The Tea Planter's Wife

Having read Dinah Jefferies first book - The Separation - I couldnt wait to get started on this one and I wasn't disappointed!! 

Set in the 1920's and 1930's it is a beautifully described story of the young Gwen who marries Laurence, and moves from England to spend her life with him in Ceylon.  He runs a Tea Plantation so Gwen has to learn fast about the lifestyle in a foreign country and it's fascinating to read about the divide between the owners and the staff, something which Gwen finds very difficult to understand and this causes tension on many sides. And with her husband away working so much she has to deal with so much by herself, and the interference of others who think they know better.

She soon grows into a fairly strong character in charge of the household but when she falls pregnant this soon leads to a much different story - the secrets in the family push many to breaking point, including Gwen herself.  the struggles Gwen goes through is hauntingly written at times and really pulls at your heartstrings 

It is so beautifully described that you are catapulted into the surroundings with the sights, sounds and smells all brought to life so clearly and this carries on with the various characters introduced throughout the story - both good and bad!

Really enjoyed the twists and turns in the story and interesting to read a novel that covers so many topics - racism, deception, family secrets - and you'll soon find yourself lost in a different world.

A lovely book. Makes reader feel she/he is in Ceylon. A book to devour! Very readable. Would definitely recommend. Love the cover too!

Exotic setting, great descriptive prose, complex characters, a touch of mystery - what's not to love about this book? It evoked another time and place and was beautifully written.

Set in the 1920's and 1930's The Tea Planters Wife is a beautiful, tragic and heartwarming tale of life in Ceylon. 

Gwen travels there to meet her husband Laurence and begin their life together on his plantation. Her cousin Fran, and his sister Verity visit them. Fran is trustworthy and loyal, almost the opposite of Verity who doesn't appear to be very accommodating of her new sister-in-law. Christina, an old acquaintance, and Savi a local man bring other challenges to life in Ceylon.

Gwen eventually finds herself faced with a life changing decision to make; one that will haunt the rest of her marriage. This, mixed with the racism of the time, the dichotomy of the plantation owner against the poverty of his workers, and historical events make this a fantastic read. I was completely taken in by the setting, the struggles faced by each of the characters and the relationships that emerged. 

My favourite character had to be Laurence. He was a much deeper character than I expected him to be. I also really liked Gwen, carrying a determination to do the right thing regardless of other's opinions of her.

A story of love and grief, friendship and family, trust and deceit; this has got to be one of my favourite books this year.

Captivating story that will keep the reader in suspense, while giving some insight to life and racial differences in Ceylon in the 1920s.

The Tea Planter's Wife was a joy. A wonderful story that kept me entranced throughout.  The descriptions of Ceylon and the tea plantations were superb bringing every sound and smell to the reader's imagination .  Highly recommended for those who enjoyed the television. programme , Indian Summers.

This was a fascinating book. I had no real knowledge of Ceylon and only recall when I was a child seeing pictures on a packet of tea of colourful women in sari's plucking leaves on a Tea Plantation in Ceylon. This novel however gave me a wonderful insight into the lifestyle and culture of the place in the 1920's and 30's. The tension mounts perfectly as prejudice and ignorance come into play. An extremely moving book which will always stay with me.

As I sit down to write this review, just minutes after finishing The Tea Planter’s Wife, I find myself struggling to hold back my emotions – that is how powerful this book is.
I read the book over three days, reading while the kettle boiled, reading when the clock was showing far too late an hour: I was utterly gripped. The story is so well executed, with plenty of pace to keep you turning the pages and so much suspense – I just had to know the truth! The author drip-feeds information expertly, and weaves in so many little clues that you can’t fail to be hooked. Around halfway through the story I was deeply worried as to how dark the ending may be, but when I got there… I was so glad I had kept reading.
As the blurb suggests, a terrible secret lies at the bottom of this book, and I don’t want to spoil that, so I won’t discuss the plot, other than to say that the core theme it is designed to explore is so important and moving, and the author deserves much credit for navigating this difficult, emotive territory.
The setting of the book alone makes this a fantastic read. So evocative and wonderfully described; I felt I was transported back in time to the 1920s and 1930s and right there in Ceylon. The characters belong in this place; they really live and breathe there. I was so engaged with them, especially Gwen and her new husband, Laurence; I feel I will miss them now I have finished.
There is so much emotion in the writing, so much poignancy, and the style is just beautiful – sweeping descriptions that made me want to be right there, in the scene, and dialogue that brought the book to life so well the story played like a movie in mind.
In all, I can’t recommend this book highly enough to readers who enjoy well-researched and well-written historical fiction that stays with you long after you close the book. This is a novel to buy, read and put on the shelf so that one day you can read it all over again.

