Gone South

In this light, unfocused tale of love and personal epiphany, Moseley (When Sparrows Fall) dovetails faith with daily struggle. Letitia (Tish) McComb is a woman searching for her roots and the search draws her to Noble, Ala., into the lives of two people who need her desperately. With no real time to deal with the ending of a previous romantic relationship, the death of her father, and the adjustment to smalltown life, Tish must rely on her relationship with God to survive pitfalls. While faith plays a central role in guiding Tish’s life, distractions from that message abound. Characters evolve slowly, showing no clear or deep change. Otherwise seamless storytelling is occasionally marred by jarring jumps and abrupt decisions that, while realistic, detract from the flow. The romance involving Tish and a local is gentle and slow-blooming. Their present-day relationship is understated, compared to the emphasis on the ghosts of their pasts. The story is a gentle one, compelling and comfortable, relaxed without fully living up to its potential. (May 7)