Giveaway: The Peach Keeper

In combination with my review of The Peach Keeper by Sarah Addison Allen, I have the opportunity to give away a copy of this charming magical realism novel. Click here to read my review.

The summary of the book from Goodreads is:

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-grandfather during Walls of Water’s heyday, and once the town’s grandest home—has stood for years as a lonely monument to misfortune and scandal. And Willa herself has long strived to build a life beyond the brooding Jackson family shadow. No easy task in a town shaped by years of tradition and the well-marked boundaries of the haves and have-nots.

But Willa has lately learned that an old classmate—socialite do-gooder Paxton Osgood—of the very prominent Osgood family, has restored the Blue Ridge Madam to her former glory, with plans to open a top-flight inn. Maybe, at last, the troubled past can be laid to rest while something new and wonderful rises from its ashes. But what rises instead is a skeleton, found buried beneath the property’s lone peach tree, and certain to drag up dire consequences along with it.

For the bones—those of charismatic traveling salesman Tucker Devlin, who worked his dark charms on Walls of Water seventy-five years ago—are not all that lay hidden out of sight and mind. Long-kept secrets surrounding the troubling remains have also come to light, seemingly heralded by a spate of sudden strange occurrences throughout the town.

Now, thrust together in an unlikely friendship, united by a full-blooded mystery, Willa and Paxton must confront the dangerous passions and tragic betrayals that once bound their families—and uncover truths of the long-dead that have transcended time and defied the grave to touch the hearts and souls of the living.

You can win a copy of The Peach Keeper by leaving a comment letting me know your favourite book so far of 2011. You must be a follower to enter. Make sure to include your e-mail so you can be contacted if you win. Winners will have 48 hours to respond or a new one will be picked. This is open to the US and Canada only. No PO Boxes please. It ends June 17th at 11:59 PM MST.

The Peach Keeper by Sarah Addison Allen

The Peach Keeper by Sarah Addison Allen is a love story with a touch of magic, taking place in the Walls of Water, North Carolina, it centres around the stories of thirty-year-old Willa Jackson and her former highschool classmate Paxton Osgood. Both Willa and Paxton are still living the town they grew up in, and neither of them has had much luck in love. From opposite ends of society- Willa's family met with financial ruin generations ago, while Paxton's replaced them as the Southern royalty- the two woman are brought together when Paxton's family restores the Blue Ridge Madam, a home built by Willa's great-grandfather. However, as the restoration nears completion it uncovers a skeleton buried beneath the property's peach tree, and it is only the first sign of things that are about to change for Willa and Paxton, and Walls of Water will never be the same.

Last year I read a Southern romance novel, Salting Roses by Lorelle Marinello, which I didn't really enjoy and I suggested that it would have been better suited for somebody willing to suspend belief and enjoy a little magic. Although this is still true, after reading The Peach Keeper I realize that when it is done right, and Allen does it perfectly, I am definitely able to enjoy a Southern love story with a little magic. Allen reminded me that although readers may have genres they prefer, and I certainly do, when a writer is extremely talented then it doesn't matter if you don't usually read their kind of books. I completely well in love with The Peach Keeper, an easy to read and lovely to devour kind of novel.

Although first of all a love story, The Peach Keeper also deals with other universal themes like friendship and family. Also, despite being centred around romance, the relationships that Allen writes about are not completely conventional and expected, these are slightly older women who have been unlucky in love and find it when they have mostly given up, and it is was comforting and heart-warming to read about. In addition to Paxton and Willa, there is a strong and authentic secondary cast of characters that were enjoyable to read about, including the love interests.

Sarah Addison Allen is clearly a talented and lovely writer, and I was absolutely enamoured with her words in The Peach Keeper. I am excited to know that she has three previous books that have also had positive feedback and I definitely plan to pick up all of those in the future. Overall, The Peach Keeper is a perfect light and lovely read and it was a great reminder that everyone in awhile, we all love a little romance.

Release Date: March 22nd, 2011
Pages: 288
Buy the Book
Source:

This review was a part of TLC Book Tours. Click here to read what other tour hosts thought. For the purpose of this review I was provided with a copy of the book which did not require a positive review. The opinions expressed in this post are completely my own.