This atmospheric story focuses on healing, hope and how to turn ‘merde’ into flowers. It follows Eloise, who has been left hollow after infertility led to the breakdown of her marriage. She takes a job in France tending to the mysterious gardens of La Chateau du Paradis. The rules of the gardens are simple - you cannot leave, you cannot gossip and no children are allowed. At first, Eloise loves the gardens where she is surrounded by friends, botanical tinctures and space to rediscover herself. But then she starts to catch glimpses of a small, sweet face, and hear a child’s laughter, and view ghostly figures floating by in the twilight, and find dungeons for those who break the rules…

I listened to this as an audiobook and really enjoyed it. The writing style creates a vivid sensory setting, so you can almost smell the flowers, taste the teas and tisanes on your tongue. Anyone fascinated by the idea of tree house living, natural remedies and whispering plants will enjoy this tale.

The mystery of the ‘goddess of the gardens’ is eerie and interesting, and the raw hurt of Eloise’s pain seeps through into the magic realism, tinging it with sorrow. The romance is believable (though I do think things move a little fast towards the end) and the found family is strong, bonded by shared space, openness, honesty and appreciation for nature.

The ending is definitely not what I was expecting, but it gives closure to all the questions raised throughout the book. I’d read another book by this author in a heartbeat and will keep an eye out for more of her work.

To desire is one of the hardest things a person can do. It can shape you in the best of ways—or it can shatter you beyond recognition.

In the case of our FMC, Eloise, it broke her. Worn down by grief, loss, and a body that betrayed her deepest longing, she leaves behind the ashes of her old life and follows a whisper of hope: a job in the South of France tending a secluded, walled garden called Jardins du Paradis. But what it truly offers is something she’s long been searching for—peace, stillness, and solitude.

What Eloise finds beyond the gates isn’t just beauty. It’s a world of quiet wonder, strange rules, and questions that bloom as wildly as the flowers she’s meant to care for.

All she wants is to forget why she came and disappear into the rhythm of soil and silence. But something otherworldly stirs in the shadows—something childlike. A flicker of laughter. A glimpse of something small darting between the trees. A little girl.

Or perhaps her heart and mind are playing tricks on her. Perhaps it's just the phantom of what she longs to have been—a mother. The appearance of this child, real or not, is a fate almost too cruel to bear.

Are the fates or furies toying with Eloise? Because she feels drawn to this little wildthing—protective and determined to understand what is truly happening within the garden walls. Something is not right.

And as the truth unearths itself layer by layer, like petals peeling open, Eloise begins to realize that her sanctuary may not be a haven at all, but a trap. One that will demand everything she has left to protect the only family she’s ever truly known.

The Alchemy of Flowers is a novel to be slowly sipped and savored. It’s a story of healing, of finding solace, and above all, of discovering hope in the most unlikely places.

Beyond the mystery, this novel weaves together beloved tropes such as:

-Found family

-Fish out of water

-Second chance at life

-Magical realism

-Gothic undertones

-Slow-burn romance

-Grumpy/sunshine

-Single dad

I give this book a solid 4.5 stars. I didn’t know what to expect when I picked it up, but I’m so glad I did. The narration was engaging, the accents were unique to each character, and the supporting cast each had beautiful storylines of their own—each one healing in their own way.

I really loved the idea of this book. I wasn’t sure if it was going to be romance or mystery or thriller.. and it was kinda all of the above. I really loved the premise that got our FMC to the garden in France. All of the characters were great and the narrator made it so easy to know who was who. There were enough surprises without anything feeling like it was coming out of nowhere. I will read from this author again!

Trigger warning: This novel explores themes of grief and fertility struggles, which are central to Eloise’s journey. Her path through loss, identity, and healing is written with sensitivity, but may be emotionally difficult for some readers.

The first half of this book completely enchanted me. The prose is lush and lyrical, the setting—a wild, magical garden in rural France—is utterly transportive, and the French language is woven in so naturally that it adds real depth. You can tell the author is fluent and has lived this experience.

Cassandra Campbell’s audiobook narration was also a standout. Her performance was beautifully nuanced, with distinct character voices that made listening easy and engaging.

Unfortunately, the second half didn’t quite hold together for me. The story lost focus, branching into too many competing plotlines, and the central romance felt underdeveloped—more proximity than chemistry. A few lines of dialogue also pulled me out of the story with their awkwardness. Ultimately, I decided not to finish.

That said, the author’s talent is clear, and this book felt deeply personal. I’d be open to reading more from her in the future, especially if future works are more tightly edited and streamlined.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced review copy in exchange for my honest thoughts.

