Product Description
Seven years is a long time to stay away from home. But when Jane Gregory left Pendleton, Vermont, she was running from a life gone wrong. Now she's returning to town with her young son--and Pendleton will never be the same again.

Jane never wanted to believe that the Gregory women have a special power. But the magic she'd shunned comes rushing back as soon as she walks into her mother's old house. The faded rosebush in the yard suddenly bursts with color, and the lovelorn are coming to her for advice. Even the sensible town doctor, Graham Payton, can't stay away.

Yet Jane has something more important on her mind: her son. The little boy has never spoken a word in his life, and she's determined to find out why. But Jane is about to discover that she's not immune to the potent charms she's unleashed--that there's room in her heart for love after all. And maybe a little magic too. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (11)

I was spellbound
I chose this book on a whim - so glad I did! I fell in love with the human characters, and the magic elements are practically story characters as well. I found many lovely phrases that I've earmarked for my collection of quotes; Ms. Yorke has a way of putting emotion into words that really strike my heart. I'm looking forward to reading more of her work!

Very real and very beautiful
In a small town in Vermont, Graham Payton loves Jane Gregory, but Jane loves Ned, Graham's brother. And when it all goes terribly wrong, Jane flees Pendleton.Seven years later she is back with her son, Alex, who has never spoken a word in his life, and a heart filled with guilt.Is she strong enough to rescue her son from silence, to love again, and to believe, at last, in her own wild magic?

It's often easier to write a bad review than a good one, easier to explain why something went wrong than to tell a reader why a book made you laugh or cry or touched some resonant chord, why the writing took you into the perfect realm of imagination that all readers long for, but so seldom are able to find."Magic Spells" struck me almost immediately as a book I wanted to recommend very vigorously.The more I read of it, the more caught up I became in the warmth of Yorke's affection for her characters and the beauty of her prose.But by the end I found myself disturbed by the resolution to the point where I had to rethink my enthusiasm for the story.The happiness of the protagonists depended, in the end, on the unhappiness of another decent, loving character.

As a result I found myself spending some considerable time weighing each aspect of the book more carefully than ever.The plot is simple enough, even complicated by magic which plays a subordinate role here:Woman overcomes the fears and failings of youth to find love with the right man.How often have we encountered that plot?And yet Yorke never allows her story to become old or stale. Rather, Jane's tale seems both painfully new and completely timeless; love is an old, old battle that each of us have to fight anew.Characterization is equally deft, reminiscent ofStephen King at his best,presenting us with a cast of players all of whom we recognize and yet each of whom is as individual as a snowflake. In a few paragraphs, Yorke makes us care about the joys and sorrows of her characters' lives, about why they love who they love, about why one man is drinking himself to death and another woman wears too much makeup.Even the most insignificant player becomes significant, a real person with a real life.This is, perhaps, one of the greatest gifts an author can have.

It's impossible not to respond to Yorke's prose; there's a simple, honest beauty to it that elevates even the saddest, most mundane life to a sort of nobility.Gestures are not only significant, they touch the heart.The moment when Alex's great grandmother reaches out to wipe frozen tears off his face, and they shatter like glass in her hand will stay with me forever.Yorke understands the value of the small thing, the details of life.And in the end, what weighed most heavily in favor of the book really was the very thing that disturbed me:The story is real.Not magic as some external power since in the end it's really just a symbol of the power of love, but the story about Jane and Ned and Graham and the others, about their love and their hate and their weakness and strength.Yes, people do love inappropriately.They do fall in love with one person and marry another, they do leave wives and husbands to take a chance on finding someone or something that completes their soul.Because of that and because the book is so beautifully, simply and powerfully written, I recommend it highly.

"Magic Spells" is one of the most extraordinary books I've read in months, and if you want to be reminded of how grand it is to be alive and how hard it is to be human, if you want to remember the joy and pain of real love, I suggest you rush right out and get this book.

So Glad I Discovered This Book!
Few books have captured my imagination like this one did. A big, wonderful, surprising and uplifting book of love and friendship. Ranks with Deborah Smith's A Place to Call Home as one of my all time favorites - andto think I literally stumbled upon it. I have only one question - why isn'ta book this good being promoted by the publisher and published in hardcoverlike other books of its quality?

Do Not Buy this book as a how to book
For all you witches out there this is not a book on how to do spells it is just a dumb love story.

