Book Review: The Rose Garden by Susanna Kearsley

Another Great Yarn by this Author

Time Travel and Love

I have read other books by this author and there are some consistent themes in her books. They typically take place in both the present and the past, blending history and romance with current settings. In previous books, Kearsley has incorporated ghosts and strong bonds to ancestors, but this particular story focuses more on time travel without being a science fiction book.

Eva Ward is mourning the loss of her vibrant sister and is charged with the unenviable task of finding a final resting place for her ashes. Her brother in law asks her to take on the task of scattering them when he can not think of a place on his own, asking her to locate the place "where she was the happiest".

So begins Eva's journey back to the Cornish coast, to a place filled with the happiest memories of her childhood when her intact family summered there on vacations, before they moved to America. She is welcomed back and finds comfort with the family that runs the inn. However, before Eva can get too comfortable, strange things start to happen. A path appears in the gardens that is not there and she begins to see what she thinks are visions. She also hears voices from the past and begins a journey to the past where previous owners of the inn live.

Eva must decide which world she will live in as she must choose to stay in the present or travel for good to the past. This book is romantic and has a little bit of comedy and history thrown into the mix. It reminds me of other books I have enjoyed from the Outlander series, as well as the book A Knight in Shining Armor that was rereleased after being a hit in the late 1980's, but there are some different twists to this story that seemed to make it more magical.

Recommend!