I don't often listen to audiobooks all the way through in one straight shot unless I'm driving, but I did with this one. I felt like this story was really unique and will likely stick with me. I liked the writing style and felt like all of the characters were well thought out, getting to know the side characters was so fun. I also appreciated the production of the audio book. Cassandra Campbell had a really pleasing voice and spoke really clearly so I was able to listen to the audiobook at 2.5x speed, which is my preference.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would recommend it to fans of magical realism, but I would definitely recommend checking trigger warnings!

LOVED this one!!!! I was given an advanced reader copy of this in the audiobook. I give this one 5 stars!! Thank you to NetGalley, Laura Resau, and publisher Harper Muse!!! I was especially interested in this one because of my past dealing with infertility and I knew Laura would touch on this in this book. This book did bring back raw emotions, but it ended beautifully. It is a modern take on the Secret Garden sprinkled with magic, healing, and love! The book is available for pre-order and will be released on July 29th. I hope you order it and love it as much I did!!!
#NetGalley
#thealchemyofflowers
#harpermuse
#HarperMuseAudio
#cassandracampbell

THANK YOU!!!!!!!! This book will live rent free in my head and heart from here on out!! Holding hands with you in spirit Laura!

This book broke me apart into a million pieces and then carefully placed me back together, whole and new.

Following Eloise (which happens to be my daughter’s name), this book plunges us into French gardens full of healing, magic, and mystery.

With lush prose, romance, and a journey to healing for many broken people, this book has me crying, laughing, and yearning for a garden of my own.

I highly recommend some knowledge of the French language for the most enjoyment, but I think it’s written so that you could enjoy it without.

I listened to this book on audio, and the narrator did a fantastic job. Character voices, accents, and wonderful acting. It wholly enhanced the experience.

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC copy in exchange for my honest review.

After sleeping on it, I am going to downgrade my review to 2 stars... sorry...

First reason: this book features infertility and pregnancy loss as a MAJOR theme. MAJOR MAJOR. It's mentioned on like, every other page, and there are GRAPHIC descriptions of infant loss. I cannot FATHOM why this wasn't mentioned in the book description because this is 100% going to trigger the ever loving shit out of someone who isn't prepared for it. The description mentions that the book is about healing, which it is, but she is healing from her struggles with loss an infertility. This isn't a spoiler, its lowkey harmful to not even mention this in the description. Maybe the final version will have a trigger warning, but I don't remember one in the audiobook into. READ WITH CAUTION. Other than this, overall there was so much of this book that didn't work for me.

What I liked:
-The prose. The writing style. SO gorgeous and beautiful, and the writing style is the perfect choice for...
-The setting of a magical garden in rural southern France. Literally, i wanted to be here and the book really makes you feel like you're in it. The setting itself was 5/5, so fucking good.
-The portrayal of trying to have normal conversations in your non native language and how French was integrated into the book. The author is fluent in French and it shows.
-The portrayal of the expat experience
-The audio narrator - Cassandra Campbell was AMAZING
-The first 50% of the book

What I didn't like:
-The second 50% of the book. Because shit just kinda goes off the rails, especially at the end for no reason whatsoever.
-The fact that there is like, 7 plots. EDITORS PLEASE
-The entire romance. It exists because of forced proximity, the characters actually have no chemistry with each other.
-There were some really weird and cringe lines. Like, cringey enough I can remember them specifically. The whole "fresh and fertile" thing? The fact that she basically says "might as well enjoy my perky breasts and flat stomach cause i've never been pregnant?" like, ew?

In conclusion, this book needs a trigger warning / blurb refresh and a bunch of editing. I really loved the setting and the author's writing style and it was clearly evident that this book was SO personal to the author. I would definitely give her work another shot, as this definitely had a lot of potential, but ultimately I didn't feel like the good parts made up for the bad.

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.

The Alchemy of Flowers is at its core a magical story of healing and forgiveness. Eloise leaves the States and moves to France to work in a walled off secretive garden. Eloise leaves behind her grief and heartache in search of comfort and healing among the flowers in Paradise. There are hints of magic and whimsy, but also dangers and darkness looms, among the flowers and poisons of the gardens of Paradise.

Trigger warning: Eloise's grief is deeply rooted in fertility struggles. Her journey in the gardens in France was a beautiful read, but may be difficult for some readers.

The narration for the audiobook was splendidly performed by Cassandra Campbell. It was easy to differentiate between characters, as she provided just enough of a change in her voice to make each character clear to me as the listener.

With exception of the pacing, I enjoyed everything about this book. It slowed down a bit too much and felt repetitive in the middle section, and then the story very suddenly ramped up and steamrolled all the way too the end.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Muse Audiobooks for the advanced listener copy of this book. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

I just finished The Alchemy of Flowers audiobook, and I’m completely enchanted. This story has such a soothing yet captivating quality, with the narrator’s voice really bringing the world of flowers and the gardens secrets to life.

