I received a free copy for my honest review.
About the Book:
• Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks (September 1, 2015)
The Sparrow Sisters are as tightly woven into the New England seaside town of Granite Point as the wild sweet peas that climb the stone walls along the harbor. Sorrel, Nettie, and Patience are as colorful as the beach plums on the dunes and as mysterious as the fog that rolls into town at dusk.
When a new doctor settles into Granite Point, he brings with him a mystery so compelling that town healer Patience is drawn to love him even as she struggles to mend him. But when Patience Sparrow’s herbs and tinctures are believed to be implicated in a local tragedy, Granite Point is consumed by a long-buried fear—and its three-hundred-year-old history resurfaces as a modern-day witch hunt threatens. The plants and flowers, fruit trees, and high hedges begin to wither and die, and the entire town begins to fail; fishermen return to the harbor empty-handed, and blight descends on the old elms that line the lanes.
It seems as if Patience and her town are lost until the women of Granite Point band together to save the Sparrows. As they gather, drawing strength from each other, will they be able to turn the tide and return life to Granite Point?
About the Author:
Ellen Herrick was a publishing professional in New York City until she and her husband moved to London for a brief stint; they returned nearly twenty years later with three children (her own, it must be said). She now divides her time between Cambridge, Massachusetts, and a small town on Cape Cod very much like Granite Point.
Find out more about Ellen at her website and connect with her on Facebook and Twitter.
My Opinion:
The Sparrow Sisters is a book far removed from the books I usually choose to read. It’s full of all of the things I really don’t like in stories; modern settings, boy meets girl/girl doesn’t like boy/yet love is in the air romance, and that new term in storytelling, magical realism. And yet I was enthralled. The titular sisters are all single and live in Granite Point a New England town with a long history. Their ancestors were among the founders of the town. Now the three of them live in their ancestral house and run a flourishing nursery on land once owned by a very special woman from their past.
All is going along well until a new doctor comes to town and questions one of the sisters’ way of helping the townspeople. Patience has always had a way with plants and she uses her knowledge and that of her ancestors to ease some of the complaints they bring her. The doctor, Henry feels this is dangerous – but even more dangerous are the sparks that fly between the two of them. When someone under Patience’s care dies the small town turns against her and history ends up repeating itself with a modern day witch hunt of sorts.
You cannot read this book and expect it to make sense or for everything to align. You need to just release yourself to the story and let it happen. If I were to sit and pick it apart I’d find a million reasons to hate this book but if I take reason out of the equation I want to go back and read it again. It’s a real escapist tale – but don’t let that make you think it’s all unicorns and rainbows because it’s not. The worst of human nature takes a starring role. But the best of human nature has equal billing. The characters are unique and I really want to visit with them again and I truly hope the teaser at the end means there will be another book.
Rating:
4.5
