Nightingale hHuse, it was felt was meant to be another character in the story like Mandelery in Rebecca and the women’s obsession with it: Lyddie, Stella and Juliet was meant to convey that. Escape into a world of beautiful writing with a mesmerising story… meet The Garden of Lost and Found by Harriet Evans.

We have recently finished reading the lovely book "The Garden of Lost and Found" by Harriet Evans. This book is a Historical Family Drama Genre. When a book alternates between time periods, it’s inevitable that one will hold the reader’s interest more than the other, and that’s certainly the case with The Garden of Lost and Found. Liddy and Ned’s love story feels like something out of a TV period drama. It’s full of hope, love and hardship, and their devotion for each other is infectious. When they suffered bereavements, I felt as bereft as the characters themselves. And that extends to Mary and Dalbeattie too, undoubtedly the unspoken heroes of this tale. Juliet’s modern day family drama isn’t quite as compelling as her ancestors’ struggle, which is so instinctively linked with the difficulties of the Victorian and Edwardian eras.

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This magical, historical adult contemporary tells the story of two different characters on two different timelines and their families. I felt absolutely captivated and thoroughly enjoyed reading this brilliant book!

My copy of the book was full of typos and badly formatted. One word on a line and then when conversations were going on, both on the same line. Confusing, but maybe that will be sorted for the production copy. Another big bug bear is lots of use of Italics. Very difficult to read for some people. The book also finished rather abruptly, and felt very odd. blogtour Adventure Ancient Egypt Art History Australia Book Blogger Bookliterati Book Recommendation Book review Contemporary Fiction Crime Del Rey Doubleday Emmeline Kirby and Gregory Longdon Mystery Fantasy Festive Reads Florence Folklore Harper 360 Harper Collins Harper Voyager Historical Fiction History Independently Published Italy Karen Swan Literary Fiction Magic Mantle Books Melville House Murder Mystery Myth Orenda Books Pan Macmillan Penguin Random House Psychological thriller Romance Secrets Simon and Schuster Supernatural Suspense thriller Women's Fiction Zaffre Books Book title Search for: Search Search Recent Comments As I've said on here before I a. have loved Harriet Evans books since her very first b. Adore books centred around big houses and c. love family secrets so The Garden of Lost and Found was pretty much reading catnip. Expectations were high and more than met - The Garden of Lost and Found is an emotional, compelling and absorbing read and (to me) a thoughtful examination of marriage, motherhood, and the search for self set in a world of Victorian art and modern day art history, a world of which I know very little but enjoyed discovering.

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This is another novel with many twists and turns along the way as the story unfolds, and is told from various perspectives. Some of our group preferred the modern story, some the older one, but we all agreed that the novel had a good and gripping plot and was well written, although we felt that an actual family tree, rather than just a list of the children, would have been helpful. When Ned and Liddy's great-granddaughter Juliet is sent the key to Nightingale House, she opens the door onto a forgotten world. The house holds its mysteries close, but she is in search of answers. For who would choose to destroy what they love most? Whether Ned's masterpiece - or, in Juliet's case, her own children's happiness. Utterly gorgeous and filled with flowers and paintings, secrets and heartbreak … and always hope’ Veronica Henry The Garden of Lost and Found is an evocative family saga full of love, loss, history and art that slowly draws you into its characters’ lives and makes you care about them. The perfect ingredients for a screen adaptation… This sweeping tale is by turns painfully sad and heart-lifting, with characters that stay with you' Good Housekeeping

Harriet Evans writes so beautifully that I was drawn into the world of Nightingale House. I could picture it so clearly in my mind whether it was the grand house that Ned and Liddy shared, the slightly decaying version that Juliet moves to or even the doll’s house version so loved by the children throughout the generations. She creates an image of a bygone golden era but shows also how it all came crashing down so suddenly, with the repercussions reverberating through the decades which followed. A long read, but it kept me interested till the end. Twists and turns and tales or family. A great house. A great holiday read and lovely descriptions.' Nightingale House was the Horner family’s beloved home – a gem of design created to inspire happiness – and it was here Ned painted The Garden of Lost and Found, capturing his children on a perfect day, playing in the rambling Eden he and Liddy made for them. The plot jumps between the past and present, and I adored this, as I found I was trying to work out the links. It all came together really well, and there were no questions unanswered. However, I did find one diary entry confusing as I couldn’t remember this particular character.The Victorian section did not fully explore the relationship of the family. The depiction of evil and the abuse of power displayed by both the nurse and the father was poorly followed through. This sweeping tale is by turns painfully sad and heart-lifting, with characters that stay with you‘ Good Housekeeping

Enjoyable lightweight easy read - family saga spanning more than a century and set around Nightingale house- which is almost a character in itself.' Harriet Evans is an accomplished romance writer, but she also writes chilling characters terrifyingly well from the evil childhood nurse, to the weak father and the selfish, manipulative husband. Humour also shines through with the recognisable tribes of primary school mothers and the sheer insanity of coping with small and strong minded children and troubled teens. I loved both timelines, rooting for both Liddy and Juliet as they dared to reach out for happiness despite the many obstacles in their way. Her characters are finely drawn . . . The result is that rare and lovely thing, an all-engaging and all-consuming drama' Daily Mail Overall the majority of the group thought it was a good holiday read and would like to read more of her books. In addition, other members of the group thought it was a lovely read but would not seek other books by this author. In the present day art historian Juliet Horner, the great granddaughter of Ned and Liddy, sees a sketch of the original painting come up for sale. But what intrigues her even more is when she receives a letter with a key. She is now the owner of Nightingale House which she finds surprising considering the last few years of estrangement from her grandmother Stella. What secrets are enshrined in the house and can Juliet be the one to uncover them? Is the time right for her to move or is it fate considering the sad state of her marriage to Matt and the discovery she will soon make? Juliet feels that things are all wrong and that she has messed up and that her family is spiralling out of control. A leap of faith is made, one which will test her and throw up many surprises and difficulties. She knows unless she takes this step and embraces the opportunity presented to her than her children will continue to suffer. A break with the chain is needed and I was ever so glad when she left Matt and brought the children Bea, Isla and Sandy to Nightingale House.Nightingale House was the Horner family’s beloved home – a gem of design created to inspire happiness – and it was here Ned painted TheGarden of Lost and Found, capturing his children on a perfect day, playing in the rambling Eden he and Liddy made for them. One magical moment. Before it all came tumbling down… When Ned and Liddy’s great-granddaughter Juliet is sent the key to Nightingale House, she opens the door onto a forgotten world.