An Amazon Charts bestseller.
A novel of secrets, memory, family, and forgiveness by the bestselling author of When Never Comes.
Lizzy Moon never wanted Moon Girl Farm. Eight years ago, she left the land that nine generations of gifted healers had tended, determined to distance herself from the whispers about her family’s strange legacy. But when her beloved grandmother Althea dies, Lizzy must … grandmother Althea dies, Lizzy must return and face the tragedy still hanging over the farm’s withered lavender fields: the unsolved murders of two young girls, and the cruel accusations that followed Althea to her grave.
Lizzy wants nothing more than to sell the farm and return to her life in New York, until she discovers a journal Althea left for her—a Book of Remembrances meant to help Lizzy embrace her own special gifts. When she reconnects with Andrew Greyson, one of the few in town who believed in Althea’s innocence, she resolves to clear her grandmother’s name.
But to do so, she’ll have to decide if she can accept her legacy and whether to follow in the footsteps of all the Moon women who came before her.
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This book was just the break I needed; sinking into beautiful the prose–so calming. Unrequited love, bitter judgement, fear and bravery, loss and love, all interwoven with magical touches. A retelling of one family’s journey to live in peace with their neighbors while using their special gifts. The superstitious beliefs that caused such pain for the girls. I was satisfied with the ending,too.
Amazon July First Read
Everything I love in a book. A glorious, magical read.
I loved every magical minute of this book. Lovable, relatable, flawed characters on a growth journey, a page-turning mystery, a little magic, a healthy dose of romance and great writing. Highly recommended!
Barbara Davis has written a hauntingly beautiful story of family history and belonging in her novel “The Last of the Moon Girls.” It brought me sadness of what life would be like without my own family. The beauty of the story, though, gave some insight on the power of forgiveness. The story reminds you that family history can never be forgotten.
Lizzy Moon, the main character, has some difficult decisions after her Grandmother, Althea, dies. Althea leaves her journal to Lizzy. “You’re all that’s left, the last and best of us.” Lizzy wants to forget that she is part of generations of women who were gifted healers. She does not want to leave her life in New York to go back to her childhood home on Moon Girl Farms. She needs to return to sell the farm but is shattered to find the property deteriorated and the lavender fields in decline. To make matters worse, the town is harassing her about the unsolved murders of two young girls that taunted her Grandmother to the end of her days.
I absolutely loved this book including the stunning cover! It gave me feelings from heartbreak to cheering for Lizzy as she struggles with her decisions. Barbara Davis has such a beautiful talent for tapping into the readers’ emotions, creating excitement to read the next page. I highly recommend this book for anyone wanting a book that will keep you captivated and will echo in your mind well after you have closed the back cover.
I am so grateful to receive an advance reader’s copy in a giveaway from the author in exchange for an honest and fair review.
The Last of the Moon Girls by Barbara Davis was a beautifully written book, that will keep you turning the pages until the very end. I have never read one of this authors books before, I don’t know how I have missed out on her books before now. The book is so well written, you feel like you are a part of the storyline as you read it. This book brings you full circle from betrayal to redemption and forgiveness. I would highly recommend this book to everyone. I was lucky enough to receive an ARC in a giveaway, and was under no obligation to give a good review. All thoughts here are my own, and this is my honest and fair review.
Barbara did a wonderful job on The Last Of The Moon Girls. It was one book that I couldn’t put down. I thought the way Lizzy Moon had to hear about her grandmother passing was terrible then that she was left the Moon Girl Farm. But she left because she went to school to get the job she wanted to do and that was to make perfume and she loved doing it . She didn’t want to follow the Moon family way of living. She also felt that she wanted to live a normal life and that was like in New York. Then when she returned to Salem Creek she wanted to clear her grandma’s name about what happened to the Gilman girls. She started asking question and things started happened. She also had help from the same guy that helped her in school. Andrew Greyson has been in love with her since he first saw her as he told her. he was always there to protector her. He was her knight when she was need to be saved. He also told her he would always be there for her. He was there 18 years and he would be there 80 more if he had to be. He was in love with in love with her and she was in love with him she just didn’t want to admit it because she thought she couldn’t have the happily – ever- after relationship. A lot has happened in the time she was there. She read her grandmother book and she had learned a lot from it.
She also got to know her mother and her grandmothers book and that made her see things can change.
This was a book show that when something happens to a family sometime it takes work to bring you closer together and a friend to help you see that maybe a second chance is all that is needed. Second is all anyone sometimes need like with Andrew and Lizzy you don’t know what is going to happen because the story keeps you turning the pages.
