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Awash with Summer Roses #1
The Girl in the Garden
Along the trails of endless pines, I search for truth and follow signs.
How’s your summer going? Mine is ruined.
Hi. My name is Ri. I’m the kind of delinquent teenage girl you hear horror stories about.
My parents thought they could reform my “bad” attitude and get me away from my “troublemaking” friends in the city by shipping me off to my grandparents’ house in the countryside for the summer. I’m supposed to stay clear of the “forbidden” forest and piss away my days in my grandparents’ stupid rose garden alongside a boy named Avery.
Avery is seventeen, but he chooses to work for my grandparents because he likes roses.
Well, the joke’s on them. I’m getting the hell out of here, and I won’t let anyone stop me—especially not some weirdo boy.
How’s your summer going? Mine is ruined.
Hi. My name is Ri. I’m the kind of delinquent teenage girl you hear horror stories about.
My parents thought they could reform my “bad” attitude and get me away from my “troublemaking” friends in the city by shipping me off to my grandparents’ house in the countryside for the summer. I’m supposed to stay clear of the “forbidden” forest and piss away my days in my grandparents’ stupid rose garden alongside a boy named Avery.
Avery is seventeen, but he chooses to work for my grandparents because he likes roses.
Well, the joke’s on them. I’m getting the hell out of here, and I won’t let anyone stop me—especially not some weirdo boy.
164 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2001
110 people are currently reading
595 people want to read
About the author
Kestra Pingree
78 books80 followersKestra Pingree is a creative who doesn’t know how to stop. They are first and foremost a writer and storyteller with an endless library of books in their head just waiting to be typed. They are also an artist and animator, as well as a singer, songwriter, and voice actor. One day they swear they’re going to make their own video game, too.
If it involves creating, they are there.
They can also be seen cuddling their cat, reading, or playing video games.
If it involves creating, they are there.
They can also be seen cuddling their cat, reading, or playing video games.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 63 reviews
July 3, 2023
This was an easy and short read. The writing was OK and the characters were well fleshed out. The chapter breaks in audio were very clunky though. I was not a fan of how the story ended - not even a cliffhanger, it just stopped.
November 26, 2021
The book just wasn`t for me. it felt like very much infodump and the story just went on and on. I really disliked how Ri treated her grandmother and grandfather, and how rude she seemed to Avery. I mean i get it that she had issues, but they were trying to help her. But i did not feel the chemistry between Avery and Ri.
January 12, 2024
that’s it??? like i enjoyed the book a lot but like ??? what ??? (audiobook)
January 9, 2026
Read this to see if it would be age appropriate since YA doesn't always mean YA but this one definitely is categorized properly.
Ri is a stubborn, bratty, impulsive teenager who is full of the "nobody gets me" attitude that feels accurate for that age. After a string of irresponsible decisions, she's sent to live with her grandparents and sorta forms a friendship of sorts with Avery, who is full of secrets.
I found the ending abrupt. I know there's a book 2 but it felt like this series was written as 1 book in its entirety but then the author decided to split it after it was written. I'm hoping we get answers in book 2 because the entire forest scene was confusing.
Ri is a stubborn, bratty, impulsive teenager who is full of the "nobody gets me" attitude that feels accurate for that age. After a string of irresponsible decisions, she's sent to live with her grandparents and sorta forms a friendship of sorts with Avery, who is full of secrets.
I found the ending abrupt. I know there's a book 2 but it felt like this series was written as 1 book in its entirety but then the author decided to split it after it was written. I'm hoping we get answers in book 2 because the entire forest scene was confusing.
February 25, 2024
3 ⭐️
Would have been more if the ending wasn't so abrupt. Now I need to buy the second book to see what really happened.
Furthermore, easy read, liked the story line and the characters
Would have been more if the ending wasn't so abrupt. Now I need to buy the second book to see what really happened.
