This book failed to engage with me. It did have twists and turns but I couldn’t get involved with the story
It lacked suspense and wasn’t very thrilling

Due to a sudden, unexpected passing in the family a few years ago and another more recently and my subsequent (mental) health issues stemming from that, I was unable to download this book in time to review it before it was archived as I did not visit this site for several years after the bereavements. This meant I didn't read or venture onto netgalley for years as not only did it remind me of that person as they shared my passion for reading, but I also struggled to maintain interest in anything due to overwhelming depression. I was therefore unable to download this title in time and so I couldn't give a review as it wasn't successfully acquired before it was archived. The second issue that has happened with some of my other books is that I had them downloaded to one particular device and said device is now defunct, so I have no access to those books anymore, sadly.

This means I can't leave an accurate reflection of my feelings towards the book as I am unable to read it now and so I am leaving a message of explanation instead. I am now back to reading and reviewing full time as once considerable time had passed I have found that books have been helping me significantly in terms of my mindset and mental health - this was after having no interest in anything for quite a number of years after the passings. Anything requested and approved will be read and a review written and posted to Amazon (where I am a Hall of Famer & Top Reviewer), Goodreads (where I have several thousand friends and the same amount who follow my reviews) and Waterstones (or Barnes & Noble if the publisher is American based). Thank you for the opportunity and apologies for the inconvenience.

This is a novel which can take its place alongside McDermid and MacBride. The author does an amazing job of bringing dark history to light as a modern crime is presented and solved. Very dark at times and perhaps not for the faint hearted - or weak stomached - this is a true thriller.

The Rosary Garden is a gripping novel set in Dublin, Ireland in the 1980’s. Ali and Fitz find the body of a newborn baby in the garden of their convent school. A police investigation begins and becomes more intriguing when it is revealed this is the second dead baby Ali has discovered.
Along with the main plot, issues relating to life in Ireland at that time, in particular the ongoing debate regarding abortion laws are investigated. The characters are well developed and there are enough plot twists to keep you guessing. A fantastic book that isn’t embarrassed to bring to light some sensitive topics.

Nicola White has written a sterling second novel in her 'Vincent Swan' series set in Dublin in the mid-’80s.

A teenage girl finds the body of a newborn baby in the grounds of her Convent School. Ali Hogan is on the cusp of leaving a life of restriction and a past she has tried to forget when she is dragged right back in, for this is not the first time she has discovered a dead infant. Detective Vincent Swan of the Murder Squad is called to investigate the grisly scene and the case soon becomes a media storm.

The Rosary Garden is a dark, beautifully written, emotional story that kept me turning the pages. As Detective Inspector Vincent Swan and Detective Sergeant Gina Considine investigated the murder of the three-day-old baby, I found myself in the midst of family secrets and lies, culminating in an all too believable and heartbreaking ending. As well as chapters from DI Swan’s point of view, the reader also heard from Ali. In a fascinating story, it dealt with hard-hitting issues and challenging subjects. Expertly written with care, realism and simplicity, the awful truth is uncovered in this dark tale and I didn't see the cleverly done ending coming. I wholeheartedly recommend The Rosary Garden.

I received a complimentary copy of this novel at my request from Serpent's Tail / Profile Books/ Viper via NetGalley and this review is my unbiased opinion.

Written the the present and past tense set in the 1980s Ireland, covering some highly emotive and challenging subjects which were handled with sensitivity and care.

An emotional poignant read which will stay with you long after you've finished reading it.

EXCERPT: She pushed the door open, Fitz was standing in the middle of the shed, her face as pale as milk and her fingers at her mouth. A smear of lipstick trailed across one cheek. She appeared to be standing in a nest of gardening tools - hoes, rakes and loppers meshed around her ankles. Her eyes were fixed on the floor: on a wire basket filled with smaller tools. Ali picked up a fallen rake that blocked her way, propped it against the wall. As she turned back she noticed a large mushroom or egg nestled among the tools in the basket. She wanted to go to Fitz, to free her from the tangle of handles - but she couldn't make sense of this thing. She stepped closer, wondering at the fuzzy halo around the edge of the egg.

