2 Jul 2013

THE NIGHT FLOWER.

THE NIGHT FLOWER by SARAH STOVELL.

Set sail on an epic voyage from the slums of London to Van Diemen's Land.

 Miriam is a Romany girl drawn from freedom in the hills of the North-East to London. When her mother dies she's left all alone in the world, until she meets Katie-May, who seems to be a friend, but leads her into danger.

Rose has been brought up to expect more from her life, but she too finds herself suddenly alone, separated from her children and forced to take a governess's job. She also takes a risk that has devastating consequences.

As the two young women face a terrible future sentenced to transportation, their paths cross and their fates collide. Can they - should they - trust each other.
.... Press Release.

SOURCE: NEWBOOKS magazine.

FIRST SENTENCE:  Sorry, an Advanced Reading Copy, not due for release until the 15th of August 2013, I have been asked not to quote. PW

MEMORABLE MOMENT: As above.

MY THOUGHTS: Essentially the story of two very different individuals, Miriam, a young Romany girl and Rose, a disgraced mother and governess, who, both convicts, are transported from Victorian London to Van Dieman's Land 
where they find themselves working side by side in a nursery for the babies of fellow convicts.

A memorable if not exactly comfortable read. The Night Flower is a wonderfully moving story of stigma, prejudice and self-righteous 'Christian' rehabilitation that is as hypocritical as it is barbaric. 

Written in several different formats, diary entries and correspondence home amongst them, the story is largely narrated in the first person by both Miriam and Rose. And OK so it may well have contained some adult content, both violent and, in particular, sexual, that I personally found a bit of a challenge but, thankfully not overused, this, like the differing writing styles, only added to the realistic nature of the novel.  



Disclaimer: An Uncorrected Proof copy read and reviewed on behalf of NEWBOOKS magazine, I was merely asked for my honest opinion, no financial compensation was asked for nor given.
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15 comments:

Mary (Bookfan) said...

Not sure I'd like it. Memorable but do you recommend it?

Betty Manousos said...

sounds like an interesting read.
i'm definitely going to be checking this out.

hope you have a good remainder of your week~

big hugs!

Felicity Grace Terry said...

I do recommend it Mary. In fact I highly recommend it. A bit restricted because of NewBooks limiting the number of words to be used I could have said so much more.

chitra said...

Hi PW,
I am back to blogging and I know I have to do lot of balancing act. I feel so happy to be here , the same way i felt when I saw your comment. take care and see you soon..

Yvonne @ Fiction Books Reviews said...

Hi Tracy,

It seems a little silly to restrict the words you can use, when you are featuring and promoting the book, which can only be good for publisher and author alike .... Especially when there is an extract on the author's own website ....

http://www.sarah-stovell.com/#!untitled/c1fyv

As you will have noticed from my Teaser Tuesday post, I too am reading a book set in Australia, so I might well be tempted to give this one a try, thanks for featuring it.

Yvonne

Kelly said...

This sound different, yet quite intriguing. I was fascinated by your comment that it was "a memorable if not exactly comfortable read".

Literary Feline said...

This sounds like something I would like to read--thought provoking. Thank you for sharing your thoughts on it!

Joan said...

Hiya yes I think this is one to look out , wonder if it comes on the kindle
Thanks for leaving comment on my blog

Shooting Stars Mag said...

I like books that don't shy away from the more darker side of reality. As long as it's done well of course. haha I also really like books that have different forms of narration, like diaries, so that's cool!

Blond Duck said...

It sounds really good!

Suko said...

Excellent review, Tracy. Sounds like a great book.

Brian Joseph said...

Sounds really good. The "Rehabilitation" part sounds disturbing alomg with the other oints that you mention.

Nina Gray said...

hmmm looks like a sad story

Gina said...

I agree with the others, it sounds interesting but I might have to look into it further to actually decide. Curious about that first line too...

Stephanie@Fairday's Blog said...

It sounds interesting and am intrigued! Thanks for the recommendation. :)