Before I moved to the Broad-Meadows country estate in Suffolk, I'd never celebrated either the summer or the winter solstice, but meeting octogenarian estate owner Eloise Thurlow-Forbes had soon changed that, along with a lot of other things.
"In order to garden successfully," she had told me the day we met, which just happened to fall on the summer solstice three years ago, "one has to be in tune with nature, the seasons, Mother Earth, the moon and all their cycles."
Freya Fuller is living her dream, working as a live-in gardener on a beautiful Suffolk estate. But when the owner dies, Freya finds herself forced out of her job and her home with nowhere to go. However, with luck on her side, she’s soon moving to Nightingale Square and helping to create a beautiful winter garden that will be open to the public in time for Christmas.
There’s a warm welcome from all in Nightingale Square, except from local artist Finn. No matter how hard the pair try, they just can’t get along, and working together to bring the winter garden to life quickly becomes a struggle for them both.
Will Freya and Finn be able to put their differences aside in time for Christmas? Or will the arrival of a face from Freya’s past send them all spiralling?
***
I considered whether or not I had time to sneak in another Christmas book before the big event and concluded that I have. Especially one that was as gorgeous to read as this one.
Before reading this I had not realised that it is the third book in the Nightingale Square series. Shock, horror I hear you cry! Annie never reads books out of sequence! This is very true but having inadvertently done so, I can assure you that The Winter Garden works very well as a standalone book. Although rest assured, I will be going back to read the first in the series, Sunshine and Sweet Peas in Nightingale Square, and is something I am already looking forward to doing in the New Year.
The book made for easy pre-Christmas reading and was the perfect antidote to the busyness of the season. It was an entertaining and enchanting book and I enjoyed it very much.
With the exception of one of the characters, they were all very likeable. Getting to know Freya, the main character, was a joy and I rather miss her now that the book is finished. Like all of us, she has endured some difficulties in life. However, Ms Swain has placed her within a scenario in which she can shine and grow in self confidence.
Equally, the author presents all of the other characters in a well drawn manner. Even the dog, Nell, is an important character in the story and played an important role in portraying Freya's character.
I loved reading of the camaraderie of the residents of Nightingale Square along with the haphazard nature of the potential relationship between Freya and Finn.
We all have our individual Christmas traditions and reading a Heidi Swain novel is set to become one of mine, although I am certain that I will not be waiting a whole year to read another of her novels.
ISBN: 978 1471185724
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
No. of pages: 464 (paperback)
*Disclosure: I only recommend books I would buy myself and all opinions expressed here are my own. This post contains an affiliate link from which I may earn a small commission.
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