There is nothing in the world that announces the glorious warm days of spring and summer as a delicious, juicy, fragant peach! And when reading Sarah Addison Allen's latest book, "The Peach Keeper," you can almost smell the sweet fragrance of the peach blossoms wafting through the room as you read this dazzling, intriguing tale.
In “The Peach Keeper, secrets with the definite smell of sweet peaches swirl around the small North Carolina town of Wall of Waters, secrets from years ago that suddenly spring back to life when two women seeks answers to questions that have troubled their families for years.
Rich girl Paxton Osgood has spent her life being the girl and then the woman that everyone, especially her parents, seemed to expect her to be. Willa Jackson is just the opposite. She defied convention and her family's attempt at a quiet, unobtrusive upbringing as the town “wild child” during her high school years, But as she has grown older, Willa has desperately tried to settle down to become a responsible adult her father and grandmother wanted her to be. Neither woman is truly happy, each wanting some part of who the other is, not realizing that what marks them as different, really makes them so much the same.
Planning a huge celebration for the Wall of Waters Women’s Society Club’s 75th anniversary, Paxton is also in charge of the restoration of the Blue Ridge Madam, a spectacular home formerly owned by Willa's ancestors, but which they lost during the financial crisis of the Depression. During the landscaping, a skeleton is dug up from beneath the lone peach tree. The skeleton brings to light secrets from the past, secrets of a mysterious man who held the town captive under his spell. Secrets belonging to Willa's grandmother Georgie and Paxton's grandmother Adele, who also happen to be the founders of the Women’s Society Club. The secret brings Paxton and Willa together, in an attempt to protect their grandmothers. Their unlikely alliance leads each woman to discover something special and magical about herself, and the power of friendship and love.
As with Sarah Addison Allen's previous novels (“Garden Spells,” “The Girl Who Chased The Moon,” and “The Sugar Queen”), there's an element of fantasy and magic in her latest novel, “The Peach Keeper.” In this tale, the magic that centers around a friendship that's lasted for decades between two elderly women carries the story that combines the past with the future. The grandmothers’ life-long friendship is the key to the mystery behind an unearthed skeleton, and the guiding tool for an unexpected, but much needed friendship between the adult granddaughters of the two women. And as the granddaughters work out their need for friendship, and their realization that people can and do change over time, they each develop a deep relationship with the men in their lives that they'd known from their childhood days.
Rich girl Paxton Osgood has spent her life being the girl and then the woman that everyone, especially her parents, seemed to expect her to be. Willa Jackson is just the opposite. She defied convention and her family's attempt at a quiet, unobtrusive upbringing as the town “wild child” during her high school years, But as she has grown older, Willa has desperately tried to settle down to become a responsible adult her father and grandmother wanted her to be. Neither woman is truly happy, each wanting some part of who the other is, not realizing that what marks them as different, really makes them so much the same.
Planning a huge celebration for the Wall of Waters Women’s Society Club’s 75th anniversary, Paxton is also in charge of the restoration of the Blue Ridge Madam, a spectacular home formerly owned by Willa's ancestors, but which they lost during the financial crisis of the Depression. During the landscaping, a skeleton is dug up from beneath the lone peach tree. The skeleton brings to light secrets from the past, secrets of a mysterious man who held the town captive under his spell. Secrets belonging to Willa's grandmother Georgie and Paxton's grandmother Adele, who also happen to be the founders of the Women’s Society Club. The secret brings Paxton and Willa together, in an attempt to protect their grandmothers. Their unlikely alliance leads each woman to discover something special and magical about herself, and the power of friendship and love.
As with Sarah Addison Allen's previous novels (“Garden Spells,” “The Girl Who Chased The Moon,” and “The Sugar Queen”), there's an element of fantasy and magic in her latest novel, “The Peach Keeper.” In this tale, the magic that centers around a friendship that's lasted for decades between two elderly women carries the story that combines the past with the future. The grandmothers’ life-long friendship is the key to the mystery behind an unearthed skeleton, and the guiding tool for an unexpected, but much needed friendship between the adult granddaughters of the two women. And as the granddaughters work out their need for friendship, and their realization that people can and do change over time, they each develop a deep relationship with the men in their lives that they'd known from their childhood days.
Sarah Addison Allen is a gifted storyteller, and her novels are highly anticipated by her fans and “The Peach Keeper” is a shining example of her highly imaginative and creative work. Indulge in a little bit of magic and the sweetness of peaches with this wonderful story. I absolutely adored it!
For more information on Sarah's books, check out her beautiful website at http://www.sarahaddisonallen.com/
