The Wild Rose

It's 1914. England is about to declare war on Germany. The world is going to change forever, yet no one can dream of the devastation about to engulf the human race. Women are fighting for the right to vote. Explorers have landed on the South Pole and many are fighting to reach the peaks of the Himalayas. Set within this tumultuous time are Seamus Finnegan and Willa Alden, two people so meant to be together, yet so devastatingly torn apart.

Having successfully reached the South Pole, Seamus has become a famed explorer. He has all he needs....a family that loves him, peers seeking his company on future explorations, a passion that he has fulfilled. But yet....the fire in his eyes is missing.....his soul is void without its other half. He show more can never feel complete without Willa. But Willa made it clear...she walked away from him. She left him. She blamed him for the loss of her leg. She blamed him for the loss of her dreams.

Willa is living in Tibet, forever bound to the marvelous mountains that stole her leg. She lives with constant pain and overwhelming regret, both of which she tries to drown with pills, drugs and reckless risk-taking. She shouldn't have left Seamus. He is the other half of herself. She realizes this too late. She wants to go to him, to travel back to London and tell him she loves him, but too many years have passed and he would never forgive her. So, she continues on her isolated journey. Until.....word comes to Willa that her father is dying. She must get to him. She must travel back to London. It is at her father's funeral that Willa sees Seamus, and the pull between them is undeniable. And so is the fact that Seamus is now married to another woman, someone he thought would make him happy, someone he thought would make him forget Willa.

Opening this book was like visiting with old friends....no matter how long you've been apart, you settle right back into each other...familiar and true. It was exactly a year ago that I began this journey with these amazing characters. I met Fiona and Joe in the "Tea Rose" and instantly I was hooked. Right away I reached for the second book and not only found myself reunited with familiar characters, but I was rooting for Fiona's long lost brother and notorious crime boss, Sid, in "The Winter Rose". The adventure continues in this third and final installment, "The Wild Rose", where the story centers upon Seamus and Willa. But this book is not just a love story. It is so much more. Through these unforgettable characters, the author realistically and historically explores a time period filled with spies, villains, political struggles, and war heroes, including the legendary Lawrence of Arabia. The plot is complex, with twists and turns that had me at the edge of my seat, my finger hovering to turn the page and continue the exciting pace of the book. How Jennifer Donnelly manages to connect all threads of this vast story is unbelievable and yet, very believable. She is a true talent. She gives her readers an emotional ride. She strips her characters bare, all flaws there for the viewing, and yet the reader urges them on, willing them to get up and move on...to fight....to live.....to love. So often I wanted to reach out and slap Willa, knock some sense into her, make her stop her self-destruction. There is no fluffy happily ever after. The love story is hard-fought, with fate pushing the lovers together, only to be lost to one another again.

Jennifer Donnelly has written an epic tale filled with strife, love, war and destruction, both physical and emotional. Yet she manages to end her story with a sense of hope...a light at the end of the tunnel, not only for Seamus and Willa, but for the world itself:

"They had torn themselves apart, she and Seamie. Years ago. Here in Africa. And then in 1914, the world had torn itself apart. Now they, and the world, would put themselves back together. Slowly, with pain, regret, and with hope, they would find the way forward. She didn't know how, exactly. She had no map. No answers. No guarantees. All she had was this day. This impossible mountain rising before her. This sun and this sky. This man and this child. This terrible, wonderful love. "

I am sad to say goodbye to these amazing characters. It has been wonderful crying, laughing and loving with the Finnegan family. Perhaps we'll meet again, amidst the costermongers and the hard-working poor of London, where this trilogy began. Perhaps a new, younger member of the Finnegan family will continue the fight for the poor...perhaps a figure like the fiesty Katie. A reader can only hope. show less

Summary: Seamie Finnegan, famous polar explorer, lost the woman he loves in a mountaineering accident on Kilimanjaro. Willa Alden isn't dead, but when her leg had to be amputated, her spirit went with it, and, blaming Seamie, she fled to the far East. Seamie's never been able to move on, but when he meets a charming young teacher, he's willing to try. Jennie gets pregnant, and she and Seamie get married, but soon Seamie runs into Willa - home for her father's funereal - and it becomes clear that the passion between them never really died. But World War I is looming large on the horizon, and both Seamie and Willa want to do the right thing... but is the damage they've done - to others and to their own hearts - too much to repair?

