What a beautiful book! Starting with the illustrations that just capture the flowers in such a beautiful, but also simple way and then giving the symbolic meaning, powers, folklore and facts, it was a fun book to dip into and out of to just enjoy the facts behind flowers.

Before I dove into the full book, I looked up my favorite - the sunflower and the tulips and it was so fun to read the meanings behind the ones I hold close to my heart and in my garden!

This will be a fun gift for my friends who also care most about flowers.

With amazing ilustrations, poetry, historic meanings, characteristics and scientific names, S. Theresa Dietz build a beautiful reference book of flowers.
The Complete Language of Flowers is a book for every botanic library. A pretty jewel.

Thanks to Quarto Publishing Group.

First, this is not a gardening guide, and you won't get recipes for tinctures and such. This is more of a guide to mainly flowers, but also herbs, fruits, trees, etc., and their symbolic meanings, folklore, facts, and possible powers. Flowers and other plants have been used throughout history to convey different messages and symbolism, and it became extremely popular during the Victorian era to send bouquets to express feelings that couldn't be spoken aloud. This book lists over 1,000 flower species, with lovely illustrations for each entry, and an extensive bibliography and indexes at the end. It would make a good coffee table book, as it's a fun and interesting book to pick up and flip through, and very aesthetically pleasing to look at!

#TheCompleteLanguageofFlowers #NetGalley

It was fine? Honestly, I would've probably liked the book more if the formatting provided hadn't been so difficult to use. A lot was lost because I could tell that the images were beautiful but were often cut off by the electronic format chosen for the NetGalley version. I did enjoy the bits about folklore and symbolism though.

S. Theresa Dietz’s The Complete Language of Flowers is an informative and well-designed dictionary of flower species. I love flowers but I never knew there were so many interesting and unusual species out there. I learned so much! I love the beautiful full-colour artistic renderings of the flowers. But, I wish every entry had a picture attached. Moreover, while I appreciate the briefness of the entries, they could have been better written because the writing sometimes lacks clarity. Moreover, this book is more of an introduction to flowers instead of a comprehensive guide.

This reference book is organized alphabetically. Each entry includes the flower’s scientific name as well as other common names, symbolic meanings, possible powers, and some folklore and facts. Dangerous plants are also highlighted. The entries are brief and simply written. But, while I understand and appreciate the need for brevity, the entries sometimes lack clarity especially with regards to the meanings and folklore and facts about the plants. Moreover, I am confused about the labelling of some of these ‘dangerous’ plants because many are popularly used as medicines and food.

The book features well-known plants like Aloe vera (which has a super long list of names, including Crocodile’s Tail and Crocodile’s Tongue!), Gardenia (whose symbolic meanings include healing and I love you in secret), and Chrysanthemum (which has possible powers of protection). There is also a host of other fascinating and beautiful lesser-known plants like Candleberry (ancient Hawaiians used the nutmeats like candles), and the interesting looking fumewort (which has possible powers of exorcism and money).

This book’s design is lovely and vintage. It will be absolutely stunning in print! I love the beautiful artistic depictions of the flowers. I especially love the stunning full-colour depictions on the division pages. However, I wish all the entries were accompanied by pictures and that they were all in full-colour because a few of the flowers are featured in black-and-white.

The Complete Language of Flowers is a well-designed and fascinating book. It’s a good introduction to the world of flowers but I wish it was more thorough and the writing was much clearer.





🌸 🌸 🌸 ½ flowers out of 5!

An absolutely stunning book with beautiful drawings of over 1000 flowers with information on their official name, where they appear in folklore, what they are meant to mean in terms of the language of flowers, where they can be used in healing. Definitely a great gift for the botanist of any level in your life.

A thoroughly enjoyable encyclopedia of the history and folklore associated with hundreds of flowers. Invaluable and the art work is gorgeous!!

Exactly what it advertises itself as - complete, definitive. This is one that is to be savoured, to be flipped through, to be studied, to be loved. Not a book to be read once and left on a shelf. Beautiful and useful.

While this book is entitled "The Complete Language of Flowers," It also includes information on non-flowering plants such as gymnosperms and ferns. I'm not sure how to categorize this book. Designed in a Victorian style with ivory pages, antique fonts and color drawings of each plant, it is a pretty book. It appears to be a reference, but much of what's in it is really folklore, rather than science. It would be an interesting book for those who are into the implied meaning of flowers, but I wouldn't say it's a necessary resource for most gardeners.

