Do you love a good story that is steeped in history? I sure do! You will love The Victory Garden by Rhys Bowen.

Here’s what you need to know:

As the Great War continues to take its toll, headstrong twenty-one-year-old Emily Bryce is determined to contribute to the war effort. She is convinced by a cheeky and handsome Australian pilot that she can do more, and it is not long before she falls in love with him and accepts his proposal of marriage.

When he is sent back to the front, Emily volunteers as a “land girl,” tending to the neglected grounds of a large Devonshire estate. It’s here that Emily discovers the long-forgotten journals of a medicine woman who devoted her life to her herbal garden. The journals inspire Emily, and in the wake of devastating news, they are her saving grace. Emily’s lover has not only died a hero but has left her terrified—and with child. Since no one knows that Emily was never married, she adopts the charade of a war widow.

As Emily learns more about the volatile power of healing with herbs, the found journals will bring her to the brink of disaster but may open a path to her destiny.


This was so well written and I loved every page of the story. The characters were well rounded, their struggles and hardships along with the elements of friendship were successfully braided together to create a remarkable novel. I know The Victory Garden will be very popular when it comes out in February 2019.

I just love Rhys Bowen, and this book is one of my favorites of hers. I’ve read the full Royal Spyness series and am now starting on some of her other historical novels, and this one was just right. As always with Bowen, it was well-written and a bit humorous. The characters were very well developed, complex, and relatable. I really appreciated how this book featured a variety of strong female characters and showed all the different ways that women contributed to the war effort during WWI. The story was also compelling and readable, like everything I’ve ever read from Bowen, and I flew through it quickly, dying to see how it all worked out. I was really invested, and sorry to have the book end. Can’t wait to read more of hers.

It is the time of women's suffrage and Esther has fought for the Cause and lost all that she has held dear and close to her heart. Her father is firmly under the influence of her step mother and she is now not allowed to go home. Living with her Aunt is not a happy state but she is very happy at her job at Pennington's where she is given a free reign to create artistic and eye catching window displays for which the store is now becoming famous.

Despite her success at her job, Esther is not happy. She is lonely and feels that her Aunt is just tolerating her in her house. On top of it all Esther feels that progress in the suffrage movement is very slow and wonders whether a more militant way is the correct way to go forward.

Into this scenario steps Lawrence, a successful hotelier with two young children whose wife has died a few years ago. Balancing a career and his family he is not looking for love though seeing Laura he is attracted to her and then starts the story of Esther and Lawrence. Covering the shift in the suffrage movement and Lawrence's wholehearted support for Esther, they have to overcome personal hurdles to come to some sort of place where they can be themselves. Both have family histories of hurt and bitter feelings towards parents so they cannot let themselves be hurt by those they love the most.

A descriptive story of 1911 England, the suffrage movement and a love story coupled with the beginning of women's right to independence.

Thanks to netgalley, I was able to read Rhys Bowen's latest a couple of months before its release. Bowen's last two standalone books took place in World War II. For "The Victory Garden," she tells the story of Emily Bryce during the last two years of World War I. Combining history, feminism, romance, and a good story, I was drawn into Emily's story, especially her relationship with the garrulous Robbie. She eventually finds her place in a small town, where most people accept her for who she is.

For Bowen's latest, she focuses almost exclusively on Emily. But Emily finds an old trunk with a diary in the old cottage she's living in, so we get a peek at a story from the late 1850s.

Another masterful tale by Bowen. I loved learning about the Women's Land Army in England, which I hadn't heard of prior to this novel.

Rhys Bowen shares a story of WWI in her newest book. A bittersweet tale of love and loss surrounded with picturesque descriptions and languorous language. The reader is transported to a time rich with opportunity and overshadowed with risk. Fans of Fiona Davis will enjoy this book.

I first became acquainted with Land Girls while watching the PBS series of the same name, which I thoroughly enjoyed. This novel delves deeper into the lives of a group of land girls who learn the value of friendship and how to depend on each other.

A very worthwhile read.

I read this EARC courtesy of Lake Union and Net Galley pub date 02/12/19

This was her best book yet. Charming characters that were engaging. Very well written interesting book about Land girls. Loved it

I truly enjoy Rhys Bowen's historical fiction, almost as much as I enjoy her historical mysteries. This is another winner about a young British woman who becomes a Land Girl during World War I.

*Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing an e-galley in exchange for an honest review.

Rhys Bowen returns to her foray into historical fiction. Emily Bryce turns 21 during World War I in England, and decides that now she if of age, she can make the decision (her parents disapprove) to contribute to the war effort. When nursing does not work out, she joins the Land Girls, women who take on the farm work of the men who are now soldiers. She makes new friends from other walks of life she has had little contact with, and discovers she can do her part quite capably. She befriends an Australian airman against her parents wishes, and they fall in love, which turns to tragedy when he is killed, and she discovers she is pregnant. Terrified, she finds a place for herself she fights to keep safe, but secrets never stay secret.
This is one of the best things Bowen has written. The story sails along, pulling the reader in immediately and never letting go. The characters are engaging and some quite refreshing. The journal from the past is well integrated and adds greatly to the plot. The work of the Land Girls is an eye opener for Americans at least. Totally absorbing and satisfying. Highly recommended.

It's May of 1918 in Devonshire, England, WWI has been raging for almost 4 years and Emily Bryce is about to celebrate her twenty-first birthday. She is also about to celebrate her independence and become her own person. Her family has suffered the hardships of war, having lost their only son and brother to Emily, Freddie. Now with only one child, both parents have sheltered and over protected their daughter, her mother only wanting to have Emily marry "well." Yet in one instant moment, that is all about to change and Emily's life will never be the same again.
Bored with the tedium of life that is her everyday existence and wanting to do her part for England, Emily signs up to become a land girl, working on farms that no longer have the man power necessary to harvest and supply food for the country. Yet that is not all that she encounters, as she has fallen in love with a "fly boy" from Australia, a young man that captures her heart.

This book is well written, it shares the value of friendship when the world is being torn apart. As you follow along, you see the rise of independent women, those who now can stand on their own two feet, not only because they have no choice, but with the end of WWI times had changed, values that were once "tried and true" were no longer being adhered to.

With heartwarming and memorable characters, "The Victory Garden" was an enjoyable read. I read this book in one day, because once I started I had to finish it, I couldn't put it down. I only wish this would be book one as part of a series. My thanks to Netgalley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

What an enjoyable novel, set in one of the harshest times in history. Depicting life in England for women during the end of World War I, the story centers on Emily Bryce. She willingly gives up her entitled status in life to serve her country in the Women’s Land Army. The Victory Garden is a heartwarming story filled with memorable characters. Emily faces some of the hardest circumstances imaginable as her unlikely new friends rally to help. The only downside to the book is the abrupt ending, leaving me wanting more. But I definitely recommend to fans of historical or women's fiction.

I received an ebook review copy of this book through NetGalley. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Amazing book. Loved it from beginning to end.
Well written which kept me captivated throughout.
I will definitely be reading other books by this author

Emily is bored out of her mind. Stuck at home, sheltered by her mother, after the death of her brother in the war. She wants to do her part like her friend who is a nurse on the front lines. She finds herself 21 and not having to do what her parents want, so she begins a new journey to help the war effort. Along the way she finds herself on a path that she would never have imagined for herself. She soon discovers that she is a lot tougher than she thought she was.

I loved this book. Emily is such a strong character. She faces so many hardships for the time and at her age. No matter what is thrown her way she manages to make her way and never give up. Her friends, all of them, were full of life and positivity. They really helped make the story. All the characters, except one (you will figure that out soon enough), were awesome.

This story was full of romance, war, self discovery, and redemption. I found myself sucked into all the drama that Emily faces. I also felt pleased with all her triumphs. This was a story that was well written and easy to read and love. This is a great story start to finish.

Reviewed By
Stormi Ellis

Rhys Bowen delivers another historical novel with great characters and vivid settings. I thought this book was a mystery as her other novels, but this was more of a romance. Nonetheless, I thoroughly enjoyed the story but certain aspects were predictable. A good read but not her best.

The simple message of a garden is hope that sprouts from tiny seeds.

