I liked Gwen's cousin Fran and Mr. Ravasinghe. They were very nice people and ended up getting married even though it was frowned upon because she was English and he was Sinhalese. But they didn't care and I don't care so there. Laurence's sister, Verity, shows up and throws a monkey wrench into the work. She is a very unpleasant woman who does incredibly mean things. Gwen gets pregnant and it is the birth that changes their lives for ever. It is really an unique situation that I never had heard of before this. Beautifully written and heartrending, this has a magical setting with a real sense of period.” —Katie Fforde, bestselling author of A French Affair A wonderful book, deeply touching, and an unforgettable read that swept me away. I loved it.” —Kate Furnivall, author of The Italian Wife Nežinau, ar būčiau skaičiusi šią knygą, jei nebūčiau mačiusi tiek daug susidomėjimo ja, apžvalgų Goodreads'e ir daug postų apie ją tarp skaitančių pažystamų. Buvo įdomu, kuo ji tokia gera? Perskaičiau. Įtraukė, nors ir nebuvo pati geriausia mano perskaityta knyga. Puikiai tinkanti tiems, kurie pasiilgo dramų, slogių istorijų, šeimos paslapčių, ar mėgstantiems knygas su vaizdingais tolimų šalių aprašymais, kai atrodo, tiesiog jauti, matai ir užuodi aprašomą gamtovaizdį.

Vowing to be the best wife she can be, Gwen plans changes to the plantation: a vegetable garden and a gazebo. But there are secrets she uncovers that make her uneasy, first among them is a child’s grave hidden in the woods with only a first and middle name on the tombstone—no dates, no last name.

Success!

Dark secrets lie at every turn, hidden beneath layers of 1920s racism and the fearfulness of a crumbling colonial power, making for a thoroughly gripping tale. But what I loved most of all, underpinning the whole narrative, is the moving way in which Dinah writes about the loss of children and the redemptive power of love.’ Vibrant and compelling - Dinah Jefferies perfectly captures the flavour of colonial Ceylon." - Rosanna Ley, author of The Villa Beautifully written and heartrending, this has a magical setting with a real sense of period." - Katie Fforde, bestselling author of A French Affair

A] dramatic tale of jealousy, deceit, secrets and heartbreak. The intrigue and suspense, add a Gothic flair to Jeffries fast-moving plot and the evocative atmosphere along with the realistic characters will captivate readers.” —Romance Times Book Review The Tea Planter’s Wife by Dinah Jeffries is a 2015 Penguin publication. I was provided a copy of this book by the publisher and the LIbraryThing early reviewer program. I found myself predicting the major plot features quite early in the book, right down to the final reveal. I even told friends "if x happens then I will throw the book away". It did, but I carried on to see just how awfully it would continue. The narrative's repeated structure of half-telling you something, then suddenly revealing the 'secret' was irritating, and some clumsy editing had you wondering where characters had appeared from (Pru at the picnic), or disappeared to (a houseful of party guests), or why it had been included (cutting out a mystery magazine article - presumably the same one referred to later as being read by others, but no confirmation it was the same one). This might have been written for a much younger audience that is enthralled by the physical and sexual variables of the romance in the new marriage, or the possible love affairs in the romance genre sense? Ok, then- but it still seems more weird than scorched. Like I said before, I thought the book was good, but nothing really special. I do think a lot more people will like the book more than me and that's great. I will tell you that it made me want to drink some tea!Autoarea ne conduce intr-o calatorie spre Ceylon (Sri Lanka de azi), unde cateva colonii engleze, detin plantatii mari de ceai, pe care lucreaza indieni bastinasi. My ideal read; mystery, love heartbreak and joy—I couldn’t put it down.” —Santa Montefiore, author of The Beekeeper’s Daughter Gwen soon falls pregnant and her husband is overjoyed, but she has little time to celebrate. In the delivery room the new mother is faced with a terrible choice. When the time comes, how will her husband ever understand what she has done?

What I love about this book is its confident depiction of a vanished age. Set in the 1920s it is a period (just) within living memory, and yet the white tea-planters with their wives and their whole complex colonial-era society are as extinct now as are the Pharos. In a single generation, they have evaporated, never to return. Life continued with Gwen loving Ceylon and her marriage to Laurence – the occasional problems were fairly easily sorted out and with Gwen in charge of the house, she enjoyed running things as she saw fit; it was Laurence’s way of showing his trust in her. But would their happiness remain? The speed that the unexpected disaster hit had her reeling; but there was no way Gwen could divulge the truth – her sanity depended on it. What would happen to Gwen? Could she keep the secret that she knew would mean the end of everything she had worked so hard for? In Ceylon, between the First and Second World Wars, pre-Independence, a young wife arrives from England to join her new husband on his tea plantation. ‘The Tea Planter’s Wife’ by Dinah Jeffries is a portrayal of an island riven by racial differences, a marriage riven by an inability to be honest, concluding that in the end skin colour should not matter. Discuss the issues of race and colonialism in the novel. Do you think racism is a cultural stigma that is learned? The two children in the book get along well and don’t care about the color of their skin, do you think this is an argument that racism is not inherited?And then, a shaft of sunlight in the relationship: Gwen falls pregnant. Laurence is overjoyed, especially when twins are diagnosed.