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Nov 21, 2011

Jeanette rated it:

This wasn't terrible, but it lacks that spark of magic Allen's readers have grown to love. Late in the book there's a chapter called "The Joker, the Stick Man, the Princess, and the Freak." That should have been the book's title. There's not really anything about "peach keeping" in the story except one little thing near the end that feels like it was tossed in to justify the title.

The story's about four thirty-year-olds who finally come to terms with high school More...

0 comments like (46 people liked it)

Dec 20, 2011

Dee rated it:

There is just something about Sarah Addison Allen's writing that makes you fall in love with reading all over again. In the Peach Keeper, her fourth book, Allen takes us back to North Carolina and to the town of Walls of Water. Paxton Osgood has been working to restore the Blue Bridge Madam, a local inn, to its former glory. Willa Jackson is, while not an outcast, one of the unique characters that show up in small Southern towns. While they grew up together and attended school together, they More...

3 comments like (10 people liked it)

Apr 04, 2011

Barbara rated it:

Sarah Addison Allen writes magic: her stories are full of strong Southern women, sweetness and secrets. In The Peach Keeper: A Novel, she once again weaves a wonderful tale of two Southern women, distant in the present but bound together by the past and a powerful secret. Paxton Osgood has spent her life being the girl and then the woman that everyone seemed to expect her to be. Willa Jackson is just the opposite. She defied convention and her grandmother's attempt at a strict upbringing, o More...

0 comments like (10 people liked it)

Apr 13, 2011

Khaya rated it:

I guess the only thing more predictable than this book was my reaction to it. Once again I let myself be fooled by a high goodreads rating despite the fact that Winter Garden and lots of other dumb (or mostly dumb) chicklit books had high ratings as well. I should have known when I saw there was magic realism which I almost never enjoy(it usually feels like a deux ex machina to me), though all the goodreads reviewers said there was less of it here than in Sarah Addison Allen's other books so I More...

20 comments like (20 people liked it)

Mar 27, 2011

Laura rated it:

Such a great book. As always, Sarah's writing is a treat and she creates characters that draw you in - and even though they are flawed, Sarah gives you a reason to love them.
At the heart of the story we have acceptance - coming to terms with who you are - or who you think you are! Highly recommend.
My only niggling complaint: SPOILER AHEAD - STOP READING NOW IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THE PEACH KEEPER:

It was just sooooo obvious when Willa discovered the newsletters...perhaps More...

2 comments like (6 people liked it)

Apr 27, 2011

Staci rated it:

My Thoughts: I have been anxiously waiting for this book to come out! I fell under Sarah's spell when I happened upon "Garden Spells" on my library shelves way back in 2007. After that I have literally gobbled up everything this author has offered and I happy to say that I really enjoyed this one. I actually felt like I was watching a version of "Practical Magic" while I was reading this book. I enjoyed the southern location. What's not to love about the quaint and charmi More...

0 comments like (4 people liked it)

Feb 03, 2011

Erin rated it:

Won this in a good reads giveaway!! Can't wait to get it. Really enjoyed The Girl Who Chased the Moon
Just got it in the mail today! Very excited

I really enjoyed this book. It took me a bit to get into it, but only because I was distracted...once I got going I had a hard time putting it down.

2 comments like (5 people liked it)

Jul 26, 2011

Lynn rated it:

A murder mystery, a commentary on women's vulnerablity and strengths, a story of time and place, of friendship and romance along with a healthy dash of magic, written in Allen's signature style which is sensuous, joyous,lovely and real. I did not want this book to end. I want a series! I want to be able to go to Walls of Water and hang out with Willa and Paxton any time I get the chance. I would love to be transported back there in time to the days of Tucker Devlin and Agatha and Georgie's More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Feb 08, 2012

Lisa added it

As usual, Sarah Addison Allen has woven a story rich in southern charm, suspense and that magic she is known for. Right away we get to know Paxton and Willa and realize how different they are and the vulnerabilities they share. There's a lot of self discovery within the pages, not only with Willa and Paxton, but also with Paxton's twin brother Colin and her friend, Sebastian. I really enjoyed those four characters as they grew to know each other better and trusts began to develop. I also enjoyed More...

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Jan 01, 2012

Rea rated it:

Having been the first book I have read by Sarah Addison Allen I was unsure what to expect from her book by looking at the cover it gave the impression of a very gentle and fresh read. Based on the cover it wouldn't be one of the books that would shout out to me from the shelves but I was about to learn the age old lesson again of not judging a book by its cover.