Furthermore, easy read, liked the story line and the characters
April 28, 2025
I agree with just about everyone who is frustrated by the cliffhanger. It could have been handled better. But that's not my main complaint. The first couple of chapters, where we're introduced to our teenage angsty FMC, are so frustratingly poorly written that I almost DNF'd several times. The only reason I didn't was that the book is short, I had nothing else I cared to read at the time, and I had already read several reviews about the dreaded cliffhanger, which piqued my curiosity.
The writing definitely gets better and more interesting as the story progresses, so don't let my review stop you from diving in and enjoying it. Overall, it's worth the four stars.
The writing definitely gets better and more interesting as the story progresses, so don't let my review stop you from diving in and enjoying it. Overall, it's worth the four stars.
April 1, 2023
An angry girl just wants to be seen, and once she is, she denies it with her life.
The Girl in the Garden is what I expected, the snopisis gives a good view on what the book is. Our main character gets caught acting out and gets sent to her grandparents out in the middle of nowhere. She meets a mysterious country boy and spends the entire book trying to figure him out.
...And, minor spoilers, she never figures it out! This book is a including incident, rising action, rising action and no climax. No resolution. Finishing a book with absolutely no climax is underwhelming and frustrating. Even books like The Inheritance Games, which has a deliberate set up for it's second book, has a climax and resolution. The story had me hopeful for more information but it fell short with the random rebellious run after all she's been shown is kindness.
The punctuation in this book is information. There's commas before quotation marks and ?! I don't find that very professional, but opinions on this vary.
I was annoyed by our protagonist for a majority of the book. She complains constantly. I kinda wanted her to get run over.
Something interesting is how much of the conversation was super relatable. A lot of it felt like how me and my friends would talk. It'll age the book in five to ten years but since I read it now, it was humorous. Pretty fun.
In the end, I won't be recommending this book. I may go and read the second one, but I'm not rushing to the webpage to download it as soon as possible. It's underwhelming and annoying, but the story was good enough to keep me reading.
(I love the cover of this book. It's so pretty!)
The Girl in the Garden is what I expected, the snopisis gives a good view on what the book is. Our main character gets caught acting out and gets sent to her grandparents out in the middle of nowhere. She meets a mysterious country boy and spends the entire book trying to figure him out.
...And, minor spoilers, she never figures it out! This book is a including incident, rising action, rising action and no climax. No resolution. Finishing a book with absolutely no climax is underwhelming and frustrating. Even books like The Inheritance Games, which has a deliberate set up for it's second book, has a climax and resolution. The story had me hopeful for more information but it fell short with the random rebellious run after all she's been shown is kindness.
The punctuation in this book is information. There's commas before quotation marks and ?! I don't find that very professional, but opinions on this vary.
I was annoyed by our protagonist for a majority of the book. She complains constantly. I kinda wanted her to get run over.
Something interesting is how much of the conversation was super relatable. A lot of it felt like how me and my friends would talk. It'll age the book in five to ten years but since I read it now, it was humorous. Pretty fun.
In the end, I won't be recommending this book. I may go and read the second one, but I'm not rushing to the webpage to download it as soon as possible. It's underwhelming and annoying, but the story was good enough to keep me reading.
(I love the cover of this book. It's so pretty!)
July 30, 2021
I finished this book in one sitting. Did I also stay up until 4am to do that? Yes. Was it worth it? Absolutely. This book was amazing. And the cover is stunning!
The Girl in the Garden follows Moriah - although she prefers to go by Ri - as she gets sent away for the summer to stay at her grandparents house. Avery, the boy who works in Ri’s grandparents’ rose garden, seems to be hiding something. Something to do with the creepy forest that lies on the edge of the rose garden, and Ri is determined to find out what it is.
This book was so good. So, so, SO good. And you can get it for free!!! Also, the next book comes out on Sunday! I might have done a little celebratory dance when I realized that.
The Girl in the Garden follows Moriah - although she prefers to go by Ri - as she gets sent away for the summer to stay at her grandparents house. Avery, the boy who works in Ri’s grandparents’ rose garden, seems to be hiding something. Something to do with the creepy forest that lies on the edge of the rose garden, and Ri is determined to find out what it is.