It’s not just about flowers—it’s about personal transformation, healing. I loved how each chapter felt like a different bloom unfolding, with new insights and discoveries. I highly recommend this story, such beautifully woven storytelling,

Perfect for listening during a peaceful walk or while winding down after a busy day.

Content warning: infertility, loss of child, drugging, violence

Honestly? I found Eloise whiney and exhausting. Her infertility and endometriosis are brought up in almost every. single. chapter. While I understand that both are life altering, as a reader it felt heavy handed. The fact that Eloise fled her job working with kids because she couldn't have kids was so overdramatic that I automatically didn't want to root for her. I found the other staff of Jardins du Paradis far more interesting and wish we had gotten more of their stories.

Interesting concept, but this one fell short for me.

Cassandra Campbell does a good job with the audiobook narration.

Advanced Reader’s Copy provided by NetGalley, Harper Muse Audiobooks, and Harper Muse in exchange for an honest review.

Eloise is leaving the US to go work in Southern France at the garden of flowers. She will be completely off grid there and her job will be to turn merde into flowers. She's struggled to get pregnant for a decade and slowly drove away all that loved her. Alone and broken she shows up to grow flowers and finds three other broken people (her coworkers) that quickly grow to be her good friends.

The garden has some funny rules, like don't gossip, children are forbidden, and you mustn't go outside during twilight. She is also locked into the garden and only the manager has the key. She never meets the owner. If you break the rules, there are consequences.

There are funny things Eloise notices. She finds things moved, there are sounds like a child and sometimes sightings of a wood sprite. Two previous employees disappeared overnight. She becomes intent on solving these mysteries and also grows feelings for one of her new friend.

This book was nothing I expected and instead so much more. There is heartbreak and tragedy, but there is healing and beauty to match and overwhelm in its stride. As an American who lived in France, it is the most wonderful depiction of the magic that France embodies for us francophiles and I felt at home within the novel in a way I haven’t in a long time. Major trigger warnings for pregnancy loss, fertility and SA, but as someone who has experienced these things it was more of a healing experience reading this than anything else, so definitely gauge your own level of tolerance. Highly highly recommend. Thanks to the publisher, the author, and NetGalley for the chance to review!

The Alchemy of Flowers by Laura Resau which releases 29 July 2025.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Muse for my audio ARC. I loved the narrator, Cassandra Campbell’s, way of speaking. She added a lovely lilt to the French words which are scattered throughout the story. Even though I don’t speak French I could understand what the author meant.

Eloise has reached rock bottom in her life with a recent divorce and miscarriage. When she comes across an advert in a French gardening magazine looking for a gardener/floral herbalist at the Le Château du Paradis, it sounds like heaven.

Once she arrives at the station she is met by the caretaker, the formidable Antoinette. Antoinette says the owner has certain rules at the Château. Eloise had to confirm that she would follow the rules which were amongst others: when outside of the grounds no gossiping about the Gardens; strictly no children allowed in the Gardens; and no roaming the Gardens after dusk. The large gates of the Chateau are locked once she is inside and only Antoinette has a key. Eloise feels a mysterious aura settle about her while walking on the grounds.

She finds herself living in a whimsical tree house linked with swinging wooden bridges surrounded by trees and flowers. When she meets her three fellow workers, they all seem to carry emotional baggage from their previous outside lives.

Eloise loves her job working with the flowers and she hears them speak to her while she makes various tisanes and balms.

One day while out working in the gardens she glimpses what looks like a small girl flitting through the trees. It can’t possibly be a real child as children are forbidden in the Gardens, could it be a Wood Sprite? Is the Garden a magical place or is it her imagination?

The book is filled with beautiful French words, goddess statues, stories of the Furies, tisanes made from flowers and intrigue. A magical garden which could turn into a poisonous one if you broke any of the rules.

Thank you for the opportunity to listen to this.

It was very beautifully written, but incredibly heavy on emotion and trauma to a point I struggled - I had thought it would be healing but it was very slow to get to this reflecting back on a lot of heavy subjects that weren't for me.

That is my personal preference though but can see the beauty this book would have for others

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 ❁

Perhaps I should have read the other reviews before requesting this book, but the blurb and cover enticed me. Ultimately though, I think the book is done an injustice as once I started listening, I just couldn’t get into it. As others have said, this leans very heavily on the topics of infertility and marriage breakdown, which just didn’t appeal to me. I expected more mystery and magic, but actually it was very heavy on emotion and trauma. Eventually, I had to give up. I think this book has plenty of appeal and promise for the right audience, but the blurb and cover just don’t match what’s inside.

That said, the narrator is very good and I felt handled the French well, although as others have said the French did at times feel forced or stilted.

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.

Thank you NetGalley and Harper Muse for the audio arc in exchange for an honest opinion.

Unfortunately this one just did not work for me. It wasn’t what I expected and was left disappointed.