Folksy, slyly erotic and immensely entertaining, York's sequel to 2004's The Piano Teacher
revisits Swan's Knob, N.C., as returning heroine Wilma Swan takes charge of her granddaughter, Star, and Star's hustler father, Harper, rumbles into town in 1988—eight years after Wilma married the town's leading (and wealthiest) citizen, Roy. Wilma's daughter, Sarah, asks Wilma to watch Star while she travels to the Far East, and soon, smooth-talking Harper arrives and convinces Roy to allow him to use the family farm for a bluegrass festival. Wilma hardly has time to protest before her beloved husband has a near-fatal stroke and falls into a coma. Enter Delrina Kay, a fading country music star whose thirst for the wine from Roy's vineyard is nearly as well-developed as her bosom. Following Delrina's and Harper's wine-fueled late-night trip to the hospital, Roy comes out of his coma, sparking a dispute about who and what is responsible for Roy's recovery. Quixotic hijinks, quirky characters and affecting romance (both adolescent and geriatric) afford insights into the imbroglios of smalltown types searching for happiness. (Mar.)
