Violets and Wild Girls

Don't you think that books are magical things?  Find the right one and you are drawn totally into another World, unknowingly devouring page after page as you live, breath and feel along with the character and once the last page has been read there is a certain sense of loss as the magic fades and you are brought back to reality.

I was lucky enough to find two such books recently.  The first was The Wild Girl by Kate Forsyth

The Wild Girl tells the story of Dortchen Wild who lived next door to the Grimm Brothers and helped to provide them with the stories that would eventually make them famous.  It is a beautifully written book and one I recommend for anybody who is a lover of fairytales.

One of the things that stuck with me long after the book was finished was the description of the herbs that Dortchen would collect from the woodland and her garden to be made into medicines, teas and sometimes even spells.

So, barefoot I pottered around my own garden and gathered the herbs I grow there.  Lavender, Rosemary, Chammomile and Lemonbalm bundled together in a sweet smelling bouquet.

Warmed by the summer sun and the heady scent of lavender in the air I'm able to cling on to the magic for just a little bit longer.

The second book that swept me away was also beautifully written.

An Appetite for Violets by Martine Bailey is a mystery novel set in the eighteenth century.  The heroine is Biddy Leigh who is an undercook that finds herself on a journey with her new mistress from her kitchen in Lancashire through Europe to Italy.  As we travel with Biddy towards Italy we are given gorgeous descriptions of the food and recipes she discovers on the way.  I won't give away to much though as it is a mystery and I wouldn't want to spoil it. :-)

To evoke the magic of this book I turned to my favourite dessert, meringue.

Piled high with cream and tart raspberries to balance the sweetness it provides decadent joy with every mouthful.  In keeping with the title of the book I also had a glass of sparkling water with violet syrup.

Such a wonderful treat that definitely filled the longing for something tasty that the book had left me with.

Have you read any books recently that have swept you away?  I'd love to hear about them.