HARVESTING THE SKY

Shadowy provocateurs threaten a Parisian botanist growing medicinal apple trees in this literary thriller.

Polish American Andre Damazy joins a long, treacherous journey in Kazakhstan to find the Tengris. These obscure trees’ white apples have healing properties, which can benefit people around the world. Andre has a personal incentive as well—aiding his mother, who endured a stroke that’s physically weakened her. Though the search team’s haul is meager, it’s enough for Andre to produce Tengri trees in Paris, where he lives and works at a university. Andre’s sponsors, who funded the Tengri search, demand that he produce the trees quickly, as if he can somehow rush the saplings’ growth. But someone apparently opposes his mission, as an anonymous threat warns him not to “tinker with nature” and that “many eyes” are watching him. Andre keeps the Tengris relatively safe inside a locked greenhouse. But that doesn’t stop strangers from attempting sabotage, making ominous phone calls and breaking into his apartment to scare him off. As his paranoia increases, Andre resolves to figure out who’s after him—and why. As in Hugg’s last book, The Forgetting Flower (2019), this botanical tale fuels suspense. It’s an effective slow burn, as an unidentified menace gradually inches closer to Andre. This subtle approach carries over to the characters, too, including Andre’s romantic feelings for plant shopkeeper Renia Baranczka, the hero of the author’s preceding novel, who helps manage the Tengris. Moreover, this story’s protagonist struggles with torturous regret surrounding a years-old incident that ultimately comes to light. Hugg, a certified horticulturist, displays her knowledge and skills with vivid descriptions of plants and cultivation. But her prose shines throughout, as she establishes an unsettling tone merely detailing the environment: “The sidewalks were empty, the metal screens shut….Clusters of green recycling bins sat like hunched trolls on the curb.”

Strong characterization propels this gripping botanical tale.