Book Review: Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen

Release Date: September 2007, mass market edition April 2008

Publisher: Bantam Discovery

Age Group: Adult

Pages: 320 paperback

Source: My local library.

Hard cover shown

Summary:
Welcome to Bascom, North Carolina, where everyone has a story to tell about the Waverleys. There's the house that’s been in the family for generations, the walled garden that mysteriously blooms year round, and the wild rumors of dangerous loves and tragic passions. Claire has always clung to the Waverleys’ roots, tending the enchanted soil in the family garden from which she makes her sought-after delicacies. She has everything she thinks she needs, until one day she wakes to find a stranger has moved in next door and a vine of ivy has crept into her garden... and Claire’s carefully tended life is about to run gloriously out of control. (From sarahaddisonallen.com)
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Why I picked it up: Two of my favorite writers/bloggers (Laini Taylor and Stephanie Perkins) recommend Sarah Addison Allen's books. I trust them. Also, the premise of Garden Spells intrigued me and I lovelovelove books with a touch of magic realism.

The Good:

Garden Spells is a deceptively slow read that drew me in with flowing prose, quirky characters, and one of the most enchanting fictional worlds I've ever visited. Claire Waverly comes from a long line of peculiarly talented women, and her special skills include being a fantastic cook and knowing how to use the mysteriously powerful plants that grow in her family's garden. Food made from ingredients from the Waverlys' garden influences the eater in unexpected ways, and everyone in Bascom, North Carolina knows it. Claire uses this to her advantage in her catering business:

The biscuits with lilac jelly, the lavender tea cookies, and the tea cakes made with nasturtium mayonnaise the Ladies Aid ordered for their meetings once a moth gave them the ability to keep secrets. The fried dandelion buds over marigold-petal rice, stuffed pumpkin blossoms, and rose-hip soup ensured that your company would notice only the beauty of your home and never the flaws.

Neat.

As far as the other Waverlys go, Claire's aging relative Evanelle feels compelled to give people items that they end up needing later, and no one's sure what powers Claire's long-absent sister, Sydney, and her daughter Bay might have when they unexpectedly show up at her doorstep. Sydney and Bay--who lights up every page she's on--are on the run from something horrible, and they bring plenty of secrets to Bascom. The Waverly sisters didn't get along well as children, and as Claire and Sydney reconcile past misunderstandings, Claire grows out of her comfort zone and develops a cute, yet genuine, romantic relationship with her new-ish next door neighbor.

I grew attached to these characters quickly, and I delighted in the quirks of Bascom. Every family is known for something--from the magic of the Waverly women to the Hopkins men who always marry older women--and Sarah Addison Allen adds plenty of unexpected touches to an otherwise realistic world in a deliciously relaxed tale that manages to demand to be read quickly.

The Bad:

Much of the plot is predictable, but in the I-want-this-to-happen-and-I-think-it-will way. The only thing that truly bugged me was a subplot involving one of Sydney's high school friends who is terrified that Sydney came back only to steal her husband. It's tiresome, and it also involves plenty of sex. Garden Spells is a tasteful book, but it is definitely a work of adult fiction, although it may appeal to mature teens.

The Recommendation: If you haven't read Garden Spells and are at all intrigued by it, DO. I would also recommend it for readers who like magic realism, enjoy analyzing the intricacies of relationships, and those just looking for something unusual in their usual. It's officially one of my new favorites.