Readers who love flowers will enjoy this story. Emma, a widow starts a new job as a florist. Each chapter features a flower and the meaning of the flower. The florist aspect of the story and the meanings behind the flowers were interesting.but I found the story really hard to get into.. Very slow-paced.

As can be gleaned from the title, Sally Page’s novel is about flowers; she understands their importance to us; their symbolic representation of love—for a christening, a wedding, a birthday, a funeral. No matter the occasion, flowers bring comfort and connection. They weave through our own lives, and through the lives of two women—Emma in the present and Violet a hundred years earlier. Combining the timelessness of flowers with the timeless icon that the Titanic has become, in its many guises in print or on film, defines this as a true gem.

Emma is ungainly, and she feels it; tall, with flaming red hair and big feet, she stands out and doesn’t want to. Add to that her struggle to deal with her husband’s death, and life has become overwhelming. But she does understand the language of flowers, so after resigning from a professional position, she takes a job at a small independent florist, owned by Betty and Les. There she regains the footing in life which she had lost, with friendship and newfound family, her interest in Titanic sparked and encouraged by Betty’s unconditional friendship, and Les’s love of history. Initially a distraction against her pain, she becomes happily involved in researching who might have arranged the flowers on the magnificent ship.

Violet’s story unfolds more abstractly, as Page leads her reader along a path of discovery. This delightful novel is like the unfolding of flower petals where the vibrant richness of scent and colour slowly reveal themselves. To add more detail will inevitably contain spoilers. Flowing at a leisurely and comfortable pace, it takes a while to establish where the author is headed. That said, there are many reasons to delve into this unique and gentle tale where readers will feel richly rewarded.

I thought this book was kinda boring and sad. I never really thought too much about who arranged the flowers on the Titanic so that was a little interesting.
The information about the different flowers were good . Overall this book just wasn’t for me, I’m sure others will enjoy it.

Historical Fiction lovers this book is for you! Sally Page has written the perfect dual timeline of Emma and Violet and how their life has been impacted through their love of flowers. Emma is a grieving widow that turns to the comfort of flowers to help ease her heart as she struggles to make a life without her husband. Emma is a scientist and researcher but after her husband Will´s death she quits her job to work in a garden center and is soon inspired by owners Les and Betty. Les´s love for the Secrets of the Titanic sparks an interest for Emma and she begins to research the flowers that were on the ship. The research which starts as a hobby leads her on a journey of healing.
Sally Page has written a beautiful story with wonderful and relatable characters. My favorite is Betty, I think everyone needs a Betty in their life. These people help transform Emma to her life now without Will and become her new family. I truly loved the way this story unfolded and how the past and present intertwined. I also have a new love and appreciation of flowers . Well done Sally Page I cant wait to read more from you.

An interesting story--present day florist coming out of a difficult time, and in the past, a stewardess on the Titanic. Flowers play a pivotal role in the book and it's an interesting premise. Lots of information about the Titanic, too.
Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for access to this eARC.

i really enjoyed this book!! i love how there is so much information and depth about the titanic and how flowers are related.

I loved this book and the history of Violet Jessup on the Titanic. It was such an interesting premise and she really pulled it off.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the digital arc.

II absolutely loved this book. I grew up loving the Titanic so that's what drew me to the book. Wonderful story with great characters.

History and fantasy blossom in "The Secret of Flowers" Weaving the stories of two characters together is a masterful way to unite history with creativity. I was swept up into the drama of two women's lives and how they were unknowingly linked by the spirit of the Titanic. This is a must read for anyone who is infatuated with flowers and the Titanic. Who knew two things could have so much in common.

This book was a little slow for my taste, the premise was very promising but I feel like the author didn't deliver. Maybe it's a "me" and not "the book" type of situation. I just had another idea of what the book was going to be about. I might try to pick it up later and see if it resonates with me.

Grief can be all encompassing and for Sally the death of her husband rocked her to the core. She quits her job and decides to start over. Her bravery was sweet and the story was beautiful

Thank you NetGalley, Sally Page and Blackstone Publishing for a copy of this book. The following opinion is my subjective one.

