Ashley Jordan’s ONCE UPON A TIME IN DOLLYWOOD Is Reese’s Book Club’s August Pick
© Greta High
Reese Witherspoon announced on Tuesday, August 5, that the Reese’s Book Club August pick is ONCE UPON A TIME IN DOLLYWOOD (Berkley), the debut novel from Reese’s Book Club LitUp Fellow Ashley Jordan.
Centered on an interracial couple, ONCE UPON A TIME IN DOLLYWOOD is a deeply emotional romance about a playwright grappling with writer’s block while falling for the single dad living next door. Jordan’s novel also deftly explores themes of race, fidelity, infertility, grief, and second chances. As Jordan says, “ONCE UPON A TIME IN DOLLYWOOD is a book about the ways that love can be transformative—especially in its ability to make us want to be better versions of ourselves.”
Jasmine Guillory, who served as Jordan’s LitUp mentor, calls the book “a moving, captivating, beautiful debut! Ashley Jordan is a star in the making. This book and these characters will stick in your head for a long time. I can’t wait for the whole world to read it.”
The novel has been covered by outlets like the Los Angeles Times, Entertainment Weekly, Woman’s World, BookRiot, and more.
View this post on Instagram
“Jordan’s debut is an exhilarating climb through Tennessee’s mountains and the depths of passion.”—Los Angeles Times
“You’ve heard of getting lost in a good book, but what happens when you can’t take your eyes off the cover?”—Entertainment Weekly
About ONCE UPON A TIME IN DOLLYWOOD
Eve Ambroise may be a rising star playwright, but her personal life is falling part. Desperate for a fresh start, she breaks up with her fiancé, cuts off her parents, and heads to the Tennessee mountains. But keeping up the lie that she’s just on a writing retreat becomes near impossible when faced with the well-meaning townspeople and a neighbor who has just as much baggage as she has.
Coming off a contentious custody battle, Jamie Gallagher is restructuring what his life looks like as a single dad, and spending more days at his cabin makes his new “free time” a little less empty. Especially when he meets the beautiful—and prickly—woman next door. The last thing he needs is a new romance to shake up his family dynamics even more, but there’s something about Eve.
What starts out as a fling quickly becomes more serious, and it’s not long before Eve is running scared once again. She’s loved and lost in every possible way, and risking it one more time could finally break her. But like the fireflies that fill the mountains around them, Jamie’s and Eve’s lives keep falling into sync. A fairy-tale ending could be in the cards, but only if the new couple can get out of their heads and put their hearts first.
About Ashley Jordan
Ashley Jordan (she/her) is a millennial from Atlanta by way of Brooklyn. She attended Spelman College, obtaining a degree in Psychology and a lifelong love and appreciation for women’s stories. While she currently works in public health, she has embraced writing as a hobby since penning her first short story in second grade. In 2023, she became a Reese’s Book Club LitUp Fellow.