I felt Anya’s scary journey from the opening prologue. Powerful and heartbreaking, bringing me to tears. Prepare for a book to move you in all the best ways.

Thank you, Suzanne Kelman, bookouture & netgalley for my copy! All opinions are my own.

While I enjoyed this one I didn't love it. And it's one I don't think I would reread. But it was still worth the read.

I found it hard to get into this one unlike the other Kelman books that I have loved. I couldn’t really connect with the characters and I found the story line more romance than historical.
This one was an average read but definitely worth a try for those that enjoy the romance route.

Thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for the advanced copy.

This story includes tackling a WW2 secret whereas depicting the mystery plant as an substance unto itself. As the cultivate gets reestablished, lives get recuperated and the secret unwinds. ReaI was inspired to discover that indeed the two included in spying drew my sensitivity. All the characters are truly well drawn and the story is fulfilling and energizing. I examined it exceptionally rapidly since it fair pulled me in so quick. A must examined.

I was taking a break from WWII historical fiction, but well - with Suzanne Kelman’s books I would always make an exception! While all her novels I have read so far had a WWII setting, each has been very different – exploring different places, characters and situations. This is a heart-warming read, though there is not much which you cannot anticipate.

In the present time, Laura is trying to move on from a fractured relationship after she comes to know of her partner’s infidelity. She also has painful memories of a family tragedy. She has taken up the task of restoring a garden in Norfolk for friends. She accidentally discovers a small box with a message and a key under a willow tree. As she pursues this mystery, it leads her to references to Annie - a land girl who worked there and disappeared suddenly. Laura also meets with Jamie and it looks like a new relationship may be blossoming.

The story switches between another timeline during WWII in 1940 starting from the time when Russia & Germany had reached a pact, which was to break-down very soon later. Anya and Nikolai are spies sent to England to pass back information to Russia. They both have personal circumstances which force the choices they make, at least initially, on taking up this assignment.

As with her other books, the character development and writing are excellent. I loved the imagery the writing conjures, and the understated emotional play between the characters. The brief love-at-first-sight sequences between Laura and Jamie come across as contrived and silly though. A set of lovely characters and a story which moves very smoothly.

My rating: 4.5 / 5.

What a beautiful story from a talented writer. I really enjoy Suzanne's books and saved this one to read on holiday. What another great novel. It reminded me of the joy I had in reading 'The Secret Garden' as a child. Yes this is more adult but then as a young girl 'The Secret Garden' was not all sweetness either. There is real grit here and I so admired Laura. Thank you for another wonderful book.

1940 Anya and Nikolai are trained as spies in Russia and sent to England. Present day: Laura discovers a hidden message in the walled garden of a stately home and wants to solve the mystery in order to forget her own personal problems...
Garden of Secrets is a dual timeline novel set in the 1940s and present day. The majority of the novel is set in the UK but some of the past timeline is set in Russia.
For personal reasons, Anya and Nikolai are both compelled to train to be spies. Russia is fighting alongside Nazi Germany but whilst on their mission, the political situation shifts as Russia and Germany become enemies. Their situation becomes compromised and the pair are desperate to stay together as well as not be shot as traitors.
In the present day Laura is dealing with an ex who cheated on her. Liam won't take no for an answer but she adores the freedom of her work in the walled garden where she finds a secret buried beneath the willow tree. She begins hunting for further clues to explain the mystery and this helps to distract her from her broken heart.
I enjoyed both timelines equally and liked the historical mystery that unites the two. The pace of this book is rather slow to allow for the development of the characters who are presented through alternating chapters from each perspective. Anya and Nikolai do not reach England until halfway through the book but the frisson on romantic tension is there from the start. Laura's tangled emotional issues frustrated me a little as she puts the happiness of others ahead of her own.
Garden of Secrets is an enjoyable dual timeline historical novel.

Rating: 4.5 Stars

Suzanne Kelman’s Garden of Secrets is a compelling and evocative historical tale that will hold readers spellbound.

It’s 1940 and Anya is relieved to be able to leave the horrors of war-torn Russia behind for rural England. However, Anya cannot shake off this terrifying feeling that leaving Russia behind might have been a mistake of epic proportions. In desperate need of somebody to confide in, but unable to reveal the truth about her secret to anybody, Anya turns to fellow informer Nikolai for help. Anya had been drawn to Nikolai from the moment they had clapped eyes on one another, however, the odds are stacked against them. But could news from home provide them with the hope they had long given up on?

