by Sarah Jio
First published 2013
Flora arrives at an English country estate in 1939 with a secret mission. The amateur American botanist has been hired by flower thieves to steal the last surviving Middlebury Pink camellia hidden somewhere on the property. She must search the grounds without arousing suspicion from the household. Flora finds herself falling in love while uncovering evidence of terrible crimes committed on the estate. Decades later, garden designer Addison moves into the same manor with her husband Rex. The property now belongs to his family. Addison discovers an old gardener's notebook in the camellia orchard that reveals disturbing secrets from the past. The notebook's pages suggest that the same dangers Flora encountered still lurk at the estate. Addison must decide whether to investigate further, knowing she might face the same deadly fate that once threatened Flora.
Genres: romance, historical-fiction, 20th-century, mystery, 21st-century
Vibes: atmospheric, emotional, suspenseful
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, found-family
Setting: England, Middlebury
Period: 1939, Decades Later
320 pages · Paperback · Plume