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The Flower Book
Set against the backdrop of World War I and amid the beautiful Cornish countryside, this is the story of a mother and daughter, bound together by a collection of pressed flowers and the memories they hold. 1914. To the delight of her parents, Violet Prideaux is set to marry local squire Weston Penruth. But an incident during their engagement party sees her leaving behind her friends and family and fleeing to London. Here in the big city she meets local artist Jack Fairling, falling instantly in love. But when Jack enlists, can their happiness survive the horrors of war?
1936. When Violet’s daughter Aster reaches the age of twenty-one, she receives a letter that turns her world upside down. With the support of her childhood friend Harry Penruth and the comfort of her mother’s treasured flower book, she travels to London to discover her destiny.
And as Aster unearths the lies and secrets of her childhood, a future of love and hope may be closer than she realises . . .
1936. When Violet’s daughter Aster reaches the age of twenty-one, she receives a letter that turns her world upside down. With the support of her childhood friend Harry Penruth and the comfort of her mother’s treasured flower book, she travels to London to discover her destiny.
And as Aster unearths the lies and secrets of her childhood, a future of love and hope may be closer than she realises . . .
383 pages, Hardcover
First published August 26, 2013
About the author
Catherine Law
14 books81 followersCatherine Law is the author of eight historical romantic novels, set during the first half of the 20th century, inspired by the tales our mothers, grandmothers and great-grandmothers tell us, and the secrets they keep.
Her new novel, The Girl From The War Room is out now.
Catherine lives 10 minutes from the sea in Kent.
Her new novel, The Girl From The War Room is out now.
Catherine lives 10 minutes from the sea in Kent.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
June 19, 2022
This is a lovely story of romance, betrayal, lies and loyalty with a sprinkling of country lore. I visited Looe in Cornwall, where the bulk of the story is set just a few months ago which helped me to visualise much of the action. It’s the story of Violet who becomes engaged to a wealthy local landowner only to experience a traumatic incident at their engagement party. She flees to London where she meets and falls for artist Jack. They marry but their happiness is short-lived as war in France is looming. Later Violet’s daughter Aster finds herself having to piece together her parents story after receiving a letter which turns her whole life upside down.
It’s a beautiful story and very easy to read. However some of the passages were a little too descriptive for my tastes. Anyone who enjoys a good plot-line may find the action a little too slow. I also felt the ending left too many threads hanging. I would have liked more resolution. This is purely an issue of preference on my part however. This story will appeal to anyone who loves wild flowers, landscapes and evocative descriptions.
It’s a beautiful story and very easy to read. However some of the passages were a little too descriptive for my tastes. Anyone who enjoys a good plot-line may find the action a little too slow. I also felt the ending left too many threads hanging. I would have liked more resolution. This is purely an issue of preference on my part however. This story will appeal to anyone who loves wild flowers, landscapes and evocative descriptions.
April 20, 2020
This book could've been shorter and it would've had a more exciting plot. Nonetheless, I'm happy that I now know my birth month flower which will be the name of my future daughter and I am resolved to start my own flower book as soon as quarantine ends. 🙂
July 3, 2019
The lore of flowers was foremost in my thoughts as I read this book. I wanted Violet to be happy. I willed it, but tragedy struck. A beautiful read. Makes me want to keep a flower book as a journal.
November 17, 2014
A vivid, stirring and emotional historical novel, The Flower Book is Catherine Law’s latest wartime tale of family secrets, illicit passions and forbidden
love.
Violet Prideaux has always been perplexed by her family’s connection to the local squire Weston Penruth. Although socially they might be poles apart, Weston had no qualms in paying Violet’s school fees and enabling her to go to an exclusive boarding school for girls that has opened many doors for her.
