The Memory Trees

by Kali Wallace

A darkly magical novel about a mysterious family legacy, the bonds of sisterhood, and the strange and powerful ways we are shaped by the places we call home, from the critically acclaimed author of Shallow Graves. For the first eight years of her life, an unusual apple orchard in Vermont is Sorrow Lovegood's whole world. The land has been passed down through generations of brave, resilient women, and while their offbeat habits may be ridiculed by other townspeople-especially their neighbors, the Abrams family-Sorrow and her family take pride in its odd history. Then one winter night, an unthinkable tragedy changes everything. In the aftermath, Sorrow is sent to Miami to live with her father, away from the only home she's ever known. Now sixteen, Sorrow's memories of her life in Vermont are maddeningly hazy. She returns to the orchard for the summer, determined to learn more about her troubled childhood and the family she left eight years ago. But it soon becomes clear that some of her questions have difficult-even dangerous-answers. And there may be a price to pay for asking.

• ISBN10: 0062366238
• ISBN13: 9780062366238
• Publish Date: 16 November 2017 (first published 10 October 2017)
• Publish Status: Active
• Out of Print: 22 August 2023
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Katherine Tegen Books
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 432
• Language: English

Reviews

[Sam@WLABB]

It was quite interesting getting to know Sorrow and the 12 generations of women in her family, as she tries to piece together her sister's final days. This trip through her tangled family tree unfolded through beautiful prose, family vignettes, and flash backs to that ill fated day. My heart ached and broke along with Sorrow's, and although the ending fell a little short for me, I enjoyed this coming of age tale.

•Pro: The writing was so beautiful. Wallace's prose had this magical quality, that fit the story so well.

•Pro: I really liked the format. Flashbacks and vignettes of Sorrow's ancestors were intertwined with Sorrow trying to gain clarity about her sister's death. It was interesting the way the pieces fit together, and it added to the tension and mystery of the story.

•Pro: I really cared about Sorrow. I wanted her to get the answers she desired in order to get that closure she had been needing for so long. Her pain and frustration just made my heart ache.

•Pro: This is a grief story and I love grief stories. This one definitely put the grief and loss center stage, but there were so many other things, such as the way the town isolated Sorrow and her family, the way she lost a little bit of her childhood due to her mother's illness, and the way she had to shoulder so much guilt, because she could not remember the events leading to her sister's death. Let's just say, I felt a lot of feels.

•Pro: So many different ideas of family are explored. I was especially fond of the relationship between Sorrow and her step mother. It made me happy to know that Sorrow got to experience that type of relationship, because she had lost her whole world when she left the farm, and I was needed something positive came from that loss.

•Con: I could have used more closure with the ending. It was hopeful, but there were some things left open ended, that I would have liked tied up.

•Pro: I loved the whole concept of the trees. "Their only ceremony was giving the dead back to the earth and planting a new life to mark its passage." It was a lovely concept and combine with the idea that the trees held their memories, just worked so well in the overall story and enhanced the effect of the magical elements present.


Overall: A magical journey towards healing after a great loss, filled with a rich family history and a little magic.

**I would like to thank the publisher for the advanced copy of this book.

BLOG | INSTAGRAM | BLOGLOVIN | FRIEND ME ON GOODREADS