What readers think of South of Broad, plus links to write your own review.

I continue to be amazed by Pat Conroy's descriptive abilities. In a line he is able to make the reader taste, smell, and feel the south.

Not up to the standards of "Prince of Tides" or "Beach Music." The characters seem forever trapped in a state of adolescence with raging hormones dictating their every action, but their story was engaging and the pages seemed to turn themselves.

South of Broad will offer the true Conroy fan many familiar elements - suicide, the look and smell of the salt marsh, athletics, deep familial scars, the south, other parts of the country as seen through the prism of the south, verbal skirmishes ... and even some James Joyce. In the story a wildly eclectic group of friends race through a fast moving plot and several "Big Chill" moments. While the plot can be a little contrived and the dialogue occasionally too cute, it is overall a good enjoyable read. Although it falls short of Prince of Tides this book shows there is life after Beach Music and gives me hope that Mr. Conroy will return to the regular creation of exceptional novels ... I for one have missed him.

Pat Conroy has done it again. I was completely immersed in the book. The characters were described so well, I felt as if I knew each one. His love of Charleston is strongly sensed by the reader.

How wonderful for a group of friends to be so strongly bonded. An excellent book.

I have been an ardent fan of Mr. Conroy and waited impatiently these last 14 years for another novel, after reading Beach Music. I was ecstatic to see that South of Broad was 500 plus pages and looked forward to his unique command of language and his ability to spin a story that captures a reader's attention from the first sentence.

The 14 year lapse did nothing to diminish his wonderful way with words, drawing the reader into a world of words that are pure pleasure to reread over and over. I can not say the same for the plot or the character development. I found the plot to be predictable and boring. The novel seems to be overburden with too many characters that lack character development and a reason to continue in their varied relationships. The novel is disjointed in the 20 year transition from childhood in 1969 Charleston to Part Two where the only thing that changes is the year,1989.
I had no doubts that my 14 year wait would be rewarded with another Conroy masterpiece ...sadly, I was wrong.

This book is, essentially, a love story - to the city of Charleston, the Catholic faith, and friendship. While I won't go into plot specifics, like all of Mr. Conroy's previous novels, the writing is very descriptive, and the story is framed by a tragic childhood. The book employs many references to James Joyce and the reader unfamiliar with Joyce will miss some of the suggested nuances. While I enjoyed the book, I didn't love it the way I did his previous novels; it just wasn't as powerful.

Mr Conroy's new book South of Broad was worth the wait. Making use of the magic of language ,he tells the story of a time,a group of friends and a city. These themes are woven together in a seamless interdependent manner. This book will appeal to a broad reader base.

With characters as lush and vibrant as a Charleston garden, Pat Conroy weaves a story about life-long friendship and human connection that cannot be broken by time, distance, nor violence. Conroy's writing is tragic, with even more Southern drawl and flair for the dramatic than his previous novels. A must-read for all fans in search of the Great American Novel.

With South of Broad, an ode to the beauty of Charleston and the joys and sorrows of friendship, Pat Conroy pulled me into his imagined world from page one. It's not the first time this has happened and I hope it won't be the last. The most vivid complex character is the city itself. He captures the smells, sights, sounds and spirit of this beautiful, fragile place.