The China Garden

This book has a great feel to it and I love the way the author describes the setting and the mystical aspects of the story. I see a very vivid picture in my mind of gardens and hills the protagonist explores and I was drawn in by the mystery and magic of the quest she embarks on. My primary complaint about the book, and my reason for not rating it higher, is the main love interest. He pulls all this nasty manipulative boyfriend bullshit and the story just glosses over it and paints his actions as romantic. I couldn't get behind the relationship because it didn't seem healthy or logical so any appeal the romance has for others was lost on me. Despite this I did enjoy the book and might read it again in the future.

Clare has just completed her A-levels when her mother announces that she is moving to Ravensmere, an estate in the west country, for a private nursing job. Although Clare has the option of staying in London until she goes up to university, she decides instead to accompany her to Ravensmere. There she discovers a strange connection between herself and Ravensmere, as well as its grounds. There is also her intense attraction to Mark, an enigmatic, motorcycle riding, local. With Ravensmere threatened with demolition, Clare is left to solve its mysteries and try to preserve this magical bit of land.

A bit of a mixed read, The China Garden has its charms. Lush descriptions of the gorgeous English country side and the beautiful estate are well show more done and the creation of a magic that is not entirely understood by anyone creates an excellent source of tension. The characters, however, have rough patches in terms of development and both Clare and Mark have multiple lightning changes in attitudes. Their relationship also develops extremely quickly (partially explained by the magic, but I'm still not sure I've forgiven Mark for his actions at his introduction to Clare). The book also shows its age a bit. Originally published in 1996 (and feeling even a bit older than that), it has an environmental conservation sub-theme that was lacking in subtlety. A not bad read if you're in the mood for a quiet YA romance with a menacing magic undercurrent. show less

Clare has just finished with her exams and is finally preparing to go to college when her mother drops the bombshell that she's planning to leave her London nursing job to be a private nurse for the Earl of Ravensmere, an English country estate veiled in even more layers of mystery than Clare could hope to imagine. Though she could spend the summer in London with friends, Clare feels an irresistable pull to accompany her mother to Ravensmere, where, it turns out, things are more than a little strange. For one thing, everyone in the neighboring village seems to know her and all seem unusually happy to have her "back" at Ravensmere. Then the hallucinations of the would-be future start, and did I mention that irresistably handsome guy in show more motorcycle leathers that keeps turning up when Clare least expects him?

It doesn't take long for Clare to realize that she is already more wrapped up in Ravensemere's story than she can imagine and so, it happens, is that guy, Mark. As the summer unfolds, Clare learns that her mother has some deep, dark secrets in her past, and that the mystical powers of Ravensmere may well have claim on her own future.

And that's all I'll say in the way of plot summary, lest I give away one of The China Garden's many mysteries.

I found The China Garden to be an enjoyable, if not particularly memorable, read. Berry easily paces her novel with just the right amount of suspense to keep readers hungry for the answer to the next question. She also captures the darkly mysterious nature of what, on the surface, seems to be a beautiful but otherwise unremarkable estate. The back story and the current story are skillfully woven together, but older readers will probably catch on to much of the mystery before it's been revealed, which, I suppose is half the fun anyway. The only complaint I have has to do with the relationship between Clare and Mark, which, to me, always seemed a bit hollow and shallow for all the forces pushing them together and their own mutual attraction. Their relationship is an important premise for the story, and that it never seemed to go much deeper than lust had a bit of a negative effect on the story. But, then, this book's intended audience might not read into it is much as I'm doing which would make this all a moot point. All in all, a good read and one I would recommend to somebody looking for a good pageturner for the summer months. show less

I described this to a friend as being the perfect YA romantic angsty fantasy novel to give to a pagan/gothy/freaky teen ager. As a non-pagan freaky adult, I loved it. The plot was interesting and kept my attention, the romantic subplots were also great in an angsty star crossed lovers kind of way. I liked how Berry handles a topic which would become very silly: a secret group of magic workers who keep a region well off and environmentally OK. I really enjoyed this book and have recommended it to others who have also had fun with it.

I really enjoyed this book, it's different. The china garden itself and the maze dance are compelling ideas and I would have liked more done with them, but the story works.

Paranormal romance, psychic teenagers, ancient mystical stuff and bad boys on motorcycles - Whee! For what it is, this one is good fun, though I never quite warmed to the bad boy.

Clare had thought she had known everything about her past. Unfortunately, she is about to find out that nothing she had ever known before was the truth. When her mother returns to Ravensmere, her childhood home, destiny and prophesy weave a web around Clare that may make it impossible for her to ever leave again.

When I asked for this book for Christmas last year I was going on only the information that it was a fantasy and a romance. I do agree that it has those aspects in it, but to me it seems almost more a mystery than anything else. The writing style and subject matter seemed very reminiscent of Susan Cooper's "Dark is Rising" series although I would say this particular book would be more for teens than children. Personally, I've show more always had a bit of an issue with matters of destiny, and the inalterability of it. Thankfully in this case I didn't feel overwhelmed by it and thought the author worked it into the story in an palatable manner. I didn't really care for what I felt was an overwhelmingly fast development of the relationship between Clare and Mark, but once past that part I felt comfortable with it. Truly a pretty unique fantasy that you can't really categorize in terms of vampires, ghosts or fairies. I have read a few reviews stating the book as a “spiritual” novel, but I'm not really sure I would be comfortable saying that myself. Certainly an interesting tale with an exciting ending that I would recommend to teens looking for worthwhile fantasy. show less