of Savannah Blues, and this sharp Southern treat should bump Andrews up another notch. 12-city author tour. Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

Welcome to the world of Mary Kay Andrews, where manners are polished, reputations are tarnished ... and revenge is sweet.Keeley Murdock's wedding to A. J. Jernigan should have been the social event of the season. But when she catches her fiance doing the deed with her maid of honor at the country club rehearsal dinner, all bets are off. And so is the wedding. Keeley pitches the hissy fit of the century, earning herself instant notoriety in the small town of Madison, Georgia.Even worse is the financial pressure A.J.'s banking family brings to bear on Keeley's interior design business. But riding to the rescue -- in a vintage yellow Cadillac -- is the redheaded stranger who's purchased a failing local bra plant. Will Mahoney hires Keeley to redo the derelict antebellum mansion he's bought. Her assignment: decorate it for the woman of his dreams -- a woman he's never met.Only a designing woman like Keeley Murdock can find a way to clear her name and give her cheating varmint of an ex-fiance the comeuppance he so richly deserves. And only Mary Kay Andrews can deliver such delicious social satire. With Hissy Fit, she's created a story as outrageous, dishy, and true as Savannah Blues and Little Bitty Lies. Whether its a mystery, sassy womens fiction, or a combination of the two, New York Times bestseller Mary Kay Andrews always gives her fans a read to remember. And now shes throwing a Hissy Fit , in the best possible sense. A delicious tale of revenge and renovation, Hissy Fit tells of a wronged spitfire whos determined to see that the no-good lowdown, lying, cheating varmint of an ex-fianc who ruined her life and her business gets the comeuppance he so richly deserveseven as she struggles to revitalize a broken-down antebellum mansion for a hunky, if slightly odd, local businessman. If you like the novels of Fannie Flagg, Jennifer Crusie, Adriana Trigiani, and Emily Giffin, or are a devoted follower of Rebecca Wells or Jill Conner Brownes Sweet Potato Queens, then Mary Kays Hissy Fit is not to be missed. The night before her wedding, in the middle of the rehearsal dinner, interior decorator Keeley Murdock finds her fiance and her maid of honor in a compromising position. Keeley throws the hissy fit to end all hissy fits and storms out. Now she has to deal not only with a broken engagement but also with "financial blacklist" in a town financially obligated to her ex's family. Rescue comes in the form of the new owner of a local bra plant, who hires Keeley to redo the antebellum mansion he's bought for the woman of his dreams-someone he's never met. Only a designing woman like Keeley can revive her business, give her ex-fiance the comeuppance he deserves ... and ride off into the sunset with a man who drives a vintage yellow Cadillac Calling off her high-society wedding after discovering her fiance's infidelity, Keely Murdock faces financial ruin before receiving assistance--and an opportunity for revenge--from the new owner of a local bra company