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Cover of The Sweetest Hallelujah

The Sweetest Hallelujah

Elaine Hussey (2013)

SubgenreContemporary Romance
Age groupAdult 18+
Content ratingPG-13
Pages (Standard (250-400))
SettingHistorical Earth
CSM age16
Goodreads5/5 (1)

Content levels

ViolenceMild
Sexual contentNone
LanguageMild

Trigger warnings

racismterminal illnessdeath of parent

Positive tags

found familyplatonic lovehealing archopeful endingchosen family

Tropes

Strangers to LoversSingle ParentSmall TownFound FamilySlow Burn

Themes

griefsacrificeclass struggleidentitylove vs duty

Synopsis

Betty Jewel Hughes was once the hottest black jazz singer in Memphis. But when she finds herself pregnant and alone, she gives up her dream of being a star to raise her beautiful daughter, Billie, in Shakerag, Mississippi. Now, ten years later, in 1955, Betty Jewel is dying of cancer and looking for someone to care for Billie when she's gone. With no one she can count on, Betty Jewel does the unthinkable: she takes out a want ad seeking a loving mother for her daughter. Meanwhile, on the other side of town, recently widowed Cassie Malone is an outspoken housewife insulated by her wealth and privileged white society. Working part-time at a newspaper, she is drawn to Betty Jewel through her mysterious ad. With racial tension in the South brewing, the women forge a bond as deep as it is forbidden. But neither woman could have imagined the gifts they would find in each other, and in the sweet young girl they both love with all their hearts.

Tags

Historical FictionWomen's FictionLiterary FictionFriendship Story