Sign in with Facebook
Loading...
The Girl Who Chased the Moon: A Novel
by
Sarah Addison Allen (Goodreads Author),
Rebecca Lowman
In her latest enchanting novel, New York Times bestselling author Sarah Addison Allen invites you to a quirky little Southern town with more magic than a full Carolina moon. Here two very different women discover how to find their place in the world—no matter how out of place they feel.
Emily Benedict came to Mullaby, North Carolina, hoping to solve at least some of the ri...more
Emily Benedict came to Mullaby, North Carolina, hoping to solve at least some of the ri...more
Audiobook, Digital Download, Unabridged, 269 pages
Published
March 16th 2010
by Random House Audio
Friend Reviews
To see what your friends thought of this book,
please sign up.
This book is not yet featured on Listopia.
Add this book to your favorite list »
Community Reviews
(showing
1-30
of
3,000)
3.5 stars
Sarah Addison Allen is one of the very few ladies' lit authors I can tolerate. Her stories are sweet and fluffy and utterly insubstantial, but they're nice when you need a break from heavier fare. I always know what I'm asking for when I pick one up, so I can't complain too much afterward that they're sappy and implausible. That would be like ordering vanilla ice cream and then complaining that it wasn't mashed potatoes and gravy. Or buying a Britney Spears CD and then wondering why it...more
Sarah Addison Allen is one of the very few ladies' lit authors I can tolerate. Her stories are sweet and fluffy and utterly insubstantial, but they're nice when you need a break from heavier fare. I always know what I'm asking for when I pick one up, so I can't complain too much afterward that they're sappy and implausible. That would be like ordering vanilla ice cream and then complaining that it wasn't mashed potatoes and gravy. Or buying a Britney Spears CD and then wondering why it...more
"Like a glass of sweet tea on hot Southern day, The Girl Who Chased the Moon is refreshing, rich, and deliciously Southern. The day my book arrived I had reached a reader's plateau. Nothing seemed interesting. Then I arrived home to a tiny package. Immediately (within moments of opening the parcel) I knew this was the book that would reignite my vigor for reading. Sarah Addison Allen doesn't write. She paints beautiful images with her words. The kind of words you can almost taste."
Review Copyrig...more
Review Copyrig...more
17 likes · like · see review
The Girl Who Chased the Moon
Five stars: Another delicious, heart felt read from Sarah Addison Allen.
What is home to you? A comfortable, warm place filled with loving faces? Is it the scent of freshly baked cookies or pie wafting through the air? A worn blanket draped across a favorite chair and a good book? The soft, silky touch of a beloved pet’s fur? Finding shelter in the protective embrace of a lover? Home is more than just a place it is a destination where you feel safe; someplace where all...more
Five stars: Another delicious, heart felt read from Sarah Addison Allen.
What is home to you? A comfortable, warm place filled with loving faces? Is it the scent of freshly baked cookies or pie wafting through the air? A worn blanket draped across a favorite chair and a good book? The soft, silky touch of a beloved pet’s fur? Finding shelter in the protective embrace of a lover? Home is more than just a place it is a destination where you feel safe; someplace where all...more
12 likes · like · see review
Nov 06, 2010
Mollie *scoutrmom*
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
all women
Recommended to Mollie *scoutrmom* by:
Pjbookhoarder
Shelves:
romance,
read-in-2010
This is the third novel by Allen that I've read, and I am happy to say they cannot be pigeonholed. There are two romances going on here, but the theme of the story is acceptance.
The author is so skilled at characterization that I don't even notice it being done. These people simply seem to exist.
I love Allen's way with words. "It had probably been an opulent white at one time, but now it was gray, and its Gothic Revival pointed-arch windows were dusty and opaque. It was outrageously flaunting it...more
The author is so skilled at characterization that I don't even notice it being done. These people simply seem to exist.
I love Allen's way with words. "It had probably been an opulent white at one time, but now it was gray, and its Gothic Revival pointed-arch windows were dusty and opaque. It was outrageously flaunting it...more
8 likes · like · see review
Feb 24, 2013
Limau Nipis
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommended to Limau Nipis by:
Ummu Auni
Sarah Addison Allen is one of the highly recommended author by my sister. I definitely love this book, hence the 4-star rating.
