Reinventing the Rose

by Kenneth J. Harvey

As a fatherless girl with a mother who persistently encouraged her daughter's artistic temperament, Anna Wells is highly sensitive to the life developing in her when she discovers she is pregnant. Anna's gynecologist boyfriend, Kevin, considers the time just not right to have children, so Anna moves to a 100-year-old house in Bareneed, an abandoned cove in Newfoundland, where she takes comfort in renovating the interior of her new home and working on a series of paintings detailing roses.

Paralleling Anna's own journey is a minutely detailed, day-by-day development of the embryo. All goes well until a car arrives delivering a court summons. Kevin has filed a statement of claim seeking the termination of the embryo as "return of property."

One night, while still in Bareneed and upset over the impending legal action, Anna discovers an abandoned little girl almost frozen to death in her front yard. Mysterious circumstances continue to surround the children in Bareneed as pro-choice and pro-life factions marshal their forces.

328 pages, Paperback

First published June 6, 2011

About the author

International bestselling author Kenneth J. Harvey's books are published in Canada, the US, the UK, Russia, Germany, China, Japan, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand, Italy, Sweden, the Netherlands, Denmark and France. He has won the Rogers Writers' Trust Fiction Prize, the Thomas Raddall Atlantic Fiction Award, the Winterset Award, Italy's Libro Del Mare, and has been nominated for the Books in Canada First Novel Award, the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award, and twice for both the Giller Prize and the Commonwealth Writers Prize. His editorials have appeared on CBC Radio, in The Times (London) and in most major Canadian newspapers, including The Globe & Mail, National Post, Ottawa Citizen, Telegraph Journal, Vancouver Sun, Toronto Star and Halifax Daily News. Harvey sits on the board of directors of the Ottawa International Writers Festival.

Reviews

[Niki Mclaren · Rating 5 out of 5]

First off. What the fuck.
I finished this book, put it down and had no god damn clue what had just happened. Kenneth J Harvey mind fucked me.
I gave this book five stars because I literally could not put it down. I read it in like two hours. I inhaled it, devoured it, consumed it whole. It gripped me from page one and made me it's bitch.
The topic was what got me interested in the first place(that and Mrs.Kraan). A gyno and his girlfriend get pregnant and he sues her for his property back!? Awesome. And then you get about 50 pages in and it gets this almost supernatural feel. That continues on until the court case and then the ending just knocks your socks off. My only complaint is that it felt like I was reading two separate books BUT I liked both of them so really it worked out well.

[Vassa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I kinda see where all those low ratings come from, but honestly chills while reading.

[Ceanne · Rating 1 out of 5]

Ugh! Probably one of the worst books I've ever read. I thought it might have had a redeeming ending so trudged through the typos and weird story line...but, no, the ending was horrible and monstrous. I don't know what the author was thinking about--degrading to women.

[Dorothy · Rating 3 out of 5]

intriguing, rather haunting, but also confusing - not entirely satisfactory

[Mari Naydenova · Rating 2 out of 5]

Эта книжка довольно сильно позлила меня. Я с большим трудом читала её, хотя объём меньше 300 страниц.

Завязка была интересной и обещала какую-то нетривиальную историю о судебном деле, разбирающем права матерей и отцов на нерождённого ребёнка. Но автор, очевидно, замысливал свой роман с другой целью, и судебные тяжбы остались лишь эпизодом. Позицию второй стороны и её мотивацию узнать так и не привелось.

В центре же внимания «Обретая Розу» на самом деле этический вопрос: делать ли женщине аборт или рожать ребёнка? Ответ на этот вопрос лично для Кеннета Харви очевиден, и он уже с первых страниц начинает его навязывать читателю. И несмотря на то, что в определённый момент искренне сочувствуешь Анне, главной героине, и чувствуешь несправедливость её ситуации, в общем и целом роман утомляет своей повесткой.

Ну а конец у Харви получился и вовсе морализаторский. 😡 По-моему, автор с этим передавил.

[Chantale · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought that the court case would be the focus of the book. I was expecting a Jodi Picoult novel which addressed everyone's opinions. However, what you get instead is a more nuanced and literary novel. Anna keeps being visited by mystery children. Whether they are real, ghostly visitations, visions or hallucinations does not become clear until late in the novel. I was questioning Anna's sanity and wondering if her visions were linked to her being abandoned as a child. The author gives you a few subtle clues, so you should be able to figure it out before the mystery is revealed. The ending was open ended and differing news reports leave you pretty sure what happened but second guessing yourself as to the outcome. I'd love to hear what other people thought of the ending.

[Kirstin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Totally not what I was expecting, based on the synopsis on the back. I thought it was going to be a character-driven fiction, playing off the pregnant artist and her gynecologist boyfriend. Rather, it was a very provocative investigation in the moral grey area of the law regarding pregnancy and babies and abortion...with ghosts and symbolism and multiple car accidents thrown in for good measure. I can't say I really liked the book, but I couldn't put it down and, like previous reviewers, I'm still bewildered as to what really happened.

[Patricia · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book grabbed my attention rather quickly which is why I rated it as high as I did. It wavered between the believable and the unbelievable and down right creepy however when I finished reading the book I honestly can't tell you what happened because I have no idea. It left me totally confused and wanting more to explain the previous 300+ pages I had just read. A gripping read but disappointing at the same time.

[Tasha-Lynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I started this book I fell in love with Mr Harvey's writing. I quickly got into the story and the characters. Then it started to get confusing and I found myself often thinking "what the hell is happening??" I also often found myself thinking about the pro-choice AND pro-life issues that this book brings forward. The last bit was pretty heartbreaking. All in all I really really liked it.

[Heather · Rating 3 out of 5]

Harvey does a fairly good job of narrating a woman's experience, although Anna Wells proves to be a rather reckless and - to put it bluntly - dumb girl. As it shifts from the ordinary to the fantastic, with grotesque imagery and horrific situations, the story is certainly interesting, but perhaps would be better suited as a thriller film screenplay than a novel.

[Nicole · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book really grabbed me in the beginning and started out as a great and interesting tale then it fell suddenly and got weirder and weirder the story was going nowhere and the main character well the mental stabilty of the writer may just be in question. This is without a doubt the worse book I have ever read

[Monicac · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bewildering is a good word for this book. The author is a fantastic writer - let's just say that the ending had me looking at red roses in a verrryyyy different light for a long, long time afterwards. Can't give it 5 stars, though, because something about it felt unsatisfying - but I might actually re-read this one ....

[Hilary MacLeod · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting read, but a really difficult end. It was undoubtedly meant that way.

[Katerina Kondrenko · Rating 1 out of 5]

2.5 out of 10

ревью на русском/review in russian

[Courtney Herondale · Rating 1 out of 5]

worst book i ever had the displeasure of reading. like what the actual fck. total waste of time.

[Amy · Rating 1 out of 5]

Reinventing The Rose - Kenneth J. Harvey.

One of the books I read this week. I've never been so furious at the end of a book before. Basically wish I never read it! The author pulls you along wondering if the female lead is plain crazy or has some kind of supernatural ability. Then there's a court case. Ultimately I was left wondering if the author just plain hates women.