Violet might be grateful for Weston’s generosity, but she has never been able to shake off this powerful feeling that her benefactor’s agreeable character and eccentric personality belie a dangerous man with something significant to hide. As the years go by, Violet finds herself reaching marriageable age and when Weston proposes to her, she finds herself with no other option but to accept his proposal of marriage. Although her parents are absolutely delighted with the match, Violet is immediately made to feel like an interloper by Weston’s mother, who cannot believe that her eligible son is marrying a mere doctor’s daughter. However, when a tragic incident reveals Weston’s true colours, Violet realises that she must flee the Cornish village she’s called home all her life or else risk losing everything which she holds dear to her heart…
Escaping to London to stay with her beloved aunt, Violet is determined never to go home to Cornwall ever again. Although she misses them dreadfully, her parents soon make it perfectly clear that they will never forgive her for breaking off her engagement to Weston, but her shattered heart is immediately restored by an unexpected encounter with handsome painter Jack Fairling. A passionate affair quickly ensues, but with the gathering clouds of war threatening to destroy their happiness, will Violet and Jack ever have their happy ending? Or is their love destined to be a snatched moment in time?
In 1936, Violet’s daughter, Aster, is now twenty-one years old and living an idyllic life in Cornwall. However, when she receives a letter that shocks her to her very core, Aster realises that she must uncover the secrets of her past and discover the truth about her identity. With her best friend and constant companion Harry Penruth by her side, she goes to London to untangle the web of deceit and lies that has shaped her life so far. But will Aster find what she is looking for? Or will her journey to London only lead to a broken heart?
Catherine Law writes with the warmth and lyricism of Rosamunde Pilcher and the intelligence and sensitivity of Joanna Trollope and Jojo Moyes. The Flower Book is an extraordinary historical tale that kept me on the edge of my seat and eagerly turning the pages. It is a spellbinding historical novel packed with mesmerizing drama, atmospheric period detail, heart-wrenching sorrow and compelling emotion.
With richly realised characters that jump off the pages, an engrossing narrative that grabs your attention from the very first page and two powerful love stories that will touch your heart and have you reaching for the tissues, the fantastic Catherine Law has penned an outstanding family saga that you will not easily forget.
This review was originally published on Single Titles.
love.
Violet Prideaux has always been perplexed by her family’s connection to the local squire Weston Penruth. Although socially they might be poles apart, Weston had no qualms in paying Violet’s school fees and enabling her to go to an exclusive boarding school for girls that has opened many doors for her.
Violet might be grateful for Weston’s generosity, but she has never been able to shake off this powerful feeling that her benefactor’s agreeable character and eccentric personality belie a dangerous man with something significant to hide. As the years go by, Violet finds herself reaching marriageable age and when Weston proposes to her, she finds herself with no other option but to accept his proposal of marriage. Although her parents are absolutely delighted with the match, Violet is immediately made to feel like an interloper by Weston’s mother, who cannot believe that her eligible son is marrying a mere doctor’s daughter. However, when a tragic incident reveals Weston’s true colours, Violet realises that she must flee the Cornish village she’s called home all her life or else risk losing everything which she holds dear to her heart…
Escaping to London to stay with her beloved aunt, Violet is determined never to go home to Cornwall ever again. Although she misses them dreadfully, her parents soon make it perfectly clear that they will never forgive her for breaking off her engagement to Weston, but her shattered heart is immediately restored by an unexpected encounter with handsome painter Jack Fairling. A passionate affair quickly ensues, but with the gathering clouds of war threatening to destroy their happiness, will Violet and Jack ever have their happy ending? Or is their love destined to be a snatched moment in time?
In 1936, Violet’s daughter, Aster, is now twenty-one years old and living an idyllic life in Cornwall. However, when she receives a letter that shocks her to her very core, Aster realises that she must uncover the secrets of her past and discover the truth about her identity. With her best friend and constant companion Harry Penruth by her side, she goes to London to untangle the web of deceit and lies that has shaped her life so far. But will Aster find what she is looking for? Or will her journey to London only lead to a broken heart?
Catherine Law writes with the warmth and lyricism of Rosamunde Pilcher and the intelligence and sensitivity of Joanna Trollope and Jojo Moyes. The Flower Book is an extraordinary historical tale that kept me on the edge of my seat and eagerly turning the pages. It is a spellbinding historical novel packed with mesmerizing drama, atmospheric period detail, heart-wrenching sorrow and compelling emotion.
