Blog Tour - The Sapphire Widow by Dinah Jefferies

Jaffareadstoo is thrilled to be hosting today's stop on The Sapphire Widow Blog Tour

Penguin
5 April 2018

My thanks to the publishers for my copy of this book and the invitation to be part of the blog tour

What's it all about..

Ceylon, 1935. Louisa Reeve, the daughter of a successful British gem trader, and her husband Elliot, a charming, thrill-seeking businessman, seem like the couple who have it all. Except what they long for more than anything: a child.

While Louisa struggles with miscarriages, Elliot is increasingly absent, spending much of his time at a nearby cinnamon plantation, overlooking the Indian ocean. After his sudden death, Louisa is left alone to solve the mystery he left behind. Revisiting the plantation at Cinnamon Hills, she finds herself unexpectedly drawn towards the owner Leo, a rugged outdoors man with a chequered past. The plantation casts a spell, but all is not as it seems. And when Elliot's shocking betrayal is revealed, Louisa has only Leo to turn to...

My thoughts...

Louisa Reeve is the daughter of a wealthy gem trader in 1930s Ceylon and her marriage to the charismatic, Elliot should have ensured that her charmed life continued, but there are dark secrets within the marriage which seek threaten everything that’s precious in Louisa’s world. 

From the very start of the novel I was absorbed in the story. I loved reading of Louisa and Elliot’s life in the beautiful walled town of Galle and of their life amidst the great and the good of this close community. That they have social standing within this community is evident in the way Louisa comfortably goes about her life, and her relationship with Elliot is both tender and loving. When tragedy strikes, heartache seems set to follow Louisa, and she needs every ounce of her strength to get through the chaos left in its wake. 

There is no doubt that the author has a wonderful eye for detail and the glorious setting of Ceylon truly comes alive in the imagination. From the pungent scent of cinnamon and citronella, through to the salty tang of the Indian Ocean, I felt as if I had travelled every word of the story with Louisa, who was by far my favourite character, although the ruggedly handsome Leo is definitely in close second place.

There are some sensitive issues explored within the novel, infertility, infidelity, betrayal, bereavement and grief and the author has developed these painful themes with a delicate understanding so that the writing never becomes mawkishly sentimental, but which, as the story develops, goes on to show the strength and resilience of the human spirit. 

At its heart The Sapphire Widow is a wonderful story of love and devastating betrayal which sweeps the reader away from the mundane and into a faraway world of scent and spices. 

About the Author

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Twitter @DinahJefferies #TheSapphireWidow

@PenguinBooksUK

Amazon UK

Review ~ Trouble in Nuala by Harriet Steel

Stane Street Press
2016

What's it all about about ...

When Inspector Shanti de Silva moves with his English wife Jane to his new post in the sleepy hill town of Nuala he anticipates a more restful life than police work in the big city entails. However an arrogant plantation owner with a lonely wife, a crusading lawyer, and a death in suspicious circumstances present him with a riddle that he will need all his experience to solve. 

Set on the exotic island of Ceylon in the 1930s, Trouble in Nuala is an entertaining and relaxing mystery spiced with humour and a colourful cast of characters.

What did I think about it...

Trouble in Nuala introduces us to the delightful, Inspector Shanti de Silva, who, with his English wife Jane, has moved to a new posting in the sleepy hill town of Nuala. Escaping the city, Shanti hopes that his life will take on a more tranquil outlook, that is, until trouble rears its ugly head in Nuala. A suspicious death, on one of the tea plantations, opens up a whole series of complicated questions which mean that Inspector de Silva's ingenuity, and that of his police team, is put to the test.

The author’s descriptive talent comes alive and from the opening pages I was immediately transported back to 1930s Ceylon, which is now modern day Sri Lanka, and taken to a place of great natural beauty, of rich red earth and the jostling of banana and rubber trees and of the scented aroma of jasmine and frangipani blossom. The story gives a lovely portrait of what life could have been like for those colonials who made it their home, and also of the problems faced when living in a small community where everyone's business becomes a matter of great interest

I really enjoyed getting to know Inspector de Silva. I appreciated his wry sense of humour and his steadfast refusal to be beaten by a myriad of complex situations. His interaction with his colleagues, particularity the hapless Constable Nadar, and the slightly more prosaic Sergeant Prasanna made me smile as they are so reminiscent of a bygone time.

Trouble in Nuala is the first of a proposed series of detective books featuring Inspector de Silva and I, personally, can't wait for the next book, Double Trouble, which, I think, is coming sometime in 2017.

Best Read With...Elephant ginger beer and a spicy bowl of Dhal...

About the Author

Harriet Steel is the author of several historical novels including Becoming Lola and Salvation. Her work has appeared in national newspapers and magazines. She is passionate about history and blogs about it at harrietsteel.blogspot.co.uk

Follow on Twitter @harrietsteel1

My thanks to the author for allowing me the opportunity to read and review Trouble in Nuala

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Review ~ The Tea Planter's Wife by Dinah Jefferies.

Penguin Random House
August 2015

When nineteen year old Gwendolyn Hooper steps of the steam ship in Ceylon, she is excited to start married life with her handsome husband, Laurence. Life on the remote tea plantation is very different from her life in England, but Gwen is determined to make the most of her new life. Totally in love with Laurence, Gwen is puzzled when he appears to become secretive and distant and quite unlike the man she fell in love with, and added to the marital discord, is the appearance of Laurence's younger sister, Verity, whose bizarre possessiveness towards Laurence, makes it difficult for Gwen to be accepted as mistress of her own home.

Captivated and enthralled from the very start of the novel, I quickly became immersed in plantation life and saw that Gwen’s rather naïve outlook on life would make for compelling reading. Idealistic and filled with only kindness, Gwen tries to make sense of this rather archaic way of life and even though she doesn’t fully understand the running of the plantation, she is determined to make a difference. The story is beautifully written, with a true sense of time and place, and brings to life, not just the social history of Ceylon but also the fundamental changes which were happening towards the end of colonialism in the 1920s and 1930s. From the decadent house parties of the late 1920s, to the abject poverty of the plantation workers, I felt like I had stepped into Gwen’s shoes and experienced everything as she saw it. I wore her sumptuous flapper dresses with their beads and fripperies, and strolled with her and Laurence through the cool of the evening towards a lake where sparkled light glistened and danced.

The Tea Planter’s Wife is a story about contrasts, about what is right and proper, and of the great price paid by adhering to social and cultural expectations. It’s also about secrets and lies, of the huge burden of culpability and of the hidden dangers of deceit and overwhelming sadness. After reading this author’s previous book, The Separation, which I absolutely loved, I had misgivings that this one wouldn’t live up to expectations, but I am delighted to say that this book exceeded all my hopes. I was beguiled, immersed and completely overwhelmed by the power of the story and of my emotional connection to it.

A perfect accompaniment to a delicious cup of Ceylon tea, The Tea Planter's Wife is without doubt one of my reads of the year...

Amazon UK

About the Author

I am delighted to say that The Tea Planter's Wife has been picked as one of the Richard and Judy book club Autumn reads.

 My thanks to Celeste at Penguin Random House for my copy of this book and the 

to Kandula for the delicious Ceylon tea bags which accompanied the book.

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