The Garden by Nick Newman, when the story begins we meet Evelyn and her sister Lily they’re both elderly and have both been living at their home with their self sustaining garden as far back as they can remember. They do remember a time when their parents were there they had other people that would come and go from the home but now due to some catastrophic event it’s just Evelyn and Lily. so much so when Evelyn sees her beehives have been moved she knows something is up and although Lily wants to blame it on her old age or something else Evelyn’s fears proved to be true when she finds a boy hiding out in their hideaway. before he appeared their life consisted of the kitchen they ate in and slept in in the garden which produced the food they ate and they knew each other like the back of their hands. His appearance however shows sides to each of the sisters they’ve never seen before and possibilities they hadn’t thought of. I really enjoyed this book, but felt as if there was going to be a wow ending that never came. We don’t find out how the world got to be the way it is and the whole story or at least 99% of it takes place in their home and the garden. Now having said that it should also prove what a great writer Mr. Newman is because this book held my attention the whole time. it had a fairytale feel and never once did I even contemplate DN effing this book so it’s absolutely a read I recommend. Especially for those who love literary fiction and what if scenarios.#NetGalley,#PenguinGroupPutnam, #TheBlindReviewer, #MyHonestReview, #NickNewman, #TheGarden,vv

This was so disappointing. The premise of this was so intriguing to me and while it definitely had an eerie, creepy feel to it, nothing happened! It was so slow and I kept waiting and waiting for something exciting to happen and then it just…ended. The two main characters, two sisters Evelyn and Lily were interesting but I wanted SO much more and there were so many unanswered questions. Why did they stay in the garden? What storms are destroying the garden? What else is out there? Where did the boy come from? Who were the people who found the house? Where did they go? What happened AT ALL?!

After an unnamed apocalyptic event, sisters Lily and Evelyn have lived at the same house their entire lives. They are elderly now and have never set foot out of their yard fearing what is beyond the fence. The arrival of a stranger on their property changes the way they view their lives and what lies outside of their world

I enjoy stories of the apocalypse and the description of this book grabbed my attention.. Two sisters raised by the same family but ultimately different in personality made me love both characters. Sad and lonely but beautiful at the same time. I really enjoyed this read.

“The Garden” is an unsettling book, somewhat Dystopian, somewhat depressing. Two elderly sisters have preserved their family home and garden, living totally off the grid. But why? Nick Newman never reveals the reason for this isolation. Was there an event that changed the world enough to make this necessary, or was this withdrawal from the outside world caused by a deranged mother?
The author delves into the relationship between the two aging sisters, one childlike in nature, the other a worker bee. And then their fortress is found by a young boy, and everything changes.
This book was slow to develop and lacked important details that would have explained the scenario better. Why was the mother so frightened of the outside world? Where was the father? What happened outside the gates?
The lack of answers had an impact on my assessment of the book.
My thanks to NetGalley and the Penguin Group Putnam for an advanced copy of this book. My opinions are my own.

The Garden by Nick Newman opens with two elderly sisters living alone in their secluded and isolated family home and maintaining their self sufficient farm, beehives, and garden. When a young boy appears at their house without explanation, the sisters look for an explanation on how he got there and the reason why.

Thank you to NetGalley and PENGUIN GROUP Putnam for approving my request for an Advanced Readers Copy (ARC) of The Garden by Nick Newman. I received a copy for free in exchange for my honest review.

Honestly, I was extremely excited to read this book, but I struggled with even finishing the story because it was slow paced and boring. It seemed pointless, and I expected more of a mystery or more suspense. Don't get me wrong, it was well written, but it just didn't appeal to me. It reminded me of Leave the World Behind by Rumaan Alan, which I disliked immensely.

As for the main two characters, Lily and Evelyn, both characters had good and bad qualities, but I found myself disliking Lily the most. The minor characters of their parents weren't that great, but their mom seemed like a total nutcase. Their dad seemed to legitimately care for them but seemed to be a bit standoffish. As for the young boy, there wasn't really any character development for someone who's supposed to be a main character.

Overall I found The Garden by Nick Newman to be disappointing, and it just wasn't for me. I gave it an underwhelming two stars out of five stars.

If you are a fan of the uncanny valley feeling, this is absolutely a book to pick up. Information is delivered at just about the perfect rate to keep the reader interested and the flashbacks are done very well. I know it would ruin some of the mystery of this novel, but I would absolutely read a less mysterious book set in the same world that actually explains what happened to the world or explores how others survived. As it stands, the relationship between Evelyn and Lily is so interesting and explores well the different responses two people can have to the same trauma. I've seen this book branded as horror, and I guess it is in certain ways, but it wasn't "don't read it at night" scary, it was "this is what could happen to someone's mind even without the speculative fiction setting" scary. This entire book existed in an odd liminal space in my brain and while I often felt like I wanted more to grasp on to, the story would not have been the same if it were written any other way.

Thank you to Netgalley and Putnam for my eARC to review.

This was a very interesting take on a dystopian tale. The story follows two elderly sisters as they navigate their simple life in what’s left of their parents’ home decades after some world-changing event. The chapters bounce from their present day (which is never made clear of the “when”) and memories since their childhood that they’ve held onto. As the story unfolds, we learn more about how their family and society coped in the years after the disaster in order to prioritize survival. I found the tale captivating because of how the author presented it, unraveling the history of the sisters over time. Overall, I enjoyed this story, and it really made me think about what could come of our world and how people may handle the new life they’re presented with differently from others. I was gifted an ARC of this book by NetGalley and the publisher and all reviews and thoughts are my own.

