Review: On Folly Beach by Karen White |

Paperback: 416 pages

Publisher: NAL Trade; 1 edition (May 4, 2010)

ISBN-10: 0451229215

Source: Publisher

Emmy Hamilton is a recent widow; her husband, a soldier, was killed in Afghanistan. As to be expected, she’s having a difficult time getting over his death. Her mother, Paige, insists that he would have wanted her to do more with her life other than stay in their small town in Indiana and work at Paige’s bookstore. She encourages Emmy go to Folly Beach, a sanctuary for many, and buy the small town’s bookstore, Folly’s Finds.

Emmy is reluctant at first; she’s perfectly fine with staying where she is. However, when her mother buys a box of books from Folly’s Finds, Emmy discovers that several of the books have messages written in them. She’s always had a special “sense” about certain things, and when she touches a few of the books they send tingles up her spine.

She arrives in Folly Beach and meets Abigail, the current owner, and Abigail’s aunt Lulu. Lulu is quite the interesting character; she’s not exactly pleased to see Emmy there. Emmy purchases the bookstore, with the condition that Lulu will be allowed to remain as an employee of Folly’s Finds and continue to sell her very interesting bottle trees.

As she renovates the bookstore, Emmy continues to find old books with messages written in them. They appear to be love notes written by a young man and woman during World War II. She eventually finds out more about the history of Folly Beach and of the couple who communicated via the old books from an initially reluctant Lulu. She learns that it wasn’t merely a young love that was kept secret between the pages, she also discovers a possible murder & mysterious disappearance.

Karen White’s writing never ceases to amaze me. I’ve read all of her previous work and have enjoyed each of them tremendously. In On Folly Beach, White intricately weaves together two stories of love and loss. The chapters shift between the 1940s and present day and this is done in a very fluid manner. Each chapter reveals a new piece to the puzzle. I instantly became invested in the storyline and the characters. White added a bit of history and folklore to the story, really enhancing the already powerful story.

Lulu’s bottle trees intrigued me. African slaves brought the tradition of the bottle tree to the United States in the 18th century. The bottles on the trees ward off evil spirits; spirits who get caught in the bottles are unable to escape. Here is a picture of a bottle tree:

In the story, a young Lulu also uses the bottle trees to communicate with loved ones who have gone away.

In case you haven’t realized it yet, I highly recommend these books. The Southern setting, the mystery, the characters all come together to form a phenomenal read! Be sure to stop by tomorrow for a guest post by Karen White and a giveaway!