The Lemoncholy Life of Annie Aster

Wow! This book was like a wild roller coaster ride - in a good way. It begins with a couple of quirky yet likeable characters, then adds some time traveling through a magical door, a murder mystery, an evil villain with a weird accomplice, an endearing orphan ringleader - themes of abandonment, love, loss, misfits, loyalty, friendship - and most importantly, a strong unconventional heroine. Written in a "deliciously droll" style, what kicks this novel up several notches from the typical time travel plot are the continuous unique twists and surprises (just like the roller coaster mentioned earlier).

Annabelle Aster is kind of a woman-out-of-her-time. She may live in San Francisco in 1995 but she dresses in vintage clothes, takes tea and not just the drink but the whole British tea-time ritual, and she lives in a big aubergine (don’t call it purple) Victorian house. Then she installs a particularly ugly red door with interesting carvings on the back of her house and her whole life is transformed. When she walks through the door, instead of her garden, she discovers a small farmhouse amid a Kansas wheat field. There is also a mailbox. When she receives a letter from her new neighbour, it begins an adventure that will take her half way across the country and one hundred years back in time.

The Lemoncholy Life of Annie Aster is the show more debut novel by Scott Wilbanks and what a fun tale it is. It is chock full of misfit characters who, although perhaps somewhat idealized, are extremely likeable. There is also time travel, an interesting mystery, a metaphorically moustache-twirling villain and his equally evil although less loquacious sidekick, and the kind of story that sucks you in right from the first page and keeps you curled up reading late into the night – the perfect anytime read when you want something light but satisfying. show less

f there is such a thing as a cozy sci-fi magical realism love story, this is it. The characters are endearing, multi-dimensional misfits that somehow fit together beautifully.
I have to admit that the first thing that drew me in was the title itself. I love a neologism and this one, plus the artwork for the cover, just made me want to curl up with some lemony tea and dive right in-which is what I did.
The plot is full of twists and turns, some a little predictable but others completely and delightfully unexpected. This is a tale that involves time travel, three love stories and a strong dose of dark humor, peppered with brilliant descriptions and gripping, gut wrenching moments that reflect on the power of love, family, friendship and show more magic.
I enjoyed the book immensely but when I read the interview part in the back of the book and discovered that Christian was based on the author himself, and Edmund on his close friend, I loved them even more.
They are all thoughtfully and tenderly written, the dialogue witty and well-paced and the end satisfying enough to make you feel like you got what you were promised but also open enough that you keep wondering what happened to Annie and her motley family of outcasts. show less

For most of the story, I thought it was clever and well written. Annie and Elsbeth are memorable and charming characters. There are some Fantasy elements involved, including a magic door that allows anyone who knows how to use it to time travel. There are also some Classic Literature elements such as Annie's obsession with the Victorian Era. To top it off, the "present" time of Annie's life is during the 1990s. I had a few moments of nostalgia with little details like the sound of the dial-up modem Annie used to connect to her AOL account.

However, sometimes the dialogue was difficult to understand and made me feel as if I had somehow missed important information. Have you ever been thinking something and tell someone when you're in the show more middle of your thoughts and they give you a confused look because they weren't privy to what was going on in your head? That's how some of the characters' conversations felt to me. It was as if the author already knew the characters inside and out but forgot to fill the reader in on some of the background. The same thing happened with some of the later plot points. I got the impression that the explanation for why some things occurred was obvious to the author, but he forgot that the reader wouldn't know.

Despite the missing information, The Lemoncholy Life of Annie Aster was an enjoyable light Summer read. If you're a fan of Victorian times or non-Science Fiction style time travel, and you want a book that doesn't require a lot of mental energy, this book might be for you. show less

Annie is a twenty-something woman living in a Victorian house in San Francisco in 1995 when a rose garden, picket fence (complete with mailbox), and a wheat field with a distant farmhouse suddenly appears in her backyard one day. Meanwhile, in 1895 Kansas, elderly widow Elsbeth Grundy is less than thrilled when a purple and gold confection of a house appears in her back forty. As Annie and Elsbeth start writing letters back and forth, they realize larger forces are at work in connecting their homes across the years and in trying to solve the riddle they’ll expose themselves to even greater dangers.

An interesting mix of historical fiction, magical realism, and time travel, I found this tale to be an interesting take on a time travel show more tale. Willbanks creates a compelling cast of central characters and while some of the plot twists were a bit predictable and felt a teensy bit cliched in some moments, the writing is so well done, I didn't mind. A lot of appeal factors so if any of them tickle your fancy, I highly recommend picking up this book and giving it a whirl. show less

I read a lot of reviews since this book's release that said the story left the reader flat, as though it didn't quite live up to the reader's expectations. I bought it anyway because, cover love.

Perhaps because of these reviews my expectations were adjusted accordingly, or maybe the book was just more suited to my tastes; either way, I quite enjoyed it and stayed up way too late last night because I couldn't stop reading until I was finished. I liked Annie and Christian and Mrs. Grundy. I'm not actually a time travel fan and towards the end the story's logic starting chasing its own tail, reminding me why, but the characters and the 'mystery' kept me invested.

The plot has several twists: I guessed one and talked myself out of it, show more totally nailed the second one and didn't see the third one coming at all. So, all in all, a solid four-star read. show less

I wasn't sure if I was going to get into this book (I started it in the car on the way to an out of town swim meet with 3 kids) but I fell in love with these characters and their stories. I loved all the twists and turns. Annie and Elsbeth were such interesting characters. I loved their banter and the way they connected. There were so many characters that I would love to see again Edmond, Christian, Cap'n. It was a book that I might not ordinarily pick up but I am glad I did.