The Sugar Queen
by
Sarah Addison Allen
-294 pages-
In this irresistible novel, Sarah Addison Allen, author of the New York Times bestselling debut, Garden Spells, tells the tale of a young woman whose family secrets—and secret passions—are about to change her life forever.
Josey Cirrini is sure of three things: winter is her favorite season, she’s a sorry excuse for a Southern belle, and sweets are best eaten in the privacy of her closet. For while Josey has settled into an uneventful life in her mother’s house, her one consolation is the stockpile of sugary treats and paperback romances she escapes to each night…. Until she finds her closet harboring Della Lee Baker, a local waitress who is one part nemesis—and two parts fairy godmother. With Della Lee’s tough love, Josey’s narrow existence quickly expands. She even bonds with Chloe Finley, a young woman who is hounded by books that inexplicably appear when she needs them—and who has a close connection to Josey’s longtime crush. Soon Josey is living in a world where the color red has startling powers, and passion can make eggs fry in their cartons. And that’s just for starters.
Brimming with warmth, wit, and a sprinkling of magic, here is a spellbinding tale of friendship, love—and the enchanting possibilities of every new day.
The Plan:
- Discuss The Sugar Queen by Sarah Addison Allen.
- Vote for new books.
We had mixed feelings about this book. It is a fast read. Out of all the characters, maybe only three characters were likable and they were not main characters. Barely supporting characters. The main character, Josey, is extremely sheltered, whiney and really loves sweets. The way she would think about them is borderline sexual. The mystery of Della Lee was disappointing. There were so many unanswered questions which is sometimes okay after reading a book, but the author really could have expanded on some of the details of her characters. Such as...WHY IN THE WORLD ARE BOOKS APPEARING TO CHLOE? Who does it? WHAT does it? The book just stops talking about it. We were really expecting heartwarming growth with Josey's mom, but no. She stays horrible to Josey even after she finds happiness. This book was just so frustrating. It had potential to be a sweet, cute, heartwarming book. We wanted to like it, but when the climax came it crashed and burned.
We voted for our newest member's book, The Book Thief by Markus Zusak.
Off topic highlights: Not many of the members seem interested in science fiction, horror, or other genres related to that nature but some of us would like to read books in those genres. Testing out reading an extra book for the month and having an extra OPTIONAL meeting the week before the regular meeting. Book chosen for Hard Mode is the first book of the Ender Quintet:
by
Orson Scott Card
-352 pages-
-352 pages-
Next Month's Book:
by
Markus Zusak
-576 pages-
Our 10th monthly meeting will be December 19, 2013! See you there!
