Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen

Claire Waverly owns a catering company and has the special gift of using flowers in her recipes to affect the eater in different ways. When, after a ten-year absence, her younger sister, Sydney, comes home to Bascome, North Carolina with her five year old daughter, Bay, it unearths memories of their childhood. The sisters, with a six year age difference between them, haven't always gotten along, especially after their mother left them in Bascome with their grandmother when they were young. Claire is quiet and distant, which proves a challenge when new neighbor, Tyler, tells her he's attracted to her and she realizes she feels the same way. Sydney, meanwhile, has fled an abusive relationship, and is trying to get back on her feet. Garden Spells is a promising debut full of offbeat characters, like the sisters' distant cousin, Evanelle, who gives things to people before they need them (not knowing why) and the apple tree in the family's backyard that throws apples at passers-by. The book is similar to Alice Hoffman's Practical Magic. I'm very interested in seeing what type of book the author writes next.