The Lavender Garden

The Lavender Garden by Lucinda Riley.

Paperback: 416 pages
Publisher: Atria Books;(June 11, 2013)
ISBN-10: 1476703558

 

 

From Booklist

When Emilie de la Martinieres, the sole surviving member of an aristocratic French family, returns to her childhood home to settle her mother’s estate, she expects to confront a number of long-buried memories. She never expects to meet Sebastian, a charming young art dealer with an all-too-perfect connection to her family. As Emilie’s relationship with Sebastian deepens, more questions about her family’s history begin to surface. With sections alternating between Emilie’s discoveries in 1998 at the family estate and the time her grandmother spent in 1944 in Paris, The Lavender Garden is a sweeping, engrossing work. Riley is talented, delighting in the small details of aristocratic luxury and the pastoral countryside. The sections focusing on Emilie’s grandmother, a young clerk working as an undercover agent for the Allied cause in Nazi-occupied Paris, are particularly engaging. The heroines of The Lavender Garden struggle to master circumstances seemingly beyond their control, a common thread in Riley’s work. A tale of family secrets, wartime espionage, and loyalties gained and gambled, The Lavender Garden will appeal to fans of historical fiction, Kate Morton, and Helen Bryan.

 

Well.. my first book (other than History ) that takes place in France (but a tiny bit in England!).

I do like when family secrets are the main story.  Some include murder, some do not.  This book consisted of the "now", 1998, and her family history being told to her, 1944 .  A number of things that happen along the way you can figure out right away and sometimes I wondered if I should continue with the book.. I did... and I am glad because in the end it was a feel good book.

The strange thing for me is that I never did get a "picture in my mind" of France.  But of course the descriptive parts of the War were pretty clear. A few very interesting characters are flushed out nicely so that you have your distinct likes and dislikes!

This is my second book by Lucinda Riley. I have read The Girl on the Cliff, which was enjoyable also.

I guess it's safe to say that this is the last book for August!  I finished it yesterday and have begun yet another book.  There's always "another book"!  Thank goodness!