Interesting Characters
One thing I liked about the book was that the magic spells/thoughts was a background theme unlike Practical Magic that tried to make the characters and the magic front focal spots. This book had the characters front andcenter, with the magic being a background thread of thought to connect themtogether and to better explain Esther's approach to many things in herlife.

The character developments were interesting! Alex, the child, wasso developed in character that you could easily visualize him and hisfacial expressions in your mind. Christy had you hoping Esther would givein to Robert's loving thoughts, and yet had you understanding why Estherhesitated to do so. Ginny was perfectly created, a woman trying to fightback her jealousy but at the same time unable to not let it show andfighting to keep something alive that was never really alive except on oneside of viewing.

Having Ned "reappear" in the image of anotherperson's attitude and appearance was a nice touch, making Devon someone youwanted to hate and yet allowed you to understand the catalystic effects Nedhad earlier on the main characters being replayed out due to his appearanceto the story.

The ending was not a suprise, but it was interestingreading the book to get to the ending all the same. The subtle twists andturns that they took to get there was interesting, although I wish theathletic competiveness was toned down between Graham and Devon or done moresparingly - I could also see why this was included as Graham was"fighting his past" and a "ghost" from it as well.

Although you knew from the start who would wind up with whom, it wasstill an interesting read. ... Read more

Product Description
When Dr. Elizabeth Shreve's husband Will leaves after fifteen years of marriage, she is so devastated that she's unaware that their fourteen-year old daughter, Chloe, is dangerously in love.

But now, former patient Jack Bolton will challenge Elizabeth even more-- and in ways she never expected. Bipolar, Jack can woo plants into myth-inspiring gardens-but refuses medication, fearing it will rob him of his gift. Convinced that nothing is too wonderful to be true, he works his magic on Elizabeth, Chloe-and even Will. And with each passing day, Elizabeth is drawn closer to breaking all the rules and joining him in a summer of glorious madness... ... Read more

Customer Reviews (9)

glorious waste of time
reading this will make you crazy. her other books are better, this was all over the place, I had to read and re read just to get the point.

I loved it!
If you love gardens and you love depth in your characters, this book is for you.

Brilliant
Many others have said better than I could why this book is so fantastic.I'll just add my agreement to the other reviews and expound on them a little bit.

Something about Ms. Yorke's writing drew me right in.This is the kind of book that has caused me to get excited about what else the author has written.I came across it quite by accident at a used bookstore and the description intrigued me.I'm so glad I read it.

For the life of me, I can't understand why this book did not become a best seller.Perhaps the answer lies in the fact that books based on rich character development do not seem to sell that well (at least from my limited observation).The general reader seems to want plot twists galore -- thrillers, page-turners.This book WAS thrilling for me and I could never wait to get to the next page.And it did have a brilliant plot.But it was so much more than that.It was a deep look into the hearts and minds of its characters.I truly feel as though I have gotten to know them!That somehow, I might run into one of them at the grocery store.That -- that is why I read.For that very feeling -- for that rare reaction to words on a page.This author is amazing.I can't wait to devour whatever else she has penned.

Happy reading.

Enchanting!!!!
I really enjoyed this book as well as her others. She adds so much description in the book....

Gripping!
Wow, what an amazing book!It grabbed my interest in the first chapter and continued 'till the last page.Excellent writing by author Christy Yorke.I would love to see Hollywood make a movie out of this one!!! ... Read more

Product Description
The Wishing Garden
Savannah Dawson makes her living at an advertising agency, creating commercials that link milk consumption to true love. But when it comes to tarot cards, she isn't making things up. And she has never picked a bad card--until the Three of Swords appears in her own fortune one night, promising sorrow...and a letter from her estranged mother reveals her father is dying.

With her rebellious teenage daughter in tow, Savannah goes to Arizona expecting the worst. And her fears are confirmed. Her mother is as distant as ever, her father will never recover, and the secretive wood carver helping her father build his final wish is stirring up feelings she has no use for. But hope still has a fighting chance in the town of Prescott. As the summer air grows heavy with scents from her father's lush garden, Savannah will discover a whole new magic...the kind that grows--quite literally--on trees. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (7)

I'm having to leave out a lot!
Savannah Dawson worked in an advertising agency and had a rebellious fifteen, going-on-thirty, year old daughter named Emma. Savannah also told fortunes. It was a gift she had always possessed. So was her optimistic outlook on life. If an awful card turned up on a customer, like the card that predicts a loss, then Savannah would smile and tell the customer that she would probably only the ten extra pounds she had been exercising to get rid of in the first place. But when the cards showed Savannah bad news, she just knew it really was bad news. Her father was dying. So off she went to Arizona to be with him and a mother who hated her!

