Garden Spells / Sarah Addison Allen 290 p.

The Waverley’s of Bascom, N. C possess special talents. Claire uses hers in her catering business by creating foods that “affect the eater in special ways”. Some try to escape as her mother did; abandoning Claire and her sister when they were young. Claire has remained close at home, unwilling to open up to people; while her sister Sydney follows in her mother’s footsteps in taking off for New York and living with a string of abusive boyfriends. When the two sisters reconcile, each helps the other. Sydney discovers her power lies in hair dressing; Bay, her daughter, in knowing where things belong. Their elder cousin has the ability to anticipate what items someone will need, whose value is later revealed. And the apple tree on the Waverley’s property plays a part…too much more may be a scene spoiler. Lovely, magical, enchanting all describe this work as well as romantic.