It's Not All Downhill From Here

November 15, 2019
A close-knit group of 60-something black women deals with loss, illness, addicted family members, and the never-ending challenges of diet and exercise. In her 10th novel, McMillan (I Almost Forgot About You, 2016, etc.) joins long-career novelists such as Philip Roth and Anne Tyler as she sails her protagonists with her into older age. Southern California beauty supply mogul Loretha Curry is about to celebrate her 68th birthday with her doting, still-hot third husband, and she begins by watching the DVD of her 67th. Here we meet her gal pals: Sadie, the church lady who might be a lesbian; Korynthia, the gorgeous 6-foot-1-inch-tall exercise instructor; Lucky, married to a white architect and with a weight problem like Loretha's; and Poochie, a cruise-loving widow rolling in dough, now living in Las Vegas to care for her ailing mother. Loretha has told Carl that she's sick of parties, so the dear man surprises her with a weekend at a favorite Palm Springs resort, where less happy surprises await. Speaking of hot husbands and hotel rooms, the little blue pill plays a humorous role throughout the novel, which is sprinkled with comments like "And he knows how to take just the right amount of Viagra, not like Mr. Roto-Rooter." After Loretha's world takes a devastating hit in Chapter 1, all her problems become much more pressing. She's completely alienated from her twin sister and her alcoholic daughter; her son lives in Japan, and she's never met her grandkids; her 86-year-old mother is eager to leave the nursing home; many people in her life need money and plan to get it from her. With all this pressure, it's no wonder Loretha's ignoring her diabetes diagnosis and putting on pounds like crazy, and the only exercise she gets is walking her dog, B.B. King. If only things went so well in real life! Enjoy the wish fulfillment of ready cash and ideal outcomes.

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Starred review from December 16, 2019
In McMillan’s lively, perceptive novel (following The Interruption of Everything), a woman relies on the support of her longtime friends to help her cope with the trials of aging and widowhood. Loretha Curry’s husband Carl whisks her away for a weekend getaway in Palm Springs, Calif., to celebrate her 68th birthday, only to die of a heart attack while they are staying at the resort. Loretha’s friends rally around her as she tries to recover from the devastating loss. Loretha also contends with her own health issues after her doctor diagnoses her with diabetes. Though Loretha is filled with loneliness after Carl’s death, the wit and candor of her friends lessens the blow as Loretha weathers the angst of a difficult relationship with her alcoholic daughter Jalecia and considers selling her beauty products business. News of Jalecia’s attempt to book herself into a seedy shelter leads Loretha to reckon with her own life choices (“being ambitious can backfire when you’re black, a woman, and a mother”). McMillan writes with a staggering depth of feeling, credibly capturing the characters’ emotions as she unpacks their interpersonal conflicts. This delightful novel balances inspiration for renewal with the hard facts of aging. Agent: Molly Friedrich, The Friedrich Agency

December 1, 2019
McMillan is known for protagonists who take charge of their lives and rediscover passion in between the cracks, as in her especially beloved novels Waiting to Exhale (1992) and How Stella Got Her Groove Back (1996). This time around her heroine is Loretha Curry, who's in her late sixties and full of life. She and her four best friends have been in one another's corner for over 30 years, and she has a loving husband, a charismatic family, and a dog who knows her best. After a gut-wrenching tragedy shakes her world, Loretha voyages to evaluate what happiness looks like for her. The owner of multiple beauty supply stores, she tries to figure out how to relate to her twin sister, Odessa; her daughter Jalecia; and her granddaughter Cinnamon as they make choices she doesn't understand. Loretha's friends Sadie, Korynthia, Lucky, and Poochie accompany her while navigating their own troubles. McMillan's writing is smart and witty, throwing readers right into the action, and her dialogue is coated with humor that breathes life into her characters.HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: With lots of promotion in the works, fans will flock to McMillan's first novel in four years.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)

March 1, 2020

Between her beauty supply stores, her set of lifelong friends, and her family, Loretha has a full and busy life. When her husband dies while they are out of town celebrating her birthday, she shuts down and goes into months of mourning. But as always, her family needs her. Loretha's alcoholic daughter Jalecia refuses to talk to her and communicates only through Loretha's granddaughter, Cinnamon. Cinnamon and her husband are kind, but neither has a steady job and they are expecting twins. Loretha's twin sister, Odessa, has constant money issues, and their 86-year-old mother is slowly succumbing to dementia. And as a woman in her late 60s, Loretha has her own health issues. Her life is not over, though, and with the support of her friends and her own determination, Loretha has adventurous plans for her future. VERDICT McMillan (I Almost Forgot About You) delivers humor and wit while dealing with serious issues such as addiction, mental illness, health care, and death. Relatable characters in true-to-life situations will bring back the fans in droves. [See Prepub Alert, 9/16/19.]--Joy Gunn, Paseo Verde Lib., Henderson, NV

Copyright 2020 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

October 1, 2019

No. 1 New York Times best-selling novelist McMillan stays in the groove with Loretha Curry, happily married, beloved by a coterie of always-there friends, and still head of a successful beauty supply empire at age 68. She doesn't see herself tobogganing downhill any time soon, but unanticipated loss calls on everything she's got to stay afloat. McMillan's first book in four years, so make tracks.

Copyright 2019 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.