This is a fiction, with not too much on the heavy stuff like Jodi Picoult, or too much of the fluffy stuff like Sophie Kinsella. This book threads the fine line on bringing heavy issues but also light enough that it contains its magic elements. I do agree with my friends, that this book is magical.
Julia and Emily, two different characters. One is a 36-year old woman and...more
This is a fiction, with not too much on the heavy stuff like Jodi Picoult, or too much of the fluffy stuff like Sophie Kinsella. This book threads the fine line on bringing heavy issues but also light enough that it contains its magic elements. I do agree with my friends, that this book is magical.
Julia and Emily, two different characters. One is a 36-year old woman and...more
2 likes · like · see review
classificação: 3.5 estrelas
Salvo algumas excepções, não costumo gostar muito de romances mágicos. Isto é, ou é mesmo fantasia / paranormal, ou é um romance contemporâneo.
Este livro é uma das excepções.
Sarah Addison Allen mantém uma história interessante de 2 personangens: Julia e Emily, e todos os envolvidos nas suas vidas. O encontro do passado com o presente, as perspectivas para o futuro.
Apesar do argumento não ser espectacular, é uma narrativa com uma escrita fluida e que prende o leitor, q...more
Salvo algumas excepções, não costumo gostar muito de romances mágicos. Isto é, ou é mesmo fantasia / paranormal, ou é um romance contemporâneo.
Este livro é uma das excepções.
Sarah Addison Allen mantém uma história interessante de 2 personangens: Julia e Emily, e todos os envolvidos nas suas vidas. O encontro do passado com o presente, as perspectivas para o futuro.
Apesar do argumento não ser espectacular, é uma narrativa com uma escrita fluida e que prende o leitor, q...more
I very much enjoyed The Girl Who Chased the Moon by Sarah Addison Allen as Emily and Julia's storylines were both engaging and refreshing to read. All of the characters in this story were likeable and the plot was infused with steady-paced intrigue and moments of mystical enchantment that kept me captivated the entire time.
In this story, seventeen year old Emily Benedict arrives in Mullaby, North Carolina, a town filled with misfits, after the death of her mother Dulcie. When she comes to town...more
In this story, seventeen year old Emily Benedict arrives in Mullaby, North Carolina, a town filled with misfits, after the death of her mother Dulcie. When she comes to town...more
11 likes · like · see review
Dec 01, 2010
Liriel27
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Fans of Allen's work, people who like happy endings
Shelves:
fantasy,
first-reads
I received an advance copy of this through First Reads, a program which consistently makes me happy.
Allen is one of those authors who puts me in a pensive mood, like my brain has to digest her style and story for a bit before I can really decide what to do with it. I'm a fan of her magical realism, because they all seem rooted in a greater emotional arc for her characters. I am also willfully old-fashioned in my appreciation of her plotting.
This book satifies my desire, left over from childhood,...more
Allen is one of those authors who puts me in a pensive mood, like my brain has to digest her style and story for a bit before I can really decide what to do with it. I'm a fan of her magical realism, because they all seem rooted in a greater emotional arc for her characters. I am also willfully old-fashioned in my appreciation of her plotting.
This book satifies my desire, left over from childhood,...more
Another great book by this author. I've read 3 so far and none of them have been stinkers.
Emily's mom dies and she is sent to live with the grandfather she never knew. Julia is her next door neighbor who owns a BBQ bequeathed by her father and has added bakery items which is her specialty. Julia never thought she'd return because she had such terrible heartbreak when she left. Emily is trying to live down her mother's cruel reputation, when she'd only known her mother as a loving, kind, giving...more
Emily's mom dies and she is sent to live with the grandfather she never knew. Julia is her next door neighbor who owns a BBQ bequeathed by her father and has added bakery items which is her specialty. Julia never thought she'd return because she had such terrible heartbreak when she left. Emily is trying to live down her mother's cruel reputation, when she'd only known her mother as a loving, kind, giving...more
2 likes · like · see review
Mar 15, 2010
Michelle
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
people who love good storytelling
Two Christmases ago, my co-worker gave me a book. No surprise there, but the particular book she presented me with was unlike anything I had ever come across before. The book was
Garden Spells
by Sarah Addison Allen and the genre was magical realism. As soon as I started in, I was lost. I was in love. Upon sinking into the story, I found myself awash in mouth-watering food, complicated yet beautiful relationships, and surrounded by intriguing people with a little touch of magic. Did I mention t...more
21 likes · like · see review
Aug 01, 2011
Dana ****Reads Alot****
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
books-read-in-2011
I am half way through the book and I am just simply in love with this sweet book, I could not put it down even though it was 3am in the morning, ohhh the talk of food through some of it was making me so hungry!! Another book that is a short read that I will be done with tonight.