This book was so good. So, so, SO good. And you can get it for free!!! Also, the next book comes out on Sunday! I might have done a little celebratory dance when I realized that.
January 29, 2025
I listened to this because it was a free audio book. Kinda feel like I wasted 2 days. It's written in the point of view of a spoiled, rude teenager. She's selfish and rude, and I found myself saying so as I listened. I figured as the story goes on, she will learn her lesson and be put in her place. And while that does happen a bit, there is a second storyline regarding the forbidden forrest. This made it a bit more interesting. But the book just ends....no loose ends tied, no conclusion. I get that there is a sequel, The Boy in the Forest, which follows that secondary storyline. But how does Moriah's story end? Or does it. I actually thought I skipped chapters when I heard, "The End." I won't read the sequel. I am not that curious. And I'm not setting myself up for more disappointment.
August 7, 2023
An abrupt ending - I had to check I hadn’t skipped ahead on the audiobook by mistake. Obviously sets up the story for the following book(s?) but isn’t really a story in its own right: characters - albeit unsympathetic ones - are introduced, but there’s not really a sense of narrative impetus.
January 10, 2024
Ok, Moriah is quite rude and has a rather immature line of thought for her age however I understand her rebellion towards her parents and her need to attract attention because well, her parents failed in the basics but, her complete inability to understand that she doesn’t go to the forest? I was very happy to see how she softened a little with the passing of the days but I feel that her need for adrenaline only made her change one thing for another.
I still liked the story. All the mystery of the forest, of Avery, of the whole town in general. That ending made me press “buy” almost automatically to the next book. I see it as promising. Reading is easy even for me that English is not my mother tongue. I can’t wait to start the next one and finally find out what the hell with all the mystery.
I still liked the story. All the mystery of the forest, of Avery, of the whole town in general. That ending made me press “buy” almost automatically to the next book. I see it as promising. Reading is easy even for me that English is not my mother tongue. I can’t wait to start the next one and finally find out what the hell with all the mystery.
July 28, 2023
This book was close to horrible. I gave it two stars, out of kindness. The story follows rebel teen Ri, who gets busted at a party and sent to stay with her grandparents. There, she meets Avery, a local teen who works at Ri’s grandparents’ rose garden.
The writing style feels like a super long Facebook post where the author is telling a story. There’s no real depth, just the characters’ actions narrated.
As for the plot, Ri’s rebellion is completely uncalled for. Her parents work a lot, ok? She’s big mad and makes it her singular personality trait. There’s also an unnecessary focus on the fact she hates being called Mariah. Ok? Literally contributes nothing to the plot.
Throughout the book there are mentions of the forbidden forest behind her grandparents’ house, but no one mentions why it’s forbidden. And when Ri finally goes in… totally hyped up and then letdown.
The writing style feels like a super long Facebook post where the author is telling a story. There’s no real depth, just the characters’ actions narrated.
As for the plot, Ri’s rebellion is completely uncalled for. Her parents work a lot, ok? She’s big mad and makes it her singular personality trait. There’s also an unnecessary focus on the fact she hates being called Mariah. Ok? Literally contributes nothing to the plot.
Throughout the book there are mentions of the forbidden forest behind her grandparents’ house, but no one mentions why it’s forbidden. And when Ri finally goes in… totally hyped up and then letdown.
August 6, 2023
Listened to it as a free audio book on Spotify. I almost quit it 1/4 of the way through but I am glad I finished it. I found the main character extremely unlikable throughout the entire book but I am intrigued by the mystery of "the forest". Definitely written for a young audience. I did enjoy the sensory descriptions for Avery (a blind character). I also really enjoyed the song in the book "troubled pines". Not my favorite book ever, but I might go out of my way to find the second book for more info about "the forest" and Avery.
