Two of our favorite New York Times bestselling authors have new books this spring so of course they're coming to the USCB Lunch With Author Series... extended. Craig Johnson (left) returns with his new book Any Other Name on May 29 at Hampton Hall and Dorothea Benton Frank will be at Belfair Clubhouse on June 12 with her new book, The Hurricane Sisters.

Author Carl T. Smith returns to the Lowcountry and brings Sam Larkin with him.

                                                                 By Mark Shaffer

Gardner knew what he would order before he walked through the door. With no celebrity chef and being in Covington, South Carolina, he had been surprised on his first visit to the establishment to find the best Steak au Poivre he had ever tasted. In all the times he had eaten at Emily's since, it was the only entree he had ever ordered, and he was looking forward to it.
- Excerpted from "Matthew's Island" by Carl T. Smith

   Carl T. Smith sits at a window seat in the bar at Emily's in downtown Beaufort signing books as fast as he can. A queue of fans – some of them old friends – pull books from a table piled high and line up to have them signed.

Cassandra King offers wisdom and laughs in The Same Sweet Girls' Guide to Life.

In her new book The Same Sweet Girls' Guide To Life: Advice from a Failed Southern Belle, best-selling author and Beaufort resident Cassandra King writes, "My mother spent the formative years of my life trying to shape me into a proper lady, a Southern belle. I cannot tell you how miserably she failed..."

One of the advantages of having a lot of friends is celebrating a lot of birthdays! The past couple of months have been a whirlwind of birthday soirees – many of them commemorated at one of our favorite local hot spots, The Old Bull Tavern on West Street. As is custom with the best of friendships, someone unfailingly volunteers to bring a home-baked birthday cake.