Review: First Frost

First Frost
By Sarah Addison Allen

In the small college town of Bascom, North Carolina, the Waverley women are known for their peculiarities. Get your hair done by Sydney Waverley and you’re guaranteed a smooth morning commute, a promotion at work, and dinner cooked by your husband when you get home. Hire Sydney’s sister, Claire Waverley, to cater your child’s birthday party with candied violets and petite strawberry cupcakes, and those children will be well-behaved and take long afternoon naps. Sydney’s teenage daughter, Bay, has a knack for knowing where everything belongs. She could put your dinner dishes correctly away, even though it’s the first time she’s ever been in your kitchen. The Waverleys’ elderly cousin, Evanelle, always has a useful gift to unexpectedly give someone. Whether it’s a wooden handled spatula, a baby crib, a stick of Blackjack chewing gum, the receivers find they were given the right gift at just the right time.

Autumn rolls into Bascom and brings with it a mysterious gentleman who puts everything out of balance for the Waverley women. They find that they all have difficult decisions to face leading up to the season’s first frost on Halloween morning. If you enjoy a light, refreshing read with strong female characters and sweet and simple details, this book is for you.

— Codie Smith, John’s Island Regional Library, John’s Island, S.C.

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