Paper Ghosts by Sarah Addison Allen delivered a love story steeped in magical realism that pulled me in with the secrets that lie beyond the front doors of the Wester House. You’ll want to curl up with this southern fiction and uncover the Wester women’s secrets.
Genres: Magical Realism
Source: Publisher
Purchase*: Amazon | Audible | Libro.fm *affiliate
Part ghost story, part love story and steeped in magical realism, Paper Ghosts will transport you to a place where old secrets echo through the years and love finds a way of bringing us home.
Every family has its secrets . . .The Wester women live inside theirs.
For decades, the women of Wester House have unsettled and fascinated their small, timeless North Carolina town. Their home is full of whispers, old griefs, and uncanny knowing. But when Willamena Wester reaches out to the granddaughter she once pushed away, long-buried truths begin to stir.
1976:
Restless young Willamena falls for a stranded musician who brings freedom and the promise of another life to her carefully controlled world. Their brief, incandescent love story promises to escape the pull of the Wester legacy until Willamena makes a fateful choice that changes her life forever.
Present Day:
Returning home is the last thing Bailey Wester wants. Yet as she reconnects with Willamena, the grandmother she feared, Bailey begins to understand the love, heartbreak, and impossible choices that shaped the women in her family and realizes the past may not have been trying to haunt them after all.
A luminous novel filled with Sarah Addison Allen’s stunning prose and signature blend of romance, Southern charm, and wonder, Paper Ghosts reminds us that in order to have the future we really want, sometimes we need to live with the past, and not let go of it.
The story begins in 1976 in a small North Carolina town owned by the Westers. Here we meet Willamena Wester, who resides at Wester House with her grandmother. This is her senior year of high school, and her grandmother has her life mapped out for her, including who she’ll marry. All that changes when a band performs at the school with ties to the town.
The tale that unfolded was steeped in magical realism and pulled me in. Willamena is restless and feels the chains that bind her future even as she is determined to accept them. Her grandmother seems to be all-knowing, and the townsfolk readily do her bidding; some even fear her. When a young musician named Jack gets stuck in town and gives guitar lessons for bus fare, Willamena is like a moth to a flame. Allen pulled me into this forbidden romance and its outcome.
Then the story transports us to the present, where we meet Bailey Wester, Willamena’s granddaughter. When her son and granddaughter move into Wester House, we see a repeat of 1976, but also learn what happened to Willamena and Jack.
The tale was atmospheric, and the reveal of the title was cool. The conclusion, while sad, left me satisfied. If you are a fan of Garden Spells and Allen, you will want to add this to your fall reading list.
About Sarah Addison Allen
New York Times Bestselling novelist Sarah Addison Allen brings the full flavor of her southern upbringing to bear on her fiction -- a captivating blend of magical realism, heartwarming romance, and small-town sensibility. Her big break occurred in 2007 with the publication of her first mainstream novel, Garden Spells, a modern-day fairy tale about an enchanted apple tree and the family of North Carolina women who tend it. Booklist called Allen's accomplished debut "spellbindingly charming." The novel became a Barnes & Noble Recommends selection, and then a New York Times Bestseller. Allen continues to serve heaping helpings of the fantastic and the familiar in fiction she describes as "Southern-fried magic realism." Clearly, it's a recipe readers are happy to eat up as fast as she can dish it out.
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About Kimberly
Kimberly is a coffee loving book addict who reads and listens to fictional stories in all genres. Whovian, Ravenclaw, Howler and proud Nonna. She owns and manages Caffeinated PR. The coffee is always on and she is ready to chat. BlueSky | Facebook | Instagram
Sam@WLABB
I am such a fan of SAA, and as you mentioned, the tale was magical and atmospheric. I was moved to tears at the end when they were talking about how they could not keep the yellow roses from popping up and surrounding the pink memorial roses. It was such a small thing, but so meaningful. Loved it!
Katherine
I enjoyed this but didn’t love it. I didn’t think it had as much depth as the previous books I’ve read by her. It was still enjoyable though! I think I’ll read anything this author rights.
Wing Commander Basil & The B Team
That looks rather interesting. Thanks for sharing; I’ll add it to the Mewton-Clawson Library! 🐾✨😻✨🐾
Nasreen
Thanks for sharing your review of this book. Looks interesting and intriguing.
Sarah @ Sarah's Book Solace
I keep seeing this book around, it sounds amazing! Thanks for the review. 🙂
Sophia Rose
I was so excited to see a new Sarah Addison Allen. Glad you enjoyed it.
Mary Kirkland
I like a book when we see what happened in the past and how it might change the present. This sounds good.
hena
Sounds good. I do have Other Birds on my TBR, will be adding this one as well.
Yvonne @ Socrates Book Reviews
I just finished and posted my review of this one. I enjoyed it. The first book I ever read by this author.