Review: show more I thoroughly enjoyed The Tea Rose, and absolutely loved The Winter Rose, so I was bummed out that I wound up not enjoying The Wild Rose as much as I expected to. I can't tell if it's a fault with the book, or a fault with my mood, or a combination of both, but for some reason, it just didn't work for me. The Roses books are in a lot of ways pretty formulaic, but I often don't mind predictable books, as long as they're engaging. In the case of The Wild Rose, though, either it was way more predictable than its predecessors, or else my tolerance for such things was lower than normal. Similarly, I don't remember the first two Roses books being models of subtle prose, but in this case, I kept noticing (and being annoyed by) Donnelly over-explaining her characters' thoughts and feelings that could easily have been left implicit. Not to mention the lengthy recaps of events from earlier books that plagued the first section of this one...

Another part of the problem, certainly, is that I didn't connect with Seamie and Willa nearly as much as I did with India and Sid, or even Fiona and Joe. I've got limited patience with tortured long-suffering romances of the "I know I'm behaving badly and I want to do the right thing but I just can't stop" variety: Yes you can! Your behavior is entirely under your control! Seamie was personable enough, but not very sympathetic; Willa was just prickly and distant.

Donnelly does do a wonderful job of bringing her time period and her settings to life. I've read comparably little World War I fiction, and this is the first I've read that looks at the course of the war in the Middle East (and stars Lawrence of Arabia!), so I appreciated how vividly Donnelly was able to depict that section of the book. And, really, there is something to be said for books that are comfortable and familiar in their pacing and plotting. Overall, it was an enjoyable read, but I just wanted something more out of this one, and sadly, it failed to recapture the magic of The Winter Rose for me. 3.5 out of 5 stars.

Recommendation: It's a pretty easy read despite its length, so if you like WWI-era romances, dive right in. If you're looking for historical romance more generally, though, I think either of this book's predecessors were more compelling reads. show less

Note: No spoilers are contained in this review

This is the third book in The Tea Rose Series, which is a historical fiction saga of the Finnegan family beginning in the late 1800s with The Tea Rose, continuing with The Winter Rose, and ending, with this book, just after World War I. It is written as a standalone book, so the background from the first two books is filled in throughout the story. Nevertheless, one wouldn’t want to skip the first two, because, although this book is very good and I couldn’t put it down, the first two are superb, with The Winter Rose being my favorite.

Perhaps the main drawback with this one is that two of the main characters, Willa and Max, are not very likable. Max, in fact, is downright abhorrent show more (though he is meant to be), but I think Willa (“the wild rose”) is intended to be every bit the heroine that Fiona and India were in the previous books. Instead, she comes off as too immature and self-absorbed, while Katie, the daughter of Joe and Fiona (whose story is the focus of the first book), steals the show in the background. Sid, the hero of book two, brightens up the book by megawatts in his too infrequent appearances in book three; there is no one in this book to match his character and charisma. Seamie, the brother of Fiona and Sid, could have been that character, but Donnelly unfortunately gave him a back seat to Willa and Max.

The historical landscape is given contours by Donnelly's meticulous research and evocative prose as she takes us on a journey from London to Tibet and Africa and the Middle East. She puts us in the desert with Lawrence of Arabia in a cinematic way that comes as close to David Lean’s 1962 epic as I have seen done in print. The burning heat, gritty sand, unrelenting thirst, and myriad dangers are all there in vivid color, and yet it is rendered only in black and white. In the mountains of Tibet, we shudder at the astounding cold and frostbite; in Africa, we feel the awe of magnificent vistas of sun and sky and herds of wild animals; in the excitement at the Royal Geographical Society in London, we catch the fever of explorers, including Ernest Shackleton and George Mallory, as they prepare to conquer the last remaining frontiers on the earth. And we come to understand the horror of shell shock that destroyed so many lives in World War I. Running through it all are the ties of family and romance, love and betrayal, and a “terrible, wonderful love” between two of the characters that affects so many others who come into their lives.

Evaluation: This is a symphonic narrative, bringing together a stunning mix of characters both real and imagined, at a historical time of incredible progress and creativity, as well as war, disease, and the depths of despair that accompany them. The characters struggle against passionate unfulfilled longing, cupidity, madness, and despair. They remind us that even in the worst of times, there are people who, inspired by love, can summon reserves of decency, courage, and dedication to fight against boundless grief and endless evil, and to pull out triumphs, no matter how small, from the wreckage.

