Read for the Once Upon a Time Challenge.
Claire and Sydney are sisters – both members of the Waverley family, which means something in their hometown of Bascom, North Carolina.
Claire learned from their grandmother how to prepare dishes grown from the herbs in their garden, things like the honeysuckle wine they always bring to the town’s Fourth of July celebration, that allows people to see in the dark. But the real power of the garden is the apple tree – eating an apple from the Waverley’s tree will show you the most important event in your life, which may be good, or very, very bad.
Sydney never wanted the reputation of her last name, and had left Bascom as soon as she was old enough. It’s been about ten years, and she’s come back to Bascom with her young daughter, Bay. In all this time, Claire’s felt abandoned, and it takes some work for the Waverley sisters to understand where each of them has come from, and finally feel like sisters again.
This is a completely standard romance (really, you can completely see what’s coming each time a new character is introduced), but I’ll admit, I loved the addition of the magic garden. (The apple tree is awesome.) It’s a quick, satisfying read, and really does leave you feeling good at the end.