Follow the lives of two notable people of the past. Col. Gustave Breaux 1828-1910 of Baton Rouge civil war fame, and his oft-married flamboyant daughter Daisy 1864-1949 and her whirl-wind life in high society.
Heavily researched, the personalized story of a father and daughter of New Orleans, Charleston and Washington D.C. Both were notable; Col. Gustave Breaux for his civil war participation and later a prominent judge in New Orleans. His stepdaughter, Daisy Breaux who is far from what the society of her time expected. She was beautiful, talented, piquant and adventurous.
She loved life and life loved her. She always found roses in the clouds.
Excerpt
With Andrew Simonds forever sober in his grave, the flamboyant Daisy Breaux was once more free to do exactly as she pleased. Not that Andrew really had much to say about it all along. It was a boon to her flirtatious, fun-loving nature to feel so free, and she wasted little time.
Professional Reviews
Fascinating Book
I found Susan LeGree's historical fiction book, "Finding Roses In The Clouds," an absolute joy to read. She has an adept way of grasping the reader's interest from page one. The two main characters in this little gem of a book are Gustave Breaux, a Colonel in the Civil War, and his ostentatious step-daughter, Daisy Breaux. She became the well-known Belle from New Orleans and Charleston. Her three marriages brought her to Charleston, New Jersey and Washington, D.C.
I was amused at the dialogue Ms. LeGree gave to each character. Through Daisy's words and actions, this "Belle of the ball" came alive, depicting her witty, flirtatious, adventurous, gregarious, and fun-loving self. One could not help but chortle at her antics as she would often utter wise-cracks to those around her. This woman of "high society" had a mind of her own, and no one was about to change her.
In the first few pages, I was immediately caught up in the home wedding scene in the Garden District of New Orleans as Colonel Gustave gave Daisy's hand in marriage to Andrew Simonds, Jr. whose father was President of the First National Bank of Charleston. Daisy was in her element as she celebrated her marriage to Andrew with plentiful food and copious amounts of champagne being enjoyed by all. The account of the wedding celebration made me feel like a welcomed guest at this festive party.
This story flowed nicely, and I found each character very colorful and unique. Ms. LeGree did a fine job in researching the characters and time period. I'm delighted she brought these two prominent and distinguished people and their families to "life" by writing this story. In reading this book I learned a great deal surrounding the events that transpired during this fascinating period in U.S. history. I highly recommend this well written novel.
Nancy Draper, author of A Burden of Silence: My Mother's Battle with AIDS
What a Gal that Daisy was
Ms LeGree has done it again! Another fabulous book, albiet her first venture into fiction. I have had the pleasure of meeting this talented author and she bears a remarkable personality likeness to the main character, Daisy Breaux. Witty, clever, full of life. Good read and a good way to learn more about this real life woman and her time. Read this little treasure in an afternoon - could not put it down. Vivian Gumpf, Medical Transcriber.
Southern Hospitality
The book is full of southern hospitality and history, and descriptive expressions makes for interesting reading. The main character "Daisy" keeps you wondering what she will attempt to do next, and you have to be surprised at the historical associations. The words flow gently for an easy entertaining read.
Fifth Book of the Southern Swallow Series. Nan Ya and his crew take a final adventure into a mythical Chinese universe and become entangled in court intrigue.
A novel about a family during World War II, set on the homefront in Springield, Mass., and in the South Pacific. The book focuses on four characters and how their lives were affected and changed during the war years.
Encountering danger, romance, heartache and tragedy, Catherine Merit strives to fit into a world filled with prejudice, hatred and violence where she is forced to kill a man in order to save herself. Third book of the Indignities Series.
