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The Forgotten Garden

4.09 of 5 stars 4.09 · rating details · 74,973 ratings · 10,192 reviews

A foundling, an old book of dark fairy tales, a secret garden, an aristocratic family, a love denied, and a mystery. The Forgotten Garden is a captivating, atmospheric and compulsively readable story of the past, secrets, family and memory from the international best-selling author Kate Morton.

Cassandra is lost, alone and grieving. Her much loved grandmother, Nell, has ju...more

Hardcover, 552 pages

Published April 7th 2009 by Atria Books (first published January 1st 2008)

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Community Reviews

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Jul 10, 2010 Kat Kennedy rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: contemporary-fiction, kat-s-book-reviews

*Kat looks at The Forgotten Garden*

*Kat looks at the beckoning stack of other books to read*

*Kat looks back at the first 33 pages of The Forgotten Garden*

*Kat groans*

So basically there's this woman. Let's call her Stupidhead because I couldn't care enough to remember her name. She finds out on her 21st birthday party that her loving, adoring family is not her biological family. They found her as a very small child and cared enough to take her in and give her a wonderful home full of people who l...more

236 likes · like · see review

Apr 20, 2010 Hannah rated it 4 of 5 stars

Recommended to Hannah by: Carol Kerry-green

Shelves: 2010-reads, houses-as-characters, gothics

Aussie author Kate Morton deftly managed to push nearly every one of my reading buttons with her lovely book, The Forgotten Garden:

1. Not so young woman with a haunted past - check
2. Not-so-fairy-Grandmother who bequeaths said woman an old house with a mysterious history - check
3. Said old, mysterious house is actually a cottage on the wild Cornish coast, complete with a hidden garden, a handsome neighbor, and the faintest suggestion of the supernatural - check
4. Said woman embarks on a quest to...more

63 likes · like · see review

Sep 03, 2012 Karla rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: australia, amnesia, english, friendship, magical-realism, mystery, 2010, favorites, book-about-books

I became quite enchanted with this tale and really loved the interwoven bewitching dark fairy tales that added more dimensions to this novel. It was a mystery that had me second guessing myself several times. Every time I had it all figured out a new chink was added to the chain of clues. I think the style of writing was superbly done, not often can I say that. I loved the way each chapter transported me to another time and a different POV spanning the generation of women in the family. I did fi...more

39 likes · like · see review

Nov 04, 2012 Barb rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: choose-in-2012, audio, own-it, read-in-2012, secrets

I listened to the audio book version and really enjoyed it. I have a different standard for audio books (than I do for books I read myself in a printed format). They have to be read at a pace that allows me to understand what's being said (the actual words being read) and what's happening in the story while I'm driving my car, the voice of the reader has to be pleasant and agreeable and the story has to hold my attention. I'm generally able to suspend disbelief more easily when I'm listening to...more

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Feb 21, 2011 Kathy rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: mystery, women, favorite-covers, favorites, highly-recommend, england

Sometimes when people keep recommending a book, you should listen and read that book. The Forgotten Garden is such a book. You finally read it and end up wondering why in the world you waited so long. Kate Morton provides the intricate layering of different times and places in a masterful manner, gifting the reader with a story that captures the imagination and heart completely. Nell, as the lost child, is the pivotal character around which all mysteries and actions revolve. A tale that begins i...more

46 likes · like · see review

Mar 23, 2009 Cheryl/Aradanryl rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: anyone who enjoys reading gentler books

Shelves: first-read-arc-giveaway

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It is an easy read, and yet gave me room to pause as I stopped to think. I like books that let me do that without pounding me into a pulp on the way. I suspect the book might appeal more to women then men and it would be a good choice of several of the reading circles I know.

My only regret: that Eliza's book of fairy tales isn't a real book.

