Sisters torn apart by life and the misunderstandings that come with it are forced to face each other by the death of their father. Nona had run off fifteen years prior and tried to become the person she wanted to be. Julia stayed and felt forced to become the person she is. Truths come out and tears are shed. This story was touching and held me at bay to find out what next drama wiuld unfold. Great read!

Where Wild Peaches Grow kept my attention, reading late in the night. The family dynamics, mostly between two estranged sisters, twist and turn with misunderstandings and stubborness. It's not a fairy tale ending but thankfully some clarity. And love.

This is a very generous 3, as there were so many things that did NOT work for this book.

Let's start with what did work. The setting was great! The description of Natchez made me feel like I could really envision it. The hook was good. As much as I found fault with a lot of the book, I kept reading and didn't contemplate not finishing. The writing was strong. While I had to re-read quite a few sentences because they were worded differently than I am used to, the writing was well done.

Now what didn't work for me. The entire book was choppy, disjointed, and didn't flow well. I think the revisionist story about the Devil's Punchbowl should have been a prologue and a stepping stone to show Nona's reasoning for her career in the first place. When the book moves between time periods, there's no clear understanding why that bit is told in the past, but the other bits that took place in the past aren't such as the night that Nona actually left or the time when Julia was in a bad relationship and what happened with Marcus. The characters - pretty much all of them. They are not well fleshed out and are almost caricatures and clichés. The characters of Ruben and Sanganette could have been gotten rid of entirely. Sanganette was horrible, but Julia's best friend? She really preached revisionist slave/confederacy history to a BLACK women in the south and everyone is ok with this? It's just her? WTF? Ruben is a one dimensional, whiney, needy, flaw. He adds nothing to the story except a ride. Nona didn't talk to anyone but her grandmother for two decades? And Mawmaw just never told her anything about her family because....reasons? Not plausible. And Nona cut everyone out of her life, including the man she claimed to love, because of something she perceived? As a 17yo child and she never looked back on that to take some culpability? Jasper....oh, god. All these people coming for a wake of a philandering, manipulating, lying asshole? He gambles his family's money away, is on the run from the law, impregnates another woman and has a child with her that he abandons, threatens his estranged wife to keep her from her children, manipulates said wife into contact with one child at the cost of the other. and refuses to divorce his wife, but does not support her in any way, either. Pretty much a POS. But everyone is ok with this. Now Julia. Good lord. If she's that upset about her sister, reach out. There is nothing in this plot that keeps these people from talking to each other for 20 years. And don't sweep under the rug what a bastard your dad was. Cat? Seriously. She left her children with her MIL in probably the early 90's and let her husband threaten her into staying away for 30 years? Nah. Not plausible. Marcus. Seriously? Pining for one woman for 20 years and never going after her or contacting her? She's a published historian. Google is super easy. I won't even go into the train wreck that is Bisset or Eli. The reason for Nona to have left and stayed away needed to be something MORE than a childish tantrum thrown by a 17yo. Cat should have stayed a mother who disappeared with no more relevance to the story. Ruben and Sanganette should be cut altogether. Too many characters to try to do this story justice. And the bits about the history? I wish it would have been woven into the story instead of randomly being plopped here and there without any real thread connecting it to the rest of the book.

For all of the above faults, I still would recommend the book. It was an interesting ride with many faults, but one I didn't give up on.

I really love reading novels that take place in the South. I really loved the storyline here it reminded me a little of Sweet Home Alabama... only just a little. I definitely will look for a physical copy of these book, because I was dying to mark up the pages with my thoughts and feelings as I read.

This book was good, I’m glad I got to read it early and can’t wait to tell others about it .
I think they are gonna enjoy it just as much
Thank you

I have to admit, I did not expect this book to almost be a five-star read for me. The author has a way of writing that kept my eyes glued to the page (...or screen in my case) and I loved every minute of it.

The author must be good at edging since she gave us enough information that made us crave more and these characters felt so real to me. Everyone made their own assumptions about how particular events played out, and they lost their way in their assumptions. LOVED IT!

And the dad, the dad is a piece of work. He was no saint and most of the misgivings in his family's life were his fault yet people thought of him as the good guy. And it really speaks of our community as women that people couldn't believe why their mother did what she did. And poor Julia (You'll understand once you read the book)

I loved this book, the only thing that made it lose its five-star rating was there was a part in the book where the author ping-pong through different people's views at once and it was hard to follow.

3.5 Stars

It took me a while to get into this book. I had trouble connecting with the characters even though on the surface, one of them in particular reminded me of myself. I finally began to feel invested around 70% into the book. It may have been for that reason that I found the ending somewhat abrupt. It felt rushed.