These characters, and their stories, are unforgettable. show less

Review originally published on blogcritics.org

Called by The Washington Post Book World as “a master of pacing and plot,” Donnelly paints with a vivid palette of espionage, blackmail, steamy romance, exotic places, women’s suffrage and politics. She is a born storyteller. The Wild Rose, her final installment of a trilogy is jam-packed with historical fiction, romance and adventure.

Drink mint tea in a Bedouin tent after desert wanderings sustained only by water, dates and courage. Ride an omnibus as it belches and careens over London’s cobblestone streets. Watch a photo shoot of an avant-garde composer in Paris as the sun sets. Vivid description flows through this narrative as it travels from 1914 London to the mountains of Nepal show more and the Arabian Desert.

We are reunited with old friends Fiona and Joe Bristow, Sid Malone and his wife, Dr. India Selwyn Jones. Highlighted are Seamie Finnegan, famous polar explorer and Willa Alden, the “wild rose” and apparent heroine. Willa photographs and maps the Himalayas with a prosthetic leg. Seamie can’t decide what woman he loves and winds up a captain in the British navy. Handsome Max von Brandt, a German mountaineer who toys with women for his own advantage, is a colorful, man-you-love-to-hate character. Maud Selwyn Jones, a scandalous lady novelist, is married to one man and mistress to another.

Extensive period detail entrenches us in the historical setting. After seventy pages of the main characters’ back stories from The Tea Rose (2002) and The Winter Rose, (2008), the book takes off at a fast clip. Women seek equal rights in England. Climbers scale mountains in Nepal. Anxious people wait for news of their loved ones at war. Love, lust, jealousy, deception and action-packed adventure intertwine. World War I looms before us. The Dali Lama, Ernest Shackleton, Lawrence of Arabia and Winston Churchill make appearances.

Reading the other books in the trilogy will enhance your enjoyment of The Wild Rose, but in case you haven’t, Donnelly fills us in on sufficient background. That attempt proves a bit mind-boggling due to the myriad of characters and sub-plots it produces. Sadly, minor roles are given to some of the characters I came to love in the first two books.

The novel does yield a refreshing dose of adventure not found in the first part of the trilogy. Their appeal lies in Donnelly’s strong, never-give-up female characters, Fiona and India. That element is curiously lacking in The Wild Rose. Here, the author chooses a different tack.

A third book in any trilogy is tricky. Donnelly turns the tables on us by giving her main characters a surprising twist. In The Wild Rose, main characters Willa and Seamie are unlikable, self-absorbed people. Driven Willa uses any quest (mountain, man or fame) as a coping mechanism for her inability to accept her lost limb. When Seamie marries Jenny we are hopeful, but he soon becomes devoid of backbone or honor until the end of the book. Not villains, Willa and Seamie are simply flawed humans clawing their way out of their misery. Some readers may balk at this abrupt change in writing technique. This reviewer found it refreshing. Irritating characters can be more interesting than protagonists. Changing things up a bit is a bold author’s prerogative.

Some of the book’s themes converge on our current world state, elevating the book’s relevance. Political intricacies, horrors of war, drug abuse, and economic crisis mirror many issues facing us today.

Despite the fact that I longed for more character development and fewer characters, I couldn’t put the book down. The plot twists seemed outrageous at times, but the novel is engrossing and seductive. Donnelly has a vivid imagination and it gushes through her writing.

Hyperion graciously supplied the review copy. Opinions expressed are unbiased and wholly that of the reviewer.

Reviewed by Holly Weiss, author of Crestmont show less

NOTE: This review is a review of all three books in the Rose Trilogy.

Don’t take this the wrong way, but the books in the Rose Trilogy reminded me of the Danielle Steel books I used to devour when I was 14-years old … and I mean that in the very best way!!

I used to love Danielle Steel’s books (though I’ve “outgrown” them after being exposed to a “better” class of books) because they featured heroines who experienced all these ups and downs but who eventually triumphed over difficulties to have amazing lives. Plus they also had complicated and often tragic love lives. The Rose Trilogy has all these same elements … except with better writing and historical detail!!

The Rose Trilogy focuses on the Finnegan family—a show more close-knit family from the hardscrabble section of London known as Whitechapel. Family members include: family patriarch Paddy, whose leadership in the nascent union movement leads to tragedy; his wife Kate, who struggles to keep the family together despite multiple difficulties; Fiona, the oldest daughter, who is in love with the boy down the street; Charlie, the oldest son, who contributes what he can to family finances, even when that means walking on the edge of what is legal; and Seamus, the youngest son, who is just 5 years old in the first book but is featured front and center in the final book of the series.