Downy hair on a head.

ABOUT 'THE ROSARY GARDEN': It was Ali who found the body of a murdered newborn baby, hidden in the garden of her convent school. In an Ireland riven by battles of religion and reproduction, the case becomes a media sensation, even as the church tries to suppress it. But this is not the first dead baby Ali has found.

For Detectives Vincent Swan and Gina Considine, the pressure to discover the identity of the dead child is little help against a community with secrets to protect. Gina knows all too well how many of Ireland's girls are forced to make difficult decisions in terrible circumstances, silenced by shame. Is Ali one of those girls? Because what evidence there is, points to Ali herself...

MY THOUGHTS: I liked but did not love The Rosary Garden by Nicola White. This is a new revised edition and prequel to 'A Famished Heart' which I have not read. This book was previously published as 'In the Rosary Garden, Vincent Swan #1).

Set in Ireland in the mid-eighties, this is the story of Ali, who has just graduated school and is awaiting her leaving results. She is next on the scene after her friend Fitz finds the body of a baby in a garden shed. But this is not the first baby's body that Ali has encountered, which is suspicious for a start. Is Ali an innocent caught in the crossfire of other people's desperate acts, or is she more deeply involved?

This mystery is set before the time of the internet, mobile phones and DNA testing. The police (Gaarda) have to rely on investigative footwork for their results. This is an Ireland of no contraception, abortion is illegal and even sex education in schools is sketchy at the best. Girls 'in the family way' are bundled off to relatives in the country or homes for unwed mothers, while the men involved escape relatively unscathed. It is not uncommon for unwanted babies to wind up in slurry pits, or buried in gardens.

Despite the numerous twists and red herrings, the mystery failed to fully engage me. The cast of suspects is relatively small, with the same faces appearing again and again, which is in no way a criticism, but I felt little in the way of suspense or apprehension.

This is a family that has many skeletons in the closet, and one or two under the bed. Secrets are kept and perpetuated, with drastic measures taken to ensure that they are never revealed.

I wish I could have liked this more. I was excited by the beginning, by the premise, but as the book progressed, my interest steadied and settled. This is a better than average read, but not a memorable one.

⭐⭐⭐.1

#TheRosaryGarden #NetGalley
#historicalfiction #familydrama #mystery #irishfiction

THE AUTHOR: Nicola White grew up in Ireland and New York and graduated from Trinity College, Dublin. She lived in London and Belfast before moving to Glasgow to work as a contemporary art curator, moving on to produce arts documentaries for BBC radio and television.
Nicola currently splits her time between Glasgow and the Highlands, which means she lives mostly on the A9.

DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Serpent's Tail /Profile Books, Viper for providing a digital ARC of The Rosary Garden by Nicola White for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.

For an explanation of my rating system please refer to my Goodreads.com profile page or the about page on sandysbookaday.wordpress.com

This review and others are also published on Twitter, Amazon, Instagram and my webpage

Set against the backdrop of public debate about women’s control of their sexuality and fertility in 1980’s Ireland, a teenager finds the body of a baby in the garden of her Dublin convent school. For Ali, the experience unlocks memories of another dead baby from a childhood visit to her mother’s family in rural Ireland, and she becomes the catalyst for the revelation of old secrets and for new tragedies. The writing is excellent, particularly in the creation of time and place. The story is dark, offering just a few sparks of light in an otherwise bleak depiction of hypocrisy and cruelty to be found in family, society and masculinity.

