I really enjoyed this story of 3 generation of women all connected by a garden in England. There was the present day which brought the history to the now but still vividly connected the characters to the past.
Emma is hired to restore the garden of her idol, Venetia, who created a winter garden that she keeps locked up. Then it goes to the war time and the house and land is requisitioned to be made into a home for soldiers to recover in and some of the women that do their part for the war effort by working there and being land girls.
I loved reading the different historical backgrounds of the different timeframes as well as characters that were well developed and you cared about. I’ll definitely recommend this one to friends.

Thank you Gallery Books, Simon & Schuster, Inc. and Julia Kelly for the advance readers copy of “The Last Garden in England” for my honest review.

I really enjoyed “The Last Garden in England”. It had to be difficult for Ms. Kelly to write since the protagonists are three different women from 3 different generations. Venetia’s story is during the early 1900, Dianna’s is during wartime 1940’s and Emma’s is current 2021. The centerpiece of the story is first the building of the beautiful gardens at the famed Highbury House Estate and then of the the restoration of a English garden and the love life of the female gardeners.

Thanks to Gallery Books and Netgalley for an advanced copy of The Last Garden in England.

This book is exactly why I love multiple timelines historical fiction. This book is an absolute gem and my first 5* book of 2021!
Told in 3 different time periods we meet 5 women al connected by one garden. I thought all were engaging and well developed, I liked all women and they were easy to connect with. I loved that while one of the time periods was 1944, this isn't a WWII centered book.

The garden is developed in 1907 by Venetia Smith who is hired by Highbury House to design the grounds in a slightly different style than was popular with several small garden rooms and a walled garden. She never expects that her work here would change her life. In 1944 we are introduced to a WWII Land Girl - Beth Pedley who arrives to work on a neighboring farm but she befriends the cook of Highbury House - Stella, who has dreams of leaving and the mistress of the house a widow, Diana Symonds. Highbury House has been requisitioned as a convalescent hospital and when the garden is threatened they are drawn together.
And finally we meet Emma in the present day who has been hired by the new owners to bring the gardens back to their former glory. Venetia's gardens became famous after she left the UK and in trying to find the original plans, Emma opens up long covered up secrets.

I was immediately drawn into the book and didn't want to put it down. I loved the interconnected storylines among the five women and felt their struggles and successes. The descriptions and details of the garden and gardening were just right. There are a few heartbreaking scenes, but this was such a lovely, incredible book!

Also, the author's note at the end was perfect, since I'm always curious as to who or what inspires a book!

Well this was just lovely. Very rarely in a multiple POV book do I enjoy all the different POVs and find them all equally compelling but that was definitely the case in this book. I might have looked forward to Emma's story just a little bit more but that's because she is putting the pieces of the past together and that's one of my very favorite things.

All of the women featured are sympathetic and easy to connect with even if I didn't always like them or agree with their decisions. Each woman's perspective was completely different and very well developed. I especially enjoyed Beth's life as a Land Girl and Diana adjusting to her home being requisitioned and her life completely changing in an instant as well as Stella's below stairs perspective.

I loved watching how everything unfolded and even though I'm not a gardener I enjoyed all the talk of flowers and garden architecture. I would love to walk in Venetia's garden and explore all the different room.

This was my first Kindle read of 2021 and I thoroughly enjoyed it from beginning to end. The only thing that kept it from being a 5 star read for me is that I really wanted just a little bit more of Beth and Diana's story (especially Beth) - something just felt a little unfinished there.

I absolutely loved this book. This book takes place in 3 different historical periods (1907, WWII era, and present day). All 3 storylines were captivating and I was never bored. That can be hard to do sometimes in books with multiple timelines..A great historical fiction novel. Thank you Gallery books.

4.25 Stars
Present day: Emma Lovett, who has dedicated her career to breathing new life into long-neglected gardens, has just been given the opportunity of a lifetime: to restore the gardens of the famed Highbury House estate, designed in 1907 by her hero Venetia Smith. But as Emma dives deeper into the gardens’ past, she begins to uncover secrets that have long lain hidden.
1907: A talented artist with a growing reputation for her ambitious work, Venetia Smith has carved out a niche for herself as a garden designer to industrialists, solicitors, and bankers looking to show off their wealth with sumptuous country houses.
1944: When land girl Beth Pedley arrives at a farm on the outskirts of the village of Highbury, all she wants is to find a place she can call home. Cook Stella Adderton, on the other hand, is desperate to leave Highbury House to pursue her own dreams. And widow Diana Symonds, the mistress of the grand house, is anxiously trying to cling to her pre-war life now that her home has been requisitioned and transformed into a convalescent hospital for wounded soldiers. But when war threatens Highbury House’s treasured gardens, these three very different women are drawn together by a secret that will last for decades.
A beautifully written book that takes you to three time periods & we meet five fascinating women. I did wonder if three different time frames would work & they certainly did, my favourite was the war years. It was a page turning thoroughly enjoyable read, which I read in two sittings as I found it very hard to put down as it was well researched & the characters were so vivid that I really felt I knew them
My honest review is for a special copy I voluntarily read

Loved the characters in this book. I do not garden but the descriptions of them and the plants, flowers and trees came to life. I love how the women’s stories intertwined. Satisfactory ending. Quite simply, a lovely book. Will definitely read more Julia Kelly!

