A review by kalauandromeda
The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton

adventurous emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

The number of parallels in this book makes me feel unsure if that's a good thing. Really enjoyed Eliza's fairy tales which are not so bubbly and happily ever after stories. I sincerely hope that Kate Morton didn't intend for the reveal of Nell's parentage to be that sort of twist that blows the mind of readers when it's revealed. Loved Cass, Eliza partly but hated Nell throughout the book. Never really understood why that woman went through mid-life crisis at just 18(or 21, I don't exactly remember). Change in the affection toward her sisters is one thing, but breaking up her marriage is taking a page straight out of the guide for being insane. The author failed in making me connect to Nell as a character, I never sympathized with her, never felt bad for her when things were going bad. Would've been a 4.25/5 if Nell was not in the book and Eliza's story didn't start abruptly in the middle. It's a 3.75/5 for me. Using Eliza to depict that thinking of doing a wrong thing for a right cause often doesn't end well was really good. Also just like the characters in her stories, although Eliza's life might seem all so comfortable and happy to outsiders, it was really different and even her ending was so ironic.