Desperately needing a change from her life, Eloise impulsively applies for a job across the ocean in France. She’s to be a gardener, at the minimum of the description, taking care of the flowers at the mysterious gardens of Le Chateau du Paradis. There are, however, some very particular rules she must follow to stay in the good graces of her employer - La Patronne. The gates will be locked at all times - if you wish to leave, you must arrange with the manager. You must not be outdoors during dusk. And absolutely no children. Despite the odd rules, Eloise finds comfort in her new life and new friends she makes at the Chateau, but strange and bizarre occurrences have her guessing what she sees and knows.

I’m not quite sure this novel was for me. While it’s advertised as a sort of “Secret Garden for adults”, I feel my expectations in this aspect were not exactly met. Yes, there is a beautiful garden, but the magical elements seemed very clunky and left for (what felt to me) a bizarre integration of what felt like two stories shoved together trying to make one.

I will say, however, ignoring the disjointed stories as a whole, this novel gave beautifully difficult insight on the struggles of infertility and the power that shared stories and experiences have in the healing process.

TW: infertility, miscarriage

Una mujer rota. Una oferta misteriosa. Un jardín mágico en el sur de Francia donde nada es lo que parece.

Eloise ha perdido casi todo: su salud mental, su matrimonio, su carrera y, sobre todo, la esperanza de formar una familia. Tras años de intentos fallidos para ser madre, decide dejar atrás su vida en Estados Unidos y responder a un enigmático anuncio en una revista de jardinería: buscan una jardinera para los antiguos Jardins du Paradis, un lugar aislado y fuera del alcance del mundo… y lo mejor para ella: prohibido el ingreso de niños.

Lo que Eloise encuentra tras los muros del castillo es un jardín exuberante que parece tener vida propia. Las flores le susurran, el entorno la abraza, y la compañía de tres desconocidos —todos con sus propias heridas— le permite comenzar a sanar. Sin embargo, lo que parecía un refugio de ensueño se convierte lentamente en un espacio inquietante: reglas extrañas, presencias invisibles, risas infantiles que no deberían existir, y un velo de secretos que ocultan una verdad oscura.

Inspirada en El jardín secreto pero con un giro adulto y mágico, La alquimia de las flores entrelaza el realismo mágico con el dolor profundo de la infertilidad, la pérdida y el renacimiento emocional.


Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for the ARC in exchange for an honest.

I very much enjoyed reading The Alchemy of Flowers which combined fantasy, magic, suspense, camaraderie, romance, adventure and healing all in one novel. I loved how all the characters shared their own separate heartbreaks at Le Château du Paradis in the South of France and how all the characters overcame their challenges and obstacles. I would definitely recommend.

Thank you NetGalley and publisher, Harper Muse, for the complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Sometimes an author's experiences not being universal are a boon to the story: not so in this case. While I can recognize the inherent meaning and depth of feeling in the novels unexpected and extensive discussing of infertility and child loss, these sections took up an overwhelming amount of the page count. It felt difficult to get a sense for Eloise's character outside of these aspects of her history. This story also had an unfortunate case of side characters being more interesting than the main characters - I ADORED .Mina and Bao but couldn't stand Eloise and Raphael, who felt like a self-insert and a cardboard cut-out respectively. Still, Resau is an enchanting writer and the story's backdrop is drawn in vivid, loving detail. I wanted to badly to live in the garden, even as nefarious details began unspooling around it!

3 1/2 stars. I am not normally a fan of fantasy/magical realism but I decided to just let my brain go with it. I was attracted to the cover and the description. The author has expanded her writing with this novel going from YA to full adult. I can see parts of both. The writing through most of the book is “delicious” and I mean that in two ways. Descriptions are so poetic and sensual. She not only describes the gardens, scenery and flowers. She describes food, drink and romance so beautifully that the reader can see, feel and taste as if you are in paradise, yourself. There is a mystery in the novel but I feel that the hints made it obvious what was going on. At the climax of the story the author made a big change in her writing style. She created a scene of violence that came at me too quickly. Much of this part of the book seemed rushed and less realistic than the fantasy that I had started to enjoy. I fell in love with the characters. They all started out broken but healed through the friendships created with each other. Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher for giving me the opportunity to read and review this novel.

