Perennials

Perennials 
by Julie Cantrell

This is the story of a girl who lost herself. It's a story about sisters. It's a story about parents. And it's a story about flowers that always come back. I love how Cantrell uses the metaphor of flowers throughout this novel. There is so much to learn from the flowers and there is so much about God's creation that is not only beautiful, but mind-blowing when you realize the object lessons He included in almost everything He made.

The father in this story is full of wisdom, and he likes to share that wisdom with his adult daughters, whether they like it or not. There is love lost, hope lost, and time lost, yet there is an wonderful undercurrent of hope.

For the experienced gardener, there is much detail to love in this novel. For those without a green thumb? You'll still love it. One detail in particular that I must share - the daughter who gets sort of lost runs from the lush land of Mississippi, to the Arizona desert, where almost nothing grows. When she returns to her childhood home, her senses are overwhelmed by everything that is growing everywhere. The scents, the sights, the blooms. I love this dichotomy, and you will love how the author uses the setting as a character.

Do you like to garden? Do you prefer to observe nature from a distance? Leave us a comment to get your name in the drawing for The Healer's Touch by Amber Schamel! Giveaway ends 2/11/18. Winner will be announced in the February 12th edition of the weekly windup.

Jennifer Fromke writes from North Carolina and can be found at jenniferfromke.com or shetalksbook.com

Review: Last Family Standing, by Jennifer Allee

Twenty-five years ago, Monica Stanton gave up her baby girl for adoption. Now the young woman wants to meet her birth-mother. In person. On nationwide television. Competing on a survival show. So the first time Monica sees her daughter, the first time she learns the young lady's name, is on camera.

Oh, the delicious things one can do with this premise!

Jennifer Allee wrote Last Family Standing in first person, present tense--a surprise that takes a minute or two to get used to, but it works. The idea that present tense gives an immediacy to the story has been debated among authors for ages, but considering the number of surprises Jennifer slaps Monica with, I really can't imagine this novel being written any other way. There truly is a sense of experiencing for myself the surprises sprung on the main character.

The premise may give the impression of a riotous comedy, but that's not quite right. Although there are a multitude of humorous scenes, this is definitely a Women's Fiction drama. Monica grapples with her role as Jessica's birth mother. How should she be "mother" to a stranger? Should she even try? These are only two questions, there are plenty more. There's curiosity: "What is she doing now? Has she been happy? What has her life been like?" And there's suspicion: "Why now? What does she want from me?"

So, in between the comedic incidents that happen when a city woman goes native, we find soul-searching questions and a wrestling match with guilt.

Women's Fiction fans are gonna like this one.