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biblio_gabriella 's review for:
The Last Garden in England
by Julia Kelly
content warnings: classism, pregnancy, war/bombing, death of a parent, miscarriage, death of a child
This is a well-written historical fiction novel with a lovely gardening emphasis. The chapter POV’s switch between five characters across three different time periods. I enjoyed spending time with these five women – each flawed yet likeable in her own way – and the friends they make along their respective journeys. Some of these characters experience new romantic relationships (which were sweet but not spectacular), but not every character is paired up at the end, which was nice to see.I loved that there was no mention of Stella ever having a male partner, or even wanting one for that matter. In one scene, Stella attends a friend’s wedding and thinks “…that she was witnessing something she would never experience. May never want to experience.” I love how we’re free to interpret her romantic life/lack thereof however we wish (my headcanon is that she’s on the ace/aro spectrum).
While I liked this book, I didn’t love it. It wasn’t until around the 50% mark that I started to see how the storylines could merge aside from the Highbury garden setting. Up until then, I felt that something was lacking: probably that the characters’ stories could have been more engaging (or written in a more engaging way). Two characters experience climactic moments during the second half of the book, but only one of them touched me the way I think it was meant to. And when we find out how all five storylines are connected, I found it a bit underwhelming (even though the events themselves were not underwhelming, just…kinda sudden for a story of this length?). My final impression was that the book was nice – full of friendship and love – but not exactly memorable.
If you enjoy historical fiction and you’re interested in gardening, this could be the perfect book for you!
I received an advanced reading copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
This is a well-written historical fiction novel with a lovely gardening emphasis. The chapter POV’s switch between five characters across three different time periods. I enjoyed spending time with these five women – each flawed yet likeable in her own way – and the friends they make along their respective journeys. Some of these characters experience new romantic relationships (which were sweet but not spectacular), but not every character is paired up at the end, which was nice to see.
While I liked this book, I didn’t love it. It wasn’t until around the 50% mark that I started to see how the storylines could merge aside from the Highbury garden setting. Up until then, I felt that something was lacking: probably that the characters’ stories could have been more engaging (or written in a more engaging way). Two characters experience climactic moments during the second half of the book, but only one of them touched me the way I think it was meant to. And when we find out how all five storylines are connected, I found it a bit underwhelming (even though the events themselves were not underwhelming, just…kinda sudden for a story of this length?). My final impression was that the book was nice – full of friendship and love – but not exactly memorable.
If you enjoy historical fiction and you’re interested in gardening, this could be the perfect book for you!
I received an advanced reading copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.