I was provided a complimentary copy of this book by NetGalley. I was not compensated for this review and all thoughts and opinions expressed are my own. I was not required to write a positive review.
Perennials by Julie Cantrell Published by Thomas Nelson on November 14, 2017
Genres: Fiction / Christian / Contemporary, Fiction / Family Life / Siblings, Fiction / Small Town & Rural, Fiction / Southern
Pages: 368
Format: ARC
Source: NetGalley
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From New York Times bestselling author Julie Cantrell comes a story of family and the Southern roots that call us home.
“If Julie Cantrell isn’t on your reading list, she should be.” —Lisa Wingate
Years ago, Lovey chose to leave her family and the South far behind. But now that she’s returned, she’s realizing things at home were not always what they seemed.
Eva Sutherland—known to all as Lovey—grew up safe and secure in Oxford, Mississippi, surrounded by a rich literary history and her mother’s stunning flower gardens. But a shed fire, and the injuries it caused, changed everything. Her older sister, Bitsy, blamed Lovey for the irreparable damage. Bitsy became the homecoming queen and the perfect Southern belle who could do no wrong. All the while, Lovey served as the family scapegoat, always bearing the brunt when Bitsy threw blame her way.
At eighteen, suffocating in her sister’s shadow, Lovey turned down a marriage proposal and fled to Arizona. Free from Bitsy’s vicious lies, she became a successful advertising executive and a weekend yoga instructor, carving a satisfying life for herself. But at forty-five, Lovey is feeling more alone than ever and questioning the choices that led her here.
When her father calls insisting she come home three weeks early for her parents’ 50th anniversary, Lovey is at her wits’ end. She’s about to close the biggest contract of her career, and there’s a lot on the line. But despite the risks, her father’s words, “Family First,” draw her back to the red-dirt roads of Mississippi.
Lovey is quickly engrossed in a secret project—a memory garden her father has planned as an anniversary surprise. But the landscaper who’s also working on it is none other than Fisher, the first boy she ever loved. As she helps create this sacred space, Lovey begins to rediscover her roots, the power of second chances, and how to live perennially in spite of life’s many trials and tragedies.
I am really struggling with words to write this review. It’s not just words, as I’m struggling to gather my thoughts to be able to turn them into words. I mean, I really, really enjoyed the story. Yes, there were things that I struggled with, but overall, I loved the story. Words would be super helpful if I could pluck them out of the ether. I will say that Perennials is more than just a title. The book is about more than just flowers, though they theme heavily throughout. Perennials just keep showing up year after year, season after season. And love, real true love, is the same way. Love for each other, whether it be family, friend. or romantic. (True) Love just keeps showing up season after season, regardless of the hardships.
There are a lot of themes (I know there’s a better word, but that’s what is stuck in my head right now) besides flowers throughout this book. There’s the F Words lists . . . not like you think, but Family, Friend, Food, Finished, Family First, etc. Again, not the best word, but the word I got, there’s a bit of mysticism. Yes, it’s a Christian book, and those themes are heavy throughout. But there’s also some Native American spirituality, a touch of Buddhist thought, and even a bit of the Virgin Mary. While, for me, those elements added a bit of realism to being human (and having my own native roots), they may be bothersome for some folks. I felt it made everyone just that much more human, honestly. Seeking the truth for ourselves and sometimes taking detours before we get it together. And that’s really the core of this book: the detours we take to get to where we need to be. Just my takeaway, and maybe completely different for every other reader.
The characters, the themes, the settings were so well developed that I was all in and felt immersed in their lives. But . . . in some ways the stories felt rushed, and I wanted more. I had depth for sure, but I don’t know. Lovey and Bitsy felt juvenile, and I didn’t buy their age. Don’t get me wrong, as I can be completely immature. Totally petty and immature when the mood strikes. But, I don’t know, there felt like a lack of actual maturity between these two warring sisters. They just didn’t vibe their given ages. Overall, though, honestly, I would read this book again just as I know there’s little lessons and morsels that I would resonate another time that didn’t this read.
About Julie Cantrell
Julie Cantrell is a multiple award-winning, New York Times, USA TODAY, and international bestselling author, editor, creative writing instructor, TEDx speaker, and ghostwriter. She served as editor-in-chief of the Southern Literary Review and has received the Mississippi Arts Commission Literary Arts Fellowship, the Rivendell Writer’s Colony Mary Elizabeth Nelson Fellowship, the Fairhope Writers Residency, and the Pat Conroy Writer’s Residency Fellowship.
Her novels have earned starred reviews from Publishers Weekly and Library Journal and have been featured in Top Reads lists by LitHub, Redbook, Southern Living Magazine, REAL SIMPLE, BookBub, HuffPost, USA TODAY (HEA), and more. They were also selected as book club picks by Target and Books-a-Million.
As a novelist, she’s received two Christy Awards, two Carol Awards, and the Mississippi Library Association Fiction Award. She was named a short-list finalist twice for the Mississippi Arts & Letters Fiction Award as well as a two-time short-list finalist for the Pat Conroy Southern Book Prize.
In addition to her work with survivors of abuse and her service as a literacy advocate, she’s a member of the Tall Poppy Writers, an organization that promotes the power of story and elevates female voices.
She is co-owner of EMBER & VINE PRESS, and she currently serves as the Managing Director of Story Summit, where writers of all levels and genres come together to elevate their craft and support one another’s creative works. She also teaches creative writing for Story Summit as well as for the Drexel University Low-Res MFA Program.
Prior to launching Life 2.0, she helped run her family’s small-scale sustainable farm, where she milked goats, raised sheep, boarded horses, gathered eggs, and harvested fresh honey, herbs, flowers, vegetables, and fruit.
As a certified speech-language pathologist, she worked many years in the Mississippi public schools as an SLP, ELL teacher, and reading interventionist, and as a certified naturalist, she loves exploring every corner of this beautiful world.
With published works across a diverse range of genres and numerous languages, Julie currently writes, teaches, and edits fulltime from her home in Fairhope, Alabama where she finds great pleasure in helping to shepherd other people’s stories to shelves.
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