Done!!!! And what a wonderful book it was!!!!!
Done!!!! And what a wonderful book it was!!!!!
4 likes · like · see review
This should really be 2.5 stars, but I give the benefit of the extra .5 for the entertainment value.
There were things I really loved about this book, and there were things I really didn't like about this book. Mainly, I loved Addison Allen's descriptions of both the normal (the small town, the brown leaves, the lake, etc) and the magical elements (Win's warmth, Stella's husband's black powdery soot left on the legs and necks of other women, Sawyer seeing/sensing sweets, the wallpaper, etc). She...more
There were things I really loved about this book, and there were things I really didn't like about this book. Mainly, I loved Addison Allen's descriptions of both the normal (the small town, the brown leaves, the lake, etc) and the magical elements (Win's warmth, Stella's husband's black powdery soot left on the legs and necks of other women, Sawyer seeing/sensing sweets, the wallpaper, etc). She...more
22 likes · like · see review
Oh goodness, again Sarah Addison Allen has written a charming book. Just enough magic, glitter and sugar. I loved every page....
Emily is 17 and her mother has recently died. She has to live in a small town with her only relative, her rich old grandfather who she'd never met or knew existed. Emily's mother had left town in the midst of a scandal right after high school.
Julia had been an outcast in high school and bullied by Emily's mother. Twenty years later, Emily and Julia are neighbours and is one of Emily's few friends.
Sawyer is still sniffing after Julia ... they had a one night stand in high school and neither has f...more
Julia had been an outcast in high school and bullied by Emily's mother. Twenty years later, Emily and Julia are neighbours and is one of Emily's few friends.
Sawyer is still sniffing after Julia ... they had a one night stand in high school and neither has f...more
2 likes · like · see review
May 04, 2012
Sally
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
cover-to-cover-2012,
to-read-in-2012
I just loved this book. It's short, and I easily finished it in a day - well, I stayed up late to do it, but it was still in a day. I just couldn't put it down! While parts are predictible, it was a light hearted read and one that drew me into it within the first few pages. I rated it more of a 3, because it's not quite the same literary quality that I would rate higher, but if I categorized and rated on light hearted reads? It would be a 4...
The author does an amazing job with character develop...more
The author does an amazing job with character develop...more
Wow! I had fun reading this. I had a bunch of books read before this one, kind of sad, with the drama and stuff. So I thought I needed something different for a while. And I'm not wrong by picking up this one. I'd find myself smiling along while reading :)
Although, to be honest, I expected a little too much from it when I heard magical. I expected Mullaby to be an other-worldly magical sort of town, and I think I can count with just one hand all the things magical, literally, that happened in th...more
Although, to be honest, I expected a little too much from it when I heard magical. I expected Mullaby to be an other-worldly magical sort of town, and I think I can count with just one hand all the things magical, literally, that happened in th...more
Oct 16, 2011
Relyn
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
romantics
Recommended to Relyn by:
I loved her other books.
Shelves:
2011-reread,
audiobooks
8-19-10
If you look at the statistics, it is not often that an author pens a marvelous first book. And yet, I often find myself enamored of first books. They seem to often be written with both the clearest eye and the most innocence. I have rarely found that I enjoyed a second or third book as much as the first. For example, I love Elizabeth Berg's earliest books, but am often bored by or disappointed in her recent offerings. And Sue Monk Kidd has certainly never been able to match Secret Life of...more
If you look at the statistics, it is not often that an author pens a marvelous first book. And yet, I often find myself enamored of first books. They seem to often be written with both the clearest eye and the most innocence. I have rarely found that I enjoyed a second or third book as much as the first. For example, I love Elizabeth Berg's earliest books, but am often bored by or disappointed in her recent offerings. And Sue Monk Kidd has certainly never been able to match Secret Life of...more
This was another magical and beautiful story by Sarah Addison Allen, filled with likeable characters.
