The Winter Garden by Nicola Cornick does what I love about historical fiction. It teaches me something new in history. I read the story and am off to search nonfiction sources for the actual history. I have, of course, heard of Guy Fawkes and Bonfire Night. However, I had never before heard of Robert Catesby and his role in this history. The fact that the fiction is from the perspective of the women leaves me wondering of the actual women of this history and if anything is written of their roles and contributions.

Read my complete review at http://www.memoriesfrombooks.com/2024/05/the-winter-garden.html

Reviewed for NetGalley.

Nicola Cornick is a brilliant storyteller. From past to present, she delivers a tale that is all-consuming and beautifully written. "The Winter Garden" is no different. Her characters come to life on the page.

Read if you like: dual timelines and dual perspectives.
-
Taking place during one of my favourite time periods, Early Modern Britain and more specifically, Elizabethan England. The characters are part of the Gunpowder Plot, and we get to read from the perspective of Robert Catesby's mother! Then in modern times, we have Lucy, who retreats to the country to recover from an illness, and there she gets wrapped up in an archaeological dig to find a Tudor garden.
-
Overall this was fun and intriguing and I thought the mystery was great!

Thank you to the publisher, Harlequin Trade Publishing and NetGalley for providing me with an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Lucy Brown’s promising music career has come to an abrupt end after an illness and she goes to her aunt’s cottage in the countryside, to rest and recuperate. The cottage was originally a manor in Tudor times and is famous for having been the home of Robert Catesby, one of the gunpowder plotters. An archaeological dig is underway around the cottage as her aunt hopes to find the remains of a Tudor garden, and as Lucy spends more time on the grounds, she begins to have visions of a sorrowful ghost who keeps mentioning a lost treasure. The story of the ghost unfolds in a parallel timeline set at the end of the 16th century. Anne Catesby is growing increasingly worried about her son Robert, who is passionate about his Catholic faith and willing to go to great extents for it, even plotting against the throne and placing his family at great risk in the process. When Anne discovers that Robert is involved in a dreadful plot to kill the king, she must make the difficult choice between her family’s safety and betraying her only son.

Having read The Last Daughter of York just a few months ago, which was my first time reading a book by this author, I was very eager to pick up this one and even more excited to get an ARC of it. Dual timeline is a style of narration I adore for historical fiction novels and it was nice to learn a little more about this time period in history, centered around the Gunpowder Plot. The timelines felt better balanced in this book compared to the last and both were equally intriguing. The past timeline did an excellent job of introducing the characters of Robert and his wife Catherine Catesby through the eyes of his mother Anne and the steady progression of events that led to Robert getting involved in the plot, along with how it affected his family. The present day timeline weaves a fascinating tale of a lost treasure on the grounds of a historic cottage and the mystery of a ghostly woman in Tudor dress who seems to haunt it. Lucy’s dreams and visions lead to her taking an interest in the dig, but a second mystery was added to the mix when it becomes clear that someone doesn’t want her looking into it.

Lucy and Anne were both well written characters though I did find it a little odd that Lucy’s POVs were in third person and Anne’s in first person. I generally expect the narration style to be consistent across narrators regardless of it being in different timelines, but I suppose it did help to keep them separate. The author described the era in such rich detail and really brought it to life, making it easy to visualize those dark and dangerous times and imagine what Anne’s situation would have been like. Lucy’s character arc was quite good, and I liked that the development was done in such a way that it didn’t interfere with the plot but still showing how Lucy began to heal with the help of the people around her. The same thing goes for the romance, which I didn’t find to be particularly stand out, but it was blended well into the story without unnecessarily taking over it.

While this was an interesting read, I wasn’t the biggest fan of the pacing. It took forever for anything exciting to happen beyond a couple of dreams and ghost sightings and I think it was close to the 65% mark before things finally picked up. Also, this may be something that annoyed just me, but anyway, in this book, just like The Last Daughter of York, there were characters connected to those from the author’s previous books, which in and of itself is not a bad thing, but I didn’t see the point of the connection because it bore no relevance to the story at all.

The mystery of the treasure itself was something I found to be rather easily guessed, but it was fun to see how the characters in the present timeline discovered it all. The descriptions of the house and garden were very interesting and I found myself looking up more details to get a better idea of how it might have looked. Overall, this was an entertaining and engrossing read and I would highly recommend it for historical fiction fans!

