Love and Peaches

After a not-quite-peachy year apart, three Georgia peaches come home to Darlington Orchard

When Murphy chose New York City, she left her first love behind. Now, a summer in Bridgewater means trading subway trains for pickup trucks and facing the boy she turned her back on.

Leeda expects her trip home to be over faster than her new Manhattan boyfriend can hail a cab--until a surprising inheritance saddles her with a huge responsibility.

Birdie's heart led her all the way to Mexico, and heartbreak brings her back to the orchard. But when the Darlington family decides to leave peach trees for palm trees, Birdie gets a crash course in letting go--and learning when to hold on.

Together for another juicy summer, carefree Murphy, perfect Leeda, and big-hearted Birdie return to the place that allowed them to bloom. Brimming with all the charm, humor, and heart of Peaches and The Secrets of Peaches, this satisfying conclusion to the series reunites three unlikely best friends for a final sweet farewell.

*May Contain Spoilers*

Jodi Lynn Anderson ends her tale of three Georgia peaches in the final book of the trilogy, Love and Peaches. Though it was nice to witness the end, I wanted more. I didn't feel satisfied with the way everything wrapped up. I needed more juice, more meat, more peach fuzz. Did I go too far with that analogy? Okay, I needed more details! The first two books were detail specific and Anderson gave readers every ounce of information. Disappointingly, the details in this installment skimmed the surface and disappeared before I could even get a handle on them. 

Murphy comes home to Bridgewater and the summer leads up to an absolutely life changing moment. Her mother knows who her father is and refuses to tell Murphy. Add that problem to the fact that Rex, her ex-boyfriend, is leaving town and wasn't even going to tell her and you get one emotional Murphy who struggles to show it. Readers will connect with Murphy through her uncertain feelings for her ex. She does still love him but doesn't know what to do with that love since she's always dreamed of living in NYC. Readers will also strongly empathize with Murphy in her desire to know her father. 

Leeda returns for the reading of her Grandmother's will and plans on returning to NY very quickly. But her Dear deceased Eugenie has other plans for Miss Leeda as she inherits her pet ponies. Her task is to use her $500,000 inheritance to take care of the ponies until new homes can be found for all of them. Then the rest of the money is hers. With this rather large kink in her plan, Leeda must remain and take care of the ponies and the other animals who show up on her doorstep with the help of Grey, a wandering eighteen year old who her grandmother hired. Readers will learn more about Leeda in this book, including her love for animals. She becomes more focused, dedicated, and open to the world in this final novel which will undoubtedly allow readers to make a deep connection with her. 

Birdie experiences quite a bit in this short book. She becomes engaged, runs away from her fiance, lives in a tree house, works the orchard for the summer, tries to return to her fiance and finds herself without a home. Like I said, quite a bit. Though most of the situations are briefer than they should be based on the seriousness of the action, readers will discover a deeper side to Birdie and witness her bloom into adulthood as she goes through these trials. 

The plot is well organized. All three girls return to Bridgewater on summer vacation and the story shares their summer of discoveries and loss. In the epilogue, Anderson shares what each girl goes on to do, which I highly appreciated. However, with a certain personality I had a hard time believing that her life would be like that. Maybe it's just me. I definitely enjoyed reading about what happened to the peaches but I wanted more from the third book. I expected more. And I was a little let down. 

Rating: 3/5 Cups

    

The Secrets of Peaches

After a magical summer living on a peach orchard, Murphy, Leeda, and Birdie confront a series of breakups, make-ups, and take-offs. They may have to leave one another, along with the orchard that brought them together. But despite their heartbreak, this year's bitter endings could lead to the sweetest of new beginnings.

*May Contain Spoilers*

Jodi Lynn Anderson continues the story of three teenage peaches after the season has ended in The Secrets of Peaches, sequel to Peaches. After establishing a connection with Leeda, Birdie, and Murphy in the first novel, readers witness what happens after the magic of summer has dissipated. 

Leeda further attempts to discover just exactly who she is as senior year of high school begins. After giving up her boyfriend and being manipulated and let down by her mother, Leeda is determined to find out what she wants and go for it. Readers will enter melancholy with Leeda as she lets go of her old self to make room inside for her real personality to surface. Though it's a sad year for Leeda, readers will connect further with her and her new ambitions, anger, and decision to stop putting up with so much B.S. 