I was reading quite comfortably, only to turn the page and be hit with the acknowledgments. I didn't realize the book was ending. And though that is sometimes a good thing, for this particular book it wasn't (in my opinion). I had to go back and reread some parts of the last chapter to see if I had missed something. Was there a chapter missing? Apparently not. There were, in my opinion, important, emotional conversations that the reader was told about when it would have been more impactful for the reader to see the actual dialogue. I don't know if there was a deliberate attempt to spend a lot more time outlining the internal and external conflicts than showing their resolution. I don't know if this was the first book in a series and the ending was glossed over so as to build intrigue for the second book. Either way, I am not sure I would read a sequel to this one.

Where wild peaches grow brings us a story about family and the hardships miscommunication can cause. In this book, you can expect perfectly fleshed-out characters, each and every one of them having distinct characteristics and deep explorations on their past in order to understand their present actions. You can also expect lots of unexpected turns.

The death of her father brings Nona back to the family she has been away from for twenty years. This engrossing family story is deeply emotional. There are many lies and misread situations to unravel between Nona and her sister. The characters are well honed and real. Their emotions are deep and cut deep. It is an exceptional story.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This is a very well written book and it was just such a great read, I enjoyed it so much. Families can be so up in the air at times, a very good ending to this also x

A beautiful cover for a beautiful story. Family estrangement and the path to forgiveness- of yourself and others - is hard and the author explores this in ‘Where Wild Peaches Grow’. The story was engaging, the characters complex and the writing captivating. I very much enjoyed this book. 5 stars!

Thank you to the publisher and the author for allowing me to have an unedited advanced copy.

"Where Wild Peaches Grow" is a story based on a misunderstanding. Two sisters, one who moves to Chicago and another who stays behind in Mississippi. I loved the Southern culture, particularly the discussion of Black family life in the South. The author paints a full and descriptive picture of Natchez, Mississippi and the Davenport family. I think this book will fit the bill for many other folks, but unfortunately, I didn't understand the motivation behind what many of the characters did. I also will freely admit that I find it frustrating when a book/film/show bases the premise that entire lives can be altered by misunderstandings that would be resolved with a simple conversation. I recognize this is highly personal, and a matter of taste more than anything. 2.5 stars given, rounded up.

I would definitely try another one of Cade Bentley/Abby Vandiver's books because her writing is great!

Well, it’s 6:21am and I’ve spent all night reading so that’s a ringing endorsement of Cade’s writing.

I enjoyed that the major issue of not speaking to your sibling for TWENTY YEARS was not glossed over and the characters yelled and expressed the hurt and anguish that it caused, too often, it’s patched up insufficiently with a few words of sorry. Nona and Julia both were too prideful for their own good, however, I wish the culprits for Nona leaving by herself had gotten a little more of the tongue lashing. It would have been the cherry on top for me

Where Wild Peaches Grow by Abby L. Vandiver writing as Cade Bentley, published by Lake Union Publishing is a full length, stand-alone novel.
The storyline is set in the South and tells a complex, complicated story of family ties. After reading the blurb I visioned something like a mix between Scarlett - and Claire and Brianna from Outlander transferred in todays modern times, but I couldn't be more off. It took me some time to get into then story and I was a bit over whelmed by the mass of people introduced. But somehow I managed and enjoyed the book.
All in all a solid read, 3,5 stars.

There is nothing that complicates life quite as much as family. The way family members communicate or miscommunicate can greatly affect almost every aspect of our lives. This story at it's core is a story about family and the way our secrets unravel between us.

Where Wild Peaches Grow is a story about unresolved trauma across two generations of the Davenport family. The death of their father brings two sisters, Julia and Nona, back to the Southern town of Natchez to confront their issues from the last 20 years.

Bentley is a beautiful writer who has created a compelling story about how secrets and misunderstandings can pull a family apart. Julia and Nona are two very different people who both lived the same experience, but interpreted it in entirely different ways.

I would loved to have read more about Julia and Nona’s lives in the previous 20 years to the book being set, as the one thing that holds me back from giving this book a higher rating was the basis of the whole plot hinges on a minor miscommunication which was frustrating.

The attempt to weave in stories about American civil rights and revisionist history felt a little clumsy via the character of Saganette, and didn’t come together as one cohesive piece for me.

Thanks again to NetGallery for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Set in Southern America, the book tells the story of 2 sisters Nona and Julia

It is rather a slow book, and quite boring

I actually didn't finish this book. Many people might like it, but it just was not for me. I really hope someone else appreciates it.

Nobody hurts you like family. This is a deeply emotional and sometimes frustrating look into a family. Sisters Nona and Julia have been estranged for years and when they come together again all of the hurt and misunderstandings come to the surface. I really enjoyed this book and felt like the characters were really fleshed out. I don’t normally like the miscommunication trope but it works here. If you want to read a good book about family, love, and forgiveness this is the one.

I really Enjoyed this story! The writing is wonderful and I will Look forward to more from the author.