The Victory Garden: A Novel

Description

From the bestselling author of The Tuscan Child comes a beautiful and heart-rending novel of a woman's love and sacrifice during the First World War. As the Great War continues to take its toll, headstrong twenty-one-year-old Emily Bryce is determined to contribute to the war effort. She is convinced by a cheeky and handsome Australian pilot that she can do more, and it is not long before she falls in love with him and accepts his proposal of marriage. When he is sent back to the front, Emily volunteers as a "land girl," tending to the neglected grounds of a large Devonshire estate. It's here that Emily discovers the long-forgotten journals of a medicine woman who devoted her life to her herbal garden. The journals inspire Emily, and in the wake of devastating news, they are her saving grace. Emily's lover has not only died a hero but has left her terrified - and with child. Since no one knows that Emily was never married, she adopts the charade of a war widow. As Emily learns more about the volatile power of healing with herbs, the found journals will bring her to the brink of disaster, but may open a path to her destiny.

Rhys Bowen is the New York Times bestselling author of more than forty novels, including Above the Bay of Angels, The Victory Garden, The Tuscan Child, and the World War II-based In Farleigh Field, the winner of the Macavity and Left Coast Crime Awards for Best Historical Mystery Novel and the Agatha Award for Best Historical Mystery. Bowen's work has won twenty honors to date, including multiple Agatha, Anthony, and Macavity Awards. Her books have been translated into many languages, and she has fans around the world. A transplanted Brit, Bowen divides her time between California and Arizona. To learn more about the author, visit www.rhysbowen.com.

"Tragedies strike, yet people grow and pull together in this rewarding romantic historical romp. Lovers of history will better understand the sacrifices in England during the Great War, while romance fans will revel in the engagement and growth of the characters. Another great read from the award-winning author." -Library Journal "Bowen has created subtle depth of theme and character by layering in women from multiple generations...[Her] masterful weaving of these tales builds a nuanced, thematic portrayal of the inherent strengths of women and the male hackles such power can raise." -Historical Novel Society "The Victory Garden is a stunning piece of historical fiction that will grab you from the first page." -San Diego Entertainer "A deftly penned novel by an author with a distinctive flair for originality and an entertaining narrative storytelling style that will hold the reader's rapt attention from beginning to end." -Midwest Book Review "A captivating story about a determined young woman who learns that she must fight for the people and things that she cares about in a rapidly changing world." -The Concord Insider