THE FIRST-TIME NOVELIST

Another Walker Percy? The same success as a novelist she enjoyed as a travel writer? Will this be the first - and last -novel written by this person? Or, the start of a long list of anticipated books?
Consider these FIRST NOVELS:

IN THE IMAGE by Dara Horn	A compelling story that begins with the accidental death of the protagonist's granddaughter. Meeting with the dead girl's best friend, the grandfather recounts the family history of Jewish immigration. Stories of the younger generation continue with the intertwining issues of love and faith. Multifaceted characters, Biblical and Jewish traditions, and an accessible story. "A work of raw genius" says Christian Science Monitor.
THE WHITE by Deborah Larsen	In 1758, Mary Jemison was kidnapped by a Shawnee raiding party. She chose to remain with the Shawnee for more than 70 years. Larsen, a poet, describes Seneca daily life, as she tells the tale of the twice-married Jemison, who eventually owned 10,000 acres of land, but lost three of her sons to drunken fighting. Fiction built on a true story out of American history.
THE FOUR TEMPERAMENTS by Yona Zeldis McDonough	The Four Temperaments is a Balanchine ballet based on the ancient concept of the body's four prevailing humours. A talented, amoral ballerina is the center of a love triangle in this story of lust, ambition, and love involving a middle-aged violinist and his married son. An intensely emotional tale with authentic ballet atmosphere and heart-breaking human frailty.
SWAN by Frances Mayes	Author of popular Italian memoirs, Mayes returns to her native state of Georgia for the setting of this tale. The exhumation of a body leads to questions about a mother's suicide of 19 years before and to the discovery of some truths long buried also. Mayes has a strong handle on the quirky traits of Southern life in a small town.
THREE DAUGHTERS by Letty Pogrebin	From the founding editor of Ms Magazine. The approaching 90th birthday of her father, a Rabbi, inspires one of his middle-aged daughters to attempt a family reconciliation. Strong female characters and lots of allusions to the details of life in New York bolster this story of three daughters finally "growing up." Comfortably amusing to native New Yorkers.
THE HEAVEN OF MERCURY by Brad Watson	Nominated for a National Book Award, this first fiction is also drenched with a sense of place. Like Faulkner, Watson delves into the lives of a Mississippi small town with its drunks, unrequited loves, and unpunished crimes. Library Journal says, "magnolia-lush prose.