Birdie, still my favorite character, experiences a variety of adult actions and situations that she doesn't know if she's ready for. Birdie has her first intimate experience with her boyfriend, Enrico, and readers watch her deal with the unexpected feelings and worries that it brings about. This makes the reader-character relationship much more personal, thickening the bond into more of a friendship. 

Murphy, the rebel, is dating Rex and applying to NYU so she can escape the small Georgia town. When she gets accepted, Murphy lies, pretending that she was rejected. Throughout the novel, Murphy examines the surprising importance of the relationships she has in Bridgewater. Readers watch as Murphy faces her fears of the future and the unknown. 

With all of the "growing-up" stuff that the three main characters experience, it's hard not to connect with them. The emotional level of the book was heavy in sadness and worry,which transfers to the reader when connections are well established. With another novel waiting to wrap up the story of these peaches, readers will definitely care enough to see how it ends.

Rating: 3.5/5 Cups

WWW Wednesday (115)

To play along, just answer the following three (3) questions…

• What are you currently reading?

• What did you recently finish reading?

• What do you think you’ll read next?

          

01. Currently Reading:
Painting the Moon by Traci Borum. After an Aunt passes away, Noelle finds herself in England sorting through what was left behind with a penned promise that she'll stumble over a few secrets and surprises.

02. Recently Finished:
Peaches by Jodi Lynn Anderson. Such a wonderful coming of age novel about three teenage girls who form an unlikely friendship while working at a peach orchard.

03. Reading Next:
Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo. In the middle of a war, Alina discovers she has a special power that could be exactly what the country needs to survive.

Peaches

In a Ya-Ya Sisterhood for teens, Peaches combines three unforgettable heroines who have nothing in common but the troubles that have gotten them sentenced to a summer of peach picking at a Georgia orchard.

Leeda is a debutante dating wrong-side-of-the-tracks Rex.

Murphy, the wildest girl in Bridgewater, likes whichever side Rex is on.

Birdie is a dreamer whose passion for Girl Scout cookies is matched only by her love for a boy named Enrico.

When their worlds collide, The Breakfast Club meets The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants in an entirely original and provocative story with a lush, captivating setting.

*May Contain Spoilers*

I caught sight of this book in the library and I knew that I had to start the series. A peach colored book with peaches dancing on the cover was just too alluring to stop myself. Jodi Lynn Anderson's novel, Peaches, was absolute sweetness covered in fuzz with the threat of bugs and brown rot. I read it all in one sitting. I even ignored the laundry. 

The three main characters are girls from different parts of life in Bridgewater, Georgia. All three are teenagers, on the cusp of adulthood. Leeda is from a mainly snobby-family. Her mother and sister are almost identical in looks and personality that it drives Leeda up the wall. All Leeda wants is to be accepted by her mother and finally feel like she isn't competing against her sister, Danay. Readers will enjoy Leeda's character. She's a good girl who is trying to find herself. 

Murphy is a chaotic handful that means well, under the surface. She's troubled, worried about her mother, and is scared to open herself up to anyone. But she's also the sarcastic and humorous relief. Readers will empathize with and understand the ways in which Murphy acts-out to get attention. She's a teenage girl with no real role model. The hearts of readers will open up to that. 

Birdie was my favorite character. She is Leeda's cousin, daughter of a peach orchard owner. Birdie is incredibly shy and unsure of herself with a lot weighing on her shoulders. Now that her mom has left, Birdie feels like she has to fill her shoes, stepping in to help the orchard and the workers over the course of the season. Birdie is very down to earth with a loyal heart and a growing desire for adventure. Readers will love watching her personality and strength blossom. 

The plot of the novel begins with each of the three girls being sent to the orchard, in various ways, for the duration of spring break. The spark of friendship begins and three lonely teenagers who haven't discovered who they are yet become a part of the orchard and a part of each other. Peaches is a wonderful coming of age novel that gives a girl a friend when break-ups, betrayal, and late night swims are too much to go through alone. 

Rating: 4/5 Cups