Mayville, Georgia, and South Carolina - 1970 to 1997

Jesse Belle Holt wants nothing more than to get out of her hick town. Jesse is as sultry as the weather, and at a very early age, she learned to use her beauty to get what she wants from men. As a preacher’s kid, or “pk,” she knows the Bible, front to back, but somehow the message of kindness, compassion, and giving is lost on Jesse. When young pastor Traynor Deveraux arrives in Mayville as a guest preacher for the tent revival, he is smitten with Jesse Belle, and before he leaves, he and Jesse Belle marry.

Being a preacher’s wife gives Jesse Belle the life she wants. But she isn’t satisfied, and so begins her seduction of greed for wealth and power. Her justification is she deserves it. Is her devoted husband, Traynor, blind to what she does? Or, since he is so satisfied with how his ministry is developing, agrees with her, sometimes reluctantly, as she convinces him to move to bigger and better churches, bigger and better homes, and whenever he questions her -- because people do talk -- she always convinces him that it is because people are jealous of her. Traynor loves Jesse Belle, and she does make him happy, he just prays she will see the light.

The Bible tells the story of JEZEBEL, which is the story of the Phoenician princess who was the daughter of the priest, King of Sidon. As years go by, Jesse Belle often gets compared to the evil princess. For Jezebel there was no redemption; will Jesse Belle face the same fate? She is extremely charismatic, beautiful, and deceitful. Traynor, who is a dutiful husband, is no match for Jesse. But will her success lead not only to her, but her family’s demise?

Jacquelin Thomas has written a stark, yet beautiful and poignant love story with themes of greed, jealousy, and redemption. Perhaps the question we should ask ourselves is how do I fight jealousy and greed in my every day life? This is a book to read, the lessons that can be learned from Jesse Belle will stay with the reader. Is there a happy ever after, where all our worldly possessions are admired, or does our faith in God shine, as we walk in his light? You decide.

Deborah C Jackson