I have absolutely no good advice for maintaining a garden, but I can recommend a book that will transport you to Le Château du Paradis, a garden in the South of France enchanting enough to make you forget all the dead flowers in your past.

In Laura Resau’s forthcoming novel The Alchemy of Flowers, thirty-seven-year-old Eloise’s life resembles the bed of strawberries my dogs trampled last year. She’s reeling from years of infertility followed by a recent divorce. When she finds a mysterious ad in a gardening magazine that requests an “impossible task riddle” and “a résumé of ashes,” Eloise decides to abandon her life in Denver and travel to the Gardens of Paradise (45).

Magic and mystery pervade the walled gardens. Mina, Bao, and Raphaël are the only other residents on the estate, which belongs to the never-glimpsed La Patronne and is overseen by the strangely cold Antoinette. La Patronne makes odd requests, such as banning children from the premises and requiring employees to stay indoors at dusk. As Raphaël explains to Eloise, “Until half a century ago, a secretive family owned the estate. . . . There were a series of disappearances and deaths, and then La Patronne took over” (48).

Magic and mystery pervade the walled gardens. Mina, Bao, and Raphaël are the only other residents on the estate, which belongs to the never-glimpsed La Patronne and is overseen by the strangely cold Antoinette. The others tell Eloise to ignore the odd rules and bizarre happenings. At first, the charming setting makes it easy for her to play along, and the meals are as alluring as the scenery. But Eloise has followed the rules for her entire life, and the pursuit has left her unsatisfied. As unsettling occurrences accumulate, Eloise finds herself unable to stick to La Patronne’s expectations. It’s only as she pushes against the rules that she begins to heal herself.

As Eloise discovers, despite societal pressure, a woman never plays only one role: “We would find a way to live in harmony in these gardens. We, of course, meaning the Triple Goddess inside and outside of myself, in all her forms” (235). The Alchemy of Flowers is a book about being open to possibilities and embracing different (often contrary) aspects of yourself.

This magical realism novel is a study of contrasts – the light, healing powers of the resilient human spirit and the dark, foreboding underbelly of a wounded soul. Perhaps the most interesting premise is that the beauty and magic of the garden emerges from fertilization with one’s own merde (human excrement). Psychologically, this illuminates that healing arises only when one is willing to embrace the most difficult sources of distress.

Eloise accepts a mysterious job as a gardener at Jardins du Paradis in southern France knowing little beyond a cryptic description of the role and the environment. The key to her interest is the absolute rule of “no children allowed.” Having experienced the trauma of infertility, including four miscarriages and one failed adoption, Eloise has lost so much more than her ability to bear a child. Her mental health, her marriage, her friendships, and her career are collateral damage from this exhaustive journey.

Arriving at the garden, she discovers a beautiful and delightful environment and three companions who share in the maintenance of the estate. Each is wounded in their own way and through the forging of this family of choice, Eloise slowly heals and begins to discover her unforeseen talents as a “flower whisperer.” However, all is not what it seems in paradise, as the darker elements of nature and the goddess mythology threaten to create an atmosphere of perceived and real danger for those who disobey the rules of the castle owner.

The author has woven an enchanting tale of light and dark – hope and desperation. The prose is beautiful, and the descriptions of the garden and flowers are highly evocative. One of the most touching passages was when Eloise and Mina (another of the caretakers) share their life stories through the creation of flower pictures. Overall, this novel is a deep dive into a challenging subject (infertility) that is managed with sensitivity and compassion.

My thanks to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for the privilege of reviewing this book. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

This review is being posted immediately to my GoodReads account and will be posted on Amazon upon publication.

Thank you Harper Muse Audio and Netgalley for the ARC!

This book was heartbreaking and healing. Giving people warning that this book talks about child loss, pregnancy loss, infertility, relationships falling apart, and SA. It talks about healing from all of these in a place that is beautiful, but also showing that one cannot heal if one always runs away from the problem. If you aren't addressing what hurts you in the first place, how can you move forward?

I loved that the FMC healed in this book via everyday things, a friendship with a woman who can relate, a man who almost died, a young girl who helped get her smile back. It wasn't some grand thing, she just slowly felt better and came out of her shell day by day while living in the beautiful garden. But, I also liked that it showed that when one isn't trying to heal, the garden can be just as dangerous.

If you want a good cry, go ahead and pick this up!

