Roses

Author: Leila Meacham
Genre: Fiction / Family Saga
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing, 2010
Pages: 626
My Rating: Highly Recommend

Synopsis: Spanning the twentieth century, Roses is the story of the powerful founding families of Howbutker, Texas, and how their histories remain intertwined over the span of three generations. Cotton tycoon Mary Toliver and timber magnate Percy Warwick fell in love, but because of their stubborn natures and Mary’s devotion to her family’s land, they unwisely never wed. Now they must deal with the deceit, secrets, and tragedies that surround them, and the poignant loss of what might have been—not only for themselves, but also for their family legacies. With expert and unabashed big-canvas storytelling that reads like a Texas Gone With the Wind, Leila Meacham pens an epic of three intriguing generations. A deeply moving love story of struggle and sacrifice as well, Roses is steeped with nostalgia for a time when honor and good manners were always the rule.

Review: Absolutely loved this. I expected the book would be dull in parts. It's hard to keep a book interesting for 600+ pages, but the author did a wonderful job. She tied everything together at the end and there weren't any loose strings. The conclusion is fantastic even though it didn't go the way I would have liked. Her way was probably more realistic (or "real life") than what I wanted. There wasn't anything I didn't love about this (except that it ended). I would love to find another family saga to read. Highly recommend.