The Tea Planters Wife  11th April 2015 Boldly imagined, brilliantly plotted, beautifully described ‘The Tea Planters Wife’ will carry you spellbound until the gripping end. A captivating  read. Thank you Net Galley for the opportunity to ready this book.  5*

From the moment I started reading The Tea Planter's Wife by Dinah Jefferies - I was hooked. Ceylon is beautifully described, as is the mysteries which are at the forefront of the novel. I couldn't help but make my own hypotheses, and read intently - driven, curious about how it would all go for the main character Gwen. Especially after a certain instance in the novel that marks even more devastation for her. But I kept rooting for her, as I just loved her character dearly. Actually, most of the characters were vivid and interesting - Laurence, Verity, Savi, Naveena etc etc. All set in a rather stark period, with colonialism and racism showing their ugly wrath. 

Overall, I adored this novel and I'm so glad that I read it!

A wonderful read, so discriptive I felt I was in Ceylon. Ideal summer holiday read

In The Tea Planter's Wife, I was well and truly transported back to 1920s Ceylon. The sights, sounds and aromas all come alive in this well-written emotional and tragic story.

Newly-wed Gwen travels to Ceylon to join her husband Laurence on his tea plantation. She is ill-prepared for her new life, with little knowledge of this exotic country's people and culture. While her husband works hard to build up and expand his business, Gwen is left much to her own devices. She takes over the running of the household but struggles to cope with her husband's sister Verity, a difficult and spiteful young woman with no plans to make a life of her own.

Laurence's first wife and baby son died several years earlier under suspicious circumstances, and no one talks about the past. When Gwen falls pregnant, tragedy strikes, leading to secrets and decisions that haunt and torment Gwen over the years.

When I started reading The Tea Planter's Wife, I was expecting a straightforward saga with a few family secrets. But this book is so much more than this. It's a story of jealousy, greed, love, exploration and tragedy. I wasn't prepared for the revelations at the end; under different circumstances, the story could have been so different. This was a lovely read and the story stayed in my mind for some time afterwards.

I received an Advanced Reader Copy from the publisher through NetGalley and through the Lovereading Reviewer Panel in exchange for an honest review.

Emotional historical fiction full of secrets and choices to be made.  Thoroughly recommend it.

Gwendolyn Hooper, 19 years old, arrives in Ceylon as a new bride. She has married Laurence, an older widower, and left England to start her new life there with him. The plantation and surrounding holdings are beautiful, wild, vast and profitable, and even though Laurence seems a little distant at first, Gwen settles into her new home.
Set in Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) in the 1920s the author creates a fascinating world of British colonial supremacy showing the harsh rule of the plantation owner over his indigenous workers.  The situation is more complicated as there is a dangerous mix of races and religions working and living on the plantation.
It is obvious from the beginning that Gwen is too young and innocent to manage her new life but she is very much in love with her husband Laurence and determined to make a success of their life together.
The huge step that she has taken in leaving her own family and country behind show her strength of character and I found her resolution admirable and endearing.  Not only does she have Laurence’s past marriage with the death of his first wife and child to contend with, she also has his very spoilt younger sister, Verity in their lives.
There are several layers to this story with real mysteries as well as those imagined by Gwen, and I am impressed by the way Dinah Jeffries has bought this all together in her well researched novel.  The characters are strong, the descriptions eloquent and the action believable and at times engrossing.
I can recommend this as a worthwhile read and will be looking out for more from this author.