A wonderful countryside romp with romance, cooking and gardening at the heart of it.

With a smidge of humour this well written, feel good book is up to Katie's usual standard.

This was my first (and last) Katie Fforde sojourn. I received it through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review and was really looking forward to it, a new author, is to me, like a box of chocolates (in the words of Forrest Gump), you never know what you are going to get. Leaving aside the semantics of that statement, A Secret Garden is chicklit through and through, that's not a criticism I love Intelligently written and involving chicklit, this though, is neither of those. I found the writing childlike - not in a good YA type of way, but in an I'm not that bothered sort of way. I know that's a bit of an assumption because I haven't read any other Katie Fforde books, but I can't believe an author this popular, with this large a following would normally write this way. It felt like the characters met, had a couple of conversations and were instantly in love, every single one of them.
You know when, after you finish a really great book, you still have an image in your mind of what those characters look like, even how they would react in certain situations, and for a moment or two, you miss them - well, I've only just finished this book, and all I remember about these characters are Lucien is good looking with floppy hair, Philly is young and pretty, Lorna is in her 50's and well preserved.
Actually, I'm not only disappointed with this book, I'm a bit cross, I felt it not only wasted my time but took the audience for granted, and that, in my book (see what I did there), is just wrong.

Another great read from Katie Fforde. Yes it is fairly predictable and is unashamedly chick lit, but some great characters that you can't help but love, and an enjoyable storyline with just enough to keep you wanting to know more.

An easy read perfect to intersperse between more serious deeper reads that I read plenty of. Sometimes you just need something relatively lighthearted - and Katie Fforde never fails to produce.

This was a very readable book that held my interest and kept my attention to the end. The way the characters were drawn was very clichéd and old fashioned though - I felt like I was reading a book from 40 years ago. I found the dialogue to be very clunky, and some of the relationships were very hard to believe. However, that may have been because there were 3 couples, which meant none if them were as fully rounded as they could have been. This is a 'Sunday afternoon in front of the fire' kind of book, as it is comforting and nice and everything turns out well in the end..

A very easy to read book with a good story line. Typical of its genre but much better than most

A Secret Garden is a delightful story about three very different women and the garden they are restoring.

Lorna is the gardener at Burthen House and has had a crush on the owner Peter, her childhood friend, since forever. He, meanwhile, has been enthusiastically dating women he's met on the Internet but has recently become serious about Kirstie, a very managing type. Lorna realises it is finally time to move on - and then meets Jack. Jack is handsome, very fit, somewhat younger than her - and is convinced he knows her from somewhere else ...

Philly lives with her grandfather, known as 'Grand', in a 'tumbledown money pit' that they bought mainly for the attached smallholding - where Philly can grow her plants and sell them on her market stall. Since Grand was widowed, he's become addicted to TV shows like Bake Off and discovered a hidden talent for baking the most delicious cakes, which he now sells on Philly's stall. While waitressing at a party, Philly meets Lucien, a chef who would rather be an artisan baker. He thinks she's great but his family are very 'posh' and Philly's ... aren't.

I loved all the talk about gardens and gardening. My parents used to grow plants in the same way as Philly does, so it brought back a lot of memories! And I always love reading books with big old houses in them. I think my favourite scenes were where Philly and Lucien visit his godfather and meet his old nanny - or 'Evil Mary Poppins', as Philly calls her - and the bit when Lucien's parents turn up unexpectedly! I loved all the characters but I think my favourites were Grand and Lady Anthea - whose 'secret' garden is the one being restored.

A Secret Garden is a romance but it is as much about the lovely friendship between Philly, Lorna and Anthea as it is their romantic relationships. There are no sex scenes and very little kissing, but it was lovely to see Lorna and Philly's developing romances with Jack and Lucien, and root for them to have their own happy ever after.

A Secret Garden tells the story of Lorna, a talented gardener, and Philly, a plantswoman, who both work in the grounds of a beautiful manor house in the Cotswolds. Described as ‘unlucky in love’, we see them meet Jack and Lucien and search for their happy ending.

This was my first Katie Fforde novel and I found it refreshing to read about older characters, rather than women in their 20s and early 30s, as is the norm in the women’s fiction I usually pick up. I particularly loved the characters of Lady Anthea and Seamus, Philly’s cake-baking, car-fixing Irish grandfather.