We first meet the Finnegans in The Tea Rose. It is the 1880s in East London, and a murderer named Jack the Ripper is terrorizing the area. (Donnelly even goes so far as to unmask Jack’s “true” identity in the book.) The Tea Rose of the title refers to Fiona Finnegan, the feisty daughter who is in love with a coster (veggie salesman) named Joe Bristow. They are saving every bit of their meager wages to open up a shop of their own. However, tragedy hits the family and Joe betrays Fiona in the worst way possible—leaving Fiona and Seamus in desperate straits. Fleeing to America, Fiona struggles to survive in New York City, where she vows revenge on the man who ruined her family.

The opening book sets the tone for the entire trilogy: star-crossed lovers; continual setbacks and obstacles; rich historical detail (Donnelly isn’t afraid to incorporate real-life historical figures such as George Mallory, Jack the Ripper and Lawrence of Arabia into her books), and a plot that keeps you wondering what will befall her beleaguered characters next. (Some pretty hot and heavy sex scenes are sprinkled throughout too!) Although there is a fair amount of coincidence that strains the limits of believability, just forget all that and enjoy the ride.

The second book, The Winter Rose, has a new “rose” as its center—Dr. India Selwyn-Jones, an idealistic young doctor who dreams of opening a clinic for women and children in poverty-stricken Whitechapel. Just like Fiona in the first book, India must deal with an evil man set on ruining her life while struggling with her attraction to a criminal named Sid Malone. The book moves from London to Africa and also introduces readers to Seamus as a young man. Fiona makes periodic appearances but isn’t the primary focus of the book. Although it sounds like the book doesn’t focus as much on the Finnegan family, I’ll leave you to discover why that isn’t true!

The third and final book, The Wild Rose, features Willa Alden, the great love of Seamus Finnegan’s life, as its rose. “Wild” is the right word to describe Willa, who readers first meet in The Winter Rose. She is a fearless mountaineer who defies expectations of what women can and should do, despite a significant handicap after an accident on Mt. Kilimanjaro (which takes place in the second book). Like the other two books, this book starts in London before moving the action to Arabia during World War I.

Each book is a chunkster (all of them are 500+ pages) and requires a fairly decent time commitment, but they are the type of chunksters that move along at a steady clip. My biggest criticism is the amount of coincidence that propels the plots, but don’t let that stop you from reading the books. This was historical fiction at its best: fast-paced, far-ranging and drama-filled. I enjoyed the series immensely, and thank Jill at Rhapsody in Books for turning me on to this series. I would have never picked these books up on my own as historical fiction isn’t my preferred genre and the staid covers don’t give you a full sense of all the action, drama and romance that pack the pages inside. Highly recommended! show less

Book 3 of the Trilogy. The Finnegan's story continues with Fiona and Joe back in London - Joe becoming an MP fighting on the rights of the poor; We get to know Fiona's little brother Shamus, all grown up and Willa Alden. The War with Germany breaks out. Espionage is within the circle of trusted friends and family. A lot goes on in this book to keep you guessing; but it comes down to being a love story, of course. I enjoyed it, getting to know all the family members and new cast of characters but what I really did not enjoy is the disregard for Jenny for a happy ending at the expense of innocents. Sorry to see the end but ready to move on to something else!.

The third and final installment of "The Tea Rose" trilogy, "The Wild Rose," took us on a worldwide journey. You see new and old characters, learn a lot of historical events. And reading about the Spanish flu while living our pandemic (Covid-19).
'The Wild Rose' is the love-story of Willa and Seamus, but we also see Fiona & Jo, as well as India & Sid and their families.
Once again, Jennifer Donnelly intertwines the love-story with a lot of mystery, a WWI.
That means multiple story arcs are going on at the same time. You might not see how they are all related, but they come together cohesively at the end and make for a stunning book. Never once was I lost. I was gripped and eager to find out what happened next.
I knew the story would end show more happily -- or at least in a very satisfying way -- but that didn't keep me from worrying about the characters because Donnelly has that rare ability to plunge them into seemingly impossible situations, then finding the one way to get them out that her readers will believe.
If you like historical fiction, yes, pick up the books of this trilogy, but read them in order so you will understand and comprehend the whole story. show less