The author manages to create a charming if somewhat quirky town which made for a great setting for the book. The book centre’s More...

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Nov 29, 2011

Michelle rated it:

Sarah Addison Allen has quickly become one of my favorite authors. I love sitting down and trying to savor her stories, but they are so good it’s almost impossible to not read it all in one sitting. Her magical realism has such a deft touch you almost believe it could really be possible. But what really sells me on her stories are the characters. They are quirky, loveable, and very human. They always do so much growing, and I love that. [return][return]This time around the story focuses on More...

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Feb 07, 2012

Michelle rated it:

Does who you are in High School define you for the rest of your life? That seems to be a theme in Sarah Addison Allen's books - this is the second I've read and while I really really enjoyed it, it was a bit same-y as the first (The girl who chased the moon).

Are small towns in Southern American states so full of people who cling to age old traditions of who their families were? Willa Jackson's family founded the town, and built the Blue Ridge Madam, a wonderful old house intown. More...

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Jan 18, 2012

Karen rated it:

The New York Times bestselling author of The Girl Who Chased the Moon welcomes you to her newest locale: Walls of Water, North Carolina, where the secrets are thicker than the fog from the town’s famous waterfalls, and the stuff of superstition is just as real as you want it to be.

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 More...

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Jan 09, 2012

Lindsay rated it:

Disappointing.

That's the best word to describe this book. I have read Sarah Addison Allen's previous books, and I have generally enjoyed them. They're basically Alice Hoffman knock-offs, but that's okay, that's what I was looking for. When I read the description for this latest book, I was excited. It sounded like an interesting story, with all the small-town elements I enjoy. And the problem is, the basic plot elements are really interesting: a skeleton found beneath a peach tree on a More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Dec 05, 2011

Anne rated it:

The Peach Keeper is the story of two women who live in Walls of Water North Carolina, Willa and Paxton. Willa has moved into her fathers home after his death and has opened a sporting goods store in the tourist town. The only family she has is her grandmother Georgie who is living in a nursing home. The home that Willa's grandmother grew up in, The Blue Ridge Madam, is now being restored by Paxton Osgood. The Madam was taken from Willa's family when they could no longer pay the taxes and now More...

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Nov 03, 2011

Laureg rated it:

I was not as impressed by this book as some of the author's other novels. Sarah Addison Allen has a gift for weaving a legacy of everyday magic into the lives of her characters and their family stories, almost using this "magic" to give the characters and their backgrounds a sense of unique history and revealing the story of their special characteristics to help shape the story as a whole. In this way her books are very layered, stories within stories.

I found The Peach Kee More...

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Oct 31, 2011

Teresa rated it:

Sarah Addison Allen is such a gifted storyteller and I have really enjoyed her previous novels, especially “Garden Spells”. “The Peach Keeper” is equally enchanting and delicious – a perfect antidote to dreary wintry weather.

Again, the female characters take centre stage – Willa and Paxton, on the surface successful, independent young woman but dig a little deeper and you’ll find palpable sadness. Their male counterparts, Colin and Stephen, are very easy on the eye but they also need More...

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Oct 19, 2011

Buffy rated it:

I was expecting this to be a character driven book, but it was written more like a light mystery. Having said that, the characters were good and I really enjoyed the themes of the story. Allen discussed the challenges of changing the labels we pick up in childhood and learning to accept that there might be some truth to those labels, which might not be too bad either. I also loved the discussion of the beauty of accepting and loving someone for who they are right now, rather than who they mig More...

8 comments like (1 person liked it)

Oct 05, 2011

Alayne rated it:

Sarah Addison Allen's 2011 novel, The Peach Keeper, takes place in the town Walls of Water in North Carolina. Set near mountains and mystery, shrouded in fog, Allen disembarks from her usual light and delicate magical realism to attempt a darker novel, one with a murder mystery. Unfortunately, while I deeply appreciate her attempt at suspense, The Peach Keeper comes across as forced and piecemeal.

Willa Jackson and Paxton Osgood are unlikely friends living down their high-school memorie More...

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Sep 26, 2011

kari rated it:

Reading a book by Sarah Addison Allen feels like sitting on the front porch swing of an old house drinking a glass of lemonade (a perfect glass that isn't too sweet or too tart) watching the sun set over the hills until the fireflies begin to wink at the slowly appearing stars.
If that sounds like something you'd enjoy, then I think you'd enjoy this book.
There are some small supernatural elements woven into the story, but don't worry, it isn't a paranormal romance and the slight touch More...

