The Night Garden
Books | Fiction / Women
3.2
(63)
Lisa Van Allen
For fans of Sarah Addison Allen, Aimee Bender, and Alice Hoffman, The Night Garden is a luminous novel of love, forgiveness, and the possibilities that arise when you open your heart. Nestled in the bucolic town of Green Valley in upstate New York, the Pennywort farm appears ordinary, yet at its center lies something remarkable: a wild maze of colorful gardens that reaches beyond the imagination. Local legend says that a visitor can gain answers to life’s most difficult problems simply by walking through its lush corridors. Yet the labyrinth has never helped Olivia Pennywort, the garden’s beautiful and enigmatic caretaker. She has spent her entire life on her family’s land, harboring a secret that forces her to keep everyone at arm’s length. But when her childhood best friend, Sam Van Winkle, returns to the valley, Olivia begins to question her safe, isolated world and wonders if she at last has the courage to let someone in. As she and Sam reconnect, Olivia faces a difficult question: Is the garden maze that she has nurtured all of her life a safe haven or a prison? Praise for Lisa Van Allen’s The Wishing Thread “Reader to reader, knitter to knitter: You’re going to love this book.”—Debbie Macomber “Whimsical . . . great for fans of Sarah Addison Allen and Alice Hoffman.”—Library Journal Look for special features inside. Join the Random House Reader’s Circle for author chats and more.
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More Details:
Author
Lisa Van Allen
Pages
352
Publisher
Random House Publishing Group
Published Date
2014-10-07
ISBN
0345537831 9780345537836
Community ReviewsSee all
"Started yesterday evening couldn’t put it down ended at page 59 before goin to sleep. Goin to read her other book too “The Wishing Thread”"
Amanda Wingert
"Meh<br/>"
Kim Watters
"It was enchanting, romantic, and all together unbelievable- which made me love it all the more!"
Alicia Jones
"http://anurseandabook.blogspot.com/2014/07/night-garden-by-lisa-vanallenor-poor.html<br/>*spoiler alerts on this review*<br/><br/>After my last nail biting, gritty read, Fiend, I wanted to relax and read a book that wouldn't stress me out. It felt like some magical realism was in order. So out came Night Garden, a book I had received from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.<br/><br/>This is the second book that I have read by Lisa VanAllen, the first being The Wishing Thread. The first book was okay - it never felt like it really hit it's mark. Her second offering has definitely improved in terms of storytelling.<br/><br/>Olivia is a lonely gardener who grows a garden maze, but keeps herself isolated, refusing to let anyone touch her. Sam is her childhood sweetheart, who has just returned to town. They want to be with each other, but both are hiding secrets. The first half of the book dragged a bit, and overall, I would say it's about 50 pages too long. It felt like the descriptive set up dragged on a bit too long, but it was still interesting.<br/><br/>Once Sam and Olivia admit that they still love each other and start trying to overcome their obstacles, the book picked up, and it felt like the story moved at a good pace.<br/><br/>The magical realism was done very well, much better than her first book. The ending felt a bit abrupt, but maybe it was just that I wished I knew if Olivia weaned herself off of her poison garden at the end, or if she and Sam still couldn't touch - the baby was a surprise, that I wish I knew more about.<br/><br/>This book should be on the list of any fan of Alice Hoffman or Sarah Addison Allen.<br/><br/>I give Night Garden 3.5 stars."
M F
Marcee Feddersen