It's nice to end the week coming home from work and finding
a package from Mary Kathryn sitting in your mail box. I've
been picking up some of the newer charts that have come out
recently, and this is a part of that order.


And I received some threads that finished off an order from
awhile back as well as the buttons for that Stitchy Kitty
snowman pattern Willy, Chilly and Milly, or whatever it's
called.

And this is my latest book finish. I read this one in two
days. It's just a small book of maybe 275 pages, but it's
a little charmer and I enjoyed it thoroughly.

Claire Waverley lives a solitary life, which is just the way
that she likes it. She lives in the old house which belonged
to her grandmother, and has been in her family for years.
She tends and nurtures her grandmother's garden, and
uses the flowers that grow in it in her catering business.

Claire has no friends, and only an eccentric elderly cousin
named Evanelle for family. Her younger sister Sydney
fled their small town of Bascom, North Carolina when
she turned 18 and Claire hasn't heard from her since.
But that's what people do, Claire thinks. They leave.
They either die, as her grandmother did, or they leave
town never to return, as her mother did when Claire was
six and Sydney was an infant. So it's best not to allow
anyone to get too close.

But the Waverley's are not an ordinary family, and
Claire's catering business is a success because of her
special flowers. Taught by her grandmother, Claire
knows how her flowers effect and influence people when
they're eaten. And everyone in Bascom knows this.
They also know about the apple tree in Claire's
backyard.

A special apple tree that almost seems to have
a mind of it's own. And when someone eats an apple
from the tree they have a vision. They see either
the most wonderful event of their life, or they see the
absolute worst. Usually their death. So Claire makes
sure that no one gets near the tree to pick the apples
and if apples fall from the tree Claire gathers them up
and buries them in the ground.

But Claire's carefully arranged life and self imposed
isolation and routine are disrupted by the arrival of
a handsome new neighbour who meets her and
is immediately smitten. And then her sister Sydney
returns home with a young daughter in tow
and a dark past she's reluctant to reveal, and Claire's
carefully crafted isolation and her cherished routine
are suddenly and irreparably breeched.

This book is charming and funny. If you've ever read
Practical Magic and enjoyed it then you'll like this one.
It's a book full of southern charm, and whimsical magic.
And quirky characters.

I absolutely fell in love with Evanelle, who stocks her
house full of things, some practical and useful and
some odd, because she often feels compelled to give
people things. Things like a box of strawberry Pop Tarts,
or a mango splitter, or a band aid. When Evanelle gives
someone something they'd soon have a sudden, unexpected
use for it. Evanelle is a wise, loving and feisty old woman
who has a special gift that has made the townspeople of
Bascom wary of her. She knows that Claire needs to
find someone to love, and Sydney needs a home to put
down roots in.

Sarah Addison Allen is a first time author, and she's
crafted a delightful, magical tale that is fun, wise and
mischievous. I look forward to seeing what she comes
up with next.

------------------------------------------------------------

Two weeks ago today we were having a snow storm. A
week ago today we were starting a two day snow storm.
Today the temperature crept up to 8 degrees Celsius
and it actually felt warm out. I was reading my book at
the bus stop, and had my mittens shoved into my purse.
It actually felt like Spring might just be about to make
an appearance after all. I'm sure it won't last, but it's a
promise of things to come....I hope.