The news that Russia has switched allegiance certainly changes things for Anya and Nikolai. The future is no longer bleak and terrifying yet the weight of their secret history lies heavily on both of their shoulders. With the thought of spending the rest of their lives apart being unbearable, Anya and Nikolai devise a secret plan that will ensure that even if they are torn apart they will manage to find their way back to one another through a series of coded messages and secret clues beginning with a small key leading to the secret garden that means everything to them.

Many decades later, Laura has agreed to restore a beautiful garden in a stately home and she hopes that this new job will be the fresh start she so desperately needs. When she finds a box buried under the weeping willow tree, she finds herself completely captivated by its contents. Intrigued by the story of two wartime lovers, Laura begins to weave together the missing pieces of this puzzle. Yet, little does she realise that this quest will end up changing her life forever…

Suzanne Kelman is an exceptional storyteller who in Garden of Secrets writes so beautifully about love, loss, grief, danger and hope that readers will find themselves completely consumed by this wonderfully written tale. Garden of Secrets is a heart-wrenching, dramatic and nail-biting novel with characters who are so exquisitely drawn, readers will be kept on the edge of their seats eager to find out what will befall these strong, courageous and brave protagonists.

A superb tale readers will find hard to put down, Suzanne Kelman’s Garden of Secrets is another winner from this very gifted writer.

Suzanne Kelman is a new author to me, I chose to read this book as I have recently got into historical fiction and it sounded like a great book.

When I started the Garden of Secrets the first thing I noticed was the beautifully descriptive writing. Kelman takes you right into the heart of the world that she has constructed which is wonderful as you can really dive into the book and forget anything else.

The story centres on a Secret Garden of a statley home. A beautiful setting, and a secret place for meeting, and messages, hidden behind a wooden door, and beneath the vines of a weeping willow tree.

Set in two eras, we are intertwined in the stories of Anya, a russian spy who comes to England under the cover of being a Land Girl, and Laura, in the present day who is a garden restorer who finds the secret the garden has been holding for 75 years.

There is love, loss, tension, drama and a real sense of what it must have been like for the characters. The story is beautifully written and I truly felt the emotions within it. I will definitely read more of Kelman’s work afetr reading this.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture, for the copy in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Garden of Secrets by Suzanne Kelman was a lovely read and I enjoyed this book from the beginning till the end But, have some tissues handy as this is a very moving and will have you in tears. The two timelines of Garden of Secrets will take place during WWII and present day and both stories are full of romance and beautifully written; that will have you wanting more. You may find it hard to put this latest book down by Suzanne - Like I did.

I highly recommend this book and is a great holiday read relaxing around the pool or on the beach

Big Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture for this advanced copy of Garden of Secrets!

Gut wrenching and bittersweet. Twists and turns of lives and nine lives. I absolutely loved this story of a time when nothing could be taken for granted and life could change without any choice in the matter. It gives me chills. I absolutely loved it.

Such an amazing story. So beautifully writen. Full of heartbreak, but then balanced out with a heartwarming ending, Garden of Secrets is a fabulous story written in a compelling manner. I love how the garden itself is the backdrop that ties these women mi together, even decades apart.

Suzanne Kelman is a very dramatic writer, crafting stories and characters that truly pull the reader in. This is the first book that I have read by her and it has given me all the feels and emotions. Definetly a must read book.

Beautiful story with dual time lines. This is my 2nd book by this author and she writes flawlessly.

The garden is full of secrets from the past and present.

1940 England- A simple love story during wartime. A secret was held over the years which changes the future. A note is left under a willow tree in a garden which remains for years.

Present day Laura has had a bad break up and moves to Norfolk to restore a beautiful garden at a estate. She finds a box containing a key and a note.

Read this beautiful novel to find out what happens! How does this garden transform over the years? Whose life does it touch?