Nicola Cornick has done it again and crafted yet another stunning historical fiction novel! Dual timelines can be very hit or miss for me, but the one presented in The Winter Garden worked wonderfully for me and I really enjoyed how Cornick meshed storylines into an overarching coherent and compelling plot. I loved that this was based around the Gunpowder Plot of 1605 and that I got a chance to dive into that time period and all the tumult associated with that since it's not something I'm overly familiar with. I really enjoyed getting to know all of the characters and felt that Cornick crafted a truly transporting novel that allowed me to really get lost in and thoroughly enjoy. If you're a historical fiction fan and are looking for something well written with a wonderful plot and characters, then be sure to check out The Winter Garden. I can't wait to see what's next from Nicola Cornick.

Much thanks to Nicola Cornick, Harlequin Trade Publishing/Graydon House, and NetGalley for allowing me to read an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I liked this book, but there were aspects to it that made it easy to put down. I loved the ghost and paranormal and mystery aspects, and I loved the archaeological aspects. There was plenty of the former (though I wouldn't have minded more), but I wish they'd dived a bit deeper into the latter. I didn't even realize sites as recent as a few hundred years could require excavation, that earth could bury them that quickly. I thought it took thousands or millions of years to build up that much. Furthermore, I didn't realize gardens could be excavated; there's always more focus on artifacts and bones and structures than natural landscape. I figured vegetation would just rot and become dirt indistinguishable from other dirt. Perhaps it more or less does until you put it under a microscope and run tests. Fascinating.

I liked the history aspects as well, but I did not like so much time spent in Anne's point of view. It just didn't feel necessary. It didn't really add to the plot beyond familiarizing the reader with the history of the site and resident ghost, and we simply did not need to be that familiar with the history. Anything pertinent could have been learned via the dreams and visions in Lucy's POV. We didn't need to know Anne at all. Those were the chapters that often put me off, especially in the beginning. I tried to read chapter 8 three times before just skipping it. Perhaps most annoying about the historical chapters was that they were always on the periphery of the important events they were supposed to shed light on--Robert and Catherine's relationship, the Gunpowder Plot. Anne's POV was just not that useful. ROBERT's should have been utilized, considering he was at the heart of it all.

As to the characters--I liked Lucy well enough. I didn't relate to her much, since I'm not musically inclined and don't care for salads, which is pretty much all she ate. It was a bit odd that she never really showed signs of the fatigue she was supposed to be suffering from, and I have a hard time believing she would never fully recover and couldn't continue playing violin later. She might not reach the professional heights she once could have, but.... but I guess no one can know the lasting effects of covid yet.

Cleo was a sweetheart, but I can understand how her energy and cheer could become grating, or at least tiring. Finn was an okay love interest, perhaps a tad bland if anything. He was supposed to be Scottish, but he didn't seem to use many Scottishisms in his speech. Geoffrey the black lab stole scenes of course, I wish there'd been more of him. The historical characters were all dinks except Anne and Catherine. Anne was a great character, the story just didn't need her.

The present-day plot didn't seem to move very quickly. It seemed to take forever for them to discover simple clues, or investigate them. Hmm, I need to research and find the answer, but I think I'll have a salad and take a leisurely walk first. Omg, it took Lucy SO LONG to start looking into Catherine; Lucy spent way too long, like 30 or 40 percent, ready to walk away from it all, uncommitted to the plot. The plot is only as important to the reader as it is to the character driving the narrative. If the character don't give no shits, the reader probably won't either. If the character isn't drawn into the mystery, neither will the reader be.

The demise of the villain was incredibly anticlimactic and lame. That definitely could have been handled better.

Overall, this kind of novel is very much my type. Ghosts, mysteries, digging up the past (literally and figuratively lol), paranormal, murder--but this novel wasn't well executed. Most importantly, it needed a quicker, more urgent pace, and a better balance between past and present storylines. Not to mention the past POV needed more purpose. But I'll definitely be looking into Cornick's other work! *goes straight to library's website*

Lucy has lost her ability to play without pain. Filled with despair, she travels to her Aunt Verity's cottage - the Gunpowder Cottage which had been owned by Robert Catesby, the leader of the Gunpowder Plot. On her first night staying at the Gunpowder Barn, Lucy encounters the ghost of Catherine Catesby searching for her lost treasure. That is one thread of this tale. The other thread is told by Anne Catesby in the 1600s. The two tales slowly intertwine to provide the reader the complicated tale not of the Gunpowder Plot, but rather the lives of the women around Robert Catesby and how their treasures came to light in the present day. A satisfying romance and historical all in one volume!

