An Evening with Carolyn Newton Curry and Coach Bill Curry: Sudden Death

On Tuesday, October 4th at 6pm, Hub City Bookshop will welcome author Carolyn Newton Curry to the Piedmont Club in Spartanburg to discuss her new book, Sudden Death, a murder mystery set in the world of football. This is a world Curry knows well—her husband is former Georgia State football coach Bill Curry.

Sudden Death tells the story of a Kendall Harris, a lawyer, and her football coach husband, Duke Astin. When Astin is hired as head coach by a football powerhouse in the South, there is a contingent of influential fans who are unhappy about it, but when the tension boils over into murder, Kendall and Duke find themselves in a situation that’s much bigger than football.

Curry and her husband will be in conversation together talking about the book, about football, and about how their joint life informed the book Carolyn has written—and where true life ends and fiction begins!

Ticket price includes one book and dinner for an individual, or one book and two dinners for a couple. $60 for a single; $100 for a couple.

Menu: Grilled chicken with fresh basil and sun-dried tomatoes in a parmesan cream sauce, mashed potatoes, asparagus with roasted tomatoes, a cookie for dessert, and a glass of wine.

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About the Book

Sudden Death is a murder mystery set in the world of football. More than a whodunit, the novel spans from 1966 to 1997. Kendall Harris, a brilliant law student from Georgia, and Duke Astin, a star quarterback from Hawaii, meet at UCLA, fall in love, and marry. Kendall practices law and Duke plays in the NFL, then becomes a college coach. Juggling two careers and moving from state to state puts pressure on their relationship, but through the joys and stresses of life, they stay loyal to one another. Things take a troubling turn when Coach Astin is hired by a football powerhouse in the South. Immediately, an influential group unhappy Duke was hired begins to undermine everything he tries to accomplish. But when the murder occurs, the story becomes a search for joy and goodness in life, and ultimately the triumph of the human spirit over unspeakable odds. Sudden Death also explores serious themes of sports gambling, alcoholism, and spousal abuse within the varied cast of characters.

About the Author

Carolyn Newton Curry is an award-winning author, historian, and non-profit founder and director of Women Alone Together®. She holds a BA from Agnes Scott College and a MA and PhD from Georgia State University. In 2014, she published Suffer and Grow Strong: The Life of Ella Gertrude Clanton Thomas 1834-1907. In 2015, it was selected One of the Books all Georgians should read by the Georgia Center for the Book. In that same year, Curry received Georgia Author of the Year from the Georgia Writers Association.