Emma saw the auras of people, but did not believe in magic and such like her mother did. She thought her mother was a dreamer and needed to wake up to reality. Emma could see her grandfather's dark aura, knew he did not have long, and therefore did not want to get to know him. She did not want to care for someone who was about to die, no matter how lovable he was. He was too much like Savannah.

Doug Dawson knew he was dying. He was in a hurry to finish his perfect garden before it happened though. He hired Jake Grey to build the perfect bench for it. Jake was thought of (by many) as a crazy man with even crazier dogs. Even Jake believed it! But one thing drove him even crazier, the thought of Savannah.

*** There is SO much that I am not telling. I got lost, not only in the lives of Savannah and Jake, but also in the lives of Emma and Eli, and Doug and Maggie. Then all of them must interchange to help each other pull through and learn hard lessons.

Author, Christy Yorke, had me shaking my head at Savannah's outlook on life, then at Emma's acting out for attention. I then found myself hopeful for Savannah, pulling for Jake, and weeping at the most tender of scenes. I cannot tell you what a marvel I believe this author to be! Highly recommended reading!

Captivating tale of love, life and hope....
I stumbled upon Ms. Yorke's first book, "Magic Spells", in the library and picked it up merely because a blurb on the cover compared her writing to Alice Hoffman's.Well, Ms. Yorke has got Hoffman beat by a country mile!Her writing is fresh, passionate, sensitive and poignant.I enjoyed every page of this story, which is ultimately about mothers and daughters, and read it again when I got to the end, that's how good the story was.I'm looking forward to her next book with great anticipation.

Awesome story!
Savannah Dawson worked in an advertising agency and had a rebellious fifteen, going-on-thirty, year old daughter named Emma. Savannah also told fortunes. It was a gift she had always possessed. So was her optimistic outlook on life. If an awful card turned up on a customer, like the card that predicts a loss, then Savannah would smile and tell the customer that she would probably only the ten extra pounds she had been exercising to get rid of in the first place. But when the cards showed Savannah bad news, she just knew it really was bad news. Her father was dying. So off she went to Arizona to be with him and a mother who hated her!

Emma saw the auras of people, but did not believe in magic and such like her mother did. She thought her mother was a dreamer and needed to wake up to reality. Emma could see her grandfather's dark aura, knew he did not have long, and therefore did not want to get to know him. She did not want to care for someone who was about to die, no matter how lovable he was. He was too much like Savannah.

Doug Dawson knew he was dying. He was in a hurry to finish his perfect garden before it happened though. He hired Jake Grey to build the perfect bench for it. Jake was thought of (by many) as a crazy man with even crazier dogs. Even Jake believed it! But one thing drove him even crazier, the thought of Savannah.

*** There is SO much that I am not telling. I got lost, not only in the lives of Savannah and Jake, but also in the lives of Emma and Eli, and Doug and Maggie. Then all of them must interchange to help each other pull through and learn hard lessons.

Author, Christy Yorke, had me shaking my head at Savannah's outlook on life, then at Emma's acting out for attention. I then found myself hopeful for Savannah, pulling for Jake, and weeping at the most tender of scenes. I cannot tell you what a marvel I believe this author to be! Highly recommended reading!

SIMPLY MAGICAL
CHRISTY YORKE'S BOOKS TAKE YOU ON A JOURNEY, SO REAL AND MAGICAL.HER CHARACTERS COME ALIVE AND YOU FEEL INVITED INTO THE REALM OF HER STORY.I HATE WHEN A BOOK OF HERS ENDS, AS IN WISHING GARDEN, THE STORY IS REAL OF LIFE, HOPE, AND WONDERMENT.IT GIVES US THE ABILITY TO BELEIVE IN MAGIC AND THE REALM OF LIFE WE CAN FEEL AND NOT HAVE TO BE ACCOUNTABLE FOR LOGIC. IT HAS BEEN A LONG TIME SINCE AN AUTHOR ACTUALLY CAPTURED ME, WITH HER CAPTIVATING AND GREAT CHARACTERS ALL SO REAL, I FELT I KNEW THEM.I AM A FAN OF HERS FOREVER NOW! A MUST READ AND BE SWEPT AWAY WITH HER MAGICAL, LYRICAL WRITING AS I HAVE BEEN. HOPE THIS WRITER, KEEPS WRITING FOR YEARS AND YEARS!!