Rhys Bowen presents a story in the midst of The Great War. It's May of 1918 in Devonshire and Emily Bryce is about to celebrate her twenty-first birthday. Being the daughter of a judge and living on quite a sizable estate, Emily is removed from the hardships that have worked their way into the lives of most families in England. But that is about to change.

Emily corresponds with her best friend, Clarissa, who has become a nurse stationed at the front. Emily longs to follow in her friend's footsteps, but she's turned down by the Nurses Voluntary Aid Detachment. Instead, Emily finds herself signing on the dotted line to become a Land Girl. This division of volunteers travels the area working in gardens and on farms after the men have been called up to fight. Tension escalates when Emily tries to tell her parents. They turn her away.

Soon Emily is working on land owned by Lady Charlton with a band of good-natured women. This is the first time that Emily has felt needed in her life. But as Rhys Bowen's story unfolds, the reader will come upon secrets that Emily has been keeping. One will note how women's lives of the time were held to such rigid standards. Gossip lined every sidewalk in small towns and villages. There was a compulsive need to label and to shame. Perhaps human nature doesn't change much after all.

I've read many a book by the talented Rhys Bowen including The Tuscan Child and all of the Molly Murphy Series. She has a way of telling a story in which her main characters try to steady the ship during the worst of storms. It's hones, relatable people who are flawed but seek a way of their own. The Victory Garden allows us a glimpse into the real sacrifices taken on by so many in generations ago.

I received a copy of The Victory Garden through NetGalley for an honest review. My thanksto Rhys Bowen and to Lake Union Publishing for the opportunity.

This was an easy to get into story that I found interesting. I didn't know about the land girls and I enjoy learning new things as I read. As a librarian I can see this book having wide appeal and I know many of my patrons will enjoy this book. Thanks to netgalley and Lake Union publishing for the ARC. 3.5 stars

#TheVictoryGarden #NetGalley
Thanks to NetGalley, Lake Union and Rhys Bowen for this very interesting read, Rhys Bowen's first non- mystery was quite good. Not being British I did not know about the "Land Girls" and that it was formed in World War I.

Emily Bryce was the only surviving child, from a wealthy family and wanted to follow her best friend, a volunteer nurse, into service for England. Her family, having lost their son early in the War as well as having class issues with volunteers, refused to let her.

When she turns 21, having met a wounded Australian pilot at the hospital next door, she goes to volunteer. The only possible job she qualifies for is to be a Land Girl and she gladly volunteers and leaves home with essentially the clothes on her back.

The Australian pilot, Robbie and she are in love and plan to marry but their liaison results in a child and he is killed when he ditches his plane to save a village. She finds peace and purpose in a Devonshire estate with two new friends who share her willingness to work hard, if not her background.

The ending is poignant and hopeful for a revisit to these characters ( who hopefully will acquire more depth in a sequel) Recommended for historical fans of British war stories.

I enjoyed this book and stayed up until 1 a.m. finishing it. However, the book had several flat, stereotyped characters and some plot twists that stretched the willing suspension of disbelief. The most intriguing
part of the book was the last several pages, which set up a dandy premise for a sequel.

It is not often that an author can capture and describe circumstances so vividly that you feel you are in the midst of them yourself. Emily Bryce is the only living child of a judge. Her best friend decides to go against tradition and work as a nurse during the war. Tired of the tedium of each day, Emily decides to make difference too. A chance encounter with a recuperating Australian pilot leads her to adventure and maturity.

In this course of the story, we learn how women had to pull together and help each other survive wartime. Everything was rationed and growing your own food was more important than ever. Having had servants, Emilynwas unaccustomed to hard work. She did not turn away from it; she thrived. There are many unanticipated events that she will live through but her grace under pressure only endears her to all.

Rhys Bowen has researched the period and how England adapted to war. Her characters are relatable and most are people you can imagine being friends with in your own life. The conditions of war were described without gore or gruesome details. You feel as though you are going through these hardships yourself. The first half of the book seems a little slow but the second half passes too quickly. In the end, you can imagine what happens to Emily next and you feel the contentment of finishing a great book.

For lovers of historical fiction this is a wonderful novel.A novel about love during the war about women’s role on the honefront.Romance a historical setting this book swept me away.#lakeunionpublishi #betgalley,