What do readers think of Folly Beach by Dorothea Benton Frank? Write your own review.

This story that intertwines the past and the future of residents of Folly Beach, South Carolina is both witty and charming. The characters draw the reader into their lives and the sights and smells of a small beach town seem real.

Not having read Dorothea Benton Frank before, I was pleasantly surprised and will certainly look for other books by this author.

Would be a good read for those looking for a nice, good romance to read.

Newly widowed Cate Cooper returns to her childhood home in the South Carolina low country to put the pieces of her life back together. She moves into Porgy House, a small cottage in which Dorothy and DuBose Heyward long ago lived and wrote the libretto for Porgy and Bess. In alternating chapters Cate's story unfolds, as does the tale of the Heywards. Fiction is thus intertwined with non-fiction and combines to make a charming story. This is Dorothea Benton Frank at her best. I enjoyed it thoroughly as will, I am sure, all her many fans. This is a lovely, light summer read.

While the author's books are always some of my favorites, this book was by far her best. It captured my attention immediately and mixed two of my favorite elements- a little history and a lot of southern! The book tells two stories - one historical and one set in the present. The historical "play" - for lack of a better word - was interesting and thought-provoking. The present story is filled with quirky characters and good dialogue. Loved it!

The story sucked me in (to a degree) from two different angles. The saga of Cate's life falling apart and needing to start over is what drew me in as the summer read I was craving. It was light-hearted, dramatic enough to keep me interested, and it featured some fun characters (her love-to-hate daughter-in-law and her quirky aunt). Prior to reading the book, I was not familiar with Porgy and Bess--not at all actually. I felt I was kind of clued in to why it's considered an important play, because Cate brought it up several times, but it still didn't interest me fully. Something a little more along the lines of "mainstream" history would be better, so I could feel a little more connection to it and better appreciate its significance. I, for one, enjoyed the back and forth with the "flashbacks", because it at least tied Dottie and DuBois into the story. The end was disappointing and cheesey.

I received a copy of Folly Beach to review. I had never read anything by Dorothea Benton Frank before but was familiar with her Lowcountry Tales series.
When the book began I had a difficult time following the story line since it jumps back and forth between scenes from a play set during the Charleston Renaissance and the present. Once I got the hang of that I enjoyed the story. I was totally unfamiliar with the Charleston Renaissance and learned quite a bit about that time which I enjoyed. I will certainly look into the history of the Charleston Renaissance before my next trip there.
The present day story opens at the funeral of Cate’s husband. As details of their relationship are revealed it became apparent this was not a great relationship and her husband had been hiding a lot from his family. I found her total lack of awareness a bit unbelievable but soon grew to like her. The story was decent and overall I enjoyed the book mostly because of the history more than the story itself.

I've read most of Benton Frank's books and absolutely love this beautiful part of the country, so I was excited when I received this book. Then I started reading. I don't care for reading "plays" although that part isn't really much of a play. I don't like going back and forth between time periods, so that was a little annoying. Finally, the timeline seemed a little rushed and unbelievable to me, given the dire circumstances that bring Cate back to Folly Beach. I really would have liked to have gotten to know the interesting, entertaining and quirky character's stories better. It's an entertaining beach book; not too deep or thought provoking. But, brought me back to a part of the country I love and made me remember and wish I was back there right this minute.

The book was written in an interesting format I had not incurred before. Unfortunately, it took me most of the book to understand why. Maybe I should describe it as a 'pleasant' read in that the story flowed smoothly but nothing particularly grabbed me - characters, location, plot. Perhaps I would consider it a 4 on a scale of 1 to 10.

In my opinion this was definitely a "beach book." I enjoyed the historical aspect of Dorothy and DuBose Heyward - I will research more about them. I liked the low country setting although I have read other authors that I Iiked more such as Anne Rivers Siddons. The Cate and John relationship was too quick to be real in my opinion and the dialogue between them toward the end was rather high schoolish. As I said it is a nice beach read.