The Winter Garden is my favorite kind of book: dual timelines that bring past and present to life, characters with depth and resonance that we care about deeply, and a plot that even though the historical outcome is known, has the reader turning the pages to see what happens next.

The Winter Garden is set in modern times at a family estate where the main character has come to rest and renew herself after the onset of a chronic fatigue illness. At the time of her arrival a historic garden excavation and reconstruction are underway. The garden history was one of my favorite parts of the book and has leapt off the page into my own life where I am incorporating some of the ideas on knots and herbs into my own landscape.

The historic story delves into the fines placed on Catholics in a newly Protestant England and The Gunpowder Plot. Having read this book, I will henceforth see both in a more nuanced light and with relevance to our own times.

There is a paranormal aspect, a ghostly presence, that seamlessly ties both stories together and excellent writing that makes of the two stories one. This was my first Nicola Cornick book but will definitely not be my last.

A pleasure to read and highly recommended. Thank you to the author and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this lovely book in exchange for a fair and honest review.

An intriguing dual-timeline time-slip novel set in Oxfordshire, England. Present day is Lucy who was a professional musician whose career ended due to illness. She retreats to a family cottage in the countryside. The same location to where in the 1600’s we follow Anne Catesby, the mother of Robert Catesby who was a leader in the Gunpowder Plot. I loved the story best for the interesting history and lovely setting. ⁣
⁣
For those who enjoy:⁣
• historical fiction ⁣
• British history ⁣
• English countryside ⁣
• Tudor period

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for the ARC of this book. I love historical fiction but even more so when it’s written in such a way that it is so entertaining and moving that you don’t realize you are also learning about history. I really enjoyed everything about this book, I like when there is a modern day character learning about a historical one and trying to solve a mystery. It’s my favourite type of book.

The Winter Garden is a slightly unusual dual timeline. We are taken back to Tudor times and the gun powder plot, mainly presented to us through the eyes of Anne Gatesby. We see a beautiful relationship that ends so soon. What stood out to me was that people died so quickly from various diseases, and to make it through childhood is a mission.

In contemporary time, we meet Lucy, who has been ill and can no longer carry on with the musical career she so dearly loved. She stays at her Aunt's place to convalesce, and somehow her sadness connects with a woman from Tudor times. She seems to be wanting something, and from time to time Lucy can see her. Lucy combines with Finn who is restoring the Tudor garden, to solve the mystery that has a past and a present.

There is danger, someone has already lost their life and someone else will too in the course of the story. And through it all Lucy finds a new passion and a relationship that is very likely to last.

I enjoyed this story, the Tudor section was especially interesting and I really felt for Anne Catesby. I liked the slightly paranormal aspect and the link between past and present.

Dual-time historical novels, particularly those set in England and Scotland, have become a thing recently, and I am definitely here for them. I've read several by other authors, but Nicola Cornick is new to me. This was the first book of hers I've read, but it won't be the last.

The book alternates chapters between the year 1605, the year of the infamous Gunpowder Plot, and modern day. Lucy, a concert violinist, is struggling with long COVID and takes advantage of her aunt's cottage to rest and recuperate. The cottage was once owned by Robert Catesby, one of the instigators of the Gunpowder Plot, and soon Lucy starts having dreams and visions of a woman in Tudor costume she identifies as Catherine, Robert's wife. Catherine has a secret that has something to do with the Winter Garden that gardener/archeologist/all around handsome dude is restoring. No more spoilers, but that description is necessary to set up my review. I really love novels that teach me something about history, and I wish that there had been more about the Gunpowder Plot in the book. The 1605 chapters were told by Robert's mother, which is logical, but she had no insight into the political activities that were taking place. As for the modern day section, the characters are interesting (as a former pro musician myself, I really appreciate authors who take the time and research to accurately portray a musician's life). The inevitable romance is sweet and gentle, and so doesn't get in the way of the historical plot which is more dramatic.

Many thanks to Graydon House, NetGalley and Nicola Cornick for the advance reader copy. Happy to report I'm a new fan!

I have been a fan of Nicola Cornick’s paranormal dual time period novels since House of Shadows. She has a great way of taking historical events and weaving a good story around them.

The Winter Garden is her latest and was just as excellent as her previous books. The Winter Garden jumps between the late 16th, early 17th century and one of the Gunpowder Plot conspiracists, and present time. In the present is Lucy recovering from a nasty illness that has rendered her incapable of continuing her career as a concert violinist. She travels to her aunt’s house in the country to recuperate. Her aunt owns Gunpowder Cottage and barn that have ties to Robert Catesby of the Gunpowder Plot, hence the name of the cottage. The property once belonged to Robert and there is a garden archeologist on site who is trying to find eveidence of an early Tudor garden.

