Susanna Kearsley's unique time-travel romances have gained her renown as an author capable of whisking away readers to another time, in another place, in a world real to our imaginations. With the style of a modern day Daphne Du Maurier, Susanna Kearsley writes with a graceful poise blended with just the right amount of mystery and romantic elements. Following in the footsteps of 2010's The Winter Sea, The Rose Garden brings a mystical Cornish tale to life in an unforgettably elegant way.
Love Crosses the Boundaries of Time
Modern day heroine Eva Ward, heads to the Cornish coast to scatter her sisters ashes in the place they loved best. She counted on the sorrow, on the familiar faces and the melancholy of childhood memories from a time gone by, what she didn't count on was being transported to the eighteenth century and finding love there.
In a miraculous form of time-travel, Eva finds herself constantly swept from the current day to the past, and back again, with no warning whatsoever. In the midst of these surreal events she meets a man who she can never forget, a man she can never have, a man who can do nothing to keep her. Together they learn to take each moment for what it's worth and live every second as if it were their last, because it may very well be.
The characters themselves were believable, even in their unbelievable circumstances, and made the book the unforgettable story it is. Not only do they have to deal with the irony of loving someone centuries younger/older than themselves, but the uncertainty of their tomorrows due to political dangers, smuggling and intrigue, lend a suspense to their already adventurous tale.
Romance Blooms Among the Cornish Roses
The plot, even with its fantastical elements, is a vividly creative one that is effortlessly executed to captivate and enthrall. Susanna Kearsley has a knack for telling stories in a way you want to read over and over again. Her vibrant characters carry the reader through an intricately woven plot that could hold the power to confuse under a lesser author's fingers. With this author, however, the story is dynamic in its depth and adequately fits in with the author's previous works, including one of my all-time favorites; The Winter Sea.
The setting of The Rose Garden takes place at Trelowarth House, a manor on the Cornish coast with a rose garden ripe for a romance and a smuggler's past already filled with intrigue. The house itself brings an indelible display of mysticism that makes the time-travel elements all the more believable. The author's descriptive details, mixed with characters that simply 'fit' right in, make this a book easily recommended to any historical or contemporary romance fiction fan.
About the Author
Susanna Kearsley was a museum curator, studied in politics and international development before she followed her dreams into the literary world. The winner of the UK's Catherine Cookson Fiction prize and finalist for a RITA and the UK Romantic Novel of the Year Award, it is safe to call Susanna Kearsley an award-winning author. She lives in Canada and is hopefully writing more of her escapist literature.
Source
- Kearsley, Susanna, , Sourcebooks Inc., October 2011, ISBN 978-1-4022-5858-9 (Published in UK by Allison and Busby May 2011)
Jessica Hastings - Jessica Hastings is a published author/poet, professional reviewer, and avid reader. Schooled in journalism and creative writing, she ...
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