Interlaced with a Russian fairytale that changes absolutely everything, this story is harrowing and heartbreaking, in so many ways. It’s the buried resentments that get unearthed, the hidden regrets that are revealed and the realization that there is more to everyone’s story that provides the much needed answers. Reality is, life is a series of choices - some are remarkable and some naturally morph in to regrets - good or bad, the culmination make us who we are. Parts of this story about two sisters and their Russian immigrant mother were very interesting. Sometimes I had to put it aside for a while because I couldn’t bear to read too much of the 1940s Leningrad stories at once. Some of the images, about a time I knew little about, were harrowing. It made me so thankful I have never lived through a world war and the tragedies that result. Other times I couldn’t bear to the book aside at all and had to keep reading but that was once I got further into the novel. Initially I wasn’t sure about it. The mother is a very cold and aloof person who seems to show no love to her daughters. I found her hard to relate to, until her story and past is revealed. Meredith and Nina also were hard to like. Meredith is a closed off sort of person, afraid to show emotion and Nina came across as selfish, with no regard for family. But circumstances contrive that the three women are left in a situation where they need to get to know each other. Nina and Meredith never had a mother they could count on or could talk to about boys. The only thing their mother was good for was telling them Russian fairy tales from her youth; Little did they know how important those fairy tales really were. Their father, however, was their hero. What they couldn't get from their mother, they got in spades from their father. When their father dies from heart problems, they are heartbroken. Nina's father makes a final proclamation as he lays dying: He wants Nina to convince her mother to tell the full fairy tale of "The Peasant Girl and The Prince." This fairy tale does more for their family than any of them could have ever expected. It will lead them on a journey of a lifetime.. My favorite part of the entire story was the dynamic between the two sisters. Meredith was always the steadfast and responsible one and Nina was the wild and free sister, but they were both strong, just in different ways. Both admired one another for exactly what they regretted the most in themselves and I found that quite interesting. I guess, the grass always seems greener on the other side, right? And of course, the love story junkie in me would be remiss not to mention Danny and Jeff. I was completely smitten with both, they were as different as the sisters, but worthy in their own ways.

I can see why this is being compared to the Night Circus, but I feel that gives the wrong idea of what to expect from it. Erin Morgenstern’s written style is much more flourishing than this, which I would honestly describe more as unobtrusive. I don’t mean that in a negative way at all, I just want people to go into it expecting the Victorian setting and the magical realism that glimmers in spectacle and crowds. It shouldn’t be compared on any other level, because it is entirely it’s own creature. Overall this book is a thought provoking story with harsh realities told in a fantastical world filled with magic. It's beautifully written, I highly recommend this book if you enjoy stories that discuss real issues within a world filled with magic. This book completely captured my imagination, and with the snowy scenes and sheer magic of it all it would make the perfect Christmas read. A dreamy and wondrous book which was an absolute joy to read. I liked the ending, which has a healing touch. I recommend this book to fans of historical fiction and fans of strong woman characters. The real win of the story though is the magic. It lingers over everything and charges the atmosphere of the book with such possibility. I could see the garden and its magic so clearly in my mind and was enraptured. My imagination ran wild and it was such a freeing feeling.

More from The Author

Were there some weaknesses? Yes, but I’m so grateful for the quality of this novel, I’m willing to overlook them. By and far, this book blows anything and everything I’ve read this year, so far, completely out of the water. Alternating between the past and present, Meredith and Nina will finally hear the singular, harrowing story of their mother's life, and what they learn is a secret so terrible and terrifying that it will shake the very foundation of their family and change who they believe they are. The women in this book made me want to scream at how unemotional they where, and how they treated the good men around them. Definitivamente tanto este libro como El ruiseñor, nos da lecciones de vida, nos enseña a no subestimar o dar por sentado nada de lo que tenemos, a levantar la cabeza y a decir, lo que a mi me pasa no se acerca ni un poquito a la historia de estos seres que padecieron lo indecible. She will remember how she told them what she hadn’t known before: that war is about fire and fear and bodies lying in ditches by the side of the road.”

Vera and Sasha: everything happened so fast for me she fall in love with him the first time they met?which made no sense to me. And then I blinked and they were married. I wanted more interaction between them so i can be invested in their relationship but sadly there wasn’t they only talked like 6 or 7 times in the book i counted them. And i know this is a women fiction not romance but still i wanted more then this. Honestly i had a hard time rating this. If i could,i would rate the first half 50% 1.5 stars and the second 50% 5 stars.i feel like 3 stars is pretty decent so…The first half was so painfully boring i wanted to dnf it so freaking bad. the only thing that kept me going was that i wanted to know Vera story. And It was worth the suffering 💔 Winter Garden tells the story of Meredith and Nina Whitson and their supposedly heartless mother Anya. For over an extended period we get to know of Anya while she faces tremendous obstacles and disaster, but ends surviving despite all her suffering. It's not a trivial novel; it's not romantic, it is almost an epic. It's repeatedly a struggle. I think it's written to be read on a sunny day, or it might be shattering. That is how I felt from the way it impacted me, as a mother and as a sister. Despite it all, I fully enjoyed it. Hannah tells a breathtaking story, I don't comment on it feebly. It is astonishing and heartbreaking. But in the end there is hope, so all is well after all! LITTLE bits of romance (but not the most satisfying- for a reason) so don’t read this for romance. i liked that it wasn’t romancey though - it definitely wouldnt have worked as well if there was a prominent romance storyline

BOOK A TABLE

Winter Garden is currently available as part of the Kindle Unlimited program and includes WhisperSync for those who prefer the audiobook format. In writing Winter Garden, it was my goal to take this epic, tragic event and personalize it as much as possible. I wanted to give you all this story of survival and loss, horror and heartache in a way that would allow you to experience it with some measure of emotion. I am not a historian, nor a non fiction writer. My hope is that you leave this novel informed, but not merely with the facts and figures; rather, I want you to be able to actually imagine it, to ask yourself how you would have fared in such terrible times.