Things I like knowing before I buy a book: No profanity that I noticed. Respectful story-specific reference to sex. Emotiona...more

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May 12, 2011 ruzmarì rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I am breaking silence here to gush about Kate Morton. Her fiction is carefully researched and crafted, and the writing itself is luminous. The Forgotten Garden unwinds like a fairy tale, slowly curling off the spool where ambiguously benefic crones have wound it. We jump back and forth between present-day Australia where a young woman mourns the mysterious grandmother who inspired her as a child, to England at the turn of the last century where an affluent family in a small coastal town conspire...more I am breaking silence here to gush about Kate Morton. Her fiction is carefully researched and crafted, and the writing itself is luminous. The Forgotten Garden unwinds like a fairy tale, slowly curling off the spool where ambiguously benefic crones have wound it. We jump back and forth between present-day Australia where a young woman mourns the mysterious grandmother who inspired her as a child, to England at the turn of the last century where an affluent family in a small coastal town conspires to conceive, and then bury, a tremendous secret, one whose shock waves will reach forward across generations and oceans. At the heart of the England plot we find a friendship between two apparent opposites - one, the sheltered, sickly daughter of the rich family; one, the free-spirited adventurous tomboy - and a secret that rends them apart even as it knits them together. And at the heart of that, we find one of Morton's real strengths : her ability to capture the often bitter logic of human behavior, the ways in which trust and resentment weave together to form a hobbling grown-up-ed-ness rich with the sting of childhood betrayals.

Another of Morton's gifts is especially prevalent in this novel : her intense focus on writers and the imaginary worlds they sculpt from words, especially writers of children's stories. Children's stories, this novel knows, hold their own ancient wisdoms about responsibility, trust and betrayal, and their truths - while far from palatable - are far preferable to the gossamer fables adults tell each other and themselves to make life liveable. Morton alternates between narrative chapters about present-day Australia and early-twentieth-century England, punctuated with insertions of fairy tales from a magical book within the book. As the story unravels, the reader begins to see traces of the real-life narrative in the images and metaphors of the fairy stories. And, at the end of the novel, it is up to the reader to determine whether the reverse is not true, as well - the eruption of fairy-tale logic within the stolid cadre of real life.

I can't say much more about the plot without giving it away. It is a brilliantly structured and performed novel, one I could not put down (to clarify : I began the novel at the airport in Louisiana on my way to France. I finished it as the plane touched down in Paris. A perfect fit for the "life is too short, you can sleep when you're dead" school of thought).(less)

34 likes · like · see review

Jul 09, 2010 Chris rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: readers who enjoyed <i>Possession</i>

Shelves: london, mystery, modern-fairy-tales, lit-australia, historical-fiction

I almost didn't buy this book. I got my copy at the used book stall at the local Spring Fair. I was little torn about it. The phrase "New York Times Bestseller" usually means I won't like it (take, for instance, my reaction to The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane). Then I read the back and looked at the inside cover. Anything that uses Arthur Rackham (Illustrator) pictures deserves a shot, and it was only two dollars.

I'm glad I give this book a chance because it is good.

The Forgotten Garden is v...more

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Apr 21, 2013 Parvathy rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: broken-characters, family-drama, friendship, historicals, movie-material, living-vicariously, mystery, past-lives, strong-females

I am having a hard time writing this review. My thoughts about this book are so scattered that I feel like my head is a kaleidoscope and my feelings are like patterns that change with each shift of logic. At first there was a sense of mystery and then there are constantly changing view points giving insights into different era's and different characters, each having their own story to tell and each solving a piece of the puzzle in their time. I have often found that it is very difficult to write...more I am having a hard time writing this review. My thoughts about this book are so scattered that I feel like my head is a kaleidoscope and my feelings are like patterns that change with each shift of logic. At first there was a sense of mystery and then there are constantly changing view points giving insights into different era's and different characters, each having their own story to tell and each solving a piece of the puzzle in their time. I have often found that it is very difficult to write historical fiction without being overly descriptive but Kate Mormot sure proved me wrong. Lack of lengthy description never once let down the imaginative part of the book rather the writing style is almost similar to that of a fairy tale. When you read a fairy tale you don't need the author to explain to you what a castle is or describe to you the features of a beautiful princess. You simply know what a castle is and how a beautiful princess would look when you read such a tale. This simplistic approach to story telling is one of the first things that would attract you to this book and the thing that keeps you hooked is the mystery and the way it is handled.

