Goodreads Description:
The New York Times bestselling author of the wildly popular MacLean Curse series crafts a charming and evocative story about a picturesque Southern town, two fiercely independent women, and a magical friendship that will change their lives forever.
The residents of Dove Pond, North Carolina, know three things: they have the finest bar-b-que this side of Atlanta, their Apple Festival is the best that ever was, and the town has phenomenal good luck whenever the Dove family has seven daughters. Fortunately, that time is now, because Dove Pond desperately needs a miracle.
The seventh daughter, Sarah Dove, believes in all things magical. Books have whispered their secrets to her since she was a child. Now the town librarian, she makes sure every book finds the reader who most needs it. But recently the books have been whispering something different—that change is about to come to Dove Pond. Sarah is soon convinced that the legendary Dove Pond good luck has arrived in the form of new resident, Grace Wheeler.
After the tragic death of her sister, Grace has moved to Dove Pond with her grieving young niece and ailing foster mother hoping to retrench financially and emotionally before returning to her fast-paced city life. But she soon learns that life in a not-so-sleepy town isn’t as quiet as she’d hoped. Despite her best efforts to focus on her family, she can’t avoid the townspeople, especially her next-door neighbors, the quirky and talkative Sarah Dove and cynical veteran Travis Parker. Grace’s situation grows more complicated when she assumes her duties as town clerk and discovers that Dove Pond is on the verge of financial ruin.
Already overburdened by her own cares, Grace tries to stay aloof from the town’s issues, but she’s never been good at resisting a challenge. With Sarah’s encouragement, and inspired by the wise words of a special book, Grace decides to save her new town. And in her quest, she discovers the rich comfort of being a part of a loving community, the tantalizing promise of new love, the deep strength that comes from having a true friend, and the heartfelt power of finding just the right book.
My Thoughts
I went into this book not really expecting much but I felt sad when I had to leave the characters at the end. It was just one of those books that leave you missing it when it's done. You don't want to pick up another book until you've let this one simmer a little bit. Yes, this book does have a magical element. I wasn't sure what to think but it was so subtle and really added to the story. Sarah Dove is the town librarian, and books have always spoken to her. They tell her who needs to read them, and she finds a way to put them in their hands. She doesn't always know the reason why, but she trusts them. Sarah is a sweet, caring person and you can really feel how much she loves her town. She's also determined to become Grace's friend because she thinks Grace can save their town. Grace has come with a lot of baggage. Her sister recently passed away and now she has to raise her niece. Mama G, the woman who raised Grace and her sister has dementia and Grace now has to put her life on hold to figure out her next steps. She has no one else. Grace returned to the town where Mama G grew up to try and stall her dementia with familiar surroundings. As Mama G becomes worst, Grace is scared to face the truth.
As the town begins to rally around Grace, and you see her walls start to come down you really fall in love with the town. Grace has not had an easy life, she was in the foster care system and it was Mama G who took care of her. She has no intentions to stay in this town, she doesn't want friends, she wants to be left alone. She soon realizes that you need people in your life. If you're a Gilmore Girls fan this felt like Stars Hollow. The other supporting characters also have a back story that you will want to know more about, you'll start rooting for them and feel apart of the town. Often books that rotate storylines don't really hold my attention but this book was just right for me, I was captivated the whole way through.
5/5 Stars
Source: Personal Copy
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I would pick this up for the cover and title so I'm glad to see you enjoyed it.
ReplyDeleteI cover drew me in too.
DeleteThis book sounds so unique and interesting! The magical element sounds so cool and I love Gilmore Girls so the town setting sounds amazing! Great review x
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Sounds like an amazing book Thanks for sharing the review xoxo Cris
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