The Garden by Nick Newman is a weird and enticing dystopian novel set around these two old sisters living in their own version of paradise. I enjoyed reading about their rituals, strange behaviors, and the overpowering influence of their Mother. However, even with the flashbacks and breadcrumbs of information, I was ended the book feeling more confused than anything else. However, this could have been what the author intended. The prose was beautiful and I found myself reading more and more simply due to how well it was written, even if I needed more at the end.

A dystopian novels unlike the others. Two women who were raised to believe that the world has essentially ended save for what was in their garden. It shows the effect of undying and unconditional devotion and how those effects can be everlasting.

Two elderly sisters have lived for decades inside a walled-off garden. Evelyn and Lily haven’t been outside the walls since childhood and can barely remember what their lives were like before their solitary existence. They spend each day working, making sure that trees and plants are producing food for them to continue existing. They regularly consult an old almanac their mother left for them. They follow all the warnings and instructions their mother gave them before she died.

They don’t know anymore what exists beyond the wall. They know only it is scary and unlivable.

One day they find a boy hiding in their home, and it upends their lives. Evelyn and Lily react differently to him at different times, and their relationships with him radically change their relationship with each other. Even as they somewhat come to a new normal with him, they don’t stop worrying and wondering what will happen next. Where did he come from, and will others come after him? What does he want?

As each day brings more disquiet and disruption, the sisters have to face memories and some hard truths. And they will have to decide not just how to deal with the boy, but how they will move forward.

I kept thinking as I read The Garden that there would be some kind of grand reveal at the end, that a great mystery would be solved. But this is more a story about a closed system and how two humans who have lived in this controlled system for their entire lives deal with the change. It is an examination of human nature, a tale of survival, a peek into family dynamics through what often seems a dusty window. It can be a bit unsettling, and it doesn’t adhere to expectations. I’m still not entirely sure what I think about it, but it gives some good material for me to chew on.

haunting, beautiful, and immersive.
go in blind and allow the story to take you away!

thank you netgalley and author nick newman for giving me a chance to read!

This was a crazy book! Sort of speculative fiction but not really. Very character driven and oh what characters. I loved the portrayal of the main characters (sisters) and their very regimented existence. They seemed to be missing so much of life due to their lack of curiosity, plodding through their daily chores to survive but not much in the way of thriving. Along comes a boy and their world (and the reader's) is turned upside down. The memories that come flooding back shake up the routines and the sisters and the reader finally sees more of the the world in which they live. It was fascinating. I realize I'm making the book sound like it is anthropological study, but it really is an impressive piece of fiction that I highly recommend.

Dystopian fiction is not my jam, but hearing good things, I gave #thegarden by Nick Newman a go. It was enjoyable, mysterious and compelling. I will admit I might've given up, had it not been for the desire to find out how Evelyn and Lily came to live in a kitchen.

What I liked:
Some truly chilling moments, i.e. when "the boy" is discovered. I wasn't sure what he was at first. I appreciated how he quickly came between the two sisters and how fragile their psyches were, how feral, if we didn't realize it already.

What I did not like:
I wanted more! I needed to know how, why and when. We did get one answer but I needed so much more. For this reason, even though I appreciated the ending, I can only give 3 stars.

P.S. Thanks to #netgalley for the ARC.

I absolutely loved this book. I love a book with only a few characters in one place. The building of the world, and the relationships emerging to us like a flower with what is going on. And I love them I always go into them a bit hesitant because when done wrong it is a mess but when done right it is glorious. And my dear friends, The Garden is done right. From the beginning you begin to see these characters and see that something is going on with them. It slowly unravels and it is done so beautifully and hauntingly mesmerizing . I read a NetGally copy of this and loved it so much.

In The Garden by Nick Newman, the author has created an atmospheric and dynamic story that delves into dark truths and a dystopian world. With a world that is disrupted, Evelyn and Lily must confront their changed world and the boy that has forced that conflict.
One of the aspects I enjoyed the most is the conflict between Evelyn and Lily, especially as Evelyn reflects on their past and how their world changed as the world became a post apocalyptic world. Nothing is ever revealed about the causes of the world being disrupted but that only makes the story more hypnotic and compelling. The atmosphere of the garden and the dynamic between the two sisters is what drives the narrative, until secrets are revealed and a choice between love or survival must be faced.
If you love atmospheric and dynamic stories, this is a richly compelling novel with complex characters that is about love and survival. It is wonderful but also tragic at times but the ending is gorgeous.

This was too slow and dull for me. It was quick to read but very uninteresting because there were so many unanswered questions and mundane details that could’ve been left out.

I'm not sure what I just read. There was no plot, this felt abysmally pointless. It started slow and I still decided to give it a chance but the mundane happenings of two old sisters wasn't doing it for me. I sped through the last 30% of the book. It ended as it began, meh. Thanks #NetGalley for the arc.

This one was weird.
I still don’t know what happened to make two elderly (I think?) women isolate on their little oasis. I wanted to know more about what was in the house, more about what happened outside, and more about their mother and her mental woes.
I kept reading in hopes I would get some of these answers, but really didn’t find them.

C/2.5 ⭐️

Two elderly sisters, Evelyn & Lily, live alone in an isolated home with a big garden. They have not left the walls of their home & as far as they know nothing else exist outside them. Until a young boy goes into their garden & changes their reality. I really enjoyed the story, but found it so heartbreaking. I loved the dynamics between the two sisters & seeing them face the changes in their lives.

An interesting take on a dystopian novel. Wasn’t quite sure what was happening half the time and kept going back and forth on whether our narrator was reliable or not. I did enjoy having the characters be older women. A decent change of pace in a horror/dystopian.