In this irresistible follow-up to her New York Times bestselling debut, Garden Spells, author Sarah Addison Allen tells the tale of a young woman whose family secretsโand secret passionsโare about to change her life forever. Twenty-seven-year-old Josey Cirrini is sure of three things: winter in her North Carolina hometown is her favorite season, sheโs a sorry excuse for a Southern belle, and sweets are best eaten in the privacy of her hidden closet. For while Josey has settled into an uneventful life in her motherโs house, her one consolation is the stockpile of sugary treats and paperback romances she escapes to each nightโฆ. Until she finds it harboring none other than local waitress Della Lee Baker, a tough-talking, tenderhearted woman who is one part nemesisโand two parts fairy godmotherโฆ
Fleeing a life of bad luck and big mistakes, Della Lee has decided Joseyโs clandestine closet is the safest place to crash. In return sheโs going to change Joseyโs lifeโbecause, clearly, it is not the closet of a happy woman. With Della Leeโs tough love, Josey is soon forgoing pecan rolls and caramels, tapping into her startlingly keen feminine instincts, and finding her narrow existence quickly expanding.
Before long, Josey bonds with Chloe Finley, a young woman who makes the best sandwiches in town, is hounded by books that inexplicably appear whenever she needs them, andโmost amazing of allโhas a close connection to Joseyโs longtime crush.
As little by little Josey dares to step outside herself, she discovers a world where the color red hasastonishing power, passion can make eggs fry in their cartons, and romance can blossom at any timeโeven for her. It seems that Della Leeโs work is done, and itโs time for her to move on. But the truth about where sheโs going, why she showed up in the first placeโand what Chloe has to do with it allโis about to add one more unexpected chapter to Joseyโs fast-changing life.
Brimming with warmth, wit, and a sprinkling of magic, here is a spellbinding tale of friendship, loveโand the enchanting possibilities of every new day.