After her mothers death, Emily is moving to Mullaby to live with a grandfather she never knew. She soon finds out that the small town is filled with misfits; there is for example her grandfather the giant and the Coffey family that don't leave their house after dark. She realizes that she might have a hard time fitting in, as everybody seems to despise her late mother for the things she has done...more
After her mothers death, Emily is moving to Mullaby to live with a grandfather she never knew. She soon finds out that the small town is filled with misfits; there is for example her grandfather the giant and the Coffey family that don't leave their house after dark. She realizes that she might have a hard time fitting in, as everybody seems to despise her late mother for the things she has done...more
4 likes · like · see review
From My Blog:[return]The Girl Who Chased the Moon is a delightfully intriguing story of family, secrets, friendship, love and the enchanting town of Mullaby, North Carolina. Things are most definitely not as they appear in this charming novel by Sarah Addison Allen. Not having read Allen's previous two novels I had no expectations going into The Girl Who Chased the Moon. While this is not a genre I would typically choose to read, I am glad it was offered to me, for I found this novel to be a del...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
1 like · like · see review
When Emily Benedict's mother dies, Emily goes to her old hometown to live with her grandfather Vance. As Emily searches for her mother's history, she becomes entangled with mysterious Win Coffey, who has secrets of his own. Meanwhile, Vance's neighbor Julia Winterson, bakes delicious concoctions and dreams of her past, of connections made but long broken.
As with Allen's other novels, this one is light, charming, and faintly magical, but somehow, I didn't enjoy it as much. Partly it was because...more
As with Allen's other novels, this one is light, charming, and faintly magical, but somehow, I didn't enjoy it as much. Partly it was because...more
6 likes · like · see review
I really enjoyed and liked Sarah Addison Allen's previous two books so I was excited when I found out she had another out. The Girl Who Chased the Moon was a good read, very quick and enjoyable but I don't think it lived up to the other two. On it's own I liked it but in comparrison, it was missing something. In a way it seemed like it should be a YA book. The characters drew you in as did the town but it seemed as though she could have written a much more in depth story here. The book descripti...more
7 likes · like · see review
Allen has such a beautiful way of writing. When I read one of her books I feel like I sat down to a rich, delicious meal and when I finish I am completely satisfied. Her imagery is to tangible that I feel like I am tasting the things she describes. It makes me wish I could write and express myself in such a clear manner.
I loved the characters and the story was sweet. If you have read her other books, you know she loves to add just a touch of magic to her books. I would have to say that the magi...more
I loved the characters and the story was sweet. If you have read her other books, you know she loves to add just a touch of magic to her books. I would have to say that the magi...more
3 likes · like · see review
Oct 05, 2010
Janelle
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommended to Janelle by:
Tammy
I'm so pleased to see that Sarah Addison Allen came back to her magical writing as she did in Garden Spells. This woman has such an incredible knack for describing sight, sound and feelings with food. What better combination can a book have than love and sugar?!
Combine some magic, lots of romance, a bit of mystery, some elusive lights glowing in the woods, tasty sweets and what do you have? The perfect recipe called The Girl Who Chased The Moon .
And on a side note...man alive, Sawyer to me was...more
Combine some magic, lots of romance, a bit of mystery, some elusive lights glowing in the woods, tasty sweets and what do you have? The perfect recipe called The Girl Who Chased The Moon .
And on a side note...man alive, Sawyer to me was...more
4 likes · like · see review
I give this book 3 1/2 stars. I enjoyed reading this book a lot and couldn't put it down! It was a quick, easy and uplifiting read! It is a really cute story! This book is a perfect quick summer/beach read if you are looking for one.
