Title: The Last Garden in England
Author:
Julia Kelly
Genre:
Gardening, historical fiction, romance
Summary:
Present day:
Emma Lovett, who has dedicated her career to breathing new life into
long-neglected gardens, has just been given the opportunity of a
lifetime: to restore the gardens of the famed Highbury House estate,
designed in 1907 by her hero Venetia Smith. But as Emma dives deeper
into the gardens’ past, she begins to uncover secrets that have
long lain hidden.
1907:
A talented artist with a growing reputation for her ambitious work,
Venetia Smith has carved out a niche for herself as a garden designer
to industrialists, solicitors, and bankers looking to show off their
wealth with sumptuous country houses. When she is hired to design the
gardens of Highbury House, she is determined to make them a triumph,
but the gardens—and the people she meets—promise to change her
life forever.
1944:
When land girl Beth Pedley arrives at a farm on the outskirts of the
village of Highbury, all she wants is to find a place she can call
home. Cook Stella Adderton, on the other hand, is desperate to leave
Highbury House to pursue her own dreams. And widow Diana Symonds, the
mistress of the grand house, is anxiously trying to cling to her
pre-war life now that her home has been requisitioned and transformed
into a convalescent hospital for wounded soldiers. But when war
threatens Highbury House’s treasured gardens, these three very
different women are drawn together by a secret that will last for
decades.
Rating:
Very Good
Why
I Like It: This
book was very interesting because it covered a range of topics:
garden design, gardening, war history, land girls, etc.
Reviewer:
Nancy Bucher