The story begins with a little girl who is left all alone in some mysterious place clutching a white suit case by a woman named authoress. The then story moves to a point 17 years after to the year 1930 where a young girl Nell learns the secret that would shatter her very existance and question everything she was left to believe. Later in the year 2005 we are introduced to Nell's granddaughter Cassandra who upon her beloved grandmother's death decides to find out the truth her grandmother was seeking even in her death bed. The truth connecting a little girl, a mystifying authoress and an old white suitcase.

Written from the point of view of a multitude of characters the author has managed to do the impossible by allowing us to feel sympathy for each characters, even the bad ones. The author's rendition of dark fairy tales was pleasing and had a brothers Grimm quality to it but the fact that managed to astound me the most was the way in which the fairy tales were incorporated in to the story, even as another version of the plot actually taking place. All the characters in this story are well written. Except for one or two lapses in the way some of them handled particular situations I would say they were believable for most part. The story gets a little bit predictable towards the end but by then most stories are so can't complain much. The curious fact however is that if you went with a wild guess at the beginning of the book or after when all the characters are introduced, you might not be that far from the truth. But the author has this round about style of writing which makes you change course in between and lets you think of all kinds of probabilities, in the end leaving you with the answer that came to you in the first place. It may seem confusing now but once you dive into the book you might get a feel of what I am talking about. If you still don't, then all the more better because you will end up with an answer you never would have guessed. To conclude after finishing this book I can safely say that there will be more Kate Mormot books in my future. I have already gone through her published works and added some of them to my to reads list. If it is not obvious by now I would definitely recommend this book to all those in search of a good story and has some time to kill. (less)

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May 25, 2010 Lucy rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

After hearing many glowing comments about Kate Morton's The Forgotten Garden, I decided to forgo the long reserve line at the library and buy myself a copy.

Even with its respectable five-hundred and forty-eight page heft, I didn't want to put this book down. The Forgotten Garden begins with an unnamed girl playing a hiding game on a ship. A few pages later, a girl named Nell is turning twenty-one and her father reveals to her a devastating truth: she is not their daughter. He discovered her sta...more After hearing many glowing comments about Kate Morton's The Forgotten Garden, I decided to forgo the long reserve line at the library and buy myself a copy.

Even with its respectable five-hundred and forty-eight page heft, I didn't want to put this book down. The Forgotten Garden begins with an unnamed girl playing a hiding game on a ship. A few pages later, a girl named Nell is turning twenty-one and her father reveals to her a devastating truth: she is not their daughter. He discovered her standing alone holding a small suitcase which contains a book of fairy tales and an extra dress on the wharf where he worked when she was only four years-old.

While it's not exactly a mystery, because the reader is never quite sure if a crime has ever been committed, wanting to learn who Nell is, who she was before she arrived on a different continent, alone, and without knowing her name is a strong motivator to keep reading.

Morton doesn't hand over her clues upfront, however. Instead, she weaves the story of Eliza Makepeace, the author of little Nell's book of fairy tales, and Nell's own granddaughter's, Cassandra, story into Nell's quest to rediscover her lost identity.

Most of the time, I enjoyed the weaving. It's done so subtly, like coming in and out of dream sequences, that, unlike some other books that use this technique, I didn't find myself wishing to be back in one story and out of another. I will say, though, that hindsight has made me wish certain plot holes were filled and left wondering why other information, that now seems superfluous, was included. Also, I was a little bit disappointed with the character development. Instead of really getting to know Nell, whose story this might have been, Morton instead chooses to use Nell's sense of loss to pose the question: what influences our sense of identity? How do we become who we are? Is it our name? Who our parents are? Is it who we marry or the status of our socioeconomic level? Is it our talents, or fame or careers? Is it our tragedies? Yes. All of them or none of them depending on what we decide matters most.

If you enjoy stories that transport you into Victorian England, have a touch of romance, the pull of mystery, the weight of history as well as a few revealing fairy tales, you'll probably love The Forgotten Garden.(less)

5 likes · like · see review

Sep 12, 2008 LindyLouMac rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

http://www.bookcrossing.com/journal/6...