This is probably my favorite historical fiction book that I've read in the past two or three years. The story was engaging. I loved the balance of the present-day story to the story in the past. I thought the dual timeline was balanced well. I loved the descriptive details without being over the top details that were redundant and not needed. This is a well-detailed book without being detail for the sake of detail vs detail with purpose which can be difficult to balance. The characters were fun to read about and easy to connect to. You end the book feeling like you've met them in real life.

The Last Garden in England is a look at the lives intersected at a single estate garden over the past century. Originally designed by Venetia Smith and lauded as modernistic for 1907 Highbury House has a the traditional rolling lawn, but also various compartmental gardens including the children's garden, lover's garden and others. When Emma Lovett is commissioned to restore the garden in the present day, she is captivated by the grounds and the people of Highbury. The Winter Garden has been locked and overgrown for a half century and the secrets surrounding the gardens and family emerge as Emma does more research on her project. I enjoyed this book and the historical perspective of its characters and the estate. I received an ARC of this book, all opinions are my own. 4.5 stars

This was a very engrossing historical fiction book by Julia Kelly. I love gardens and so this made the book that much more enjoyable for me. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced reader’s copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

The Last Garden in England by Julia Kelly is a captivating historical fiction with a triple timeline story. A beautiful and amazing story that holds your attention from beginning to end.

I only got about halfway through this book. I thought the character were rather bland and I really didn't care about any of them. I guess this book just wasn't for me.

This was such a wonderful book. The author created a harmony of historical fiction, horticulture, light romance and interpersonal relationships, with one of the main characters being the house and gardens where all the stories take place, Highbury House, across 3 main time frames: present day, 1907 and 1944.

The chapters rotate point of view from Venetia, Beth and Emma, who are all strong female characters in their own timeframe. There are also strong supporting female characters, the owners and staff of Highbury House over time. Relationships (platonic and not platonic) are formed by each of the characters with men and women at/around Highbury, and choices are made.

Descriptions of the gardens are so well done that I felt like I could smell the floral scents on the breeze. Any person who enjoys gardening will like this novel for just that aspect. But I highly recommend anyone with an interest in historical fiction with female leads should click "BUY NOW" quickly!!

Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book, but my opinions are my own.

This novel details the relationship between a garden and various women from its beginning through restoration. The story is told through multiple timelines: 1907, when Venetia Smith has been commissioned to create a new garden at Highbury House; 1944 — and how Highbury House and three women living there deal with WWII; and the present, when Emma Lovett is hired to work on restoring the garden. Kelly is able to tie all of these time periods together quite well, all the while letting the reader become involved in the lives of the various women connected to the garden, as we’ll as some of the “secrets” the garden holds.

Overall, this was an interesting and very enjoyable read. It is the first book by Julia Kelly that I have read, and I look forward to reading other by her.

If you love gardening and historical fiction, this is the book for you. Set in 3 time periods, 1907, 1944, and present day. This story revolves around a beautifully designed garden established in 1907 and restored in the present day. In 1944 the house was requisitioned as a war hospital. Full of love and loss, this story explores sacrifice and how to gauge what is worth your personal risk. I really enjoyed that although this is a WWII story, the 1907 element was largely at play as well. Plus the WWII timeline has a lot of Downton Abbey vibes. Overall the women in each of the timelines are empowering themselves to make their own choices and forge their own paths. They each are very different, but the theme of choosing your own adventure is strong.

This book is a really good read. It is full of emotions and will keep you turning the pages. It's a book that you don't want to end but you just have to know what happens next. You don't want to miss the book. Thank you Gallery Books via NetGalley for the ARC copy of this book. All opinions expressed are my own.

The Last Garden of England by Julia Kelly. Can I just start off by saying how much I loved this book. From the beautiful cover to the remarkable and wonderful story this amazing author has written and given to historical fiction lovers to read and devour! Julia Kelly weaves a tapestry with threads from three timelines and all based on a garden. A garden masterpiece conceived in 1907 by Venetia Smith.

1907: Venetia Smith is hired to design a garden for this beautiful home named Highbury House. She designs several small garden areas and calls them "rooms" and aptly names them the tea garden, children's garden, lovers' garden, lavender walk and the winter garden, just to name a few. I especially liked her idea of a ‘lime walk’... no spoilers here.... When her client requests that she use her brother Matthew's roses instead of the variety she wanted, Venetia isn't quite sure, then becomes pleasantly surprised by his roses. Her father's advise finally convinces her. Venetia and Matthew begin their adventure to create the perfect roses for the gardens and among other things as well.