Barbara’s description was there I felt like I was there. Even thought I live close to where Barbara lives and based the book from New Hampshire I felt the pain and tears that came with the book.
Barbara Thank You for letting me read your work it was incredible and amazing to get the feeling of your writing .
Barbara Davis demonstrates her skill with the written word in this beautiful novel that is part magic, part redemption and part family legacy. Lizzy Moon has a lucrative position in a big city but decides to go home to Moon Girl Farm to wrap up the affairs of her deceased grandmother’s estate. Althea lived on Moon Girl Farm her whole life and sadly did not live to see Lizzy’s return, but she did leave her a book that spanned the generations of the Moon girls who had lived there before her. In this “Book of Remembrances,”. Althea offers Lizzy wisdom, sage advice and the recipes for her herbal remedies and soaps that the local townspeople used to buy. Lizzy wants to sell the farm, but first she has to get it repaired by hunky former beau Andrew Greyson. Since Lizzy has to stay anyway until she can get the repairs done, she decides to investigate the murder of two young teens for whom Althea was blamed but never formally charged. Althea’s reputation suffered, but Lizzy left before she could see the effects on her dearly loved grandmother’s life. My favorite character was Evvie because she stuck with Althea when Lizzy left and because she understood from personal experience what it was like to be judged by past deeds or appearances. The suspense in the book built as Lizzy gets closer and closer to the truth about the deaths of the teens; the ending was absolutely perfect! In fact, the entire book was very well written with prose that was almost poetic in places. I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys books about family, forgiveness, love, hope and believing in oneself. This was the first book that I have read by this author and I was very impressed by the depth of her characters and her storytelling ability. It was like I was in a chair around a fire and she was actually telling me the story aloud. So good!
Disclaimer
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author via an online giveaway. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255, “Guides Concerning the Use of Testimonials and Endorsements in Advertising.”
THE LAST OF THE MOON GIRLS by Barbara Davis is a beautifully-written and enchanting story of family, love, forgiveness and healing. Elzibeth “Lizzy” Moon is now the last living Moon girl in a line of nine generations of women with special healing gifts that have been both a blessing and a curse for her family over the decades. They have always lived on the family’s farm in a small New England community and used their wisdom, kindness and magick to help their neighbors, but when two young girls turn up dead in a pond on the property, the townspeople are quick to accuse Lizzy’s grandmother, Althea of murder. Sick over the tragedy and the baseless allegations against her family, Lizzy flees to New York, vowing never to return. Eight years later, Lizzy is called back to the farm after learning of grandmother’s death. She wants nothing more than to sell everything, settle the estate and get back to her own life. Lizzy soon discovers a journal that Althea left for her and so begins a haunting exploration of her family’s legacy and the long-buried secrets of the ancestors who came before her. I was totally drawn into Lizzy’s heart-wrenching journey to reconcile her past with the present and her hopes for the future. The characters were so wonderfully-portrayed that I felt like I knew them personally and could feel their very emotions. This story held me captive from beginning to end and stayed on my mind long after that. I loved this compelling and magical book and highly recommend it. Many thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for a chance to read an early copy.
The Last of the Moon Girls is a beautifully written novel that will keep you intrigued from beginning to end! Lizzy Moon has to return back to her hometown after the death of her grandmother. Intending to be there for only a week to put the farm up for sale and package a few mementos, Lizzy has no idea what she will be up against. From trying to clear her grandmother’s name in an eight year old murder case to guarding her heart from next door neighbor, Andrew Greyson, Lizzy has to fight to guard her heart, as well as, her life. Author Barbara Davis has written a masterpiece! I look forward to see what she has in store for her readers next!
Linda’s Book Obsession Reviews “The Last of the Moon Girls” by Barbara Davis, Lake Union Publishing, August 1, 2020.
Barbara Davis, author of “The Last of the Moon Girls” has written a unique, captivating, intriguing and compelling novel. The Genres for this novel are Fiction and Magical Realism, Mystery and Suspense. The timeline for this story is set in the present and goes to the past when it pertains to the characters or events. The author describes her characters as complicated and complex.
Lizzy Moon has just had a great promotion at her job in the city when she gets a message that her Grandmother Althea has passed away. Lizzy being the last Moon daughter also will inherit the Moon Girl Farm. The last thing Lizzy wants is anything to do with the Moon Girl Farm. Years earlier, two girls had been murdered and Althea Moon was found innocent, but nevertheless blamed by the local community. The Moon women and their daughters were regarded as witches by some people, who were afraid of the herbal medicines and quirky traditions.