This book will be welcomed by those who love floraculture and gardening as well as those who just love looking at flowers and want to know more about them.  The informative, alphabetical listings include lovely illustrations and many facts.

The author notes that during Victorian times, the flowers one received conveyed messages, even if sometimes these messages became confused.  We still tend to associate feelings with certain flowers; as the author mentions, red roses on Valentine's Day send a particular message.  Flowers and trees also indicated certain religious feelings or views.  So... a lot going on along with observing beauty.

Using the book as a reference may take a little practice.  The flowers are listed by their scientific names but there is an index of common names at the back of the book to help. The information for each plant might include symbolic meanings, color meanings possible powers and folklore and fact. 

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this comprehensive title which appears to have been well researched.  All opinions are my own.

Listed in alphabetical order under scientific names, this book is filled with hundreds of flowers, and other floral matter (such as tree branches, seed pods, fruit etc). Each listing has the plants common names, a symbolic meaning of flower, specific colour meaning, possible power meaning such as love, jealousy, healing and finally a interesting mixture of facts and fiction that comes under " folklore".
A fascinating book when you think that in times past this mode of sending messages was used extensively, even these days we associate red roses with love and so on.
A big book with lots of information to dip into from time to time. Lovely illustration and interesting information.

Beautifully illustrated and incredibly comprehensive. This is such a good reference tool! Unfortunately it can be difficult to look things up if you don't know the Latin name, but apart from that, excellent!

What a gorgeous book! The images are beautiful and the information is well written. This book would make a beautiful addition on any coffee table

I love this stunning book. The illustrations are beautiful and I long to own a physical copy to browse. The information is clear and consise.

A beautifully illustrated plant directory with all sorts of interesting facts about flowers, including their symbolic meanings, various names, usages, whether or not they’re toxic to humans, their “possible powers” and folklore and facts surrounding each plant. Perfect for writers looking for symbolic plants, or just anyone who happens to be interested in plants.

**Thank you Netgalley and publisher for giving me a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.**

This book is so beautiful, I plan on using the information in my works because it is so helpful. The illustrations are simply gorgeous. I recommend this book to anyone who is interested in flowers and their meanings.

Upon opening The Complete Language of Flowers, I was surprised by the facts alongside each illustration. I understood that it would be an education on the facts of each plant. Whilst the name is in Latin, much of the information is folklore and it discusses the power of each. I thought this would be medicinal but it’s not - one states the cure of werewolves. The historical element is similar myth-based. The symbolism contradicts itself in several places making it’s back cover promise of “ to create a meaningful flower arrangement” difficult to live out. Similarly, one can’t use it as planting reference. If you are looking for a beautifully illustrated, mystical plant catalogue, this may be for you. It’s a two our of five on my enJOYment scale.

A beautiful and fascinating reference book. The flowers are organised alphabetically by their scientific names. The ilustrations are wonderful and accompanied by interesting facts; Symbolic meaning, Possible powers and Folklore & facts.

This is a wonderful reference book! Great for history buffs and gardeners alike! The artwork is gorgeous and the information given for each flower would cause anyone to be lost in it's pages for hours on end. My only note would be that the flowers are listed alphabetic by their Latin name rather than their common name, so it may take you minute to find what you are looking for if you are looking for a specific plant.

I received a free e-ARC from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

My thanks to Quarto Publishing Group - Wellfleet Pressfor a temporary digital edition via NetGalley of ‘The Complete Language of Flowers: A Definitive and Illustrated History” by by S. Theresa Dietz in exchange for an honest review.

“The Complete Language of Flowers is a comprehensive dictionary for over 1,001 flower species. Along with a visual depiction, each entry provides the flower's name, characteristics, and historic meanings from mythology, medieval legends, folklore, and flower poetry.”

I have been quite fascinated by the secret language of flowers since I first encountered it in historical romances. In a society so defined by its rules of etiquette, the idea of fragrant nosegays created to deliver a private message was intriguing. I have also had a long standing interest in the folklore associated with plants and flowers.

This lavish and beautifully illustrated reference book contains both aspects as each entry contains information on symbolism, folklore and facts. The entries are organised alphabetically by the scientific names of each flower. At the conclusion are indexes of both common flower names and common flower meanings.

An attractive book that I expect will be of interest to aspiring and experienced botanists as a reference work. It would also make an excellent gift for same.