February 15, 2024
The storyline had some potential but it was never developed - it was just drawn out with repetition only to stop in the middle of the story. I’m not meaning as in a cliffhanger wherein you can choose to continue a story within a series. I mean, it just stops in the middle and to find any resolution in the story you need to buy another book. Instead of being encouraged to continue the story as you are in a series, it’s more like the book was damaged and you literally only received half of it. And that half wasn’t great…🤨
August 4, 2024
I quite enjoyed this read. It's a fast-paced, easy YA read, which got me out of a reading slump. A few reviews have commented how the main character is unlikeable and although she does have qualities that aren't great you do need to see her through the lens of a teenager which allows a bit more empathy towards her. This being said, I didn't particularly enjoy the ending and wished there was a bit more to the final chapter. The ending was left open with no insight to what's next for the main characters, which was disappointing.
May 7, 2023
4 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I LOVED this! It was very different from anything I’ve read & kept me intrigued with questions I still have! (This is a series) I loved the honesty & the friendship & oh lord the parents were 💩. 4 ⭐️ instead of 5 though because Ri was so unnecessarily RUDE about the fact that Avery is blind? I did love the singing bits, which was also very new for me in a book! Can’t wait to listen or read to the second in the Awash With Summer Roses series 🌹
January 2, 2024
just finished this book at 11pm and i can’t wait to get the second book omg!! Moriah and Avery’s banter was adorable. everyone else was saying how they didn’t like the way Moriah treated her family but what else did you expect from the “bad girl” i can’t wait to find out more about Avery and the accident and what his life was like before that! Amazing book!
January 19, 2024
I wanted a quick read/listen and was excited to see that the author narrates. It was horrible, as if this person was reading the words for the first time as opposed to being the one who wrote them. They just sound annoyed and bored and it doesn’t come across as the attitude of the characters. Nothing happens the entire book and then it just ends.
March 8, 2025
The story was beginning to develop, and then it just stopped. No ending, barely a middle, then stopped. I get that the author wants you to buy the next part of the audio book, but you at least have to have a partial ending that leaves you wanting more. This just left me wanting my five listening hours back. 👎
June 27, 2023
Slow story, wish it talked more about the forest. Avery is such a cute character as well as chief Maria got a bit annoying and just as things started to pick up in the book to where I had to know what happens regarding Avery’s secret the book ends!!
October 22, 2023
Same as what most people are saying. Very easy to read, standard writing, good characters, and a nice book to take a break from using too much of your brainpower to read. Same for the other book in the series since it was a short story that could’ve been combined into one.
December 17, 2023
This was written by someone in a different stage of life than me and is so informed by that gap in age and experience that I can't finish the story due to having literally no sense of comradery with the main character who is the epitome of privileged rebellion.
December 26, 2023
Different
entry edition to a series compared to most. Unfortunately it didn't give as much as it needed to for my attention or need to know to kick in. Not bad, maybe just not for me.
entry edition to a series compared to most. Unfortunately it didn't give as much as it needed to for my attention or need to know to kick in. Not bad, maybe just not for me.
January 19, 2024
The one thing that kept me reading was wanting to know what’s going on in the forest and I don’t even get an answer for that. Also what’s up with what the chapter where Avery is unexplainably and suddenly able to read a book while Ri and his mom play the guitars together… isn’t he blind??
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 2, 2024
Read till the end! Best book for teens! A story about how a rebellious teenage girl started to change after something serious happened...i get flashbacks from my life all the time when i read about her trying to be bad
September 28, 2021
OMG this is now one of my favourite books. The end OMG. i’m buying the second book to the series now!!
September 28, 2022
A good story, well written. Just left some big unanswered questions.
October 8, 2022
Already had innuendos toward sex in the first page. Didn’t finish. Not for me.
February 3, 2023
Cliffhanger!
April 6, 2023
I thought the character development was really strong, as well as the voice of the character. You really come to understand Ri, I feel like I could have met her in person after reading this
Displaying 1 - 30 of 63 reviews