What a lovely historical novel! Although it started out a wee bit slow, I nevertheless really took to the characters. Especially Betty and Les sneaked straight into my heart. They were described with so much love and with their own quirks, I love when authors do that. I guess it took a little while longer to develop a liking for Emma, a little shorter a while to connect to Violet. Still, I feel like this novel succeeds because of the side characters.

The plot intrigued me. Initially I was convinced it’d be too cheesy, Violet would be a long-lost relative of Emma and there would be family members to meet. I was positively surprised when the story’s focus shifted a bit. Away from the sole focus on Violet and more towards other interpersonal relationships.

One element I really liked was the use of the sense of smell, such an underrepresented sense in most works of fiction. Though I’m not super informed on flowers, I got the scent of the pool, the garden center, the cocktails.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this narrative. And I had to smile when (after having thought there was no connection to Violet whatsoever) Emma finds her grandmother’s letter.

Emma struggles to cope with her grief of losing her husband Will, and takes a part-time job as florist. When a colleague asks her to attend a talk about the Titanic, she embarks on a quest to find out who was responsible for arranging the flowers on the Titanic. The second timeline follows Violet Jessup, a real-life stewardess who survived 3 shipwrecks including the Titanic, and as the story unfolds you see where the 2 stories connect.

The cover of this book is absolutely beautiful, and unfortunately, that is about the extent of my praise. Oh dear, this was a painfully tedious read for me. As much as I enjoy the history of the Titanic, this story was so boring that it took too long to get into. I really wanted to like this, but in the end, it just didn't work for me.

This story was absolutely amazing. I had never really thought about the stewardesses on the Titanic, but after reading this story I kind of want to do my own research and learn more about them.
Emma is having a hard time with life and finds herself working in a garden center. Betty and Les, own the garden center. All kinds of beautiful friendships emerge in this book.

There is so much more I want to say but I am struggling to find the words right now.

*Thank you to Blackstone Publishing, Sally Page, and Netgalley for the opportunity to read an ARC*

This era is not typically in my wheelhouse for historical fiction, but I ended up loving The Secrets of Flowers. I was drawn more to the present day portions of the book. The main character's struggle with her grieving process was compelling. By the end I was also hooked on the historical portions. I would recommend to any fans of reading about the Titanic or gardeners.

this book was okay. there were sad parts, and some mystery parts in this book, aka the flower arranging girl, that kept you reading to find out what they mystery was about. The writing style of this book was interesting and poetic. It did have some slow moments but with the sad parts there were also some happy parts mixed in

Thank you to NetGalley, to the author, and to the publisher for this complementary ARC in exchange for my honest review!!!

I received a complimentary copy of this book "The Secrets of Flowers" and all opinions expressed are my own. Flowers and the Titanic - interesting story. It took a while to get into the story. It did pick up. Overall I liked it.

Well worth the wait—and the time it took for me to read. The Titanic, a woman who feels out of place, and the people she meets in her quest (which isn’t what she thinks it is, as should be expected in all the best plots).

Even though this story is written in In Verse style I chose this book because it's Titanic. I love anything Titanic and to me this was a fantastic story
I found many things enjoyable from this story.
I especially loved the mystery of the flower girl.
She was what kept me turning the pages until the end.
In spots this story is sad but it others it was awesome.
Hats off to Emma who decided to make a change and stick with it. I was very proud of her. Yes, grief can strike at any given moment and time no matter where you are which is why I was glad that Emma had friends to help her along her journey.
Violet was an interesting character as well. She was my second favorite character. She was an amirable lady.
I love this quote because it's true even though people don't realize it until it's almost too late.
"When one door closes another door opens." Sometimes for the better.
Another thing too, it's the small things that matter .most like not having a toothbrush, comb etc

5 stars from me for keeping me engaged all the way through. I highly recommend.
Might be the best Titanic story ever written.
My thanks for a copy of this book. I was NOT required to write a positive review. All opinions expressed are mine.

Sally Page writes a beautiful story. While the pace felt slow to me, the unusual plot and characters more than make up for that. The cover is beautiful.