The Peach Keeper
Author: Sarah Addison Allen
Publisher: Bantam
Date Published: March 22nd 2011
From Goodreads:
It’s the dubious distinction of thirty-year-old Willa Jackson to hail from a fine old Southern family of means that met with financial ruin generations ago. The Blue Ridge Madam—built by Willa’s great-great-grandfather during Walls of Water’s heyday, and once the town’s grandest home—has stood for years as a lonely monument to misfortune and scandal. And Willa herself has long strived to build a life beyond the brooding Jackson family shadow. No easy task in a town shaped by years of tradition and the well-marked boundaries of the haves and have-nots.
But Willa has lately learned that an old classmate—socialite do-gooder Paxton Osgood—of the very prominent Osgood family, has restored the Blue Ridge Madam to her former glory, with plans to open a top-flight inn. Maybe, at last, the troubled past can be laid to rest while something new and wonderful rises from its ashes. But what rises instead is a skeleton, found buried beneath the property’s lone peach tree, and certain to drag up dire consequences along with it.
For the bones—those of charismatic traveling salesman Tucker Devlin, who worked his dark charms on Walls of Water seventy-five years ago—are not all that lay hidden out of sight and mind. Long-kept secrets surrounding the troubling remains have also come to light, seemingly heralded by a spate of sudden strange occurrences throughout the town.
Now, thrust together in an unlikely friendship, united by a full-blooded mystery, Willa and Paxton must confront the dangerous passions and tragic betrayals that once bound their families—and uncover truths of the long-dead that have transcended time and defied the grave to touch the hearts and souls of the living.
But Willa has lately learned that an old classmate—socialite do-gooder Paxton Osgood—of the very prominent Osgood family, has restored the Blue Ridge Madam to her former glory, with plans to open a top-flight inn. Maybe, at last, the troubled past can be laid to rest while something new and wonderful rises from its ashes. But what rises instead is a skeleton, found buried beneath the property’s lone peach tree, and certain to drag up dire consequences along with it.
For the bones—those of charismatic traveling salesman Tucker Devlin, who worked his dark charms on Walls of Water seventy-five years ago—are not all that lay hidden out of sight and mind. Long-kept secrets surrounding the troubling remains have also come to light, seemingly heralded by a spate of sudden strange occurrences throughout the town.
Now, thrust together in an unlikely friendship, united by a full-blooded mystery, Willa and Paxton must confront the dangerous passions and tragic betrayals that once bound their families—and uncover truths of the long-dead that have transcended time and defied the grave to touch the hearts and souls of the living.
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I truly, truly like Sarah Addison Allen's books..truly. Something about the way she writes really pulls you into her stories. I love that her books all have a touch of magic.
The Peach Keeper to me is the least of my favorites, but that is what is so great about her, even with The Peach Keeper being the least of my favorites it still is good. It lacks a little something that The Sugar Queen and Garden Spells has, though. I was quite drawn in by the secret between Willa and Paxton's grandmothers. I wanted to know what happen in their past and how it is connected to the mansion, Blue Ridge Madam. For some reason it felt that The Peach Keeper was missing a climax, or at least a very exciting one. The ending fell flat.
One of the best things about Ms. Allen's books are her characters. There is at least one character that somehow touches your heart, but I closed The Peach Keeper not feeling any real attachment to any of the characters. It took me awhile to even like her characters this time around, but it was there by the end of the book.
The best part of The Peach Keeper is the writing. Sarah Addison Allen knows how to write. Her descriptions are just right and I love the southern charm she brings to her books. Being from the South I relax right in to her settings.
I don't recommend The Peach Keeper for your first Sarah Addison Allen adventure, but I do think it's worth a read. Check your local library.
I adore her writing and want this book bad. Thanks for your honest review.
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