New Release Party! An Evening with Karen White & Mary Alice Monroe
2025-07-24 18:00 - 20:00 (America/New_York) | Main Street Reads, 115 S. Main St., Summerville, SC, 29483, United States
Two beloved Southern literary powerhouses. One unforgettable evening...

Join Karen White, New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of That Last Carolina Summer, for a special pre-release celebration of her newest Southern drama—right here in Summerville!

Even better? She’ll be in conversation with Mary Alice Monroe, award-winning author of Where the Rivers Merge, a sweeping new generational tale set in the South Carolina Lowcountry.

This one-of-a-kind literary night will include a live conversation between the two authors at the Flowertown Players theatre, an audience Q&A, and then a post-event reception with bubbly, charcuterie, and personalized book signings just steps away at Main Street Reads.

🎉 Don’t miss this literary dream team! Join us for a heartfelt conversation between bestselling Southern fiction authors Karen White and Mary Alice Monroe, as they discuss sisterhood, history, and the stories behind their newest books:

That Last Carolina Summer (Karen White)

Where the Rivers Merge (Mary Alice Monroe)

Ticket Includes:

Signed copy of That Last Carolina Summer

Live author conversation + Q&A

Post-event reception with champagne and charcuterie

VIPs receive both signed That Last Carolina Summer and Where the Rivers Merge books, AND priority seating

🕰️ Schedule:

5:00 PM — Doors Open/Pre-Signed Book Pickup

6:00 PM – Author talk + conversation

7:00 PM – Reception and signing at Main Street Reads

🎟️ PRICING

General Admission: $34.95 includes book, talk and reception!

VIP Package: $59.95 includes BOTH books, talk, reception, seating priority

This event is expected to sell out quickly—reserve your seat and celebrate the magic of Southern storytelling with two of the region’s literary legends!

🎫 TICKET OPTIONS:

🎉 General Admission — $34.95✔️ Signed copy of That Last Carolina Summer✔️ Admission to both the talk & reception

🌟 VIP Ticket — $59.95Includes:✔️ Signed copies of That Last Carolina Summer AND Where the Rivers Merge✔️ Priority seating (first 10 rows)✔️ Admission to both the talk & reception✔️ Both books and the extras for less than the cover price of the books.

ORDER YOUR TICKETS HERE OR GRAB THEM AT MAIN STREET READS!

That Last Carolina Summer: As a child, Phoebe Manigault developed the gift of premonition after she was struck by lightning in the creek near her Charleston home. Plagued throughout her life by mysterious dreams, and always living in the shadow of her beautiful sister, Addie, Phoebe eventually moves to the West Coast, as far from her family as possible. Now, years later, she is summoned back to South Carolina, to help Addie care for their ailing mother.

As Phoebe’s return lures her back into deep-rooted tensions and conflicts, she is drawn to Celeste, whose granddaughter went missing years ago. Their connection brings comfort to Phoebe, while Celeste’s adult grandson Liam resurrects complicated emotions tied to Phoebe’s past.

But the longer Phoebe spends in her childhood home, the more her recurring nightmares intensify–bringing her closer to the shocking truth that will irrevocably change everything. Unfolding against the lush backdrop of the South Carolina Lowcountry, That Last Carolina Summer is an unforgettable story about the unbreakable bonds of family and the gift of second chances.

Karen will be in conversation with Mary Alice Monroe, whose own newest book releases May 13, Where the Rivers Merge:

Karen White With almost two million books in print in fifteen different languages, Karen White is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of 36 novels. Although most of her growing up years were spent in London, England, Karen’s roots run deep in the South where many of her novels are set. Her intricate plot lines and compelling characters charm and captivate readers with just the right mix of family drama, mystery, intrigue and romance. Her books—referred to as “grit lit” (Southern Women’s Fiction)—have been nominated for numerous national awards, including the SIBA (Southeastern Booksellers Alliance) Fiction Book of the Year. When not writing, Karen is reading, bird watching, and avoiding cooking. She and her husband have two grown children and a spoiled Havanese dog, Sophie. She divides her time between Atlanta, Georgia and the northwest Florida coast.

From New York Times bestselling author Mary Alice Monroe comes her highly anticipated Where the Rivers Merge, the first of two epic and triumphant novels celebrating one intrepid woman’s life across multiple generations in the American South.

1908: The Lowcountry of South Carolina is at the cusp of change. Mayfield, the grand estate held for generations by the Rivers family, is the treasured home of young Eliza. A free spirit, she refuses to be confined by societal norms and spends her days exploring the vast property, observing wildlife, and riding horses. But the Great War, coastal storms, and family turmoil bring unexpected challenges to Eliza, putting her on a collision course with the patriarchal traditions of a bygone era.

1988: At 88, Eliza is the scion of the Rivers/DeLancey family. She’s fought a lifetime to save her beloved Mayfield and is too independent and committed to quietly retire and leave the fate of the estate to her greedy son. She must make decisions that will assure the future of the land and her family—or watch them both be split apart.

Set against the evocative landscape of the twentieth-century Lowcountry, Where the Rivers Merge is a dramatic and sweeping multigenerational family story of unyielding love, lessons learned, profound sacrifices, and the indomitable spirit of a woman determined to persevere in the face of change in order to protect her family legacy and the land she loves.

Mary Alice Monroe is the New York Times bestselling author of 30 books for adults and children. She has earned numerous accolades and awards including induction into the South Carolina Academy of Authors’ Hall of Fame, the Southwest Florida Author of Distinction Award, South Carolina Award for Literary Excellence, RT Lifetime Achievement Award, the International Book Award for Green Fiction, and the Southern Book Prize for Fiction. Monroe is a co-founder of Friends and Fiction and serves on the South Carolina Aquarium Board Emeritus, The Leatherback Trust, The Pat Conroy Literary Center Honorary Board, and Casting Carolinas Advisory Board. She resides in South Carolina and North Carolina with her family.

BUT WAIT, THERE’S MORE!

Just had to share these graphics of books by both authors… THAT’S A WHOLE LOTTA’ SOUTHERN FICTION Y’ALL!