Wonderfully Character Driven Novel
The Wishing Garden by Christy York is one of the most immediatelyemotionally engaging novels that I have ever read. It is filled with alarge cast of well written characters and while it revolves around the lifeof Savannah Dawson it also introduces us to a host of unforgettablecharacters who after reading this book I have come to care for.

SavannahDawson, a divorced mother of a fifteen-year-old girl, ad agent, and parttime tarot card reader is called home to say goodbye to her dying father.She is also one of the most unrelentingly cheerful people ever created.This causes problems between her and her reality based angry mother, herangst-ridden daughter and was partially the cause of her divorce.

Thisis a quick moving character driven novel that is a perfect summer beachread. ... Read more

Product Description
For years, Jina, Irene, Mary, and Alice have been telling their secrets over sushi. But when struggling novelist Alice finally writes a bestseller, the other three are horrified to see their lives in its pages. Alice says she never meant to hurt anyone. But her novel could very well destroy them all. In search of answers and healing, these four women journey into the wilderness together. There they face their greatest test-one of physical and emotional endurance that will reveal more about them than any tell-all book. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (8)

So bad I didn't finish it
The back cover sold me.Four friends, one of them betraying the others with a revealing novel.But that's not really what this is about.The dynamic of the friendship is lost somewhere.I kept waiting for it to get better and it just got worse.I decided to stop reading it about two-thirds through and I'm not the least bit curious about how it ended.I don't know about her other novels, if I see one at the library I'll give it a try, but I'm not spending my $$ on one.

Unbelievable, bad and unbelievably bad
I can't believe all these positive reviews! It was readable, but hardly exciting, profound or wondrous. In fact, parts of it were laughable. An elk that thinks he's Elvis? Give me a break! A man who may be "part fish?" Yeah, right.

Then there's the ambiguity surrounding the character Jina. Why does she spell her name like that? Is it just exoticised Italian, or something more? I happen to know that Ji-na can be a Korean women's name, and there are hints that she might be Asian, but this needs to be made clear long, long before the book ever goes to print. And don't even get me started on the requisite Arab bad guy.

A nice "pitch" novel, full of elements designed to appeal to readers. In terms of achieving something as a novel, though, it's a mess.

As emotionally satisfying as Class IV rapids in the most gorgeous locale.
With the deft touch of a modern day Socrates, and the gentle understanding of your oldest friend, Ms. Yorke asks us to consider whether we can be satisfied with an unexamined life.She introduces us to a wonderfully varied set of women friends, their endearing mates and their children, at a time when one of the friends appears to have betrayed all of them by revealing their pasts in a bestselling novel.Yet as each character reflects on the mistakes he or she has made and begins to face fears that have grown larger over time, each character learns to accept his or herself, forgive, and strive to attain and retain what's really important. The interactions between the adults and the boys are particularly wonderful, reflecting the hope, fear, love, pride, self-restraint, and occasional doubt we can't help but feel as we try to raise and release the young men who are so much a part of our souls.

The Secret Lives of the Sushi Club is also an exciting pageturner, leaving you wondering until very near the end if the misguided and guilt-ridden religious zealot will actually strike out at the infidels he likes.

In a red state/blue state nation, it's delightful to find an author of Ms. Yorke's calibre, who not only sees shades of gray, but can make a cogent argument for appreciating friends with different interests, religions, and political beliefs.She advocates a big tent, and knows where to draw the line.

I'd encourage men and women alike to buy this book and allow themselves the time to read it.You'll feel as if you've entered another world.Your new best friends are more than a little hard to leave behind.Just don't be surprised if they whisper a few suggestions in your ear, before you close the book.

This one goes on the 'keeper' shelf
The Secret Lives of the Sushi Club is a fabulous book that stayed with me long after I finished it.It is exceedingly well written and the characters leap off the page, inviting you into their flawed but all too human lives.Everyone can find something in this book that speaks to them, some part of it that you recognize from deep in your soul.