I went into this book expecting something light-hearted and whimsical—something in the vein of The Secret Garden. While there were glimpses of that charm, the story took a much heavier and more emotional turn, focusing deeply on themes of infertility, grief, and divorce. These are incredibly important topics, and they deserve space in literature—but the issue here lies in the way the book was marketed.

The description gave no indication that the story would center on such emotionally intense material. Had I known, I likely wouldn’t have requested it—not because the subject matter isn’t valid, but because I simply wasn’t looking for that kind of read. Misleading advertising is a growing problem in the book world, and it's frustrating for both readers and authors. When books aren’t marketed accurately, they miss their target audience—and leave others feeling blindsided.

While the book did have a few meaningful and tender moments, the overall experience was clouded by my mismatch in expectations. Honest marketing is not just helpful—it’s essential. It ensures that the right readers find the right stories.

I loved the mix of magical realism and contemporary fiction.

The writing was beautiful and the characters were real and broken which is something I enjoy reading. However I feel the trigger warnings (infertility, loss, pregnancy lose and divorce) are not accurately advertised which for some could be quite difficult - was quite graphic in places

It doesn't take away from the read itself as it is very on with floral-flowers. I found the plot quite complex for so small a book.

Eloise, a young woman suffering from a decade of infertility and miscarriages, puts her life behind her to answer an ad from a French magazine. The owners of "Paradise" are looking for a caretaker for the flowers of the gardens. No children are permitted on the grounds of Paradise, suiting Eloise just fine. She arrives to the gardens, is told the very harsh rules, and begins to experience the magic of Jardins du Pardis while getting to know the other caretakers.

Although there are some rushed bits, particularly in the beginning of her experience in the gardens, Resau does an excellent job of describing the French countryside and the intricate beauty of the mysterious estate. She ties all of the elements together in an excellent and satisfactory ending that reveals several twists.

This book was not advertised correctly. I thought it was going to be a Secret Garden-esque book, and it had its moments. But it was really exploring the grief of this woman's trials with infertility, and divorce. I did not realize it was going to be about this at all, because it was not in the description at all. While it's obviously important to have books about a variety of different things, it's also important to tell people what your book is about. I must be quite honest, I would not have requested this book if I realized that it would be such heavy topic material. I went into it expecting a light-hearted book, and this was not that at all. Again, it had its moments, but it wasn't what I expected. So, that was my biggest gripe. I feel like false advertising is a big problem in the book world, and it irks me so much because I know if they described it correctly, the audience that is searching for these kind of books would actually be able to find them!!

I had a few other problems with the book. I was also really bothered by the amount of words in French, because it was extremely distracting as someone who doesn't speak French. It was also really flowery language, which didn't work for me in this book. And, while it was an arc, I did notice a lot of sentences with a painful lack of commas when it was absolutely necessary.

I also didn't really end up caring for the characters that much, and I felt like the pacing was not great.

So, who would I recommend this book to? Well, this was a two-star book for me, but others could enjoy it. I would recommend it if you are looking for a book that explores the topic of infertility deeply, a book with a plot that is mostly about recovery, and don't mind a lot of French words in your books.

Thank you to Netgalley and HarperCollins Focus for this arc!

The Alchemy of Flowers completely swept me away with its magic and emotional depth.. What I loved most was how vivid and poetic the writing felt. The story explored some deep themes—healing, family, identity—but did so in a way that felt natural and never heavy-handed. I especially loved the way flowers and plants were woven into the story.

The only reason I’m not giving it five stars is that the pacing was a little uneven in the middle. But, to be fair, I am a bit picky when it comes to pacing... I get bored easily!

I’d recommend it to anyone who enjoys stories with heart, healing, and a touch of the mystical. Thank you, NetGalley!

A story of power and pain, love and heal,

It was really good. Easy to empathize with the main characters. Lovely relationships.
I loved the beautiful whispering flowers of paradise.

A lush, ethereal garden. A flower whisperer finds new friends and danger within the garden walls. Welcome to the Gardens of Paradise. You may never want to leave.

