White Lilac: A dual timeline historical romance

by Rosamunde Bott

An old portrait becomes a fascination, and spurs Rachel to find out more about the subject of the painting, Emily. But the secrets of Emily's past will have profound effects on her own life and relationships. Is Emily trying to reach out to her from the past, before it's too late? White Lilac is a dual timeline story about how the past connects with the present, and about the decisions we make. If you like history, ancestry and a hint of magic - you'll love this!

134 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 29, 2020

About the author

Born in the Isle of Man, my family moved to England when I was 2 and I grew up in a village near Banbury in Oxfordshire. My father was an actor, and my mother an artist.

I wanted to write from a very young age. I loved magical/mystical stories, such as those written by C.S Lewis and Alan Garner. When I was 12 we moved to London where I stayed for the next 20 years, and upon leaving decided to become an actor like my Dad - but the continual struggle to find work I found too frustrating and eventually gave it up and spent several years in an assortment of jobs including secretarial work and teaching. All through these years I have written in my spare time.

I am now self employed as a professional genealogist - and the books I am writing are either fully historical, or have a family history theme, with 'time slip' chapters. I like to connect the past with the present.

Reviews

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Much More Than a Historical Romance

This is the third book I've read by this author and I thoroughly enjoyed it. It is a quick read but it draws interesting parallels between the roles of Victorian women and women today. Some things have changed a lot for us but some haven't changed at all. We still struggle to fit into role that has been defined for us but not by us. The dual timelines connected well through a 100 year old portrait and I cared about all of the characters.

[DrMatina · Rating 1 out of 5]

Too many mistakes.
Large chunks were repeated in the book...as if the author copied and pasted when editing (instead of cut and pasted) so I read entire passages TWICE. Then she forgot to edit what she changed so parts didn't make sense. The premise of the story is rather dumb too.

[Margaret · Rating 5 out of 5]

Different than I expected

I think I expected some time-travel in this book. Instead, I got something better. Everybody on both sides of the time line had to figure out their own problems and their own relationships. How they ended up was easy to see for two of the couples, but I was surprised at the end.

Altogether a very satisfying read.

[Stephanie Falwell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Two of the chapters were reversed. I liked the dual timeline, enjoying the diary from the past more than the modern love story.