I found this as engrossing as her debut which I read earlier this year. This time Kate Morton has written an intriguing mystery that started in the 1900’s and is not fully unravelled until 2005. It is told as three stories covering three generations combining to give us clues along the way.
Maybe the ending was a little predictable but I certainly did not guess all the answers to the mysteries along the way.
The protagonist is Nell around who the whole myste...more http://www.bookcrossing.com/journal/6...

I found this as engrossing as her debut which I read earlier this year. This time Kate Morton has written an intriguing mystery that started in the 1900’s and is not fully unravelled until 2005. It is told as three stories covering three generations combining to give us clues along the way.
Maybe the ending was a little predictable but I certainly did not guess all the answers to the mysteries along the way.
The protagonist is Nell around who the whole mystery centres. The story starts in London when Nell as a little girl finds herself unexpectedly travelling by ship to Australia alone. The lady she calls the Authoress having mysteriously disappeared instead of looking after her as promised. Arriving in Australia as an orphan she is given a home by Hugh a dock worker who finds her alone on the dockside on her arrival in Maryborough. It is only on her 21st birthday she learns of her mysterious arrival in Australia, a secret that changes her life dramatically.
It is many years later in 1975 that she embarks upon a search for the truth about her birth and early years. Drawn to Cornwall by information she has discovered, she finds herself buying a cottage in the grounds of Blackhurst Manor once owned by the Mountrachet family. She plans to return to England to live in her new cottage after sorting out her affairs back in Australia. However life intervened and Nell never returned to Cornwall, the ownership of the cottage remaining her secret.
On her death in 2005 Nell leaves the cottage as a surprise inheritance to her granddaughter Cassandra. It is while visiting her inheritance that Cassandra finally uncovers the secrets surrounding the Mountrachet family Linus, his wife Adeline, their daughter Rose and cousin Eliza, daughter of Linus’s sister Georgiana.
How are the family all involved in the disappearance of that little girl nearly a hundred years ago?
I am obviously not going to reveal this and spoil the mystery!

I think the author may be a fan of The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett as not only does The Forgotten Garden remind me in some ways of this classic novel but its author makes an appearance in the story!
I read it far too quickly for a novel that is nearly 650 pages. Only took two days. Ok the weather was very hot and I did not feel like doing much else, but to be honest I could not put it down!!
(less)

21 likes · like · see review

Aug 07, 2009 Laura rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: best-seller, mystery

While this is ostensibly a novel of secrets spanning four generations, most of the “secrets” are fairly obvious. I kept waiting for the blow to fall — murder? incest? buried treasure?? Alas, no. The narration shifts among different-but-related storylines, all of which, to be fair, I found intriguing: in 1913 a child who can’t remember her name turns up on an Australian dock carrying a book of fairy tales; in 2005 her granddaughter tries to uncover the mysteries of a hidden garden in Cornwall; in...more While this is ostensibly a novel of secrets spanning four generations, most of the “secrets” are fairly obvious. I kept waiting for the blow to fall — murder? incest? buried treasure?? Alas, no. The narration shifts among different-but-related storylines, all of which, to be fair, I found intriguing: in 1913 a child who can’t remember her name turns up on an Australian dock carrying a book of fairy tales; in 2005 her granddaughter tries to uncover the mysteries of a hidden garden in Cornwall; in Victorian England a wealthy young woman flees her family . . . only to have her orphaned daughter found and taken back to them. In each case I wanted to find out the whole story, but I figured they’d tie together with more punch. Where were the dark secrets-within-a-secret? Where were the gasp-aloud revelations? I know we’re not always going to get Darth Vader breathing, “I am your father!” but a few big shockers would have been nice.

Maybe if the novel were presented a bit differently — as a family saga, not some mysterious tale — then I wouldn’t have been disappointed. It’s really a story of several women and the far-reaching effects their decisions have on their own and each other’s lives. Woven throughout are fairy tales by the mysterious Authoress; it's hard to miss their thematic, at times allegorical, significance. They connect the generations through themes of foundlings, sacrifice, and the dangers of wanting what you can’t have. If you like fairy tales, this would be a plus, but I could have done without them.