Eloise, from Colorado, answers an ad to be a gardener in France at The Gardens of Paradise. The garden is completely off the grid and has very specific rules. No children allowed and you must stay in your quarters during the hour of dusk. Eloise is recently divorced and struggled with infertility and miscarriages. She’s also a flower whisperer who can converse with flowers. The flowers tell her what they need such as sun or water but also whisper warnings about the mysterious garden. Strange things happen in the gardens and danger lurks around each corner.

I recommend this book for fantasy and magical realism readers. The descriptions of the garden are magical and atmospheric, you will want to dine under the canopy of trees with fairy lights.
The food sounds amazing, the menus are quite elaborate. I haven’t stopped thinking about the food since I finished the book.,

Thank you HarperCollins Focus and Netgalley for the advanced reader copy. All opinions are my own.

“My dreams were vivid, as if I’d stumbled across another realm, the colors brighter, the sounds more vibrant, the tastes more intense. A realm where I transformed into flowers, one after another, from warm calendula to cool violets. My petals flew in the skies full of stars and my nectar trailed like the Milky Way.”

What a beautiful surprise this book was. The writing is so lyrical and the world within these pages so lush and gorgeous with a hint of mystery. The story has many beautiful messages throughout and the author does a great job at illustrating vivid scenes. I was so completely captivated and felt I was unable to put down the book at times. As soon as I did, I could almost hear the whispers of the flowers, luring me back in.

The way this story is a blend of cozy, heartbreaking, magical, whimsy and healing with some mystery sprinkled on top of it, is very well done. It’s a beautiful story that handles these hard and difficult topics very well.

Important trigger warnings:
- infertility
- rape
- child marriage
- miscarriage
- murder
- cancer

"The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious."

When Eloise moves from The States to France to work at the walled gardens of Paradise, she isn't prepared for this much beauty. Grounds covered in flowers, bees darting, a river, a waterfall, rustique lodgings, a place of joy and abundance.
With this much wealth available, there is no need to venture outside the gates. Eloise and her three collegues are content to work the gardens and enjoy what is provided. Without internet or contact with the outside world life is calm and somewhat magical.
All is well when played by the rules. Once she starts following the whispers of the flowers and questioning what is going on in the nearby castle, a different world emerges.
Dark clouds move in and the feel good story changes into eerie gothic, deep and dangerous.
There's a reason why the four of them are here.

The Alchemy of Flowers is an exchange between light and darkness, healing gardens and poisonous plants, the magical and the mundane. A fast paced story firmly rooted in everyday life. With fairylights at sunset, late night dinners and a dark castle looming.

Thank you Netgalley and Harper Muse for the ARC.
Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

3.75 ⭐

This book was different than what I expected and I was both excited about the outcome and maybe a little sad that it was not, in fact, a full on fantasy story like the first chapters suggested.
I'd say this is a mystery clouded in magical realism.
I'd say it's a story of healing, rediscovering life, embracing nature and wonder.
It's a story of loss and motherhood and female power.
Of found family.
It has a distinct magical and whimsical tone to it.

The writing style was not always my thing because sometimes I had the impression it was flat even if the progression of the storyline was exciting.

I really loved the story and all the tisanes and teas, the magic of their little village inside les jardins du Paradis 🌻🪻🌷


Ⓟⓡⓔ—Ⓡⓔⓥⓘⓔⓦ
<s>
I was attracted by the cover, then I read "This debut adult novel is an enchanting, modern-day take on The Secret Garden, sprinkled with magic" and I was sold.
I'm hoping this book delivers 🥹
I've not had the best experiences from my latest ARCs, so... I need a good one!</s>

❁ Thank you to Netgalley, Laura Resau and HarperCollins Focus for the opportunity to read the ARC of this in exchange of my honest opinion ❁

"My dreams were vivid, as if I'd stumbled across another realm, the colors brighter, the sounds more vibrant, the tastes more intense. A realm where I transformed into flowers, one after another, from warm calendula to cool violets. My petals flew in skies full of stars and my nectar trailed like the Milky Way."


3.5 stars. This book was a real surprise. Gorgeous, lyrical writing, but didn't quite hit the level I was hoping. I do think it was quite misrepresented as a fantasy, as there is little to no fantastical elements to it. It's far better suited to the magical realism genre (if even that), or general fiction. I emphasise this because it is outside my usual go to genre, but I was under the impression I was getting a different sort of book. I would recommend for people who enjoy women's lit, personal growth, general fiction, and magical realism.