With richly realised characters that jump off the pages, an engrossing narrative that grabs your attention from the very first page and two powerful love stories that will touch your heart and have you reaching for the tissues, the fantastic Catherine Law has penned an outstanding family saga that you will not easily forget.
This review was originally published on Single Titles.
December 14, 2024
Charlecote Park is a grand 16th century country house,surrounded by its own deer park,on the banks of the River Avon in Charlecote near Wellesbourne,east of Stratford-upon-Avon and south of Warwick, Warwickshire,England.
The Camden Town Group was a group of English Post-Impressionist artists founded in 1911 and active until 1913. They gathered frequently at the studio of painter Walter Sickert in the Camden Town, London.The St Ives School im Cornwall also had a group of artists living and working there.Their work is historically interesting and artistically important.
A war artist is either commissioned by a government or publication, or self-motivated, to document first-hand experience of war in any form of illustrative or depictive record.War artists explore the visual and sensory dimensions of war, often absent in written histories or other accounts of warfare.Artists record military activities in ways that cameras and the written word cannot. Their art collects and distills the experiences of the people who endured it.The works produced by war artists illustrate and record many aspects of war, and the individual's experience of war, whether allied or enemy, service or civilian, military or political, social or cultural. The role of the artist and their work embraces the causes, course and consequences of conflict and it has an essentially educational purpose. A war artist creates a visual account of war by showing its impact as men and women are shown waiting, preparing, fighting, suffering and celebrating.Some WWI artists were Paul Nash, C.R.W. Nevinson,Eric Kennington, Muirhead Bone, William Rothenstein,and Otto Dix to name a few.
There was an Artists Rifles army regiment created in 1859 in London by Edward Sterling, and it included those involved in the creative endeavours.Following the formation of the Territorial Force,the Artists' Rifles was one of 26 volunteer battalions in the London and Middlesex areas that combined to form the new London Regiment.It became the 28th (County of London) Battalion of The London Regiment on 1 April 1908.The Artists Rifles was a popular unit for volunteers.It served in France during 1917-1918.
The Camden Town Group was a group of English Post-Impressionist artists founded in 1911 and active until 1913. They gathered frequently at the studio of painter Walter Sickert in the Camden Town, London.The St Ives School im Cornwall also had a group of artists living and working there.Their work is historically interesting and artistically important.
A war artist is either commissioned by a government or publication, or self-motivated, to document first-hand experience of war in any form of illustrative or depictive record.War artists explore the visual and sensory dimensions of war, often absent in written histories or other accounts of warfare.Artists record military activities in ways that cameras and the written word cannot. Their art collects and distills the experiences of the people who endured it.The works produced by war artists illustrate and record many aspects of war, and the individual's experience of war, whether allied or enemy, service or civilian, military or political, social or cultural. The role of the artist and their work embraces the causes, course and consequences of conflict and it has an essentially educational purpose. A war artist creates a visual account of war by showing its impact as men and women are shown waiting, preparing, fighting, suffering and celebrating.Some WWI artists were Paul Nash, C.R.W. Nevinson,Eric Kennington, Muirhead Bone, William Rothenstein,and Otto Dix to name a few.
There was an Artists Rifles army regiment created in 1859 in London by Edward Sterling, and it included those involved in the creative endeavours.Following the formation of the Territorial Force,the Artists' Rifles was one of 26 volunteer battalions in the London and Middlesex areas that combined to form the new London Regiment.It became the 28th (County of London) Battalion of The London Regiment on 1 April 1908.The Artists Rifles was a popular unit for volunteers.It served in France during 1917-1918.
October 29, 2015
Lovely, absolutely lovely. I giggled, I cried, I swooned and I learnt a few things about wild flowers.
Time passes quickly in the book, the pace quite fast, but with every page giving the essential details it made for a wonderful adventure. Very enjoyable.
Time passes quickly in the book, the pace quite fast, but with every page giving the essential details it made for a wonderful adventure. Very enjoyable.
September 29, 2014
A thoroughly enjoyable read. A good storyline with a few twists. Good characters and I just loved Muriel.
Did Not Finish
March 30, 2026Audio book version
March 3, 2016
Bit of a soap opera. Liked the settings: Cornwall, Regent's Park, Camden.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews