Wednesday, July 29, 2009

Garden Spells

I absolutely adored this book. Whenever I sat down to read it, I felt so relaxed and transported into a magical world. Beautiful feeling. The tone and atmosphere is kind of a cross between Alice Hoffman and Joanne Harris - lots of food and culinary magic. I love that kind of thing and wish I knew more about it myself.

The story is about two sisters in a small southern town, trying to overcome their fears and find happiness. The storyline is actually very simple, I guess it's the style that makes the book special. I was worried that it would be too much like Alice Hoffman's Practical Magic, but the similarities in the two stories didn't bother me at all.

What I love about such everyday magic books is the underlying commentary on human nature - to use food to influence people you have to understand how people work. That psychological aspect really appeals to me, even if it is a tad simplified.

The story also deals with the 'gifts' that your family leaves you - what happens if you don't want to be a part of the legacy?

Plus, the cover is so so so very beautiful. It has glitter! What more is there to say? ;-)

Challenges: Southern Reading Challenge, Chick Lit 2, Romance Reading Challenge

6 comments:

serendipity_viv said...

Glad to hear you loved it. You must read The Sugar Queen next as that is just as fabulous - different but fabulous!

Ana S. said...

This really does sound like a lovely book :)

Iliana said...

I'm hoping to finish up my Southern reading challenge with this one. Glad to hear you enjoyed it. And, that is a pretty cover you had!

Kailana said...

I need to read this book. It sounds like something I will really enjoy.

joanna said...

Scrap girl - ooh yay, I was hoping that The Sugar Queen would also be good!

Nymeth - it does have destiny messages similar to Practical Magic, so I'd be curious to see if you like it! :-)

Iliana - I LOVED the cover - I kept caressing it each time I picked the book up. That's not normal is it? ;-)

Kailana - I hope you do enjoy it, looking forward to hearing your thoughts!

Marg said...

I really loved this book and The Sugar Queen. Cant wait for the next book!