I thoroughly enjoyed Sarah Harrison’s writing of this plot. It took me a little while to get into the book, but once there was riveted.

From the opening pages one might derive that The Rose in Winter is a thriller novelette, when in reality this is a case of historical romance. And a rather unusual one, too, though the summary sounds familiar: The year is 1929; a genteel debutante declines the advances of a respectable but dull military official, and instead engages in an affair with someone far below her own station; then things must obviously go wrong, or else she wouldn't narrate the story in 1953, as the widow of aforementioned respectable man, hiding in the kitchen.

For fear of spoiling the book, I can't say much more about its contents other than this: it's character-driven and slow-paced and it makes you wonder. (Even now that I'm writing this review, months after the actual read, I'm still not sure how to best describe it.) Wonder what I would have done in the protagonist's stead. After all, the entire time the reader is fully aware that a relationship with charismatic, streetwise Johnny can't have a happy end, that there's something wrong with him, though one can't quite put a finger on it... and yet he is so very likeable. The characters and the exquisitely constructed unease surrounding them was what kept me turning the pages.

Suffice it to say, the story did not take the expected turn. Especially the ending - those last few exhilarating pages - left me with the bitter aftertaste of realism. I personally think that finale was jaw-dropping, exactly because (view spoiler). It still makes me think why on earth that came as a suprise. Probably because I'm used to positive or at least bittersweet outcomes in romance novels, and to not having to use logical thinking while reading them. Well, then consider this book the slap in the face that brought me back down to earth. It was great!

This took me back to the years when I read all Sarah Harrison's books as a young woman. She has such style and carries a story along so gracefully and fluidly. Every sentence is a gem. I recently re-read "Flowers In the Field' on i-books which was a nostalgic journey. For Barbara it is a one-sided romance. At first she refuses her suitor on those grounds but I expect in her position chances were few. No doubt a lot of marriages were built on sand in those days. I was willing her to make different decisions. There's such a poignancy to the writing that it's almost like reading poetry. Thank you to NetGalley and Severn for letting me read it. I shall post it to Amazon and my blog.

EXCERPT: 1953 - Barbara flitted across the hall and paused - face to the wall, breath held. Silence lay in the dim rooms all around, rain roared on the windows. She gasped and ran again, pattering along the passage to the kitchen on wings of fear, quick and light as a moth. If she didn't breathe, if her feet scarcely touched the ground, perhaps she would be invisible. Everywhere in the house was unseasonably dark because of the rain, which had been falling all day long and showed no sign of abating. The downpour would obscure the view of anyone looking in, but would it hide them from her too? How would she know who was out there? And where?

THE BLURB: What if the one that got away comes back? Barbara Delahay's past returns to haunt her in this compelling novel of romantic suspense.

1929. 17-year-old Barbara Delahay was a beauty, a young and untouched English rose, enjoying the social whirl of the debutante season. It was inevitable she would attract male attention. However, Barbara caught the eye of someone charismatic but wholly unsuitable. Someone damaged. Drawn under his spell, she almost succumbed, but escaped just in time to marry the decent but dull Brigadier Govan, a man 25 years her senior.

Now in 1953, the day of the new Queen's coronation, in an empty house with the rain rushing down the windows, the widowed Barbara is cowering in fear. For she knows who's out there, calling her name, seeking her out ? Her past has returned to claim her, and this time it won't be so easy to deny.

MY THOUGHTS: I remember being totally enamored by The Flowers of the Field by Sarah Harrison back in the 1980s when it was first published, so I was excited to discover her latest offering, The Rose in Winter. Even more so when it was described as a historical romantic suspense. Just what I needed!

Now, other than the opening paragraphs, there is not a lot of suspense. Nor is there a great deal of romance, at least not in the traditional sense. What we do get however, is a solid story of the life of a woman over two timelines, the late 1920s/early 1930s, and 1953.

Life in this era was vastly different than today, particularly for a woman. They did not have the freedom of choice that we have and Sarah Harrison portrays this social clime very well. Barbara Delahay's story would have been very different set in modern times.

While The Rose in Winter may not deliver great chunks of romantic suspense, it is a good read, and one that is not going to slot easily into any particular genre other than historical fiction, and perhaps social commentary. After finishing this, I am eager to reread some of her earlier works.

3.5☆ The Rose in Winter is due to be published January 01, 2018 by Severn House.

Thank you to Severn House via Netgalley for providing a digital copy of The Rose in Winter by Sarah Harrison for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions. Please refer to my Goodreads.com profile page or the 'about' page on sandysbookaday.wordpress.com for an explanation of my rating system. This review and others are also published on my blog sandysbookaday.wordpress.com https://sandysbookaday.wordpress.com/...

A gripping tale that had me hooked from the first few pages. Brilliant read, would recommend to anyone who likes historical fiction.

The Rose in Winter, Sarah Harrison
Review from Jeannie Zelos book reviews

Genre: Romance

I remember reading Sarah's Flowers of the Field maybe 35 years ago. I had three children under four and reading was a welcome escape from toddler-world.
It was my favourite book for a long while and got very dog eared from rereading.
I've read a couple more from Sarah since then, but not for a long while, and when i saw this is took me back to Flowers.

In many ways this story feels like my memories of that book, a story told in both past and present, Barbara reminds me of Thea, Molly of Thea's sister - can't recall her name, and Johnny feels so much like Jack, charismatic, always on the edge of excitement and danger. 
Its a story that's solid, dense, not a light, fluffy tale but one that's full of intensity, full of characters that we've all met in life.
Its not fast paced, but moves forward slowly, bringing the reader along with the characters as we see events unfold. 

I loved Barbara but at times wanted to say "take a chance, go for it", and yet she's a product of a different age, a time when choices were not so rich for women as they are now.
Johnny, well, I do so love the bad boys....and he's a terrific one. you just know that behind the easy smile there's so much going on, that he's full of secrets. Its seems simple at first, Barbara likes him he likes her and they begin a romance, but of course things happen, and it made me wonder why? What was the reason behind the actions? Habit? Fear? Self sabotage?
Just when I thought the story was winding to a gentle happy close Sarah threw in a few more revelations, secrets long held, and an ending that - well, it's not what I expected but given the way the story played out perhaps I should have. 

Its not going to be a Flowers, constant re-reader for me, but it was a story I really enjoyed even if I would have liked some parts to go differently!
Its a book to lose yourself in a different age.   

Stars: five, a solid story that I really enjoyed reading, but I'd have liked a slightly different ending ;-)  

ARC supplied for review purposes by Netgalley and Publishers