Book excerpt: A delightful standalone novel as told by the sassiest character in the beloved New York Times bestselling Miss Julia series. Don't miss Ann Ross's newest, Miss Julia Raises the Roof, coming April 2018 from Viking. Heart-of-gold, hardscrabble Etta Mae Wiggins has bewitched Miss Julia fans as the steel magnolia’s sidekick in several New York Times–bestselling novels. At last, Etta Mae gets to speak for herself, and longtime readers and newcomers alike will love her story and her opinions of Miss Julia. Growing up, Etta Mae couldn’t escape her daddy’s no-good name—or the attention of every roving eye in town. But when she becomes the home nurse for an elderly man who is Abbottsville’s wealthiest resident, she sees an opportunity to say sayonara to her trailer-park days once and for all. However, a number of interested parties are less than thrilled by the thought of wedding bells, and she’ll have to work fast to marry Mr. Right on the worst bad-luck day of her life.