Kate Morton is a bit heavy-handed in her characterizations, and, as with The House at Riverton, there’s a bizarrely devoted sister-like relationship that involves extreme self-sacrifice in one of the parties and oblivious selfishness in the other. While many relationships are like this (for instance, I am self-sacrificing and my siblings are oblivious), they're not fun to read about. And with only one exception, the really nefarious characters — they’re like villains out of a Dickens novel but without the flair — sort of fade away. I wanted the satisfaction of seeing them fall off a cliff and get eaten by sharks, or be impaled on pointy fence railings, not just die lonely or disappear from the story. I would have liked less background description and more resolution.
(less)

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Nov 26, 2012 Ema rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: mystery-crime, not-like-i-expected, australian, female-authors, read-in-english

"The Forgotten Garden" was rather disappointing, as I was sure that I would love this book. Secrets, mystery, a hidden garden...these are ingredients that I love. Just not the most fortunate use for them in this plot.

For one thing, this book should have been half its length - so many and not particularly beautiful descriptions, detailed rendering of unimportant gestures and unnecessary talk. And the secrets were not really secrets, I could glimpse at several possibilities, one of which turned o...more

4 likes · like · see review

Mar 03, 2013 Jayne rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: my-bookshelf, novel, all-time-faves, books-about-books, 2013, gorgeous-cover-art, 2011

This is a long and complex read, not a tale to be rushed (and read lazily with one eye on the washing-up pile), but a story to shut yourself away with in a quiet room, to savour slowly and immerse yourself in fully. Morton speaks of Dickens as being famous for creating worlds in which a reader can fall into, and wanting to create that same effect: she certainly achieves that sense with this book. Morton has a talent for setting the scene; magically and masterfully, she describes sights and sound...more This is a long and complex read, not a tale to be rushed (and read lazily with one eye on the washing-up pile), but a story to shut yourself away with in a quiet room, to savour slowly and immerse yourself in fully. Morton speaks of Dickens as being famous for creating worlds in which a reader can fall into, and wanting to create that same effect: she certainly achieves that sense with this book. Morton has a talent for setting the scene; magically and masterfully, she describes sights and sounds to draw you into her created place and time.

Morton weaves together the lives of three generations of women: grandmother, mother and granddaughter, creating a beautiful, colourful tapestry, rich and vibrant, in which to revel in. The way the same characters repeatedly show up in the lives of the three women, is very cleverly done; reminding us of the connection we have to those who have gone before us and those who will come after us. This captured my imagination, as I see so many repeated patterns between mine and my mother's life that truly startle the mind.

The story is made up of short chapters that dance backwards and forwards in time, keeping the story active and varied, momentous and gripping. The author also knows how to construct beautiful sentences with the use of the perfect words. The time and effort she invests into her art does not go unnoticed. Morton is a true story-teller, and to listen her reading will confirm this belief.

Fortunately for this reader, Morton is undoubtedly a woman after my own heart. She admits to filling her stories with many of her favourite things, which, apparently, happen also to be mine: themes of family, women, generational ties and mysteries, secrets, home, lost and found identities, discovery, transformation, love and travel, and the list goes on. Other similarities between myself and the author proved very surprising: her selection of Chicago as where Nell and her husband settled (a city in which I lived), Bolton England as the home of a boy Nell meets on the ship (my current home), Enid Blyton's, "Enchanted Wood," as the story to spark Cassandra's young imagination and passion for story (mine also) and the way she describes reading as a pass-time so pleasurable, it feels as if it must be forbidden (a sentiment I also share).

As a reader, it was a pleasure to be taken on a journey by a writer who is a kindred spirit :).

I found it difficult to settle on a star rating, as I was so emotionally involved with this book, and because it spoke so personally to me, I find it hard to be impartial. It goes with out saying that it will find a home on my favourites shelf :).

If I had to be critical about something, it would be that it sometimes felt as if there was too much going on, too much skipping back and forth through generations, and too many characters and names to keep up with, and with ends often tied up too neatly.

