My bookclub selected this as our January 2023 read.

Present day: Libby McKenzie isn't sure who she is - a failed oncology nurse whose marriage suffered three miscarriages and ended in divorce is introduced to use while photographing a wedding. Libby meets Elaine Carter Grant, the owner of the generations-old Woodmont estate and is asked to record the renovation, most notably the hidden greenhouse at the edge of the property.

1940s finds the world at war and we're introduced to Sadie Thompson, a known bootlegger of the famed Honeysuckle moonshine and her unlikely relationship with the Olivia Carter, wife of Doctor Carter and owner of the estate. Upon discovering Sadie can drive she is hired by Doctor Carter to assist his new bride into town at her leisure and the two form an unlikely friendship.

Early in the story, we discover that Libby is the adopted daughter of the small town's pediatrician, and upon his death she is determined to uncover the identity of her birth parents.
Her newly found friendship with Elaine seems unusual at first glance, but as more characters are introduced the author is able to unfold a story that shows us how small towns can't escape their secrets.

This book reads like a mystery with elements of romance, drama, and history. If you enjoy nonlinear timelines, multiple narrators, and historical fiction reads - this one's for you.

Lockdown has landed me in a Prime First Reads book club with my mother and aunts, and they inevitably pick a new Women's Fiction release. I enjoy the calls with my family but wow are these books not for me. Secret/surprise babies are one of my least favorite tropes, and this book inexplicably has three of them. It's also a testament to the powers of contraception as several of these secret babies are created by people engaging in intercourse exactly one time. And the only one of those sex acts that is described on the page IN DETAIL, no fade to black, is a date rape. No thanks! I feel like this book wants to be saying something about female autonomy and "troublesome women" but it really relishes the horrible things that happen to the characters and glosses over all the joys (and despite taking place in the south, there is not a single black person seen or mentioned in either timeline, not even regarding the eugenics). Not to mention the time hopping was confusing, the pacing was extremely rushed, and the main protagonist ending up with her (admittedly somewhat distant) cousin? In the year of our lord 2020? Nope. My 50+ female family members all enjoyed it though, which is probably this book's target audience.