#SundayQuestions: Have you ever read a book that's made you hungry? Cookbooks are excluded

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I am taking this question as -- has a book ever want to try what the characters are eating or try a new food. Not actual rumble in the tummy pooh bear hungry kind of thing.

The books by Sarah Addison Allen has tempted me to try to make a food or eat a food involving flowers.

All due to her weird descriptive need to have food in I believe all her books. They have in some way or another tempted me to try something.

I'm allergic to flowers so I'm not sure what will happen if I eat a flower. So, that has helped stall this adventure.

Do you eat flowers? Or -- has a non-cookbook book made you hungry?

Question  came from Justyourtypicalbookblog.blogspot.com. From a list of questions out of one of those questionnaires.

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The Sugar Queen by Sarah Addison Allen

Title: The Sugar Queen Author: Sarah Addison Allen Published:  May 20, 2008

Read: Audio book in July, 2014 Rate: 4 out of 5

Summary:

Josey Cirrini is sure of three things: winter is her favorite season, she’s a sorry excuse for a Southern belle, and sweets are best eaten in the privacy of her closet. For while Josey has settled into an uneventful life in her mother’s house, her one consolation is the stockpile of sugary treats and paperback romances she escapes to each night…. Until she finds her closet harboring Della Lee Baker, a local waitress who is one part nemesis—and two parts fairy godmother. With Della Lee’s tough love, Josey’s narrow existence quickly expands. She even bonds with Chloe Finley, a young woman who is hounded by books that inexplicably appear when she needs them—and who has a close connection to Josey’s longtime crush. Soon Josey is living in a world where the color red has startling powers, and passion can make eggs fry in their cartons. And that’s just for starters.

Brimming with warmth, wit, and a sprinkling of magic, here is a spellbinding tale of friendship, love—and the enchanting possibilities of every new day.

Review:

First line: When Josey woke up and saw the feathery frost on her windowpane, she smiled.

These books are whimsical superstitious (but not the scary kind) southern setting where.. bad things do happen but it doesn't prevent some sort of happily ever after.

One of the story features in this is... Josey has a woman named Della Lee living in her closet. 

"Josey, of all people, understood the appeal of living in there. If Della Lee wasn't in the closet, Josey would crawl in there right now. She would eat raspberry caramels and chocolate-covered cherries and read a romance novel."

My Goodreads comments:

1. Her books feel almost the same but dressed with different characters. I know different things happen in them but...it's a feeling not always logical.

2. It's bizarre how these characters are more upset with this guy for telling his girlfriend he cheated than the fact that he did cheat.

3. These characters are annoying. I liked her other two books. Oh well.

4. Buy the house right under her? How is the heck would that win her back?

5. What on earth, usually, the magic in these stories are only background wasn't expecting that.

Recommend?:

Yes. I wouldn't start with this one if you are wanting to read her books. It was good but compared to other ones, start with something else. I'd recommend reading Garden Spells -- they're not related I just liked that one over all her other ones. 

First Frost (Waverly Family #2) - Sarah Addison Allen

Score: 3/5

Summary: We are back in Bascom, North Carolina with the Waverly family! Claire is making candies and making a killing on the candies. Sydney wants more kids with her new hubby. Bay is learning and working through her life, too.

Good:

We are back with the Waverly's! I LOVED the first novel so finding Sarah Addison Allen decided to break the norm of hers...and do a sequel!? Hell yea!

You're in their life and finding out what is happening now that it's been a long time since we've visited them from Garden Spells.

Bad:

We are back with the Waverly's! The feel of the first one is gone. The magic that was there for the first one isn't there. Not only do the characters feel off balance with their new life and what is happening...so do we as the readers.

It feels like the pressure to make a sequel was there but not the story.

Recommend:

If you just absolutely love Sarah Addison Allen and can gobble up anything all she writes. Yes. But if you're wanting the same feel and life as Garden Spells, then probably not.


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Garden Spells - Sarah Addison Allen

Amazon | BN | Indie Books | Library

Spoilers

What I enjoyed:

Sarah Addison Allen's books have brought me into the magic realism books and I love her for it. I didn't even know there was light and fluffy magical books that leaned more on reality than anything. The book cover to boot is adorable!

Good:

The story catches you and brings you into Claire's life. You're happy you're here everything just is...perfect.

She lives a quiet life with her catering business. She is fine with her "weird" quirks that the town doesn't necessarily like but they like what she makes. It is a good business.

Her sister comes back to town yanking her from the usual routine of her life. Everything that is happening is just a delight to read.

I love Evanelle. Those were my favorite-favorites of the story was her and her life that would pop up here and there for us.

I loved the take on Sydney's female rival and how it worked out. The woman is worried about Sydney taking her fiancee away and is upset with her return. She doesn't try to stab out Sydney from her town and her life. She is working through this jealousy and fear of losing her partner and she just figures out that she doesn't have anything to worry about.

I was rolling my eyes when that segment of the story was going through because I was not here for women and against women because of a man. But it was a nice change of events.

And, I ABSOLUTELY love that the "hero" of the story was the apple tree in the backyard.

Bad:

That there wasn't more to this story. But we got a sequel and I was extremely disappointed with the sequel. So, I shouldn't have wanted one so much.