All in all, a beautifully, creatively and emotively written, rich and delicious read :).(less)

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Jan 01, 2013 Amanda rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: british-love, historical, new-adult, romance, forever-favorites, enchanting, beautiful-cover-art, my-personal-library

I picked up this book at my college bookstore on a whim because the story intrigued me. I was not even intimidated by the size. Something just told me to read it, so I finally did, after college let out for the summer. I loved the multi-generational story, and the beautiful settings. The characters were believable and well-crafted. The story was a little like a modern twist on Burnett's 'The Secret Garden', and Burnett even makes a cameo appearance herself.

I thought the only problem with the bo...more

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Jul 05, 2011 Tiffany Skinner rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

10 likes · like · see review

Jul 23, 2010 Sammy rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: b-the-good

This is another one of those good, casual reads that you do actually need to devote a bit of focus to. Not really to follow the story itself, but more to keep track of the characters. The basic gist of The Forgotten Garden is that you're following three different characters, in three different times, down one storyline.

As fun, genuine, and engrossing as the book was there was nothing super remarkable about it. The characters, quite frankly, are typical and nothing special. The story, a bit diffe...more

5 likes · like · see review

Jun 19, 2011 Megan rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I feel a bit conflicted about what rating to give this book. On the one hand, I loved and devoured the last three hundred pages of this book. I found Cassandra, Nell, and Eliza to all be compelling characters and I grew attached to each of them individually. The writing is really beautiful, even poetic in parts, and I loved the weaving of Eliza's fairy tales throughout. I also really enjoyed the setup of the book, with the three women narrating and the way Morton wove everything together so nice...more

16 likes · like · see review

Apr 21, 2010 Chelsea rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction, 2010

I read 549 pages and that was the reveal? Really?

God, I was bored. I only stuck it out because I figured the book had to be building up to something. And I suppose that technically, it was. Just not anything particularly interesting or worth waiting for. I get it, everyone in the book has mother/child abandonment issues.

I think this book really wanted to be The Thirteenth Tale, but didn't have the balls (if you pardon the inaccurate expression, what with how female-centric both titles are). Now...more

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Nov 22, 2009 Barbara Mader rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

***Added Later:

My summary of this book would have to be this: it is an oddly-plotted book about very stupid people written in lovely language.

But oh, the idiot characters. Honestly. Why would Nell be such a twitty jerk to her fiance and adoptive family? Why on earth would Eliza act as she did? Sorry; don't buy it.

-----------------------

Figured out what "happened" (the mystery of the little girl on the boat) earlier on and scanned much of the rest. Didn't find the characters' behavior believable....more

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Apr 06, 2010 Liz rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: books-i-recommend

I loved, Loved, LOVED this book!!! It is one of my favorite books read to date.
I thought the language & description in the book was so beautiful. It really captured me straight from the beginning.
I also loved how she interlaced the different narratives to slowly bring the mystery together. Something would be hinted about or questioned in one narrative & then it would be explained in the next one. What a creative writer!

*SPOILER ALERT*

I thought from the beginning that the Authoress was...more

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Jan 24, 2009 Megan Cullen rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I gave this a four because I LOVED it and read it very fast up until about 3/4 of the way through. I still liked it after that, but it suddenly breached the line of "over done" at that point (in my opinion), and got just a tiny bit too cheesy. I was also a little annoyed with what I think the author thought were subtle references to The Secret Garden which were not at all subtle(the names Archibald and Mary, the sickly cousin who orders people around, the dark and mysterious mansion, the walled...more

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Jun 01, 2010 Jeanette rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: all-fiction, the-land-down-under, miss-trees, five-star-fiction, europe-and-british-isles

I loved every page of this book, including the hokey stuff.
This is definitely comfort reading, but it's not chick lit and it's not oversimplified. It had enough plot complexity to keep my grown-up mind engaged. At the same time, it had enough enchantment and mystery to appeal to the little girl I once was. I was happy to discover that little girl is still in there, and she still believes in magical gardens and strange coincidences.

