"Beautiful tale that charms its way into the reader's heart"
Reviewed by Debbie Wiley
Posted January 11, 2015
Fiction
As the Waverly family anxiously awaits the FIRST FROST of
the year, a strange man comes to visit in Bascom, NC. Each
of the Waverley family members has an usual quirk,
something
that makes them just a tad different from the rest of the
folks in Bascom. Claire has a gift with creating the
perfect
food, although now she's tired from constantly making
candy
rather than catering at various local venues. Bay has a
gift
for knowing exactly where things belong and Evanelle gives
people gifts they don't even yet know they need. Sydney is
finally settled in with her penchant for giving people the
perfect hairstyle needed for their image. However, each of
the Waverley women is facing a challenge. Will they pull
together as the very foundation of their family is tested?
FIRST FROST is the sequel to one of my all-time favorite
books, Garden Spells. I was a little worried that Sarah
Addison Allen couldn't possibly craft another story with
the
Waverley sisters and maintain that same enchantment but
thankfully FIRST FROST is just as delightful and engaging
as
the first book. FIRST FROST can easily be read as a
standalone but I can't imagine why anyone wouldn't want to
read Garden Spells!
Sarah Addison Allen is known for her whimsical tales of
magical realism and FIRST FROST is all that and more. At
its
heart, FIRST FROST is a story of family that transcends
the
curveballs thrown by life. I love seeing how time has
treated each of the Waverley family members and it's a
special treat seeing Bay growing up and maturing. I hope
there are future tales in store for us as I want to see
just
how Bay's storyline turns out.
FIRST FROST is a beautiful tale that charms its way into
the
reader's heart. The infamous Waverley apple tree is almost
a
character by itself and I love that we get to see an
overview of the generations of Waverleys in FIRST FROST.
Sarah Addison Allen is one of my favorite authors and
FIRST
FROST is yet another imaginative and delightful tale by
this
gifted author. FIRST FROST is highly recommended!
SUMMARY
From the New York Times bestselling author of GARDEN
SPELLS
comes a story of the Waverley family, in a novel as
sparkling as the first dusting of frost on new-fallen
leaves... It's October in Bascom, North Carolina, and autumn will
not
go quietly. As temperatures drop and leaves begin to
turn,
the Waverley women are made restless by the whims of their
mischievous apple tree... and all the magic that swirls
around it. But this year, first frost has much more in
store. Claire Waverley has started a successful new venture,
Waverley’s Candies. Though her handcrafted confections—
rose
to recall lost love, lavender to promote happiness and
lemon
verbena to soothe throats and minds—are singularly
effective, the business of selling them is costing her the
everyday joys of her family, and her belief in her own
precious gifts. Sydney Waverley, too, is losing her balance. With each
passing day she longs more for a baby— a namesake for her
wonderful Henry. Yet the longer she tries, the more her
desire becomes an unquenchable thirst, stealing the
pleasure
out of the life she already has. Sydney’s daughter, Bay, has lost her heart to the boy she
knows it belongs to…if only he could see it, too. But how
can he, when he is so far outside her grasp that he
appears
to her as little more than a puff of smoke? When a mysterious stranger shows up and challenges the
very
heart of their family, each of them must make choices they
have never confronted before. And through it all, the
Waverley sisters must search for a way to hold their
family
together through their troublesome season of change,
waiting
for that extraordinary event that is First Frost. Lose yourself in Sarah Addison Allen's enchanting world
and
fall for her charmed characters in this captivating story
that proves that a happily-ever-after is never the real
ending to a story. It’s where the real story begins.
What do you think about this review?
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