Everyone from Louisiana to Florida knows Mama Ruby—a small-town girl who became one of the South’s most notorious and volatile women. Now New York Times bestselling author Mary Monroe reveals how the indomitable heroine of her acclaimed classic The Upper Room continues to vex the family she’s left behind.

Mama Ruby has died and Maureen Montgomery is finally taking charge of her own life. With her beautiful teenage daughter, Loretta, by her side, she returns to Florida and settles into a routine any other woman would consider bland. But for Maureen and her brother, Virgil, after Mama Ruby’s hair-trigger temper and murderous ways, bland is good. Yet, Loretta has other ideas …

Set on becoming rich and famous, Loretta convinces Maureen to let her start a modeling career with the help of a Miami photographer. But even as they move in promising new directions, they can’t escape Mama Ruby—including Virgil, who’s concealed one of her most shocking acts for most of his life. To make a future that’s truly hers, Maureen will have to take on a bit of Mama Ruby’s strength, forge new bonds—and face down the past.