The past storyline has Anne Catesby, Robert’s mother trying to keep Robert on the straight and narrow. The family is Catholic and thus faces many prejudices even in the fairly tolerant times of Queen Elizabeth I. The family has to constantly pay fines for practicing Catholicism and Anne worries about Robert as he is a spendthrift and somewhat flighty. Enter his wife Catherine, the beautiful daughter of a wealthy Protestant family. Catherine is able to tame his wilder ways and they enjoy a loving life together on their estates. One of the estates is the property that Gunpowder Cottage is built on, and Catherine plans a beautiful winter garden on the estate. Sadly Catherine dies and Robert’s reckless ways lead him to participate in the Gunpowder plot.

The two timelines merge when Lucy starts to experience ghostly hauntings by Catherine. She works with the local archeologist Finn to uncover the story of the Winter Garden and the tragic past of Robert Catesby and his family.

Once again an enjoyable historical novel with a bit of romance and the paranormal thrown in. As an American I am not really knowledgeable about the Gunpowder Plot so found myself checking the Internet for some background information.

Thanks ro Netgalley, Harlequin Trade Publishing Graydon House and the author Nicola Cornick for the chance to read and review this book.

3.5 stars

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley and am voluntarily posting a review. All opinions are my own.

Despite having mixed feelings about Nicola Cornick’s dual timeline books, something keeps me coming back to them, even though I’m still not sure she quite measures up for me. So, I was somewhat apprehensive about The Winter Garden, even though I found the historical plot super interesting. I know a bit about the Gunpowder Plot, but I love the idea of looking at the personal life of one of the conspirators, Robert Catesby, through the eyes of his mother Anne.

And those parts are mostly pretty engaging. I didn’t know much about her, and while Anne is not a super-dynamic player in the action, I appreciate the emotional gravitas her perspective provides as she watches Robert go from a fairly typical gentleman of the late Tudor period to losing many of his loved ones, and falling deeper and deeper into radical ideas as a result of sinking into guilt. And while she loves her son, it’s heartbreaking how she can’t do anything to stop him from his destructive path, and must decide where her loyalties lie.

I also like how her sadness and the conflict reverberated across centuries, manifesting as a spirit to play a role in the contemporary arc. It’s a cool paranormal twist that not many authors in this micro-genre utilize.

I always find myself feeling very cold when it comes to Cornick’s contemporary characters, and I can’t figure out why. There’s enough relevance and investment between the two as Lucy begins investigating the goings-on with their family home and its ties to the Catesbys, and it makes for a reasonably intriguing mystery that kept me interested. However, Lucy in her own right isn’t that compelling.

Maybe I’m just not the right audience for Cornick’s work, as while her premises are great, I always end up wishing she would focus on the historical part instead of trying to write them with a corresponding contemporary arc to manufacture a mystery involving fictional modern characters who are nowhere as compelling as the historical counterparts. It’s very likely a preference thing, as others like this style a lot more than I do, if reviews are any indication, so if you enjoy Nicola Cornick’s approach to dual timeline novels, and/or aren’t as particular about them as I am, it’s worth trying/picking up.

A dual time line novel! Lucy has come to her aunt's estate in Oxfordshire to recuperate and think about her future but encounters a ghost in Tudor clothing her first night there. Finn, who is looking for a lost garden on the property, and her sister Cleo are supportive but a ghost? This is less Lucy's story than it is the story of the Gunpowder plot, the outlines of which were hazy to me. Anne, the mother of Robert Catesby, contrived to marry him to Katherine, hoping she would settle him down from womanizing and carousing. Little did she know that he would soon become engaged in a plot to overthrow the King, a plot which proved perilous for him (no spoiler that he died in battle, was exhumed and then beheaded for his role). The politics, religious and otherwise, are handled nicely here-not too deep and yet not too light. I learned a lot and found myself doing a bit of googling for more info. If there's a weak spot it's Lucy, who repeatedly hits on what she perceives as the end of her music career without ever thinking she could come back. I found myself flying through the contemporary sections to get back to Tudor England. Thanks to the publisher for the ARC. A good read for fans of historical fiction.

An interesting, well-written time slip novel featuring two believable, likeable female leads. In the past, the story focuses on Anne and her son Robert Catesby's involvement in the infamous Gunpowder Plot. She struggles with whether to protect her child or whether to reveal his plans and damage their family. In the present, Lucy is a musician recuperating from illness at her family's ancestral home, once owned by Robert Catesby. She beings having visions of a woman from Tudor times. A thoughtful, well-researched tale.

