Tina Forkner's Rose House ~ Reviewed

ROSE HOUSE
By Tina Ann Forkner
Published by:WaterBrook Press
ISBN#978-1-4000-7359-7
310 Pages

Back Cover:

Still mourning the loss of her family in a tragic accident, Lillian Diamon finds herself drawn back to the Rose House, a quiet cottage where four years earlier she had poured out her anguish among its fragrant blossoms.

She returns to the rolling hills and lush vineyards of the Sonoma Valley in search of something she can’t quite name. Lillian stumbles onto an unexpected discovery: displayed in the La Rosaleda Gallery is a painting that captures every detail of her most private moment of misery, from the sorrow etched across her face to the sandals on her feet.


REVIEW:

I was mesmerized from the very first page. “It seemed to be the cottage that was alive, but it was only the vines twining in on themselves and clinging to the structure that were living.” Tina Ann Forkner paints with her words what an artist does as he designs a masterpiece on a clean canvas. While reading this book, I wondered if Tina was an artist with more than her words, as she made me appreciate art and the making of a masterpiece, through the artist’s eyes. It was quite fascinating to read about a master at work.

This is a story of woman named Lillian, who’s lost all she held dear in a deadly car accident. How could she go on? As police investigate the accident unnerving facts about her husband come to light. The life she thought she had begins to unravel. Lillian catches people following her or so she thinks. Who was this man she had married and had two children with?

Lillian discovers a painting that has her stumped, “Whoever painted it had seen her hurting as nobody else ever had. But why had the artist put it on display for anyone who walked into the gallery to see?” She was the woman in the painting and someone really had been watching her. She wasn’t crazy!

There is a true love story, between adoptive parents and their children, a sister for her sibling and a man for a woman. Tina’s characters will stay with you long after you’ve finished the last page. You’ll want to visit the Rose House yourself. Good thing I can by re-reading this rich, fun, and memorable book.

Hope and healing come from God—but love can never be forced—it has to bloom and grow much like a beautiful rose. Rose House is a cozy mystery!! I wasn’t sure who-done-it until the last page. Thank you Tina, for creating such an intriguing, loving, rich story!

Reviewed by: Nora St.Laurent, Book Club Servant Leader