Southern Lights: A Novel

Southern Lights: A Novel

Danielle Steel sweeps us from a Manhattan courtroom to the Deep South in her powerful new novel-at once a behind-closed-doors look into the heart of a family and a tale of crime and punishment. SOUTHERN LIGHTS Eleven years have passed since Alexa Hamilton left the South behind, fleeing the pain of her ex-husband?s betrayal and the cruelty of his prominent Charleston family. Now an assistant D.A. in Manhattan, Alexa has finally put her demons to rest, raising her daughter alone and making a name for herself as a top prosecutor taking on some of the city?s toughest cases. But as Alexa prepares for her latest case, the high-stakes trial of accused serial killer Luke Quentin, threatening letters addressed to Savannah, her beautiful seventeen-year-old daughter, throw Alexa?s private life into turmoil. Certain that Quentin is behind the letters, Alexa must make the toughest choice of all: to send her daughter back to her ex-husband?s world of southern tradition and memories of betrayal. While Alexa?s trial builds to a climax in New York, her daughter settles into southern life, discovering a father and family history she barely knows. As secrets are exposed and old wounds are healed, Alexa and Savannah, after a season in different worlds, will come together again - strengthened by the challenges they have faced and changed by the mysteries they have unraveled. From the gritty chaos of Manhattan?s criminal court system to the seductive gentility of the South, from the rage of a hardened criminal to the tender bond between a mother and a daughter,Southern Lights will catch you off guard at every turn.ReviewPraise for Danielle Steel?Steel is one of the best!?-Los Angeles Times?Few modern writers convey the pathos of family and material life with such heartfelt empathy.?-The Philadelphia Inquirer?Steel pulls out all the emotional stops. . . . She delivers!?-Publishers Weekly?What counts for the reader is the ring of authenticity.?-San Francisco ChronicleAbout the AuthorDanielle Steel?as been hailed as one of the world?s most popular authors, with over 650 million copies of her novels sold. Her many international bestsellers include?ountry, Prodigal Son, Pegasus,? Perfect Life, Power Play, Winners, First Sight, Until the End of Time, The Sins of the Mother,?nd other highly acclaimed novels. She is also the author of?is Bright Light,?he story of her son Nick Traina?s life and death;? Gift of Hope,? memoir of her work with the homeless;?ure Joy,?bout the dogs she and her family have loved; and the children?s book?retty Minnie in Paris.Excerpt. ?Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.Chapter OneThe man sitting in the threadbare chair with the stuffing pouring out of it appeared to be dozing, his chin drifting slowly toward his chest. He was tall and powerfully built with a tattoo of a snake peering out of his shirt on the back of his neck as his head shifted down. His long arms seemed lifeless on the arms of his chair in the small dark room. There was an evil cooking odor coming from the hallway and the television was on. A narrow unmade bed stood in the corner of the room, covering most of the filthy, stained shag carpet. The drawers of a chest were pulled open and the few clothes he had brought with him were on the floor. He was wearing a T-shirt, heavy boots, and jeans, and the mud encrusted on his soles had dried and was flaking into the carpet. As peacefully as he had been sleeping, suddenly he was wide awake. He jerked his head up with a snort, and his ice-blue eyes flew open, as the hair stood up on his arms. He had an uncanny sense of hearing. He closed his eyes again as he listened, and then stood up and grabbed his jacket with a single stride across the narrow room. With his head erect, the snake tattoo disappeared back into his shirt.Luke Quentin slipped quietly over the windowsill and made his way down the fire escape after closing the wind