Lighter novel for the author.
I've read Summer of Glorious Madness and Song of the Seals by Christy Yorke, and found both deep, engrossing, and magical.The Secret Lives of the Sushi Club has many of those same qualities, but seems lighter somehow, maybe because it focuses on four main characters instead of one.Still, the author's unique voice is there, as are the beautiful descriptions and deep insights into people's desires and demons.To me, this qualifies as more of a "beach read"--not as demanding but just as enjoyable! ... Read more

Product Description
Eighteen years after losing her own infant son, Kate Vegas is a foster mother to a seventeen-year-old named Wayne. When Wayne reads about a Northern California fishing village called Seal Bay and decides that it will be his salvation, Kate, her widowed father, and Wayne pack up and move.

In Seal Bay, they find a superstitious, almost primitive life, where wives tremble on the edge of madness when their men are at sea. Where the laurel tree weeps, the fog rolls in, and the seals cry out in the harbor. It is both terrifying and wonderful for all three. Teetering on the edge of tragedy, they discover the miracle of love... ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

I wanted to like it
I searched the site for a book that I might like.I came upon Ms Yorke's book by accident and I went out that night and bought it.I found the beginning hard to get through and I kept going with hope that it would get better. I thought that there were too many characters, brought in at weird places, to keep track of.I also think that Kate, the main character, fit in and took charge of this closed town way too quickly; therefore, to me, somewhat unrealistic.I do think that she showed much more strength than most people who lost their infant son.There were some good messages in the book that could be applied to a lot of our lives when it comes to love and perserverance. Overall, I thought it was an OK book but not one that I would recommend to people.

Song of the Seals
Christy is a beautiful lyrical writer. She holds your interest throughout the entire book and you think you are right in the little fishing town and know all it's inhabitants.I have also read her other novels and am looking forward to the next one.

A book that will haunt you ~~
If you like stories that out of the unusual ~~ this book is definitely for you. Yorke writes a beautiful haunting story of love and life and death ~~ longings and dreams and heartaches. Kate packs up her father and foster son to an isolated fishing village up in northern California ~~ or as she likes to say, she followed the fog. Wayne read an article in a newspaper about the fisherman's life and enraptured by the lonely life of fishing ~~ he told Kate he was moving up there. Kate agreed to take him and her father followed along.

They come to the village slowly eroded by the salt water and the fog ~~ it is always cold and wet there. People are depressed and very supersititious ~~ and there was the laurel tree that oozes sap and "foretells" a fisherman's death at the sea whenever it oozes. There is the local witch/mystic. The village is not pretty nor is it peopled by friendly people. Undaunted however, Kate, Wayne and Gerald decide to stay and make a go of it. However, as they become ingrained in the village's life and with the residents, they wonder if tragedy would be worth the loss of love.

This is a thought-provoking book. It tells of perils of life and love and hope after tragedy ~~ it is a book that will haunt you with its vivid descriptions of the sea and life by the sea. It will lull you into thinking life is grand then tragedy hits ~~ then you wonder how you'll survive. Kate deals with losing Wayne to adulthood ~~ and deals with the news of her son that was abducted 18 years before. She deals with how to live life again ~~ and inspires those around her to believe in love again. Even after death.

This is one of my favorite books this year. It was by chance that I picked this book up ~~ and I hope to read more of her works ~~ as she is a promising writer who captures dreams and write them down for us to read. And she's a beautiful, lyrical writer. It's a definite must-read!

3-30-03

One of the best I've read
I bought Song of the Seals based on its cover, and am so glad I did!It turned out to be one of the best novels I've read in a long time.I fell in love with the characters.Kate Vegas has survived one of the worst things that can happen to a woman and mother, and faces whatever comes with strength.The teenaged girls, Jenny and Nicole, were so real and interesting, they reminded me of my own daughters.Even the fishermen struck a chord in me.I couldn't stop reading until three in the morning, and was sad when I was finished.Christy Yorke is a great writer, with sentences that are so beautiful they brought tears to my eyes.I'll definitely get her others. ... Read more

Product Description
This digital document, covering the life and work of Christy Yorke, is an entry from Contemporary Authors, a reference volume published by Thomson Gale. The length of the entry is 495 words. The page length listed above is based on a typical 300-word page. Although the exact content of each entry from this volume can vary, typical entries include the following information:

• Place and date of birth and death (if deceased)
• Family members
• Education
• Professional associations and honors
• Employment
• Writings, including books and periodicals
• A description of the author's work
• References to further readings about the author