by Sarah Addison Allen
Genre: Contemporary Fantasy | Young Adult
Emily Benedict is about to find out if wallpaper can change pattern on
its own, if a cake can bring back a lost love, and if there really is a
ghost
dancing in her back yard.
When her mother passes away, Emily is sent to live with her grandfather in an run-down house which contains a room with enchanted wallpaper. Adjusting to a new life is tricky, but even harder when the whole town expects Emily to act just like her mother did in high school - vindictive, evil-spirited, and spooled - someone who she never knew or expected her mother to be. Emily's memories were of a quiet & serious mother who founded a strict school for girls based on volunteerism. While in her new home, Emily meets the next door neighbor Julia who also shares a past with the town, her mother, and Sawyer- an old crush from Mullaby High School. While one lady is making her entrance into the town, the other is planning her exit and both learn to except their past, embrace their-selves, and to positively look forward to their future.
Since I highly enjoyed Garden Spells, I jumped right into another of SAA's books and while this was a fun read, it was somewhat less satisfying. The book balances both Emily and Julia's story and focuses on their connections to everyone in the town while dipping into their past lifestyles. Lots of emotionally turmoil and endearing characters are what I remember most about the story. Yet, the relationship growth with Julia and Sawyer was entertaining as well. Overall, good quick read but somewhat unsatisfactory compared to Garden Spells.
Likes: The grandfather was so loveable!!
Dislikes: I'm finding this to be a trend in SAA's book, but the epilogue added such a big turning point in the story which was then quickly concluded...SO...I really wanted more and that feeling left me unsettled since I know there will not be any sort of continuation/sequel.
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Rating:
I have not read Garden Spells, but I thought this book was a fun and light read. I may need to look into reading Garden Spells!
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