The Seasonal Reading Challenge discussion

This is the discussion thread for the Fall 2011 Group Read The Peach Keeper by Sarah Addison Allen. Please post your comments here. This thread is not restricted to those choosing this book for task 20.10, feel free to join in the discussion. Warning- spoilers ahead!

I guess I'll start off. I can't help but love every book written by Sarah Addison Allen. I've been a huge fan since her very first book came out and have waited in anticipation for every book since.

I have to admit, I was a bit disappointed in the magical side of this novel - was hoping for a bit more, I guess. Other than that, I was very pleased with the story!

Loved the inclusion of a character from her first novel (the caterer)! Was not expecting that!

I decided to read this one, and I didn't like it. It was kind of boring, but I did enjoy Sebastian.

I also have been in love with Sarah Addison Allen's writing since I read Garden Spells, and was tickled to see Claire Waverly & her magical culinary talents brought into this book. It wasn't as good as GS, but I liked it very well anyway.

I liked the variety of things that "her grandmother used to tell her." I liked the folklore that was brought into the story, especially the bit about putting a penny on the windowsill and leaving the window open a crack to allow the ghost to be sucked out of the house. Willa rather overdid it, tho, and left the window open enough to allow a bird to fly in! Those black-and-yellow birds appeared regularly enough to provide a magical thread to be followed, and I thought the culmination of that was pretty neat.

I liked this book as well. My favorite parts were the friendships between the grandmothers that endured for so many years. I also thought it was interesting how even in adulthood the feelings that we have in high school carry on. We perceive someone as being one way when in reality they aren't like that at all. I thought friendship in its many forms was a major theme in this book. I thought perception was another theme throughout the book. For example how people perceived Sebastion or Paxton.

This book did not do it for me. I typically love magical realism. However, I thought the plot was predictable. Who did not see who Ham's father was a mile away? I have read SAA before, and I enjoyed Garden Spells. I thought those character were more fleshed out than these. That said, there were elements here that I loved and that could have been developed in a more interesting way -- especially all the grandmothers' histories. I think the secondary characters from the past were more compelling than the main ones.

I loved the story. This was the first book by this author that I have read. #1 I didn't read the information about it before starting and I was shocked by what the plot of the book as compared to it's cover! #2, I did think that the magic of Tucker could have been played up. The story ended up being more about the consequences of his magic and his past than it did about his magic. The love story aspect was wonderful though I am left feeling that I wish I knew more about Agatha and Georgie ( anyone else catch the play on Georgia and Peach?). Maybe its better that it is left unwritten. It gives our imagination a chance to play :)

I really enjoyed The Peach Keeper. I especially noticed all the smells that were mentioned throughout the book, not just peaches, but apples, lemons and spices, and grass. This book preys on the senses.

Well I picked the least of the 3 evils to read. If I did not have to read this specific book for a group read than I would have never finished it. The first part of the book was so dry, so long, and sooooooo boring. I did like that Willa and Paxton became such good friends. It made me miss my high school frineds that much more. Next year is my 30th reunion. I can't wait! Overall I would have to rate this book as barely tolerable. BUT I am going to check out another of her books just to see if this is the only one that I think of as not very good. It was also disappointing that the magic in the story was not made the main focus. Just my opinion

My favorite part of the book was near the beginning, in Chapter Two, at the Women's Society Club meeting. After eating the luncheon, all the women started telling their innermost secrets to those they least want to hear them. LOL. That was the only overt magic in the novel (except for scents and the birds, which appear and disappear at intervals). I was expecting to see something magical around Sebastian, but didn't happen.

So, instead of magic, we have a novel of friendship and new relationships. Other writers have done the "friendship and new relationship" novel better (Joanne Harris, Alice Hoffman, Joanna Trollope). This novel was OK but only OK.

I read this book for the Group Reads task since I had previously read the other options. I've never read any other books by Sarah Addison Allen and I have to say that I'm not too inspired to read another.

I thought the brief mentions of magic were not developed enough to warrant inclusion in the book so when magic played a part in the book it was more jarring than interesting. The part at the Women's Society Meeting when the ladies started telling their secrets was just odd.

I've read and loved this author's other books but this has been my least favorite. I still gave it 3 stars because it was okay, but it lacked the magic and the emotion of her earlier works, at least for me.

Hopefully her next one is better. :)

This was no Garden Spells. I suppose that is faint praise, but just like the others, I didn't like this one as much. I did think the character of Paxton was well done, and was a bit of a departure. I told DH that SAA was a one story author who just changes the particulars somewhat. I do enjoy reading about the area of the country that she uses as settings.