Sadly though, I found it difficult to get into the relationships in the book. Particularly in the first few chapters, I felt like I was being told that the characters were falling for each other, but wasn’t being shown or made to feel that they were. I also struggled to relate to the characters’ feelings. From the claustrophobia scene – supposedly one of the worst experiences of Lorna’s life – during which I had no sense of panic or fear, through to Lorna and Philly’s supposed cluelessness about the men’s advances, the characters’ reactions and feelings weren’t nearly as believable as they could have been.

The ending was predictable and tied up quite neatly, but I was pleased that it found a good balance between a happy ending and keeping just a bit of intrigue by leaving one question unresolved.

Unfortunately, A Secret Garden hasn’t convinced me to pick up more of Katie Fforde’s novels, but it was a fun, easy read.

A story to pack for your holidays. 3/5 stars.

It’s been quite a while since I read anything by Katie Fforde, so I jumped at the chance to request an ARC of her latest book from NetGalley.

A Secret Garden is a pleasant, predictable, light romance. It made me laugh out loud twice, and that’s impressive as most books just earn the occasional smile or snort.

If you’re a keen gardener who enjoys romantic fiction, this would be perfect for you. The two main female characters – Philly and Lorna – are both green fingered, and their chosen profession is a crucial part of their character. The secret garden of the title is one of the highlights of the book, so it’s a shame it doesn’t make an appearance until three quarters of the way through.

I have enjoyed other books by Fforde more, probably because I felt a greater connection to the characters. Also, if this was YA, I’d be bringing up the dreaded spectre of “insta-love”: the main couples seem to be in love within minutes of meeting each other, so I didn’t really ever believe in any of the obstacles to their relationships or invest in the drama.

Overall: A Secret Garden would be a great holiday read for romantic fiction fans; something to leaf through while sitting in a sunny spot, enjoying some peace and quiet.

I'm so disappointed. I had such high hopes for this - gardening and stately homes were promised and Stately Pursuits (stately home) and Thyme Out (gardening) are two of my favourites of Fforde's books. Unfortunately this one seems to continue a downward trend (for me at least). The ingenue is flat and annoying and her love interest is punchable when he's being fussy about his food not adorable. The Cougar heroine is wet and needs to grow a backbone and her love interest's excuse for being out of contact is lame.

I think this is meant to be humourous - but the attempts at class comedy don't come off and the message about sex is woefully old fashioned and not at all sex positive.

I expected more from Fforde who has always been one of my autobuys - but as her sales figures and book chart position increases, the books have been working less well for me. I'm off to reread Stately Pursuits.

Formulaic chic lit with long descriptions of plants and food and very little in the way of character development and plot. Reasonable holiday read but there are much better ones out there, including books by Katie Fforde! I know you have to suspend disbelief but the idea that 3 women, including one in her 80s, could have cut down trees in an overgrown garden over the course of a morning to reveal a previously hidden walled garden is just ridiculous.

Fun and frolics and the sweet, gentle storytelling we have come to love from the mistress of gentle romance. There are no surprises in this novel; girls meet boys, girls experience angst and anxiety, love conquers all. Predictable? Yes. Dull? No. There's a reason stories like this continue to attract large readerships: we love a happy ending and when a happy ending is guaranteed, with the characters with whom you have invested your hopes and dreams all finding their true loves, then for that moment, all is right with the world. Reading a Katie Fforde novel is like sinking into a warm and fragrant bath. Candles are lit, a box of chocs is on hand, 'real life' is left outside the bathroom door and it's our time to drift and dream and believe. What's not to love?

Another great book from Katie Fforde. The way she connects with all the characters is brilliant. The descriptions of plants and planting, the baking and especially of bread and last but not least the stonemason work. Must have taken a lot of research into all of them. It was also great to see how all the individual characters all connect to each other even though they're all totally different.

Katie Fforde is always a reliable light read. I was of course attracted to a book which has so much in it about gardening. Philly is a young woman who lives with her charming grandfather and runs a small nursery. Her best customer is Lorna, an older woman who is restoring the garden of a big house. The house belongs to Peter, whom she’s known forever and has a <I>tendresse</I> for but he’s taken up with an extremely managing younger woman whom he met on the internet. Peter’s mother Anthea is one of those formidably energetic seventy-somethings we’d all like to be one day. Two more characters then enter the scene: Jack, a sculptor and Lucien, a handsome young man who has broken with his grand family in order to follow his dreams and become a chef.

The garden restoration is perhaps too quickly and easily achieved but this is fiction and at least Katie Fforde bothers to put in some plant names. The ‘Secret Garden’ of the title is found at the bottom of Anthea’s garden: it has a wall and a door covered in brambles and everything! No need of a robin to show the way. This is also transformed remarkably quickly into a magical place.