1944: Highbury House has been requisitioned as a convalescent hospital for injured soldiers. Diana, the owner of the home, wants to protect her gardens from becoming 'crop land' and befriends Stella, her cook and a neighboring "land girl", Beth.

2021: Emma, a specialist in English garden restoration, has been hired to restore the seriously neglected Highbury gardens to their original beauty. When blueprints of the original gardens are found, secrets are uncovered that tell a different story and the history of Highbury House is revealed. I loved the beautiful writing of this book with all the descriptions of the characters in each time period. It's reminiscent of The Secret Garden a little.

Julia Kelly definitely has a way with words. The Last Garden in England was so captivating. This is historical fiction with three timelines. I really enjoyed traveling through the ages and learning about each stage and life of the garden. There is a strand of thread that connects all of these different timelines and these wonderful women. This is a beautiful, well crafted story that I really loved and will be recommending to everyone. And I believe this book would be an amazing movie!! (Julia Kelly must write the screenplay).

Thank you to NetGalley for generously providing me with my ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review.

The Last Garden in England focuses on three timelines and five character view points. This made the beginning third of the book a bit hard to sort out but once you get into the swing of things it turns out to be a really enjoyable story full of unimaginable painful decisions.

I loved how all the stories centered around the garden. I don't believe you need to have any prior knowledge of gardens to enjoy this novel.

Thank you Netgalley for an e-arc of this book. I definitely recommend for the historical romantic fiction reader.

Gardeners who love historical fiction will not want to miss this newest novel from Julia Kelly. Set during three different timelines, each story revolves around Highbury House and its beautiful gardens.

In 1907, readers meet Venetia Smith, a talented garden designer who laid out the plans for the garden rooms and stayed on for months to see that they came to fruition.

In 1944, readers meet Diana and Beth. Diana is the current owner of Highbury House and a recent war widow. The house is currently being used as a hospital for wounded soldiers. Beth, a land girl from a farm nearby meets Diana and they form a friendship, with Diana allowing Beth access to the gardens in order to draw.

Moving forward to the present day, readers meet Emma, who has been hired to restore the gardens to their former glory. Through her research, Emma learns the past of the gardens and the people who were involved in creating them.

I loved all three timelines. I also liked that the story focused so much on the land girls and how they helped out during WWII.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Gallery Books for allowing me to read an advance copy and give my honest review.

Are you looking for your first 5-star read of the year? Then you need to pick up Julia Kelly's new novel The Last Garden in England. It was so good that I wish there was more or that I had read it slower.

I started The Last Garden in England on New Year's Eve think it would be my last read of 2020 and my first read of 2021. And I guess that was technically true as I finished it at 12:20 am. I never expected to read the whole book in just over 12 hours. Particularly as I did take breaks to do some things around the house.

But it was so good that I couldn't help but sneak in a few pages between cooking and cleaning. Then as darkness set in I gave in to the pull of the book (with my celebratory plate of cheese, pickles, and fruit) but still thinking I would be asleep before midnight. However, the lie of "just one more chapter" kept me up until there were no more pages to turn.

It hooked me right from the start. It's present-day and Emma has been contracted to restore a garden to its historical roots. It is a dream job, especially since the original designer was the reason Emma got into this line of work. Even if you didn't know that there would be multiple timelines, you know that Emma is going to unearth mysteries of the past while also discovering more about herself.

There are three timelines at play in this story. The first is present-day with Emma and the gardens in complete disarray. She just hopes that somewhere in the grand manor that there are photos, drawings, or at least notes to give her direction. The second timeline is 1907 when Venetia Smith arrives at Highbury House to design a garden like nothing that has been seen before. And finally, we have the 1944 timeline where Beth arrives at a nearby farm as part of the Land Army. The estate has been owned by one family throughout this period and many of the surrounding landowners have too, which helps bring past and present together.

Sometimes there is one timeline I enjoy more than the others, but I loved all three. I couldn't wait to dive deeper when one of the present-day characters unearthed a tidbit of historical relevance. Or seeing how an event in the past played out in the present day.

With so many people taking up gardening during the pandemic I felt the central focus on this one garden to be perfect, very apropos. I wanted to learn just as much about the garden as I did about the characters that walked among its blooms. And I loved the characters. They were so alive that I felt like I could go out and meet them.

I have read Kelly's last three historical novels and have enjoyed them all, but I think The Last Garden in England is her best one yet.

My review will be published at Girl Who Reads on Wednesday, Jan. 6 - https://www.girl-who-reads.com/2021/01/The-Last-Garden-in-England-Julia-Kelly.html