I also think the plot summary is misleading, it makes it sound far more magical and mysterious than it is. Eloise is running from something in her life, and winds up taking a job as a gardener in a mysterious, isolated garden in France called Paradise. This place doesn't allow phones, internet, or any outsiders in save for those who work there, under the watchful eye of Antoinette, the stern and eerie personal assistant to the actual faceless owner of the garden, "La Patronne".

Although presented as a magical mystery, it reads more like a personal growth book. Eloise is going through an incredibly difficult time regarding fertility, loss of an unborn child (which we find out very early on), and mourning the end of a relationship to boot - these are deep, traumatic things she works through as she learns to heal and grow through working in the gardens. We see her go from incredibly low self esteem and a desire to disappear, to wanting, and screaming, that she wants to live. The other characters in the book all have their own trauma, and it was heavy and humbling to read about their pasts, like Mina and the hell she went through. There is a romance which I wasn't crazy about, but I won't say too much as I don't want to spoil it.

"Eloise, all of us here, we have been hurt - and that is why we are in the Gardens of Paradise"...."This is a refuge for the broken"


The flowers and plants provide a healing presence, and the company of fellow workers, all running or hiding from something, provides beautiful friendship and support. This is where most of the time is spent. Days of frolicking in the gardens, with the flowers, with decadent food.

"The days softened into each other like lemon and butter and sugar on a warm crepe, rich and sweet and oh-so-alive. Bliss, beauty, bonheur around every bend. Gardening, sharing meals, bonding in sunlight, starlight, moonlight."


This is why I say this book is misrepresented - these passages and these chapters were fantastic in showing Eloise's mental journey from what she deemed to be broken, to realising she is whole. But this focus isn't shown in the summary. Readers ought to know this because A LOT of what Eloise goes through is relevant to a lot of people, and so many people out there could resonate with so much of what she thinks and feels, >b>if they only knew that was the content of this book!

There are some elements to the story that can be interpreted as somewhat magical, certainly the flowers seem to possess healing powers and talk back to Eloise or warn her of things. Eloise also operates almost like a herb witch, in the way she brews the flowers in teas for different purposes: love, courage, calm, etc. To me, the flowers, and all the whispers of magic were an allegory for Eloise's mental health, her inner psyche as she heals and learns to love herself and her reality.

Fantasy aside, there are a few mysteries abound. There's the mystery of the 3 shrouded women who stalk the garden at night, the child figure / "woodsprite" that Eloise sees in the shadows, the previous workers who disappeared without a trace, and strange goddess statues scattered around. We get answers towards the end of the book which all wrap up in a dramatic climax that was riveting, but the middle third of the book lagged a tad for me. That's what dropped the rating for me.

Resau's strength lies in her beautiful writing. Some of these passages left me absolutely stunned. I look forward to future writing, and will definitely be recommending to people in my life who I think will get more out of this.

I had high hopes for The Alchemy of Flowers, but ultimately felt like I sat through hours of filler and emotional repetition just to get to the part that finally felt worth the time. While the last 15% of the book picked up significantly—I actually enjoyed the final chapters quite a bit—it was a long, slow road to get there.

Most of the novel centers heavily on themes of infertility, miscarriages, envy of motherhood, and the emotional fallout of divorce. While I understand the importance of exploring trauma and grief as I myself have had miscarriages, the focus on these topics made the book feel emotionally heavy and, at times, repetitive. Readers should be aware that this novel could be very triggering.

That said, Laura Resau clearly has talent. Her descriptive writing is vivid and immersive—I could picture the French estate and garden in rich detail.

However, the novel also seemed unsure of its identity. It weaves through magical realism, witchcraft, trauma, mystery, child loss, and even romance, but the transitions between these elements felt abrupt and unfocused. Instead of feeling layered, the story came across as scattered.

The use of French was another point of frustration. Sometimes translations were offered, but not consistently, which pulled me out of the story as I tried to interpret unfamiliar phrases.

In the end, this book might resonate more deeply with readers specifically looking for a reflective exploration of grief and motherhood. For others, it may feel uneven and emotionally exhausting. If you're willing to push through a slow start and some heavy material, the payoff in the final chapters might make it worthwhile—but it’s not a light or clearly directed read.

Thank you to NetGalley & Harper Muse for providing me an ARC to review.