Lightning in a Mason Jar

In South Carolina, a woman discovers her aunt’s profound secrets in an emotional novel spanning decades about trauma, survival, and the bonds of female friendship.

Since Bailey Rae Rigby’s adoptive aunt Winnie passed, Bent Oak, South Carolina, doesn’t have much of a hold on her anymore. So it seems.

Bailey Rae aims to settle the small estate and, armed with her aunt’s inspiring personal cookbook, buy a food truck with an ocean view in Myrtle Beach. Everything goes awry when a distraught young mother arrives in town clutching a copy of that same cookbook. Embedded inside is a code that promises a safe place in Bent Oak for desperate women on the run. For Bailey Rae it opens up a world of questions. Who really was the beloved aunt she’s known most of her life?

Winnie Ballard’s story reaches back fifty years―one of a Southern debutante’s harrowing marriage, of her escape and reinvention, and the galvanizing friendship of three resilient women who overcame their traumas, created a shelter, and found purpose. But there’s more to Winnie’s deliverance and long-held secrets than Bailey Rae imagines.
With each revelation, Bailey Rae draws on her aunt’s courage to find purpose herself. For now, whatever threats may come, Bailey Rae isn’t going anywhere.

A place to hide. New friends to trust. And the courage to start over.

“Lightning in a Mason Jar is an exciting, highly visual story about brave women teaming up to overcome struggle and abuse to build great lives, and helping others to do the same. I enjoyed every single page!” ~Linda Lael Miller, NYT Bestselling Author of Where the Creek Bends

“In Lightning in a Mason Jar, Catherine Mann delivers a lovely reading experience about brave women, forever friendships, and enough secrets to fill a few Mason jars. The perfect page-turner for a hot summer afternoon!” ~Toni Blake, USA Today Bestselling Author of Lost Summer

“Lightning in a Mason Jar is a fast-paced, heartfelt glimpse into the lives of strong, fascinating women facing unspeakable odds. Told through alternating timelines, Catherine Mann has penned a thought-provoking exploration of what it means to be a woman underestimated, underappreciated, and far too often dismissed by the men in their lives. I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough. Simply put, Lightning in a Mason Jar is Catherine Mann is at her best. I highly recommend this page-turning story of hope, forgiveness, and the celebration of women. I give it five sweet teas!!!” ~Renee Ryan, bestselling author of The Secret Society of Salzburg