This is a long and lovely story about a woman who made the wrong...more

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Jan 25, 2009 Ali rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is a really an unputdownable book, and quite a quick read despite being over 600 pages long. I have to say I liked it much more than House at Riverton. The plot is a fascinating one, and the narrative moves back and forth in time. We meet Nell as a young child, a woman in her sixties and as she lies dying aged 95. The action takes us from Brisbane Australia in 2005, and the 1970's, to the London of 1900 and 2005, and also to cornwall of the early 1900's and the 1970's and again 2005. The no...more

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Aug 29, 2008 Annalee rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is another hefty tome from the bestselling author of 'The House at Riverton'. The tale meanders back and forth from the early 1900s to 1975 and 2005. I don't usually mind stories that jump around in time, but even for me, this one was a little disjointed. By far the most interesting (to me) part of the book was set in the 1900s and I felt that with a bit of tweaking, one could do away with the most modern characters completely!

It is a tale full of secrets, and it is the unravelling of them...more

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Feb 19, 2010 Carla *Jen7waters* rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: read-in-2010, favorite-books, pt, favorite-heroines, cry-me-a-river, historical-fiction, contemporary

Nem sei muito bem por onde “pegar” esta review, é que se passa tanta tanta coisa que, consequentemente, tenho muito muito que dizer. Mas suponho que posso começar com um: adorei e quero mais.

O Jardim dos Segredos foi então a minha estreia na obra da australiana Kate Morton, uma compra absolutamente aleatória (quer dizer… a capa bonita ajudou) num solarengo dia de Inverno quando fui às compras por outro motivo qualquer que não livros, e fiquei fã.

Este The Forgotten Garden, no título original, é a...more Nem sei muito bem por onde “pegar” esta review, é que se passa tanta tanta coisa que, consequentemente, tenho muito muito que dizer. Mas suponho que posso começar com um: adorei e quero mais.

O Jardim dos Segredos foi então a minha estreia na obra da australiana Kate Morton, uma compra absolutamente aleatória (quer dizer… a capa bonita ajudou) num solarengo dia de Inverno quando fui às compras por outro motivo qualquer que não livros, e fiquei fã.

Este The Forgotten Garden, no título original, é a bem dizer um cold case deixado como herança familiar a Cassandra, uma das protagonistas, aquando da morte da sua enigmática avó, Nell. Estas 548 páginas têm então como objectivo final descobrir as origens de Nell, e tendo esta personagem vivido atormentada toda a vida com uma crise de identidade, é premiada, após a morte do seu pai adoptivo, com a única pista material do seu passado: uma mala contendo um livro de contos infantis pela autoria de outra personagem muito especial, absolutamente encantadora e impossível de ficar imune a. Eliza Makepeace.

A acção é narrada por várias vozes, havendo claro destaque para algumas, nomeadamente para as 3 senhoras que mencionei antes, sendo repartida também por 3 épocas: uma passada num intervalo entre 1900 e 1913 (mais coisa, menos coisa), período que acompanha em grande parte o percurso de Eliza, e que admito terem sido das minhas passagens preferidas; outra em 1975, altura em que Nell já na posse do livro ruma a Inglaterra (vinda da Austrália) na perseguição do seu passado; e finalmente, em 2005, a época representativa da actualidade, onde Cassandra mais do que continuar a busca começada pela avó, vai, com uma ajudinha extra, juntar todas as peças do puzzle e gritar eureka! Mas mais do que uma demanda pela resposta a um mistério ao longo de gerações, este livro é um retrato (chocante) de episódios que se encostam à realidade. Desde a lista de tragédias que acompanham (todos) os personagens, aos seus percursos de vida, às condições em que cresceram, viveram, morreram, etc., tendo havido sem sombra de dúvida, grande pesquisa da época vitoriana por parte da autora, coisa que me alegra, já que tenho a certeza de que os euros que dei pelo livro foram bem gastos. Como se não estivesse só a financiar o meu vício, mas também a comprar úteis lições de História.

