Magical happenings in the back yard
Sarah Burke
Originally published 10:19 a.m., December 1, 2007
Updated 10:19 a.m., December 1, 2007
An apple tree that throws fruit and can tell you the greatest event of your life with just one bite, a woman who uses the plants to make magical foods and her sister who is trying to start over.
The elements of fantasy and realism are balanced nicely in “Garden Spells,” the debut novel of Sarah Addison Allen. Allen tells the story of two sisters who have been known as “those Waverly sisters” since their mother left them in the small town of Bascom, N.C., to be raised by their grandmother. The story begins with a grown up Claire, who has stayed in Bascom and thrown herself into her catering business and the task of tending the magical garden. She has embraced her gifts, but has isolated herself from the rest of the town.
Sydney, Claire’s younger sister, and her daughter, Bay, are fleeing back to Bascom to escape from Bay’s abusive father. Sydney has never been comfortable with her Waverly magic, but the garden is calling her back home. Little does Sydney know all the trouble that she will stir up in town with her return.
Her old love from high school is now married to the girl who stole him away, and she is determined to hold on to him. Sydney wants nothing to do with either one of them, she is not looking for romance until an old friend shows her that there are still some good ones left. Claire is having problems of her own. Her sister is back and since their mother ran out on them, they have never been close. They are constantly arguing, Sydney is hiding something and Claire cannot find out her secret.
The next door neighbor is extremely handsome and extremely annoying. He is constantly on her mind and no matter what food she feeds him, the magic is not working on him. The apple tree keeps dropping apples in his yard, and Claire has got to wonder, did he eat one?
This book is not only a tale of two sisters getting to know one another again, but a whole town of people, each with his or her own special magic. The drama in this story is not overwhelming, and the heartwarming romance and the humorous Evanelle Franklin will leave readers with a smile and tears in their eyes.
Though the Waverly sisters have a magic garden and magical talents of their own, they are very much human, which makes them easy to relate to by a reader. They are not superhuman like so many characters with magic are, but want to be loved and safe just like everyone else.
This book has a cast of characters you won’t soon forget and two romances that will make you believe in the magic of love.
On the Net:
Sarah Addison Allen: http://www.sarahaddisonallen.com/
• On the Shelf is written by staff and volunteers of Emporia Public Library.