This is a fantastic historical mystery. I love that this is based on a true happening that took place in the early 1600. I loved both the story in the past and the present. I loved that the characters in the past and present come to help each other out. I love the paranormal aspect of the story also. I did not want to put this book down. I loved Lucy, Anne and Catherine. I received a copy of this book from the publisher for a fair and honest opinion that I gave of my own free will.

This story is told with dual timelines, my favorite!
Both stories are interesting. I did like the present day story more but mostly because of the paranormal element. The present day story has a bit of a twist that surprised me.
Definitely recommend!
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the early copy

I loved this dual timeline novel taking place in the English countryside, especially with our recent trip to Northamptonshire fresh in my mind. The book centers on two women, one from 16th century England connected to the infamous Gunpowder Plot and one from modern-day who escapes to the countryside to recover from a recent illness. Their lives intertwine through time to lead to the discovery of the heart’s true treasure.

Anne from the 16th century is worried about her son, Robert Catesby, who is brash and impulsive. Their family is Catholic and in the newly Protestant country, this is deadly. Robert’s marriage to Catherine who hails from a Protestant family helps smooth things over with Queen Elizabeth’s spies but the undue influence of his godfather threatens to disturb their family life. Anne’s concern for Robert explodes when Catherine and his young son die, leaving him grief-stricken and reckless, leading to his involvement in the Gunpowder Plot conspiracy to assassinate King James.

In modern-day England, Lucy is recovering at her aunt’s estate from a severe illness which has taken away her ability to work as a professional violinist. She becomes involved in an archeological project to recreate the Tudor gardens on the estate once owned by Robert Catesby. She has vivid dreams and visions of seeing the gardens as Catherine from the 16th century, images so real that she begins to doubt her sanity. As she gets to know the workers and villagers, she is drawn deeper into a mystery that could prove to be deadly.

I loved both storylines and enjoyed getting to know more about the lesser known collaborators in the Gunpowder Plot - I had only ever heard of Guy Fawkes! Learning more about the hardships of life in the 16th century from the constant threat of illness to political machinations was fascinating. As a mother, I related to Anne and Catherine’s sole wish that their children would be healthy and happy.

Lucy’s story was easy to read, and her intense grief at the loss of her musical ability was a creative way for the author to link her feelings with that of Catherine. Her storyline turned into quite a suspenseful tale and had me sitting on the edge of my seat!

I really enjoyed this book and am looking forward to delving into Cornick’s other books! Thanks to the publisher for the advanced review copy. Fans of English history and those who like historical suspense should be sure to read it after its release on October 25th!

Note to the publisher that in my ARC, Catherine is spelled Katherine a few times near the beginning of the book.

I first encountered Nicola Cornick’s novels last year, when Graydon House released “The Last Daughter of York.” I enjoyed that book so much that I’ve been meaning ever since to go back and read her earlier ones, but so far I haven’t had time. When her publicist told me about “The Winter Garden,” though, I jumped at the chance to cover it. It helped that part of the novel revolves around the infamous Gunpowder Plot of 1605—something I wanted to know more about, since despite having spent part of my childhood in the UK, where we let off fireworks on November 5 and watched the burning in effigy of Guy Fawkes, I actually knew few details of the plot itself.

Cornick’s novels, as a general rule, blend a modern perspective with a historical mystery and a paranormal connection between the two. One of her gifts is to make the contemporary romance comparable in strength and appeal to the historical portion, and that talent is on display here. Lucy, an internationally renowned concert violinist, has suffered a health crisis that strips her of her ability to perform. Facing the death of her career, she takes the opportunity to recover at a rural English estate. There she experiences bizarre dreams where she appears to inhabit the body of a Tudor-era woman named Catherine, even as she is increasingly pulled into a relationship with Finn, an archeologist working on the gardens of the estate while mourning the recent loss of his brother in a car crash.

Alongside this modern story, we follow the events leading up to the Gunpowder Plot, told by Anne Catesby, the mother of the main conspirator. At first, past and present seem far apart, but as the novel progresses, the links between them become clearer. Anne and Lucy are strong, determined women fighting circumstances beyond their control—for very different reasons—and I found myself rooting for both of them to succeed. In short, I loved every minute of this excursion into the origins of the Gunpowder Plot, the Knights Hospitaller, and the complex elements included in Tudor gardens.

I will be interviewing this author for the New Books Network (link below) in November 2022.