Temo que não estar a exagerar quando referi as personagens e os seus percursos trágicos, pois há algo naquela família que tende para o sinistro, pior, para o macabro. A comprová-lo está o rol de personagens “oliver-twistianas”. Sim, porque as crianças são as que mais sofrem nesta história, elas são abandonadas, negligenciadas, exploradas, e isto quando são órfãs e/ou doentes, vítimas de pobreza, de violência, deixadas à mercê de terceiros, até mortas; há jovens assediadas, quase vítimas de molestação por parte de familiares, a indiferença parental também é tópico presente, assim como os acidentes fatais… e pronto, acho que vou parar por aqui, isto deve chegar como justificação.

E passando das tragédias para os contos de fadas!!! São 3 (obviamente) e como certa vez alguém lembra durante a narrativa, funcionam como alegorias da acção principal. “Os Olhos da Velha” belo, e algo aterrador (o meu preferido), eleva Eliza a estatuto de vidente, contando claramente o percurso de Cassandra, de Nell e até do enho (mais uma palavra para o meu vocabulário), Christian; “A Troca” infelizmente é uma ode a essa criatura exasperante, Rose; enquanto “O Ovo Dourado” ajuda à choradeira e à nostalgia, finais. Sim, porque o final tanto têm de doce como de amargo. Fica um nó de desespero e de não é justo! preso na garganta pelo desfecho de Eliza que só é atenuado pelo de Cassandra.

Bom, despeço-me, com dois alertas. Um, para quem não suporta mistérios, segredos e coisas do género: certamente já adivinhou que este será um livro a evitar (não façam isso), porque a autora nunca facilita o caminho para descortinar o mistério inicial, pelo contrário, arranja mistérios, segredos e coisas do género, secundários, de vital conhecimento para o desenlace dos primeiros. E dois, para quem acha que ler não queima calorias, desengane-se porque cada momento passado neste Jardim dos Segredos vai parecer como uma ida a um ginásio mental.

(Ah, a palavra deste livro: borrasca(s).)

**Publicado originalmente em http://cuidadocomodalmata.wordpress.c...(less)

3 likes · like · see review

Sep 27, 2011 Kathryn rated it 4 of 5 stars

Recommended to Kathryn by: Susan Branch

Shelves: 2011, favorites

I have not read a saga in such a long time. This book follows three generations one in the 1900s, one in the 1970s and the other in 2005. Everyone is related and the story is beautifully woven. It was never obvious how things were related, but things came together beautifully. It was a lovely book and one I will recommend often.

3 likes · like · see review

Feb 25, 2009 Philip rated it 3 of 5 stars

I've just finished The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton, which will be
published in the U.S. in April. I didn't finish her first book, THE HOUSE AT RIVERTON, because it was so annoyingly derivative of Barbara Vine and Daphne du Maurier (it even opened with a rephrasing of REBECCA’s famous opening). However, GARDEN is a good read, though I found it rather padded and protracted.

What is a four year-old girl doing alone on a ship that has
sailed from England to Australia? What is her connection to a f...more

6 likes · like · see review

Jan 12, 2009 Amanda rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This was a very enjoyable read. I loved dipping into the early twentieth century in London, the West Country (England) and Australia. It was a great combination of interesting characters, history and solving a century-old mystery. I'm looking forward to reading 'The House at Riverton'.

7 likes · like · see review

Jul 15, 2008 Cynthia rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This was a wonderful stories incompassing generations. Lots of questions of heritage and probing for the truth,with a great resolve at the end.

6 likes · like · see review

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Keller Public Lib...: Summer Break for the Reader's Forum	1	1	May 20, 2013 03:50pm
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About Kate Morton

Kate Morton grew up in the mountains of southeast Queensland, Australia. She has degrees in Dramatic Art and English Literature and is currently a doctoral candidate at the University of Queensland. Kate lives with her husband and two young sons in Brisbane.
Kate Morton's books have been published in 31 countries. The House at Riverton was a Sunday Times #1 bestseller in the UK in 2007 and a New Y...more

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Kate Morton Collection: The House at Riverton, The Forgotten Garden & The Distant Hours

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“A girl expecting rescue never learns to save herself. Even with the means, she will find her courage wanting.” — 167 people liked it

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