I think a few more scenes from back in the 30s with the traveling salesman granddad would have helped give the book more of an aura of magical realism. I think he was written as the most magical character, just a little evil this time.

I really did not like this book. I thougt it was a little slow. I did like the mystery when the skull was found. But I don't think I will be reading any more of her books.

I read through the other reviews before posting this, and wondered how many of the ones who didn't like the book weren't Southern. A lot of the nuances in this book were familiar Southern mannarisms. No, there wasn't as much magic in this book as in the others,but this one felt more real to me. It wasn't an exciting read, it was a comfortable read about life in the south, particularly NC and about family, friendships and growing into yourself. Overall a good book, for this NC mountain girl anway......

I'm in the same camp as Amanda on this one. I found it to be on the boring side and the magical realism almost non existent. I felt Sebastian's character was rather bizarre. The whole acting gay, but not being gay just didn't sit right with me. I could just picture a lifetime movie in the making - she marries the man who claims not to be gay, then five years later catches him in bed with the pool boy. All in all, I probably won't be reading anything else by this author. Like Cheryl mentioned in a message above, I thought I was picking the lesser of 3 evils, I maybe should have went with the mystery option book.

This book will be in UK in January 2012 so I force friend from Canada to buy one and sent to UK. I was disappointed with this book, I didnt feel any magic, was more like a mystery. However I was curious to know what really happened to Tucker Devlin.
And I agree with Cindy AL that it wasnt Garden Spells and I wanted Garden Spells so much. Perhaps her next book will be more magical.

I really enjoyed this book! I never liked any of the magical realism books I've read even the ones where I could appreciate what the genre did for the story (like Please Don't Come Back from the Moon), so I was expecting to hate this. But it was so short, I thought "Well, if it's terrible I'll only be miserable for a little while!" But it was SO GOOD! Especially the ill-fated Ladies' Society meeting - that made me sooo happy!

Mrs.soule wrote: "Especially the ill-fated Ladies' Society meeting - that made me sooo happy!"

I think this was my favorite part of the book, too. I so wish Sarah Addison Allen had done more with the "telling the absolute truth when you really shouldn't" angle. That part was hilarious!

I really wanted to like this book. It had the mystery, the romance, the magical aspect. However, I was disappointed in it. I wanted to connect to the characters, but found that they were not developed enough. The mystery with the two grandmothers had great potential but again wasn't developed enough. Everything seemed rushed and quickly passed over.

I enjoyed this book, but it was the first Sarah Addison Allen book I've read. The magic was subtle, which made it feel haunting and not the main theme in the book. This made you feel how the past haunts us in many ways. I liked the themes of love and friendship. It was a good read for me. Now I really do want to read Garden Spells since many are recommending it.

I did enjoy this book, but to me it didn't have the magical feel of The Sugar Queen which is the only other one of her books I've read. Seeing all the other comments really makes me want to read Garden Spells.

Like Mrs. Soule and Kristi I really did enjoy the ladies' luncheon scene, also Paxton's speech at the end.

This was the first book I've read by this author, but it won't be the last. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Yes, it may have had some instances that were predictable, but I found this book made me feel good.

The book intrigued me at about chapter 2. Never having read her before I didnt know what to expect. Gave me a bit of feeling of "the help" with the womens club and soythern charm and a little practical magic with The slight mystical aspect a list of criteria in a man. I thoight it was entertaining and a quick read

I read this book for the group read. I have to say, I did enjoy the book! I didn't have to think too much while reading it and it was just cute!

I was disappointed with this book. I really enjoyed the southern setting, as I am from the south. I was hoping for a bit more myStery and magic, though, and not so much predictability. I will probably try another of her books, though, it seems that many people who have liked her writing in the past were underwhelmed with this one.

I enjoyed reading this book. I thought it was a cute story even though the plot was thin and predictable. I was disappionted on the lack of literary value... I had expected more. I liked the thoughts on friendship and was impressed that the girls were dedicated in making reular visits to their grandmothers.

I listened to this one on audio, which may give me a different perspective. It was also my first SAA book so I didn't have anything with which to compare it. With that said, I gave the book 4 stars. I found it to be light and charming, and a nice change of pace from what I customarily read.

I enjoyed the descriptions and agree with another person who posted how great the scents, colors and other sensory depictions were. I thought that the book had some nice messages about class, friendship, family and acceptance.