There are three sets of lovers in this book and it’s nice that two of them are older couples. Lorna’s doubts and fears about starting a new relationship in her fifties are very convincingly described. I found the book a little thin but enjoyed it very much while I was actually reading it. Gardens and happy endings: what’s not to like?

It's a while since I read a Katie Fforde book and this was an absolutely delightful read. I was lost in the pages and in the secret garden and was so sorry to come to the end.

It's full of wonderful friendships, relationships and families. Lorna and Philly are working on a 'secret garden' for when the gardens are opened to the public and are getting read for a sculpture event. Philly is supplying the plants- but is enjoying working in the gardens themselves to earn a little extra money. Grand is a lovely character who makes delicious cakes and cares for his granddaughter.

Romance runs through the book- with the two lead girls having had troubled relationships in the past and a little wary of throwing themselves into new love.

Lorna shares one of my fears and I could have written the scene in the castle about myself! She was fine going up spiral staircases but struggled coming down. I had an incident at Warwick Castle where I thought they were going to have to close the stairs whilst I hyperventilated my way down!!!!!!!

You could imagine the gardens transforming themselves, Grands baking for the Sunday market stalls and wish you could settle down for a cup of tea at the kitchen

I love Katie Fforde so I was thrilled to receive a copy of her new book 'A Secret Garden' to review. Unfortunately I just didn't enjoy this one at all. I was 50% of the way through the book before I started to show any interest in the characters or what was going to happen, and even then it was half-hearted. I could have happily put the book down at any time. I found the characters quite dull, and I couldn't believe in any of the romances other than Grand and Anthea. I also found the way Leo spoke to be unbelievable, I couldn't understand a man of his age speaking just like a child. However there were bits that I did like - the descriptions of the gardens and Peter's house were lovely, particularly at the end. Even though I didn't like the characters I was still pleased with the ending and that everything turned out well. It's a shame that I didn't enjoy it more but I will of course continue to read more of her books as I love her work normally! Thank you for the chance to review this.

Such a sweet book. Not my usual choice of genre to read but at a time when things were rather gloomy in my own life, I looked forward to picking up this story each evening and finding them predictably moving towards happy endings. Rather reminiscent of the Frances Hodgson Burnett books I read as a child, but this one is aimed more at the adult woman I would say.

I have read Katie FForde's books for many years and always found them fun and enjoyable.
The Secret Garden tells a story of romances, set around Burthen House, a beautiful country mansion where . Lorna is employed by the owner to look after the gardens, designing and landscaping them. Pining slightly for the owner, Peter, she nevertheless realises in time that her interests are being awakened by another.
Philly, her younger friend, runs a market stall, growing her own flowers and selling them and providing plants for the mansion's gardens. Meeting Lucien, a connoisseur of bread baking, suddenly begins to change her life.
Anthea, Peter's mother has a part to play also, and is there a budding romance in her life?
A real secret garden emerges, restored by Lorna, Philly, Jack the stonemason and Peter's new girlfriend Kirstie (who is a very determined lady)
Twists and turns, ups and downs make this an enjoyable novel. Katie Fforde's stories are about 'normal' folk, no bling, no fashion labels, no jetsetters. A nice comfortable read.

Another fabulous book by Katie Fforde! This is the story of Lorna and Philly who are talented gardeners who work at a manor house in the Cotswolds. Neither of them have been very lucky in love, perhaps that is all about to change?

This book for me was like a grown up secret garden and i just adored it!

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House for an Arc copy in exchange for an honest review

Reviewed on my blog

I've always been an avid reader of Katie Fforde books but haven't read one for a little while as I was getting slightly bored with the predictability. However, I thoroughly enjoyed this book, written in a typical Katie Fforde flowing style with descriptions which allows the reader to imagine the settings well. There was an expected feel good end, a lovely light read. Although one could work out who was going to end up with who eventually, it wasn't at first apparent and there were a few twists and turns on the way. I liked the way there was more than one central romance within the book which made it more life like . The characters were believable and, on the whole down to earth, whom one could relate to or, the less down to earth characters, one would have come across during life, the parents in particular. By the time it was obvious, more or less, how it would end I liked the characters enough to want it all to come out eventually. Knowing quite a few Katie Fforde fans amongst friends and family this will be on my 'to buy' list this year, especially for a holiday read. I shall also read some of the more recent books before this one that I may have missed a treat, in my view the Katie Fforde I used to read is back and I am looking forward to more books in the future.