I really enjoy kelmans book. This book has a dual timeline. One set in the 1940s and one in present Day. We follow two women their Journey to escape and find love. I thought IT was a cute book, the romance sweet. But for me this story has been told before. Thank you to netgalley for letting me read this e arc in exchange for an honest opinion

This book is a dual storyline which builds a picture around a secret box found in a garden. The characters are quite flat and the writing is circular, stilted and repetitive. I was given an arc for an honest review.

Garden of Secrets is another wonderfully written story by Suzanne Kelman combining a wartime secret, an impossible mystery and a love story that is hard to leave out of your mind once it slowly begins to unfurl. I have to admit that both the title and the cover are what drew me to this book, there is just something about both that really stands out although I would have read it anyway given I have read all the books that the author has so far published. The title just speaks out that there is a mystery to be solved and I was very eager to see what it was.

The story is told through the dual timeline format which moved seamlessly back and forth between the war years and the present day as a discovery is made which sets in motion a quest for to uncover the mystery behind something buried in a secret walled garden. The two strands of the story work very well together, both being strong and well told. Usually, I prefer the past over the present but here I became quickly enthralled by both elements and that’s thanks to the descriptive writing which lead me on a journey of discovery, hope, bravery, love and devotion. I have found in the past that the author’s books can take some time to get going and I am left longing for the story to get going. Yes,this did again happen here as I found the Nikolai/Anya sections set in Russia were too drawn out but once British soil was reached things intensified much more.

November 1941, Hatworth Manor in Norfolk and Anya is out in the black of night determined not to be discovered. She has a secret tucked under her clothing and hopes the snow will not reveal her tracks or what she is about to do. She hides something in the soil underneath the willow tree which has long stood in the walled garden of the manor. She wants to save the only man she loves but knows that if she is caught her life will be over. Instantly, my interest was piqued, I wanted to know the background to Anya and who exactly is the man she loves? What was she hiding and why did she feel the need to do so especially in the dead of night? What danger surrounds her? Plenty of questions and food for thought were provided in the opening pages but to find out the answers the reader must be patient and enjoy the story as it unfolds for the answers will come to those who wait and what will be uncovered is a love story that will certainly tug at the heart strings.

In the present day, Laura has arrived to work at the manor. She will stay at the cottage of her university friends, Simon, who is the estate manager, and his wife Alicia. Laura has a very interesting job in that she is a garden restorer, bringing run down gardens back to life through redevelopment and replanting but she does so very sensitively focusing on the history of the garden. This new job couldn’t have come at a better time for her as she had desperately needed to get away from London and her now ex-boyfriend Liam. She had done everything in her power to make her eight year relationship work but the straw that broke the camel’s back was Liam cheated on her. Laura is not in a very good place. Her life is shattered and she has a terrible fear of never being loved again. She is very down and at times she is frustrating in that she can’t seem to shake the funk that she is in and this is in total contrast to the way Nikolai and Anya are feeling the more the story progress’.

Seeing the abandoned walled garden gives Laura a ray of hope. It seems to call to her as it does to the other main characters in the book even though they are separated by 75 years. The garden becomes like a character in itself. A place of refuge, hope and love amidst the terrors of the war. It has an unusual aura about it which radiates from the pages and it becomes a special place for Laura as she sets about renovating it and bringing it back to its former glory. It offers her security and a sense of being hidden away from the world and the problems that enshroud her. The garden had lay hidden, overgrown and neglected for so long but now was waiting to spring back into life and as this starts to occur Laura discovers underneath the willow tree a cigarette case with a silver key and a ration card inside with a message saying-Please find me Grace Mere is our only hope. Of course, she can’t but not be fascinated as to what this all means and she feels such an urge to solve the mystery of what has been found.

Later on, we are privy to an even deeper reason as to why Laura feels so called to track down the person who hid this if in fact they are alive. This quote really summed up the journey Laura went on as she attempted to reconcile the past with the present both in terms of her own life and the incredible love story that was waiting patiently to be told. ‘Fate has an unusual way of taking us on paths of discovery that end up leading us back to a new truth for our own lives. It’s all part of the marvellous experience we call life’. I loved the way Laura set about seeking the answers to the mystery. Step by step through subtle clues and meeting people she draws ever closer to the truth and meets Jamie, a painter, along the way. I loved the use of Charles Dickens - The Old Curiosity Shop as a strong link for solving the clues and basically a good old fashioned mystery developed that had you rapidly turning the pages.