3 comments like (4 people liked it)

Sep 16, 2011

J.Elle rated it:

I love this author. She has a wonderful way of weaving a whimsical (how’s that for alliteration) touch of magic into each of her books. Also, I love the southern setting she uses for her books. It’s clear that the south it something she writes about from experience and this is refreshing in the onslaught of an outpouring of vampires and werewolves (it’s kind of hard to write from experience about that). Willa Jackson returned to her hometown after her father’s death to become the daughter sh More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Sep 13, 2011

Melissa rated it:

While the "blurb" makes this sound like a tired story about the poor vs rich in a small town, I was so pleased to see that it went in a completely different direction. It was a quick read that made a really long wait for service at the car dealership so much more pleasant. I would highly recommend-a nice feel good story!

"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 generati More...

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Sep 04, 2011

Ruthette rated it:

I sat and read this all in one last night. There is something extremely satisfying in reading a book cover to cover in one sitting, even if the book is mediocre at best. Sadly, this description fits The Peach Keeper: mediocre. I say "sadly" because as much as I'm not naturally drawn to chicklit, I do sometimes get in the mood to read from the genre, and when that happens, I check out what my reading girl friends have been nattering about. Recently, The Peach Keeper has been showing up More...

2 comments like (3 people liked it)

Aug 25, 2011

Nan rated it:

This book is mesmerizing and engaging from the get-go. It is tempting to call it "fluffy" because it is "feel-good" and a quick-read that could be read in a single setting. That would be facetious, however, and unkind and undeserving because there is some depth and beauty that must not go unacknowledged. The southern tone is inherent from the beginning with mystery and magic that draw the reader in to the North Carolina town, Walls of Water, in a palpable way. While I thoroug More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jul 24, 2011

Gail rated it:

Another magical book by Sarah Addison Allen with a tantalizing little cross-over from a previous book. Willa Jackson is a thirtyish woman living a quiet life in her hometown of Walls of Water, NC. She was a flamboyant and secret prankster until the end of her high school year until her identity was revealed to some upsetting results. Now she lives a quiet life as she strives to live up to the what she believes are the desires of her grandmother and father, now both dead.

Paxton Osgoo More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Jul 01, 2011

Barbara rated it:

A marvelous little book that manages to tackle a couple of serious subjects while delivering a very charming story. Our 4 main characters went to high school together--Sebastian was The Freak(eye-liner wearing, of unknown sexual orientation), Paxton the Princess and her twin brother Colin the Stick-man and finally, Willa, revealed at the end of senior year as the Joker--perpetrator of awesome pranks.
But they are all 30 now and wrestling with how to be an adult and forge a life worth living. More...

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Jun 30, 2011

Jo Anne rated it:

This was a very light-hearted, easy read. The characters were flawed and it was interesting to see them transition through those as the book progressed.

The main character Willa Jackson is like the outcast in the neighborhood because she never attends the female get togethers. She unknowingly resents them because they all have money and her family never did. She is trying to overcome her guilt of disgracing her now dead father for having been the high school prankster that eventually More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jun 21, 2011

Julie rated it:

I really disliked this book. That said, I really enjoyed Addison Allen's other titles, but this one read too chick-lit-ish for me. I didn't feel like Colin, Paxton, or Willa were as interesting as her usual characters, nor did I feel like their problems were very difficult or compelling. I mean, Colin felt like his youth was rough because his friends considered him to be tightly wound? How horrible. And what were Paxton's reasons for staying in her parents' house so long? I didn't feel lik More...

2 comments like (9 people liked it)

Jun 21, 2011

Stephanie rated it:

I pretty much devoured this book in one sitting. I was incredibly captivated by the characters and the plot that I couldn't seem to put it down. The Peach Keeper tells the story of Willa and Paxton, old high school classmates whose families were irrevocably tied together many years ago. Willa's family used to be prominent in the North Carolina town of Walls of Water, but due to financial difficulty fell out of high society and was replaced by Paxton's family. Paxton has undertaken the renovation More...

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Jun 22, 2011

Michelle rated it:

My fav quotes from this wonderful book:

"Just this past week Rachel had become convinced that how people took their coffee gave some secret insight into their charaters. Were people who took their coffee black unyielding? Did people who liked their coffee with milk and no sugar hae mother issues? She had a notebook behind the coffee counter in which she wrote her findings. Willa decided to keep her on her toes by making up a different request every day." (page 9)
More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

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