Was it epic? No, not at all, but I thought that the book was quite sweet and I will read more by SAA - probably Garden Spells, since everyone who read that book seemed to like it.

I have read all of Sarah Addison Allen's books, and this is my least favorite. It didn't have as much of the magic/mystery storyline that her other novels do. It was still a good story, and had I not read the others, I probably would have give it a 4 star instead of a 3. I also didn't feel as connected to the characters in this one. But it was a quick, easy read.

This was my first Sarah Addison Allen and I can't wait to read more. I've had Garden Spells on my tbr for a long time. I really enjoyed this book. It made me miss my friends and wish a lot of them were closer. The book did seem to go by a bit quickly and I would have liked to learn more about the characters- I was expecting more flashbacks instead of just the one at the end, but overall, I did like the book.

I enjoyed this book, but did not enjoy it near as much as the other books by Sarah Addison Allen that I have read. Garden Spells is one of my favorite books, but this one just didn't resonate as well with me. I loved the interactions between Sebastian and Paxton, but I felt that the interactions with the grandmothers could have been played up a bit more. Overall, it was a 4*, but just not quite the 5* that Garden Spells was.

Leslie K

This would have been a better stand alone story that wasn't half bad if the "paranormal" aspects had been left out. Most of them made little to no sense. It was a fast read and very predictable. I doubt that I would seek to read this author again.

I loved this book. I started it and didn't put it down until I finished. I loved the characters flaws and all. I will be reading more from this author for sure.

I have not yet read a magical realism book that I've thoroughly enjoyed, so I don't know why I decided to read this one. But I'm glad I did. There wasn't a lot of magic in this book, but for me that's a good thing. I enjoyed the story and I was invested in the mystery of Tucker Devin. The identity of Ham's father was predictable as was the mode of Ham's conception but other aspects of the book were interesting enough to make up for those flaws.

I've never read anything else by SAA but I might think about Garden Spells

Laurie ME

I enjoyed the book because it was about accepting differences and persevering in spite of those differences. The lack of magic wasn't a problem for me, since I wasn't reading it for that aspect. The interaction of generations, classmates from high school and the different socital classes was more interesting.

While I don't think this book lived up to the expectations that I had after reading Garden Spells, I still rated it a 4. Like someone else mentioned, it was "charming". Not wonderful, but a nice easy read. I would have liked to see more of the "magic" throughout the book and more depth to the relationship between Willa and Colin.

I must agree with the majority of comments here. I found this book to be a delightfully easy, fast read, even if predictable. I did find myself enjoying the characters and the stories of friendship and "growing up" throughout the book.

I loved the book. It was a simple, beautiful story. Poor (view spoiler)[Georgie, I wanted to dig Tucker up and murder him again! (hide spoiler)]

Amanda A


I have enjoyed all of Sarah Addison Allen's books and this book was no exception. I love how she weaves mystery, magic and romance together for an entertaining read. This book did seem to be a little darker than her others but I still enjoyed the characters and how their stories came together. The southern setting is perfect and also kind of local to me so I can relate to her descriptions of the area. I will definitely be reading more of her books in the future.

I hated this book. I've read the other books by this author and found them light and entertaining, perhaps even "charming." But this one fell completely flat for me. The "magic" in this book could easily have been left out and improved the story by at least keeping it realistic. If the author isn't going to use the magic for the story, she shouldn't bother with it.

The characters felt flat and underdeveloped. The convenience of Sebastian turning out not to be gay after all was just too much to take. The author seemed to run from all of the hard choices her characters might have to make and everything just resolved easily and without conflict.

Very disappointing overall. Go read one of this author's other books instead.

After reading this book, I actually went and picked up Garden Spells. It's sweet, but much darker than The Peach Keeper. It also has much more magic than the Peach Keeper. I like SAA and her books; they make me happy. I'm glad to have discovered her through GR. For those of you who didn't like The Peach Keeper, I would encourage you to give SAA another chance.

This was my first book by Sarah Addison Allen. I read it when it first came out on my NOOK. I enjoyed it immensely that I bought the hardcover for my personal library and decided to read it again for the Fall challenge to see if my initial rating would stand. It didn't. I now think it is a 5 Star book.

Having lived in the South for many years, I loved the old wives tales coming to life. I have seen the air turn white and have smelled regret. (I still do) I pay attention to birds also. I loved the book's homage to The Breakfast Club in Willa, Paxon, Sebastian, and Colin. And the scenes at the party and luncheon where secrets were exposed kept me laughing until I cried!