The grounds of the farm, as well as the house, and shed need lots of work. If Lizzy wants to sell the land, she will have to fix everything. When Lizzy arrives at the Moon Girl Farm, she sees that a friend of Althea is living there, and also sees that their next-door neighbor Andrew is trying to fix some of the things on her property.
Althea has left Lizzy a special book from each of the Moon girls through history, and a separate book just for Lizzy. Andrew is attracted to Lizzy and the “light” that seems to emanate from her. Lizzy is determined to clear her grandmother’s name, never realizing the threats and danger she is putting herself in.
I appreciate that the author discusses the importance of being yourself, and doing what makes your life better. Also mentioned is learning to forgive, giving second chances, believing in yourself, the importance of family, friends, love, hope, and making your own magic. I highly recommend this thought-provoking book.
Each of us comes in to the world with a story to tell.” For Lizzy Moon, she thought she knew what her story would be. She’d left her childhood home with all of its memories and heartaches, and had built a new, successful life for herself. When she returns to Moon Girl Farm following the death of her grandmother, old wounds are reopened, but so are the possibilities of a life she never dreamed she could have. This hauntingly beautiful novel transcends genre–it is a mystery, it is magical, it is a story of legacy and reconciliation and home. I was so drawn to Lizzy, enthralled by her story, her doubts, her fears, her dreams; I felt every step of her journey to find herself, to reconcile her past, to follow her heart, and to write her own story, to find her magick. My heart was completely engaged while reading this book, as I went though a myriad of emotions; there were times my heart nearly stopped, times my heart was broken, times my heart was hopeful, times my heart was overflowing with love.
THE LAST OF THE MOON GIRLS is an intoxicating page-turner wrapped around an unsolved double homicide. It’s the story of Elzibeth, a successful perfume maker with a closely guarded secret: she can read people by their scent. Her unique gift is a legacy and a curse, because it identifies her as the last in a long line of mystical women.
Mothers, grandmothers, and healers, the Moon women have deep roots in a small New England community that has treated them with suspicion and fear and, in the last decade, labeled Elzibeth’s grandmother, Althea, a murderer.
When Althea dies, Elzibeth reluctantly leaves her New York world for the ailing family farm and discovers a treasure trove of her grandmother’s wisdom, written down in The Book of Remembrances.
The story that follows is a unique blend of herbal healing, dark truths, and family secrets. Add a sexy neighbor, and townsfolk who don’t want Elizabeth digging up the past, and THE LAST OF THE MOON GIRLS is a compelling read. As Elzibeth struggles to honor her legacy and write her own future, we discover Barbara Davis at her best!
For some people family legacy and history can be something they want no part of. This is the case for Lizzy Moon, or her proper name, Elzibeth Moon,”She couldn’t even have a normal name”, the last in the line of gifted healers she’s descended from. Nine generations have come before her and now it all comes down to Lizzy. She’s inherited the Moon Girl Farm from her grandmother, Althea, after she passes away. Lizzy has been gone from the farm for eight years making her own future away from the finger pointing, humiliation and mostly the rejection of her own mother, Rhanna. Now she’s faced with returning to her childhood memories and saying goodbye once and for all. Her grandmother has left her a library of nine journals, “Books of Remembrances”, all written by her ancestors with one story still to be told. Hers.
What will be the story in Lizzy’s journal? Will she even write a single word in it? She has no desire to be connected to or keep Moon Girl Farm. She’s the Last of the Moon Girls and the sooner that happens, the better. As Lizzy returns to the farm to prepare to sell it, she feels a pull to clear her grandmother’s name for the awful deaths of two young girls found in the pond on the property. Opening wounds of a town that has no tolerance for the Moon Girls is risky but she knows in her heart who her grandmother was. Finding the truth is her one last gift to her grandmother.
Thus I began the journey with Lizzy. From the prologue that magickly captured me with the voice of Althea, through the pages of Lizzy’s journey, Ms. Davis’ storytelling skills had me lost in them. Turning them with anticipation, eager to follow Lizzy through the emotional challenges of her choices and where they would lead. I fell into the history, magick and the beliefs of the Moon Girls as Lizzy remembers her childhood. The characters of Evvie, Rhanna, and Andrew are descriptively written and intricately woven through Lizzy’s decisions and emotional choices. I loved how the final written words of Althea to Lizzy were perfectly inserted as the story unfolded. Guiding Lizzy as she faced forgiving and letting go. Helping her with the choices she needed to make.
