Winter Garden

Product Information

Sophisticated and serene, The Landmark London is the crowning jewel of the fashionable Marylebone district, NW1, and is located less than half a mile from the world-famous Baker Street. Dine and unwind in a tranquil oasis of the enchanting Winter Garden. Under views of elegant palms, with its magnificent glass roofed atrium, the modern European menu offers popular classics presented with a tantalising twist. The fine dining Winter Garden is known and loved for its stunning eight-storey, glass atrium, extravagant service and simply delicious culinary compositions. Now a note of caution: If you have recently lost a parent or a child, there are scenes in Winter Garden that you may find too tough to read. A father on his deathbed; children succumbing to the terrors of war. Kristin Hannah sure does know how to pull heartstrings, even if sometimes they’re tugged a little too hard. life—and love—can be gone any second. When you had it, you needed to hang on with all your strength and savor every second.” It’s possible that, for me, Hannah over-corrected in her rewrite, because I actually found the chapters about Meredith and Nina more interesting than their mother’s gradual fiction-into-fact revealing of her tragic experiences in the siege of Leningrad. I also found the ending to be a little too tightly wrapped in giant happily-ever-after bows of coincidence and catharsis, but readers who need cheerful conclusions may feel differently.

Winter Garden is the story of two sisters yearning to connect with their cold, distant mother who has constantly pushed them away. When Meredith and Nina’s father dies, the two are both at home together for the first time in years, promising their father they will coax the full fairy tale from their Russian mother Anya, who’s shared bits and pieces with them over the years. Nina and Meredith never had a mother they could count on or could talk to about boys. The only thing their mother was good for was telling them Russian fairy tales from her youth; Little did they know how important those fairy tales really were. Their father, however, was their hero. What they couldn't get from their mother, they got in spades from their father. When their father dies from heart problems, they are heartbroken. Nina's father makes a final proclamation as he lays dying: He wants Nina to convince her mother to tell the full fairy tale of "The Peasant Girl and The Prince." This fairy tale does more for their family than any of them could have ever expected. It will lead them on a journey of a lifetime.. El que tenga oportunidad que lea este libro, lo disfrute a pesar de las tragedias, porque de ellas, definitivamente también aprendemos.

Kristin Hannah

When I first started the book, I was reading more out of curiosity than anything else. Truthfully, I found many of the characters to be cold and distant and wasn't really sure that I'd ever connect with them on an emotional level but I was intrigued enough by the story to keep reading. And along the way, there's this undercurrent to the story that pulls you in deeper and just keeps growing stronger. I think that it's ok not to like the characters at first because one of the important messages of this book is how often and easily people misjudge each other without knowing their full story. I think it was written like that on purpose -- to make you experience the message of the story first hand. Because I promise you by the end of this story, I was overflowing with emotion. Few books have ever made me care so deeply for the characters as this one did. This isn't just a story you read, it's an experience you go through. Ten years after her teenage daughter went missing, a mother begins a new relationship only to discover she can't truly move on until she answers lingering questions about the past. He shrugged. 'I'm not so sure. If something brings you more grief and heartache than reward and pleasure, yet you persist in the endeavour anyway, then how else might one describe it?'] Meredith and Nina Whitson are as different as sisters can be. One stayed at home to raise her children and manage the family apple orchard; the other followed a dream and traveled the world to become a famous photojournalist. But when their beloved father falls ill, these two estranged women will find themselves together again, standing alongside their cold, disapproving mother, Anya, who even now, offers no comfort to her daughters. On his deathbed, their father extracts one last promise from the women in his life.

The writing immediately pulled me into the story and I found it really difficult to put down. Every single element of the story and characters was done perfectly! I don't even have to think about my rating for this book, it's an obvious 5 stars! Every choice changed the road you were on and it was too easy to end up going in the wrong direction.” Parts of this story about two sisters and their Russian immigrant mother were very interesting. Sometimes I had to put it aside for a while because I couldn’t bear to read too much of the 1940s Leningrad stories at once. Some of the images, about a time I knew little about, were harrowing. It made me so thankful I have never lived through a world war and the tragedies that result. Other times I couldn’t bear to the book aside at all and had to keep reading but that was once I got further into the novel. Initially I wasn’t sure about it. The mother is a very cold and aloof person who seems to show no love to her daughters. I found her hard to relate to, until her story and past is revealed. Meredith and Nina also were hard to like. Meredith is a closed off sort of person, afraid to show emotion and Nina came across as selfish, with no regard for family. But circumstances contrive that the three women are left in a situation where they need to get to know each other. One of my favorite Kristin Hannah novels. Winter Garden is a heart-breaking but beautiful story of the power of love, family, and connection.There was a 3rd character, James, who the book tried to make him seem like the most normal character ever, but also was the one helping things along with both women. I don't know if I would say this was the author's brilliant move at having him be obscure for no reason, but I salute the effort! This book is a powerful story of feminism, friendship and identity entwined in a magical world of Victorian England. Filled with whimsical writing and childlike fairytales told in an adult historical fantasy. If you like books that have fantastical elements of magic while dealing with the harsh realities of life you'll enjoy this. i feel like that quote fits the main characters really well. i loved the women in this book. there were so passionate about their work, something i really can admire. I think the time period is what made the female friendship in the book so strong and compelling. Beatrice and Rosa are set on trajectories that promise sorrow, coupled with their obstinate personalities that strain other human connection, they admire each others strong wills and manage to find solace in each other.