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 secretsâand secret passionsâare 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, sheâs 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 motherâs house, her one consolation is the stockpile of sugary treats and paperback romances she escapes to each nightâĶ. Until she finds it harboring none other than local waitress Della Lee Baker, a tough-talking, tenderhearted woman who is one part nemesisâand two parts fairy godmotherâĶ
Fleeing a life of bad luck and big mistakes, Della Lee has decided Joseyâs clandestine closet is the safest place to crash. In return sheâs going to change Joseyâs lifeâbecause, clearly, it is not the closet of a happy woman. With Della Leeâs 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, andâmost amazing of allâhas a close connection to Joseyâs longtime crush.
As little by little Josey dares to step outside herself, she discovers a world where the color red has astonishing power, passion can make eggs fry in their cartons, and romance can blossom at any timeâeven for her. It seems that Della Leeâs work is done, and itâs time for her to move on. But the truth about where sheâs going, why she showed up in the first placeâand what Chloe has to do with it allâis about to add one more unexpected chapter to Joseyâs fast-changing life.
Brimming with warmth, wit, and a sprinkling of magic, here is a spellbinding tale of friendship, loveâand the enchanting possibilities of every new day.