Legacy: A Seductive Tale of Suspense, Mystery, and Family Secrets

In this intriguing novel set during the closing months of World War II, a young woman, surrounded by mystery, is determined to learn the truth about herself and her family. Raised by her mother's straight-laced Alabama kin, Lelia Elliot, who sometimes has intuitive ``knowings,'' fears she has inherited madness and sets out for St. Petersburg, Fla., to find her Uncle Chuck, the only remaining member of her father's family. Lelia locates Chuck, a genial bartender, and his hard-nosed piano-playing wife, Hazel, who put her up in their modest trailer. The Elliot house is now owned by Kali, a reclusive, enigmatic woman who had been the family housekeeper. Lelia is keenly interested in Kali, who may be able to open the door to her past. Yet other events in the beach community are not to be ignored, from the appearance of movie star Evander Merrill to the disappearance of two young women, one of whom is found dead, possibly murdered. Those who don't mind a tale with a shimmering of the supernatural and who can tolerate the subdued Southern pace at which Coe ( On Waking Up ) assembles her substantial cast of characters from past and present should enjoy Lelia's coming-of-age. (Feb.)