For me this was an enthralling escape into a beautifully written story. It was the story of Lizzy. A Moon Girl. What would the words be that filled “The Book of Elzibeth”? “There are a hundred names for what we are-and all of them are wrong. Because we’re not one thing. We’re many things.” The journey for each of us is unique. Lizzy’s journey was a generational legacy that she trekked through to discover her place in that lineage.
I want to thank Ms. Davis for the copy of this intriguing and intricately written book. I am very honored for the opportunity to have read it. I loved it! All opinions and thoughts are my heartfelt own. It’s a five star read for me.
Barbara Davis weaves a wonderful story with characters you quickly embrace, leaving us with a reminder that we all must create our own stories, that they are ours alone.
This did remind me a great deal of Alice Hoffman’s style, but at the same time remained orginal to its own story as opposed to borrowing/sampling. I enjoyed the complex, conflicted characters. Now, I wouldn’t call it a mystery, but more of women’s fiction.
It kept me up well past my bedtime. 🙂
Would give it a 4.5. The only thing that bothered me was the all was well in the end. Years of hate and discrimination don’t vanish in a coulpe of weeks. People do not give up their prejudices that easy. I won’t say any more because I on’t want to be guilty of spoilers.
Loved it. Great book by a great author
Lizzy left home eight years ago. Her family’s history and also what happened to two young women back then was too painful for her to deal with anymore. Now she has a career and is living somewhere else. But then she feels she has to return home. Her grandmother has passed away and her mother is nowhere to be found. Once she gets back home, Lizzy decides she wants the investigation opened back up. She wants her grandmother to be freed from the accusations. This was a captivating and engrossing story! It focused on the past and what we try so hard to forget about and leave behind. The interactions of the characters were humorous, emotional, and sometimes painful.
Glad I was wearing a mask the other day at the doctor’s office as Barbara Davis-author new book, “The Last of the Moon Girls” had me chuckling out loud! What a great read! This book covers all emotions and is super heart-warming. Her story would make a great movie as the main characters are so well portrayed, (I loved Evvie!). I highly recommend reading Barbara’s book releasing June 23, 2020. Thank you to both Barbara Davis and Linda Levack Zagon for choosing me to read this book. — feeling happy.
When I requested this book from NetGalley, I thought that if the inside were as impressive as the outside, I would be a lucky girl. Well, I’m a lucky girl. This book is a beautifully written, mystical story of a woman who has fought her true destiny as one of the gifted Moon girls who have had the power of healing for nine generations. After her grandmother’s death, Lizzie must return home to the family farm from New York City to settle the estate. She has no intention of staying, but events and people thwart her decision. Lizzie decides to investigate an old mystery that deeply affected her grandmother and turned the townspeople against them. As a result, she receives death threats and is at the receiving end of other strange events. With Andrew’s help, a neighbor from her past who has harbored feelings for her since childhood, she makes small renovations to the property and moves forward with her investigation.
What didn’t I like about this book? Not much, but I did get annoyed with Lizzie at her stubbornness to let Andrew into her life. The story also dragged a bit at times, but not enough to stop me from reading. What else did I like? I loved the letters that her grandmother Althea wrote to her. They were profoundly moving with beautiful words, and I highlighted quite a few. Lizzie and her mother’s unpleasant reunion and subsequent forgiveness, as advised by her grandmother, was also a lovely thing to see.
Thanks so much to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this remarkable book. I gave it 4.25 stars rounded down to four.
Family troubles, the unsolved murders of 2 sisters, a hint of romance, and a touch of magic create an intriguing and compelling story. Original and captivating.
What a story! When Lizzy left Moon Girl Farm years prior, she had no interest in ever returning. She had no idea that her grandma, Althea, the woman who raised her, was sick until it was too late. Now Lizzy must return home to get the farm ready to sell. It doesn’t take her long to realize that things have not changed on the farm or in town.
When she was a little, two missing girls were found in Althea’s pond so the townspeople automatically assumed she had killed them. Seeing Lizzy back in town brings back old memories the towns people don’t want to remember. Never believing her grandma could commit such an act, Lizzy is determined to clear her name. However not everyone is happy that she is snooping around trying to find answers.
This book was nothing like I thought it was going to be. I was pleasantly surprised that a lot of it was about trying to find out who murdered the girls. There is also a little romance along the way, which I loved!
Lizzy never wanted to be a part of the Moon Girls Legacy, or utilize the gifts she was always told she had. However, the more time she spends on the farm and the more time she spends with the only man who ever stood up for her, Lizzy realizes there may be more to her legacy than she thought.
Book Rating: 4.5/5
Wine Pairing: Francis Coppola Diamond Collection Ivory Label Cabernet Sauvignon 2017