The Rosary Garden - Nicola White

𝑰𝒕 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝑨𝒍𝒊 𝒘𝒉𝒐 𝒇𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒃𝒐𝒅𝒚 𝒐𝒇 𝒂 𝒎𝒖𝒓𝒅𝒆𝒓𝒆𝒅 𝒏𝒆𝒘𝒃𝒐𝒓𝒏 𝒃𝒂𝒃𝒚 𝒉𝒊𝒅𝒅𝒆𝒏 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑹𝒐𝒔𝒂𝒓𝒚 𝑮𝒂𝒓𝒅𝒆𝒏 𝒐𝒇 𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒗𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝒔𝒄𝒉𝒐𝒐𝒍. 𝑰𝒕 𝒃𝒆𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒔 𝒂 𝒎𝒆𝒅𝒊𝒂 𝒔𝒆𝒏𝒔𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒏 𝒂𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒄𝒉𝒖𝒓𝒄𝒉 𝒕𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒔𝒖𝒑𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔 𝒊𝒕. 𝑩𝒖𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒊𝒔 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒊𝒓𝒔𝒕 𝒅𝒆𝒂𝒅 𝒃𝒂𝒃𝒚 𝑨𝒍𝒊 𝒉𝒂𝒔 𝒇𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒅…

This is a new revised edition and a sequel to A Famished Heart.

This book is a compelling, powerfully emotional novel that I just couldn’t put down.
Set in 1980’s Ireland it tackles a lot of deeply difficult subjects from that time surrounding religion, repression and the treatment of young unmarried mothers particularly which could be a trigger for some readers.
Detectives Swan and Cowardine are investigating the murder of a baby found at a convent school and begin to wonder if Ali has more to do with it than first thought as evidence begins to point towards her.
There are links to another baby which died years ago, the effects of this reverberating down the years.
There are undercurrents of religion and the overwhelming influence of the church in Ireland especially at that time, sexual liberation and the treatment of women ‘put away’. Everything sitting cheek by jowl with the bleakness of young women’s lives is laid bare.
How some women and girls were treated is appalling, the attitudes are frightening and some of the book makes for very difficult reading but you simply cannot look away. It is horrifying how society treated women at this time and still do with many issues going unchallenged.
There is much realism in this novel and it is beautifully written with care and stark simplicity. Many families have secrets and as these secrets begin to unfurl, the awful truth is uncovered - the penny finally drops at the end, the atmosphere shifts and becomes much darker and is so cleverly done you just do not see it coming.

This novel gave me a sense of deep unease, it was challenging to read at times and gave me much to think about but I would recommend it wholeheartedly.

Interesting and unusual story with some unexpected twists. Good characters and a believable storyline.

Ali found the body of a murdered baby hidden in the garden of her convent school. In an Ireland riven with battles of religion and reproduction, the case becomes a media sensation. But this is not thenfirst dead baby Abi has found. Detectives Vincent Swan and Gina Considine, the pressure to discover the baby's identity is little help against a community with secrets to protect. Gina knows many of Irelands girls are forced to make difficult decisions in terrible circumstances. IsnAli one of those girls? Because all of the evidence is pointing towards her.

The pace is steady in this compelling read. There's family secrets and lies. Its a beautifully written story that's filled with fascinating characters. This was not the first baby Ali had found. There's some good twists in this page turning read and it's filled with secrets and lies. This book is not for the faint hearted as you will need a strong constitution for some of the scenes.

I would like to thank #NetGalley, #SerpentsTail #ProfileBooks and the author #NicolaWhite for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.

New author for me Nicola White, had me hooked from the beginning with this haunting tale from Ireland.
Ali finds the dead body of a baby in the garden shed of her convent school. As the police ascertain that the child has been murdered it becomes a hunt for the mother/murderer.
The nuns are quick to absolve themselves of any involvement in what becomes a media scandal taking into account the religious views of anti abortion and the shame put on single mothers at that time.
It then transpires that Ali had also found a dead baby when she was a young child in her hometown in the home of her aunt and uncle. Could this just be a strange coincidence or something more ?
I found this a deeply addictive novel which at times was both harrowing and disturbing but I found very believable.
I look forward to reading more of her work.