I found it quite difficult to connect with the characters. I felt like the last half of the book moved very slowly and I found myself skimming a lot of it.

Sara Archer was born in India, as a small child her parents died and she went to live with her aunt in England. Her memories of India are rather fuzzy, she remembers feeling warm, her ayah and she’s not a fan of the English weather. Charles Fitzroy works for the Department of Justice in India, he’s visiting England, after a quick courtship he proposes to Sara and she accepts.

After being apart from her new husband for months, Sara arrives in India, eager to see Charles and looking forward to living in her new home. Sara meets Charles’s friends, their snobby English society people, she doesn’t like them, their very racist and treat their Indian servants terribly. Sara’s disappointed and unhappy in her marriage, Charles is controlling, ruthless, and she feels trapped.

Sara starts to feel like a Jasmine Wife, a term used for an English woman living in colonial India, they wilt like a picked jasmine flower, they fade fast, often become ill, their marriages fail and they return home to England. Sara meets French-Indian Ravi Sabran, he’s the kind of person Sara should have married and they feel an instant connection to each other.

Charles is greedy, he encourages Sara to visit The Maharajah and his wife The Maharani, both are known for giving extravagant gifts of precious stones, and Sara’s given so much more. The Maharani knew her parents, and she tells Sara about her family and her secret heritage.

The Jasmine Wife by Jane Coverdale, is a wonderful historical story set in beautiful colonial India, Sara’s a lovely character, she’s reunited with her beloved ayah Malika, finds her childhood home, and discovers her true identity. I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review, I love stories set in India and four stars from me.

2.5 stars rounded up to 3. The writing style seemed very disjointed and never really clicked with me. On top of that, all the characters felt very bland and I didn’t really find myself caring what happened to them.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing a free copy to review.

I am honestly surprised this author has only one book out.
This is just the type of book I love .
A gripping, page-turning epic historical romance novel.
The writing style just flows so naturally you won't even notice the hours slipping by as you'll be so immersed in the reading of this brilliant book.
The descriptions are lush and provocative as you linger in the fragrant jasmine gardens in the Maharajah’s palace.
Heartache,abandonment,love,disdain and loyalty are just a few of the emotions encountered in this book.
Sara Archer's life as a newlywed woman of a British official in India seems to be what she'll have to settle for even though he is controlling and doesn't give her the attentions she needs.
A chance meeting with the gorgeous and powerful Ravi Sabran changes everything.
He is the type of man that is rich and powerful and not accepted by polite society but no one will tell that to him face to face, the type of man that makes women swoon .
Will Sara follow her heart off the beaten path into the lush jasmine garden where Ravi Sabran is waiting and away from her bullying husband?
Shocking secrets are revealed about Sara's birth .
A must read historical. I am looking forward to reading more books by this author as this book totally mesmerized me!

Pub Date 21 Jun 2019 by Harper Impulse and Killer Reads
I was given a complimentary copy. Thank you.
All o[pinions expressed are my own.

Set in India during the British rule, The Jasmine Wife is a cruel story of well-hiden family secrets, colonialist abuses and impossible love stories.

Most of the main characters do struggle with their own impulses and choices made under the influence of their strong feelings. Within the tragi-comical members of the Madras English-speaking community, one is supposed to rule and divide, mistreat their house helps and play the game of appearances. There is a safe world that was created, that Sara Archer, recently married witrh the district magistrate Charles Fitzroy is not obliged to protect.

In a very non-assuming way, at least at the beginning, she is getting close to her husband´s enemy Ravi Sabran, a mysterious powerful local character described by Fitzroy as a ´half-caste mongrel´. The stories of winning her independence from her husband, until the dramatic separation, and that of the evolving passion with Sabran are pushing forward Sara´s own reconnection with her Indian origins.

This part of the story, unfortunately, seems for me the most artificious one: although she left India after the death of her parents at an age when memories are relatively clear, coming back home does not mean for her automatically tracing her lost life. It takes an impressive amount of time until she will return to her childhood house and she seems not curious to clear her personal history.

Despite this shortcoming, The Jasmine Wife is a passionate story of impossible love meant to be, about tragical political realities and women emancipation. In a time when colonialism and racist policies are brought again into the limelight, it is time for at least a literary meditation about how the colonialist empires operates within the territories they took over. The meaninful ways in which a love story was inserted in this context is the merit of the author´s writing skills.

A romance set in the days of the British Raj in India, A Jasmine Wife is a visual treat! And no wonder. The author Jane Coverdale has worked as a mural painter , scenic artist and an art director for television, movies and theatre. Using her artistic skills, she has managed to paint a visually stunning story in words about love, hate, revenge, fate and omens and the clash of two cultures---the mystery, allure, passions and richness of the Indian culture and people, so exotic and steeped in mysticism which the British find unnerving and suspicious as to make them belittle it at every opportunity. This is manifested in the characters of Ravi Sabran the handsome, rich, mysterious, arrogant Indian/French and Charles Fitzroy, a British lawyer working as a assistant District Magistrate in Madras who absolutely loathe each other. Ravi, uses his mysterious wealth and position in society to battle the injustices of the British officials in his own way while Charles abhors the idea of Ravi, whom he insults by calling a half-breed, having so much wealth and power. Sarah Archer, Charles wife, is torn in between. Even though she knows and is warned to be wary of Ravi, she cannot help but find herself not immune to his mysterious and exotic persona, more so when she realises that the Charles she thought she knew, loved and married is just an illusion. Moreover, Ravi and Sarah's path also join because of an orphan baby girl called Prema, whom Ravi not only takes in to raise on Sarah's behalf but he also believes the girl is an omen. Similarly, Sarah cannot detach herself from the people and culture of a country which seem to hold some buried secrets of her existence.

