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3.64 AVERAGE
3.64 AVERAGE
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
A dual timeline family mystery with a bit of paranormal vibes, the author has done amazing for her debut novel. This novel is all about tragedy, grief, family history and the drama that comes with it. Francine Thwaite, a loner, cut off from the world, lives in the company of ghosts from the past, finds herself with lodgers and her sister moving in her 500 year old manor. Her sister Madeleine comes by with a shocking revelation of their family history that Francine has no memory of. The book takes us through the sisters finding out about their heartbreaking family history as Francine recollects the repressed memories from her childhood. Shannon Morgan has exceptionally engages us readers through the timelines from the memories from the past and the present. Love how the sisters bonded as the book progressed, loved the ghosts from the past (love how Bree protects her sister). The story could be a little dragging in the beginning but the story caught on and the core story settings was quite clever. Loved how the author incorporated the language of flowers, was so beautiful reading about the flowers and the herbs. This would be perfect for someone who loves a mystery, family drama with paranormal settings.
I struggled to get into this book, but objectively the story wasn’t bad.
**Thank you, NetGalley and Kensington Books, for sending me this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.**
As someone who loves gothic mystery/thrillers, I was immediately intrigued by this novel's premise. The main character, Francine, is a middle-aged loner who has shunned most people her entire life. She lives alone in her Elizabethan-era manor, except for occasional tenants she rents out one of the manor's wings to, and... the ghosts.
Francine is rather crotchety, and I can understand if other readers don't warm to her. But I ended up liking her, and most of the other characters, quite a bit. And although part of this novel's plot is that she can't remember her early childhood, once she does start to remember, her personality and behaviour make sense.
This novel has a lot of twists and turns, and I didn't find anything too predictable — I was kept guessing until most of the reveals. And some of those reveals are pretty heavy... But this novel is kept balanced by some lovely wordplay and interspersed with humour. Her Little Flowers is definitely worth reading.
As someone who loves gothic mystery/thrillers, I was immediately intrigued by this novel's premise. The main character, Francine, is a middle-aged loner who has shunned most people her entire life. She lives alone in her Elizabethan-era manor, except for occasional tenants she rents out one of the manor's wings to, and... the ghosts.
Francine is rather crotchety, and I can understand if other readers don't warm to her. But I ended up liking her, and most of the other characters, quite a bit. And although part of this novel's plot is that she can't remember her early childhood, once she does start to remember, her personality and behaviour make sense.
This novel has a lot of twists and turns, and I didn't find anything too predictable — I was kept guessing until most of the reveals. And some of those reveals are pretty heavy... But this novel is kept balanced by some lovely wordplay and interspersed with humour. Her Little Flowers is definitely worth reading.
3.75 It was too slow for the first half. It did get interesting and much better, but not 4⭐️ better.
loved the flower metaphors, the fact that the setting was at the lakes, and the ghosties. enjoyable and I’d recommend it but not like INCREDIBLE ya know?
This book made me cry. TW: abusive husband and father.
I loved the language of flowers used throughout the story. I loved the structure between the current storyline and slow unfolding of what happened on a monumental day in the past. The sisters have my heart. As I sat in my screen room and hit the moment where we gain clarity the church bells of my small town started being carried on the wind making the scene especially poignant for me.
If I could change anything it would be the wobbly romance that felt unnecessary. If I remove that thread this was a perfect read for me. A classic gothic horror with hauntings, a living ancient manor with too much history, tragedy, mystery, sisterly bonds and an eerie insane asylum moment.
I loved the language of flowers used throughout the story. I loved the structure between the current storyline and slow unfolding of what happened on a monumental day in the past. The sisters have my heart. As I sat in my screen room and hit the moment where we gain clarity the church bells of my small town started being carried on the wind making the scene especially poignant for me.
If I could change anything it would be the wobbly romance that felt unnecessary. If I remove that thread this was a perfect read for me. A classic gothic horror with hauntings, a living ancient manor with too much history, tragedy, mystery, sisterly bonds and an eerie insane asylum moment.
A slow burn mystery. A little spooky but not too scary. I binged it after about 30% because I needed to know what had happened. I can see some predictability and maybe a little cheesy with the ghost story but overall I really enjoyed this book.
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
this was fine, but it had two of my biggest pet peeves, recovered childhood trauma and children making sacrifices to save everyone (not their job. never their job.)