The French Gardener was a happy find for me on the crowded shelves of the monthly Library Van. The blurb on the front says: Anyone who likes Joanne Harris or Mary Wesley will love Montefiore’s atmospheric romance. I couldn’t have put it better myself. The plot winds its way round contrasting romances like the shoots of a climbing shrub attaching themselves to ever deeper layers in the reader.
Essentially it is about the relationships amongst a family who move out of the city to a large country house and gardens. The gardens are gradually brought to life as the stories unfold. The book is pure romance with a lifelike feel-good factor. The characters are instantly recognisable, if not always likeable, and the plot leads you on faster and faster as it becomes imperative to see what happens next – an unusual feature for a romance.
If you are looking for some light distraction this is for you; it has the added bonus of leaving some magic behind in your soul.
The book is available in kindle format or secondhand, but well worth the effort of finding it. Marks 8 out of 10. Or maybe 9 because I am a silly old romantic at heart.