Once again, the Jasmine Wife is a visual treat. It brings to life the characters and the setting like a huge painting/mural done in words.

My thanks to NetGalley, the publishers Harper Impulse and Killer Reads and the author Jane Coverdale for the e-Arc of the book. I think I will settle for a 4* rating.

The book was published on July 21, 2019.

From a time long gone, a plot that is as somberly enticing as its characters. The Jasmine Wife was an unputdownable novel that meanders through the life of someone we can empathize with.
Wonderful read!

This was not one for me. I was expecting some kind of mixture of an epic romance with Forster's A Passage to India, but all I got was poorly researched superficiality. I don't do well with haughty characters anyway, but I really couldn't sympathise with our protagonist. This really just didn't suit my taste.

An excellent romance Novel, sumptuous in its setting and descriptive narration. The lead character Sara was an intriguing figure, returning to the country of her birth to live with her husband, a man she hardly knows. The plot is a little predictable, as she begins to feel stifled in her new life, drawn to a mysterious man she shouldn't be interacting with. Although at times it can be a little cliche and the pacing was a little slow, the tension between characters builds until it is unbearable - the Indian heat, the horrendous attitudes and casual racism at the time adding to the tension - until the pot is boiling over. A thoroughly enjoyable, easy read!

This book took me a really long time to finish and there were many times I thought about not finishing it. It wasn't a bad book, I just didn't care for any of the characters and some parts just seemed to drag. I found myself skimming over parts just to finish.
Thanks to Netgalley for the review copy.
#netgalley #thejasminewife

This is a love story of star crossed lovers, but it is also a tale of homecoming and destiny. I found it a light romance novel that guarantees a day of pleasant reading, no real surprises and right from the start you expect who will end up with whom. Towards the end it seemed a bit hurried, I would have liked more drama in the (anti) climactic parts, but instead it sort of fizzles out. but still worth a read

A fantastic read set during the British colonial period in India and featuring a romance between a British woman and an Indian man. I couldn't read this fast enough! Highly recommend!!

Many thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for my ARC. All opinions are my own.

I couldn't finish this book, it was not what I had hoped for and therefore I found it difficult to engage with.

Thanks for allowing me to review this book.

An enjoyable historical romance. I would have preferred a little more detail about time and place, but it was an engaging read despite this..

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this in exchange for an honest review.

This book is set in India at the time Britain ruled the country. Parts of this book were interesting about the Colonial rule and about Sarah's difficulties when she joined her husband there.
She had lived in the country as a child and when she returned found out secrets about her Ancestry.
Thanks to Netgalley for an Arc.

A great book, gave me Elif Shafak and paulo coelho vibes. Very easy to read not heavy on the head. A must recommend.

What drew me to the book was that it is set in Madras, my home city but that just seemed to be an arbitrary choice. I found the book lacked adequate research in terms of the place or the time period in the book is set in. Even the book cover looks more Persian than from southern India. And then there is the time period that the story is set in, which is ambiguous too. Okay, it is set during the British Raj, but there is hardly any mention of the freedom struggle that the nation was embroiled in then. Very formulaic and with poorly developed characters, the book was a disheartening read.

This book is beautifully written. The imagery is top notch. I was absolutely transported and immersed in the sights and smells of Colonial India. The beginning is very reminiscent of The Secret Garden so I was a little concerned that it was going to be a cheap knock off version but after Sarah was swept away to England by her aunt the parallels ended and the story began to stand on its own legs. Sarah is a likeable character that you want to root for, she may be a proper English lady but she isn't the pushover that society expects her to be thank goodness, and as the story builds so does her self assurance and backbone. This is a love story of star crossed lovers, but it is also a tale of homecoming and destiny. Towards the end it seemed a bit hurried, I would have liked more drama in the (anti) climactic parts, but instead it sort of fizzles out. You get a mostly satisfactory ending but certain parts of storyline ended up a bit abandoned for some reason. The entire book there is a lot of emphasis placed on the terrible hatred between Charles and Ravi but you never really find out why, and there is no real conflict between them as you would expect. I also find it a little difficult to believe that Ravi would just turn tale and run to another country after Charles basically killed Maya, especially after being painted as such a tough guy the whole time.

Sarah marries a British official and returns to the land where her parents are buried. She meets Ravi and develops an attraction for him. He and her husband are rivals in India. She is caught between two very different men. Which one will she choose and what will it cost her?

I thought this was a very good story and enjoyed it very much. I hope to read more from this author.

Set during the British Raj in India, this historical romance follows Sara, a recently married English woman, and her new life in India with her magistrate husband. One marrying to return to her happiest memories of a child growing up in India before her parents died. The other marrying for decorum and an increased chance to further his career. Enter one handsome and mysterious French Indian Ravi Sabran and the conflicted romance begins. Old family secrets, cruel personalities, and looming betrayals come to light as the plot unravels.

This romance includes a historical setting that touches on women's suffrage, the caste system, and British colonialism. However, most of these serious issues are mentioned in passing or to carry the plot along surrounding the romance in the story. While I didn't dislike the main characters, I couldn't manage to feel much attachment to them throughout the story. I did enjoy the vivid descriptions of the atmosphere and locations throughout the book as it made the story much more tangible in my mind. I rated this title two stars. I thought it was okay, but not enough to give it my medium rating of three stars.

If you're looking for a normal beach-type romance read, this would fall in that category. It wasn't really my cup of tea, but I'm sure others looking for a typical romance read would pick it up.

My thanks to NetGalley for an e-copy of this title.