The reason I only gave it 3 1/2 stars is because I knew EXACTLY what was going to happen about halfway through the book and the second half of the book just wasn't as good knowing that. I also think the end should have been a little different *Spoiler* I really wante...more
The reason I only gave it 3 1/2 stars is because I knew EXACTLY what was going to happen about halfway through the book and the second half of the book just wasn't as good knowing that. I also think the end should have been a little different *Spoiler* I really wante...more
4 likes · like · see review
I love this type of magic realism -- Alice Hoffman and Joanne Harris are both favorites of mine, so I'm glad to have found and added Allen to the list. And while there was much about this story that I enjoyed, I felt, in the end, that I didn't really get to know the characters (with the exception of Julia) well enough and that things wrapped up too nicely by the end of the book. Things just felt too shallow, and I was really hoping for something deeper -- something that could really embrace and...more
4 likes · like · see review
After her mother dies, Emily is sent to Mullaby, North Carolina to live with a grandfather she never knew existed. Her mother never spoke of her childhood and Emily doesn't understand why the town has such resentment for her mother. One of the few people to befriend her is Julia, a local resturant owner. Julia grew up in Mullaby, but left as a troubled teen and never looked back until her father died. She plans to be in Mullaby only for a short time while getting her fathers' affairs in order. S...more
Apr 14, 2011
Molly Amory
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
young adults and adults, people who like a bit of whimsy in their coming of age fiction
Here two very different women discover how to find their place in the world…no matter how out of place they feel...
That blurb excerpt is a little lame, and doesn't do the story justice. I would hesitate to call this urban fantasy, because the setting isn't particularly urban (sort of small-town Southern) and the fantasy is less fantasy than ... a touch of magical realism, basically. But it is the story of two women, one 17 (Emily) and one in her thirties (Julia). Emily is struggling with her mot...more
That blurb excerpt is a little lame, and doesn't do the story justice. I would hesitate to call this urban fantasy, because the setting isn't particularly urban (sort of small-town Southern) and the fantasy is less fantasy than ... a touch of magical realism, basically. But it is the story of two women, one 17 (Emily) and one in her thirties (Julia). Emily is struggling with her mot...more
As others have said before me, you know what you're in for when you pick up one of Sarah Addison Allen's books. However, you pick up that book because of what's inside those always gorgeous covers. A sweet, slightly whimsical, and always satisfying treat. Emily comes to Mullaby, North Carolina, an orphan. Knowing nothing of the town, or her now deceased mother's past there. She comes to stay in the home of her maternal grandfather, who is, for all intents and purposes, a giant. At eight feet tal...more
Another book from Sarah Addison Allen. It was good, but in my mind once you read one SAA's book, you read them all.
The Girl Who Chased The Moon is a story about two women, a teenager and an adult woman, who have to confront their past and learn to pick up the pieces and move on.
Emily benedict has just lost her mom, now she has to go back to her mom's hometown, a place she never mentioned before and learns what her mom didn't tell her and without knowing it she is reenacting her mom's past.
Jul...more
The Girl Who Chased The Moon is a story about two women, a teenager and an adult woman, who have to confront their past and learn to pick up the pieces and move on.
Emily benedict has just lost her mom, now she has to go back to her mom's hometown, a place she never mentioned before and learns what her mom didn't tell her and without knowing it she is reenacting her mom's past.
Jul...more
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bookworm Bitches : February 2012: The Girl Who Chased The Moon | 104 | 272 | May 06, 2013 06:15pm | |
| Help me pick next Book club book | 21 | 183 | Oct 04, 2012 12:16am | |
| Romance Lovers fo...: February BOM: The Girl Who Chased the Moon by Sarah Addison Allen | 22 | 38 | Feb 28, 2012 06:52am |
New York Times Bestselling novelist Sarah Addison Allen brings the full flavor of her southern upbringing to bear on her fiction -- a captivating blend of fairy tale magic, heartwarming romance, and small-town sensibility.
Born and raised in Asheville, North Carolina, in the heart of the Blue Ridge Mountains, Allen grew up with a love of books and an appreciation of good food (she credits her journ...more
More about Sarah Addison Allen...
Born and raised in Asheville, North Carolina, in the heart of the Blue Ridge Mountains, Allen grew up with a love of books and an appreciation of good food (she credits her journ...more
Share This Book
41 trivia questions
More quizzes & trivia...
“I'm homesick all the time," she said, still not looking at him "I just don't know where home is. There's this promise of happiness out there. I know it. I even feel it sometimes. But it's like chasing the moon - just when I think I have it, it disappears into the horizon. I grieve and try to move on, but then the damn thing comes back the next night, giving me hope of catching it all over again.”
—
112 people liked it
“Men of thoughtless actions are always surprised by consequences.”
—
105 people liked it
More quotes…
Jun 24, 2012 08:36pm
Oct 11, 2012 06:51pm