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A review by jlynnreadsandwrites
The Poppy and the Rose by Ashlee Cowles
3.0
I was provided an ARC for this book through NetGalley.
This was a fun, light read with an interesting family mystery at the center.
Taylor doesn't know what to think when Lady Knight pops into her life unexpectedly. In Oxford for a summer program, Taylor has never heard of Lady Knight or Meadowbrook Manor. When the old woman says she has answers to Taylor's family history and knows information about Taylor's dead father, Taylor finds it hard to resist. When she arrives at Meadowbrook Manor, however, Lady Knight had died leaving Taylor without the promised answers. Inside the manor, Taylor discovers the memoir of Lady Ava Knight whose fascinating memories of sailing on and surviving the Titanic keeps Taylor enthralled. As Ava's family secrets are revealed, eventually so are Taylor's.
Ava is a young woman with aspirations of being a photographer in a world that is not ready for her ambition. She finds herself caught between an imposing soldier and the strange, otherworldly woman he's asked Ava to spy on for him. In return, the soldier will help cure Ava's ill mother. But nothing is as it seems and Ava is left untangling a complicated web.
I really enjoyed reading Ava's story. As a lover of historical fiction, I enjoyed reading another perspective of what a journey on the Titanic may have been like. Ava moves between being a spoiled, entitled rich young woman who is proud but still naïve and a strong, determined person who wants to be seen and heard. This helped to ground her character and felt reflective of how teenagers actually are.
I found it difficult to be as invested in Taylor's story as I was in Ava's. I wanted more about Taylor's past in order to ground me in her emotions and perspectives. Her character felt surface-level. At times, her voice was inconsistent. Some moments the sentences from her perspective felt too flowery and inconsistent with the first-person narrative. As the story continued, I found myself invested in the mystery of the story more than Taylor herself. Some of the plotline felt a little far-fetched and convenient. And Taylor's romance felt unnecessary to me and lacked build-up.
Overall, I did enjoy the storyline and enfolding mystery. If you enjoy lighter, quicker reads with interesting family mysteries or stories that mix the past and present I would recommend this book for you.
This was a fun, light read with an interesting family mystery at the center.
Taylor doesn't know what to think when Lady Knight pops into her life unexpectedly. In Oxford for a summer program, Taylor has never heard of Lady Knight or Meadowbrook Manor. When the old woman says she has answers to Taylor's family history and knows information about Taylor's dead father, Taylor finds it hard to resist. When she arrives at Meadowbrook Manor, however, Lady Knight had died leaving Taylor without the promised answers. Inside the manor, Taylor discovers the memoir of Lady Ava Knight whose fascinating memories of sailing on and surviving the Titanic keeps Taylor enthralled. As Ava's family secrets are revealed, eventually so are Taylor's.
Ava is a young woman with aspirations of being a photographer in a world that is not ready for her ambition. She finds herself caught between an imposing soldier and the strange, otherworldly woman he's asked Ava to spy on for him. In return, the soldier will help cure Ava's ill mother. But nothing is as it seems and Ava is left untangling a complicated web.
I really enjoyed reading Ava's story. As a lover of historical fiction, I enjoyed reading another perspective of what a journey on the Titanic may have been like. Ava moves between being a spoiled, entitled rich young woman who is proud but still naïve and a strong, determined person who wants to be seen and heard. This helped to ground her character and felt reflective of how teenagers actually are.
I found it difficult to be as invested in Taylor's story as I was in Ava's. I wanted more about Taylor's past in order to ground me in her emotions and perspectives. Her character felt surface-level. At times, her voice was inconsistent. Some moments the sentences from her perspective felt too flowery and inconsistent with the first-person narrative. As the story continued, I found myself invested in the mystery of the story more than Taylor herself. Some of the plotline felt a little far-fetched and convenient. And Taylor's romance felt unnecessary to me and lacked build-up.
Overall, I did enjoy the storyline and enfolding mystery. If you enjoy lighter, quicker reads with interesting family mysteries or stories that mix the past and present I would recommend this book for you.