Garden Spells

In a garden surrounded by a tall fence,tucked away behind a smallquiet house in an even smaller townis an apple tree that is rumored to bear a very special sort of fruit. In this luminous debut novelSarah Addison Allen tells the story of that enchanted treeand the extraordinary people who tend it. . . . The Waverleys have always been a curious familyendowed with peculiar gifts that make them outsiders even in their hometown of BascomNorth Carolina. Even their garden has a reputationfamous for its feisty apple tree that bears prophetic fruitand its edible flowersimbued with special powers. Generations of Waverleys tended this garden. Their history was in the soil. But so were their futures. A successful catererClaire Waverley prepares dishes made with her mystical plantsΓÇöfrom the nasturtiums that aid in keeping secrets and the pansies that make children thoughtfulto the snapdragons intended to discourage the attentions of her amorous neighbor. Meanwhileher elderly cousinEvanelleis known for distributing unexpected gifts whose uses become uncannily clear. They are the last of the WaverleysΓÇöexcept for ClaireΓÇÖs rebellious sisterSydneywho fled Bascom the moment she couldabandoning Claireas their own mother had years before. When Sydney suddenly returns home with a young daughter of her ownClaireΓÇÖs quiet life is turned upside downΓÇöalong with the protective boundary she has so carefully constructed around her heart. Together again in the house they grew up inSydney takes stock of all she left behindas Claire struggles to heal the wounds of the past. And soon the sisters realize they must deal with their common legacyΓÇöif they are ever to feel at home in BascomΓÇöor with each other. Enchanting and heartfeltthis captivating novel is sure to cast a spell with a style all its own. . . .