Beneath a Thousand Apple Trees

Janie DeVos

Aug 2016 · Lyrical Press

About this ebook

As the 20th century dawns, the world is transformed in dizzying ways. But nestled in North Carolina’s Blue Ridge Mountains is a place, and a family, out of time—where one young girl will grow to face the challenges of each generation before her—and discover whether she has the strength to overcome them...

The eldest surviving daughter of Anna Guinn, Rachel rarely ventures far from her home in the Appalachians, aside from an occasional trip into town to trade a penny for a peppermint stick. Sometimes she yearns for more, but as much as she fears her mother’s unstable mind, she is anchored by the strength of her grandmother, Willa. Freed from an abusive marriage, Willa holds the family together through hardship, all the while fulfilling her role as keeper of her neighbors’ carefully guarded secrets—the most painful of which may be her own.

In this isolated, eccentric world where people depend on moonshine to put food on the table, hang talismans to chase away ghosts—and tragedy can strike as suddenly as a coiled copperhead—Rachel wonders what life has in store. Most of all, she worries whether she and her sister have inherited the darkness that lurks inside their mother. Her one respite is the town’s apple orchard, the ally she finds there—and the revelation that she can take her destiny into her own hands, decide what to leave behind—and what is truly worth carrying into the future...

Ratings and reviews

Beneath a Thousand Apple Trees by Janie DeVos is set in Howling Cut, North Carolina in 1916. Grandma Willa is the matriarch of the family. Willa was originally married to Malcom who turned out to be a very violent man. Willa was fortunate to escape him and start a new life (with some help). Willa has one son, Calvin. Calvin married and stayed on the farm. Calvin and his wife had five children (Rachel, Merry Beth, Prescott, and twin boys). But then the influenza hits the family, and the twin boys (the newest babies) do not survive. The mother does not handle their death well and ends up institutionalized (for the sake of the other children). The mother is never the same again. When Rachel was four, she was in an accident at her father’s mill. The leg was not set properly and Rachel has a limp (which causes ridicule from other people). We get to see the children grow up on the farm and see what choices they make. Rachel and Grandma Willa are the main characters in the story and we get to see things through their eyes. We also get to find out about Grandma’s past and how she ended up on the farm. Beneath a Thousand Apple Trees is the story of growing up on a small farm in Howling Cut, North Carolina in the early twentieth century. Beneath a Thousand Apple Trees is a very slow paced story. It contains violent and graphic scenes (very disturbing). The writing is good, and the writer did a very good job at capturing time and place. I did, though, find the book to be dark and depressing (though realistic). It was just not to my liking (I read to escape). I give Beneath a Thousand Apple Trees 3 out of 5 stars (it was okay). I received a complimentary copy of the novel in exchange for an honest review. The comments and opinions expressed are strictly my own.

I absolutely loved this book it was awesomely amazing!

About the author

Janie DeVos is a native of Coral Gables, Florida. She attended Florida State University, then worked in the advertising industry for over a decade, including radio, cable television, public relations and advertising firms. Though her career changed over the years, one thing didn’t— her love of writing. She is an award-winning children's author. Learn more at www.janiedevos.com.