The Secrets of the Rose by Nicola Cornick is a mystery that is centuries old but that poses very real dangers today. This is a really enjoyable timeslip story cleverly intertwining storylines during the 18th century Jacobite rebellion with today. In 1715 Northumberland, Dorothy Forster is having a bad day. First, an unexpected and unwanted proposal. Second, a gloriously handsome man is doggedly planning insurrection and involving her brothers in Jacobite rebellion. ‘The ridiculousness of her life struck her and made her want to laugh bitterly at the absurdity. Men. Always causing problems.’ Life at Bamburgh Hall in difficult for Dorothy; her vulnerable father has dangerous secrets, her brothers are troublemakers and the Earl of Derwentwater supports the king over the water. There is danger everywhere. And now Derwentwater asks Dorothy to give him the Rose, a talisman said to bring victory to all who follow it. It was lost centuries ago but in the time of the Crusades its last known keeper was an ancester of Dorothy. But she knows nothing of it and doesn’t have it.
Today in Northumberland. Hannah Armstrong has returned to Bamburgh Hall, it is the house where she grew up and is now occupied by her widowed stepmother. But Diana is keeping secrets and what author Hannah planned as a flying visit to research material for a new biography turns into a longer, more complicated stay. Danger is threatening. Hannah is commissioned to write about local lighthousekeeper’s daughter Grace Darling who with her father rowed out to a sinking vessel and saved lives, but Hannah finds herself more interested in Dorothy Forster, who also lived at Bamburgh Hall. Then there is Aaron Salter, brother of Hannah’s best friend at school, who saved her life when they were teenagers. Aaron was best friend of Hannah’s brother Brandon until he wasn’t, and Hannah doesn’t know why. Her brother, always troublesome and self-seeking, is difficult to deal with so when people tell her they’ve seen him in town, she is suspicious and afraid.
There are parallels and differences between the two timelines. Both heroines are strong-willed and independent, both have a long-standing telepathic connection with an unidentified male. And both have troublesome siblings. A page-turning historical story with romance, danger, violence, chauvinism, bravery, dangerous politics and family connections, good and bad.
I really enjoyed this book. In her ‘Historical Note’ at the end, Cornick explains she has been visiting Bamburgh since she was a child. It shows on every page. It is a real place full of history, myth, politics, war and legend and Cornick has used this foundation well, adding her own inventions with a deft hand so that fact and fiction blend seamlessly.
Excellent.

Read my reviews of these other novels by Nicola Cornick:-
THE FORGOTTEN SISTER
THE FOURTH QUEEN
THE LAST DAUGHTER
THE OTHER GWYN GIRL
THE WINTER GARDEN

If you like this, try:-
‘The Wicked Cometh’ by Laura Carlin
‘The Royal Rebel’ by Elizabeth Chadwick #1JEANETTEOFKENT
‘The Cursed Wife’ by Pamela Hartshorne

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#BookReview THE SECRETS OF THE ROSE by Nicola Cornick @NicolaCornick https://wp.me/p2ZHJe-ap8 via @SandraDanby

COMING SOON… THE NEXT BOOK I REVIEW WILL BE:-