One of the characters in my new novel AMARYLLIS IN BLUEBERRY has a condition called synesthesia. What in the world is synesthesia? Technically speaking, synesthesia is the conjoining of two or more senses; stimulation of one sensory or cognitive pathway leads to an automatic, involuntary experience in a second sensory or cognitive pathway. That doesn’t sound all that interesting, does it? But wait. Let’s say you have synesthesia. There are a whole variety of types of synesthesia, some far more prevalent than others. Let’s say you have one of the more common types of synesthesia: you’re a grapheme-color synesthete. You’re writing a check at the grocery store. Using your black pen, you write the check for $56.73. But to you, the number five you write is pink, not black. The number six is orange. Seven is blue. Three is green. Because to you, all fives are pink, all sixes are orange. And so on. Does this mean you are off your rocker? I mean, five does not have an inherent color, right? Reality is reality, right?

Well, not so fast. Synesthetes are not off their rockers. You, synesthete that you are, truly experience all fives as pink. You don’t imagine pink fives. You see them. In your reality, fives are pink, and that’s that. And this is what is so incredibly interesting about synesthesia: it raises some fascinating questions about the nature of reality. All of us must experience reality through our senses. Our senses are the filter through which we must take in the world. But how do we know that our sensory experience of the world matches the sensory experience of our neighbor? And if it doesn’t match, then who’s right? Whose read of reality is the “right” read? It turns out, reality is far more subjective than most of us realize.

So what about my character? Amaryllis, also known as Yllis, is an emotional synesthete. Her experience of different emotional states triggers an automatic and involuntary sensory experience. To Yllis, anger has a smell, joy has a sound, love has a taste—meaning it is very difficult for others to hide their emotions from Yllis. Yllis detects their emotions on a subconscious level then experiences the emotions through her senses. In a way, Yllis is forced to carry others’ burdens, whether the people want to share those burdens or not, because Yllis senses the unspoken.

Did you know there are people like Yllis in the world? Most of us assume that, for the most part, when we see, hear, smell and taste, we are seeing, hearing, smelling and tasting exactly as those around us. Then come synesthetes. Who experience the world differently. Not incorrectly. Differently.

If you want to learn more about synesthesia, Yllis or AMARYLLIS IN BLUEBERRY, please take a look below at some early reviews and a description of AMARYLLIS IN BLUEBERRY.


"Amaryllis in Blueberry is a beautifully written, completely compelling novel that grabbed me from the very first page and wouldn't let me go."
--Kristin Hannah, New York Times bestselling author

"Amaryllis in Blueberry will stay with readers long after its surprising and satisfying ending, and leave book clubs talking late into the night." --Meg Waite Clayton, author of the national bestseller, The Wednesday Sisters

"A perfect melding of family saga, murder mystery and a meditation on faith, loyalty and love, this novel will both haunt and entertain you." --Susan Wiggs, New York Times bestselling author

“A gripping and satisfying read. First you'll race to the end, then you'll tell everyone you know to read it--partly for their benefit, partly so you'll be able to talk about it with someone.”
--Catherine Ryan Hyde, author of Pay It Forward, Becoming Chloe, Jumpstart the World

"Intoxicating... [Meldrum's] combination of coming-of-age and culture clash narratives has a seductive intensity." -- Publisher's Weekly

"With Amaryllis in Blueberry, Christina Meldrum has woven a beautifully layered, intensely emotional story, with unforgettable characters whose voices will remain with you long after their secrets have been revealed." --Michelle Richmond, author of the New York Times and international bestseller The Year of Fog

"Christina Meldrum pierces the facade of a middle American family, exposing the heart of each individual through the unflinching voices of the others. Her keen, distinct prose pulls you into a world both mystical and recognizable. A uniquely memorable read that will stay with you long after you turn the last page." -- Carol Cassella, national bestselling author of Oxygen and Healer

Product Description
In the stirring tradition of The Secret Life of Bees and The Poisonwood Bible, Amaryllis in Blueberry explores the complexity of human relationships set against an unforgettable backdrop. Told through the haunting voices of Dick and Seena Slepy and their four daughters, Christina Meldrum's soulful novel weaves together the past and the present of a family harmed--and healed--by buried secrets.

"Maybe, unlike hope, truth couldn't be contained in a jar..."

Meet the Slepys: Dick, the stern doctor, the naive husband, a man devoted to both facts and faith; Seena, the storyteller, the restless wife, a mother of four, a lover of myth. And their children, the Marys: Mary Grace, the devastating beauty; Mary Tessa, the insistent inquisitor; Mary Catherine, the saintly, lost soul; and finally, Amaryllis, Seena's unspoken favorite, born with the mystifying ability to sense the future, touch the past and distinguish the truth tellers from the most convincing liar of all.

When Dick insists his family move from Michigan to the unfamiliar world of Africa for missionary work, he can't possibly foresee how this new land and its people will entrance and change his daughters--and himself--forever.

Nor can he predict how Africa will spur his wife Seena toward an old but unforgotten obsession. In fact, Seena may be falling into a trance of her own. . . .