The story in the past is told from two perspectives, that of Nikolai and Anya. Their story begins in Russia, Anya is trying to escape her abusive stepfather and feels even more of an urgency when her mother dies suddenly. Nikolai comes from a well to do background but is determined to uncover just what happened to his father when he was taken away and killed. Soon they both come to work for the Russian government and although Nikolai is training against his will when he comes into contact with Anya who is part of his training you can feel a spark between them from the moment they meet. Soon they are both drawn into a web that will be hard to escape from.They find themselves working as Russian spies and are transported secretly to England. They arrive at Hatworth Manor under new names and Anya becomes Annie the Land Girl and Nikolai becomes Nicholas the new footman. They are to report back on the movements of planes at a camp near the manor and to listen to any details being discussed about the war by the lord of the manor.

Their task soon pales into insignificance when they discover the walled garden and like Laura in the present it envelops itself around the couple and the personas they have been forced to adopt can be dropped. I know I should have despised the pair given they were spies and trying to help the Russians in the war but the way the pair were written you just forget all that and appreciate the deep and solid love connection that develops between the pair. You wish their love didn’t exist in times of such trouble and danger and that they could just be free to be together to show their love to the world. Instead they played a very dangerous game yet they never let their ‘characters’ slide and showed such bravery, tenacity and strength for each other. But fate has a way of intervening and their love is torn apart. Anya sets in motion a plan which they had devised in case they were discovered and informed on. Will it work? Can they follow the clues set out for each other? Once separated will they ever reunite? How does this all connect back to Laura in the present and just how crucial a role does the walled garden play? You’ll definitely have to read Garden of Secrets to find out. Despite the slow start it goes on to be a wonderfully told heart-breaking but also heart-warming story.

Great story about people keeping the past alive and finding a hidden secret. I loved the story. It was wonderful and heartbreaking at the same time.

What a riveting read. A secret walled garden, a mystery and a love story spanning decades. All the elements for a wonderful weekend read.
We learn about the three main characters through alternate chapters spanning WWII and the present day.
Present day, Laura a garden restoration artist arrives at Hatworth Manor in Norfolk to restore a secret walled garden. She is staying on the estate with good friends from Uni who are the Estate Manager. Laura is running away from her life in London, her boyfriend and a messy breakup. While restoring the garden she finds a silver cigarette box with a secret message. This sets Laura on a journey to find out who wrote the message.
It is WWII and Anya and Nickolai, Russian secret service members are thrown together on a spy mission at Hatworth House. Anya now known as Annie is a Land Girl and Nickolai, now known as Nicholas is a footman. They cannot fight the attractive they have for each other and they feel torn between the duty to Russia and to their new found friends in England.
The story of Anya and Nickolai is gripping especially the double life they were forced to live. I found it hard not to jump chapters to find out what was next in their lives.
The lives of all the characters, including the Secret Garden which had a life of its own, was heartwarming at times heartbreaking but altogether the book was a delight to read .

Have the tissues handy as this is a very moving dual timeline story from Suzanne Kelman. The two timelines take place during WWII and present day.

This story carries all the immense emotions as most WWII stories do, but there is a beautiful love story told through out. Beautifully written with vivid scenes that you almost feel as if you are there.

Thank you to #netgalley and #bookouture for allowing me to read this eARC. All opinions expressed above are my own.

Enjoyed it, although it wasn't my favorite by the author. I LOVED "A View Across the Rooftops" and "When We Were Brave." There was something missing in this book. I didn't really love any of the characters. So many extra things were thrown into the story. Laura's relationship with Liam and then her friend in the hospital. When Liam suddenly showed up, and was completely rude to Jamie, why didn't Laura speak up? She just stood there. I would have liked to read more about Anya and Nikolai during WWII, than Laura and all the drama that seemed to surround her. The whole idea about Russians spies n England during WWII sounded extremely interesting, plus I haven't read and historical fiction books on that subject. The story was more about Anya and Nikolai's romance than the actual spying. I wasn't surprised about what happened after Anya and her friend were caught in a bomb raid.

Definitely recommend giving the book a try. Look forward to reading more books by the author.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Bookouture through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.