Book Synopsis:
A luminous debut novel about love, the trauma of war and the miracle of human resilience, for readers of Anna Hope, Sadie Jones and Elizabeth Jane Howard.
No one survives war unscathed. But even in the darkest days, seeds of hope can grow.
It is 1946 and in the village of Oakbourne the men are home from the war. Their bodies are healing but their psychological wounds run deep. Everyone is scarred – those who fought and those left behind.
Alice Rayne is married to Stephen, heir to crumbling Oakbourne Hall. Once a sweet, gentle man, he has returned a bitter and angry stranger, destroyed by what he has seen and done, tormented by secrets Alice can only guess at.
Lonely and increasingly afraid of the man her husband has become, Alice must try to pick up the pieces of her marriage and save Oakbourne Hall from total collapse. She begins with the walled garden and, as it starts to bear fruit, she finds herself drawn into a new, forbidden love.
Set in the Suffolk countryside as it moves from winter to spring, The Walled Garden is a captivating love story and a timeless, moving exploration of trauma and the miracle of human resilience.
My Review:
The Walled Garden is a beautiful, moving book that’s hard to believe is the author’s debut.
Firstly I’m a huge fan of books set in World War Two so I found it intriguing to learn more about what happened afterwards as it’s a period I’ve not read much about. It was very emotional to see how deeply the war has affected everyone, not least the broken men returning from the war and having to fit back into society. It must have been a heartbreaking time for everyone concerned. It was also interesting to see how women, who had often taken on the men’s role’s during the war, had to fit back into their more traditional roles now the war had ended. This must have been very frustrating for them and I can well imagine the sense of loss in this regard as shown by the doctor’s wife who had done such an amazing job in his absence.
The story is told from multiple points of view which I really liked as it gave a holistic view of life in the village and with it the knowledge that the after affects of war were felt by everyone regardless of their status. I particularly liked Alice who I warmed to instantly as she made me smile with her love of nature and how she escaped into it. She’s a very kind lady and it was very sad to see her try to heal her husband but get rebuffed again and again.
Overall I loved this book and will definitely be recommending it to friends. The story has a great pace to it and the multiple points of view helped ensure that there was always something happening to keep my interest. Even in the slower bits I found I had grown so attached to the characters that I didn’t mind just hanging out with them and experiencing the moment with them. The author has included some wonderful natural descriptions in this book which she uses to help show time going by and as signs of new hope as we witness new plants growing. I’m very excited to see what the author writes next.
Huge thanks to Anne Cater for inviting me onto the blog tour and to Zaffre Books for my digital copy of this book, though I did treat myself to a hardcopy of this book too as I loved the cover!
About The Author:
Sarah Hardy has lived for the last 10 years on the Suffolk coast which is where her novel is set. Before that she lived in London, Dublin and the Hebrides. She has worked on national magazines and newspapers.
Over The Rainbow Blog 
Thanks for the blog tour support x
LikeLiked by 3 people