"A Memory of Violets" by Silversolara (see profile) 02/11/15

Tilly, Flora, and Rosie...three characters connected by time, London, and flowers.

Flora, crippled and in care of her little sister since their mother died, lost her younger, blind sister Rosie on the street as they were selling flowers. Flora made it her life's quest to find Rosie. Tilly, a housemother at an orphanage where Flora stayed years before, makes a connection to both Flora and Rosie through a diary Tilly finds in the closet in her room? at the orphanage.

Tilly feels she was destined to find the diary a?nd to ?find Rosie. Tilly felt Flora's presence in her room through the smell of violets and cold breezes. Could Flora really be in the room Tilly now occupied? Could she and Flora together find Rosie,? and could Tilly find what she was looking for in life and ease the sadness about her own life??

Going back and forth in time and telling Flora and Rosie's story was intriguing and beautifully told. A MEMORY OF VIOLETS is a book set in the time period and place that I thoroughly enjoy....the 1800's in London. It also has a character based on a real person.

You will ?mingle with proper Victorian ladies as well as poverty-stricken children and families. Descriptions of both ends of the economic scale make this book absolutely wonderful.

The beautiful writing and descriptions keep you glued to the pages and ?give you ?the feeling that you are sharing every situation with the characters. Tilly's story is as good as Flora's and Rosie's story and reveals a secret she finds out about herself.

The characters are warm and inviting. A MEMORY OF VIOLETS is going to be a favorite for ?2015, and the characters will remain in my "memory" long after I turn the last page.

A MEMORY OF VIOLETS has a marvelous writing style and storyline. The book's beginning and ending make a full circle of life filled with love, understanding, and compassion.

I loved A MEMORY OF VIOLETS. The ending is chilling and oh so tender and beautiful. You need to make room in your toppling TBR stacks for A MEMORY OF VIOLETS. 5/5?

This book was given to me free of charge and without compensation by the publisher in return for an honest review.?

  "" by mrtch32 (see profile) 04/21/15

  "a memory of violets" by bhale (see profile) 05/13/15

  "Finely crated tale of English History & the Language of Flowers" by zodejodie4 (see profile) 09/11/15

Unsure of what else to do, Tilly turned to what she knew best. She walked outside, to the mountains and lakes she loved so much, retreating into herself: the girl with the wind at her heels and a storm blowing in her heart.

Traveling back & forth in time mainly between 1876 & 1912, Gaynor skillfully & beautifully tells the stories of Irish sisters Flora & Rosie Flynn & the Covent Garden flower girls as well as that of Tilly Harper who has left her own troubled past & gone to London to work at one of the training homes for those flower girls.

The prose is eloquent & the story is richly detailed. Getting a glimpse into a part of English history I hadn't know of was wonderful. This well researched, finely crafted story was a joy to read.

  "A Memory of Violets" by [email protected] (see profile) 09/24/16

Wonderful informative book about the Flower Girls of London. Mr Shaw provided a home and livelihood for disabled girls through flower-making.

  "A Memory of Violets" by greenwave (see profile) 10/12/16

This was one of those wonderful and inspiring books that we all loved and had a long discussion directing all aspects of this novel. I am saving it for my daughters to read and cherish .

  "A Memory of Violets" by lblreader (see profile) 03/14/18

Well written. Very enjoyable to read.

  "" by SherryMincic (see profile) 11/17/19