BLACKBERRY AND WILD ROSE- Sonia Velton

BLACKBERRY AND WILD ROSE: atmospheric historic fiction set in 18th century London.

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The narrative is split between Sara, a young woman tricked into prostitution, and Esther, the wife of a silk weaver. When the women’s paths cross the story of fractured friendships and the impact and influence of wealth begins. In a time when women’s rights were non-existent, the story beautifully explores the struggles of the women, particularly Esther who is battling with her creativity being repressed by her husband.

The writing has great depth and it was apparent that Velton had done her research around the topic making it believable. The characters are well developed but for me personally I found some of them particularly unlikeable to the point where I loathed them- Sara’s sense of entitlement really irritated me! However, I loved Esther’s character; her ambition and talent helps contribute to her complexity and I loved the enterprise element.

If you love historical fiction then I’d recommend this one-it would be a great read for you PLUS look at that cover!

Thank you to Quercus Books for gifting me this copy in exchange for an honest review.