With Sydney's homecoming, the magic that the quiet caterer has measured into recipes to shape the thoughts and moods of others begins to influence Claire's own emotions in terrifying and delightful ways. yup, better, i’m thinking a new camera or software… (even though in truth I’m not a lavender brread fan, though I’ve eaten more than once as, well, it does tend to be . The secondary cast of characters, a few of whom have their own POVs (but only for one or two chapters) were well-rounded, interesting, and reflected some of the same themes we see Sydney and Claire struggling with (stuck in the past and lonely).

It’s easy to read, full of interesting descriptions and a funny apple tree, and includes a few life lessons along the way. To calculate the overall star rating and percentage breakdown by star, we don’t use a simple average. Claire has built up a successful business, but is shy and wary of people due to being abandoned by her mother at a young age. It’s about the Waverlys, a family native to Bascom, North Carolina, who are tasked with keeping the tree’s secrets.This collection of ancient wisdom is drawn from and inspired by the writings of Claire Nahmad's great-grandmother, a nineteenth-century wisewoman who lived in Yorkshire and used her knowledge to help others. Evanelle was a distant relation, a second or third or fourteenth cousin, and she was the only other Waverley still living in Bascom. Born and raised in Asheville, North Carolina, in the heart of the Blue Ridge Mountains, Allen grew up with a love of books and an appreciation of good food (she credits her journalist father for the former and her mother, a fabulous cook, for the latter). Sarah Addison Allen is the product of a newspaper man and a former debutante who pierced her nose and dyed her hair red at the age of fifty.

Garden Spells is a truly cozy, healing read that makes its readers wistful for hot, southern nights spent on the porch, watching the fireflies. Sisters Sydney and Claire Waverly haven’t ever been close, but when Sydney arrives on Claire’s doorstep with her daughter, Bay, they get the chance to start again. Much of the novel's power comes in the form of the very human story of two sisters who, as grown women, find their way into each other's hearts for the first time.I’m a sucker for magical realism and this book sounds like it embodies some of the best parts of the genre (though obviously I can’t be 100% on that, not having read it). But not all Waverley women embrace their gifts; some, including Claire's mother, escape the family's eccentric reputation by running away. And of course, there’s the apple tree, which is probably my favorite character in the entire story, though it’s only mentioned a couple times. She resides in Asheville, North Carolina, where she is currently at work on her next novel, The Sugar Queen, which will be published by Bantam in Summer 2008.