From the bestselling author of The Memory of Butterflies comes the first in a bittersweet series about love and loss.Kara Hart was scarred by loss—first the loss of her mother and now her husband. She feels broken, with no will to move forward, until her father does the unexpected: he moves to the Virginia countryside to restore an old Victorian mansion. Kara decides to go with him, telling … with him, telling herself that it will only be temporary.
The huge house is neglected and derelict, but Kara discovers its breathtaking field of wildflowers and is stunned by their beauty. The house, the grounds, and the quirky neighbors—including a handsome one—are almost as fascinating as her father’s sudden willingness to discuss her mother and his own secret past.
Kara is finding her new normal when tragedy strikes again, forcing her to make difficult choices. Will she go back to her old life and risk losing all she has gained? Or will she face her fears and give herself the opportunity to grow?
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I thoroughly enjoyed this story which deals with loss and grief and how the characters deal with it, i was hooked from the start and read the book in two days. The ending is satisfying but left the planned future open for perhaps a sequel…..
Wildflower Heart is a Good Title for this book. A story about how life takes on many different facets. The description of the field of wildflowers was so real. Lots of emotions in this book, love, death, Friendship, parent relationships.
In life we are all a Wildflower!! Different from one another, but need sun and water to cultivate and grow! Each is Beautiful in its own way!!
I truly enjoyed this book and looking forward to the second one in the series!
Abandoned by her mother, raised by an unemotional father, Kara Hart goes through life coping and thinking she has weathered all that can be thrown at her. She has a successful career, gets married, but then another tragic event brings her marriage and ordered world to a crashing downfall. How much more can she endure? Kara needs to get away, so she agrees to move with her father to an old home that he plans to renovate. The first time Kara visits, the only beauty she sees is a field of wildflowers behind the run down home. Can this simple scene bring healing to Kara? Grace Greene has written a wonderful book of grief, loneliness and finally the resilience that Kara needs to open her heart to a new life.
Wildflower Heart is the first book in the Wildflower House Series. This storybI thought was beatiful written and it had many emiotions heartache, grief and healing, and love. I was hooked from the first chapter and it has a good storyline. I enjoyed reading this story and look forward to reading more from this author.
Thank you NetGalley, Lake Union Publishing and the author in exchance for an honest review.
This book had me gripped from the start. What a lovely story of recovery and renewal. Kara’s journey is so heartwarming and shows you can live again after a lot of loss. I’m so thankful to have received an ARC from the author via NetGalley for my honest review.
Wildflower Heart is a beautiful story about getting through the tough times and moving on. That’s easier said than done for Kara. She has had a lifetime of people she has loved, just up and leaving her. She moves with her father when he buys a new home but she still hasn’t moved on with her life. Will the change in scenery help her change her life?
Grace has penned a heart-warming, lovely story which includes plenty of soul searching and reflection about what is important in life. I loved the gentleness of the words and the wonderful, caring characters. I’m so excited that this is going to be a series because I came to think of Kara and the rest of the people in the story as good friends and I can’t wait to visit them again.
Kara Lange’s life is told in stages. The biggest influence in her life is her father. His motto was to just keep pushing forward. This left her pulling inward and talking in her head. She didn’t have a lot of friends and showing emotions was not something she was able to do. Her father made a change in his life that affected her. For once there are people in her life that allows her to just be. Just as things are settling down, another change happens. Can she start another chapter in her life? Is she is as strong and resilient as her father told her she was? I enjoyed this book.
Wildflower Heart is the first book in The Wildflower House series By Grace Greene. I thought it was a great start to a new series. I don’t read a lot of women’s fiction but I do enjoy Grace’s books and it’s a good change of pace.
Kara had it all. Almost. She was college educated. Had a great job. Married to her college sweetheart. She was happy then on her sixth wedding anniversary everything changed. Her life was flipped upside down. She now had to start over. Once again. And a year later, her dad threw her for a loop when he said he was selling his business and bought a house out in the country. It was something she never thought she would hear out of her businessman of a father.
The house was huge. A Victorian with a backyard full of wildflowers and garden gnomes. It needed a lot of TLC and Kara was still confused over the reasoning of why her dad would take on such a task. He asked her to help with the project. They would be a team. It was overwhelming but looking at the beautiful wildflowers and walking along Cub Creek relaxed her. She still didn’t know where she belonged in life but right now, this was it. After the renovations, she would have to figure it out. For now, she would help her dad with his dream. He had others to help him as well. The Albers. His new neighbors and friends. One was even a handsome man who made Kara’s head turn. But, is she ready to date again?
I enjoyed this story. Like I said, it’s a different pace than what I usually read. Slower but it’s a story that makes you think about life’s journey. Kara has gone through a lot and is trying to figure out where she belongs. She is also learning more about her father as he opens up. I love old houses so I could just picture the house in my head and enjoy the view. And it has a touch of romance too. Seth is a sweetheart. He is reliable, a bit flirty, and has a good head on his shoulders. He also knows to go slow when it comes to Kara.
Overall…it’s a great start to a new series. It’s a emotional journey that I am looking forward to continuing. And the discussion questions at the end are awesome. If I was in a book club that would be so helpful.
Quotes:
“A day at a time,” Seth said. “Any journey worth taking is worth finding value in each step.”
There were many things my dad wasn’t, but it was the small actions that often told the true story.
“Good morning, Kara,” he called out.
“Good morning, Seth. You’re at it early. It’s looking good.”
He cupped his hand to his ear. “You said I’m looking good?”
Grace Greene has another winner in Wildflower Heart. Set in the familiar area of Cub Creek, this book is the story of resilience and strength in the character of Kara. She’s a woman that has endured heartache and tragedy, and every time you think she’s that close to giving up, she pulls herself up and takes that first step forward.
I have to say that this book took me on an emotional roller coaster from start to finish, but best of all it left with a feeling of hope. I’m looking forward to the next book in the series.
Lindas Book Obsession
Lindas Book Obsession Reviews “Wildflower Heart” by Grace Greene, Lake Union Publishing, January 22, 2019
Grace Green, Author of “Wildflower Heart” has written a compassionate, emotional, intense, intriguing, and creative novel. The Genres for this novel are Fiction and Women’s Fiction. The timeline for the story is in the present and past when it pertains to the events or characters in the story. The author describes her characters as complex and complicated.
Kara Hart is certainly used to loss. Her mother had emotional issues, and left her when she was young. Kara and her husband had marital issues, and then in a tragedy she loses him. After a terrible accident, Kara is working hard on physical therapy and her hard-working dad, who has been so responsible, decides to retire and move. He chooses an old large Victorian mansion in Virginia that needs much work. The only beauty that Kara sees is the colorful wildflowers that surround the house. Her dad wants her to help him with the renovations in the house.
Kara has an artistic sense when she does cross stitching and needlework. Kara starts to make new friends, and realizes that an old friend might have betrayed her. At the same time, tragedy occurs again, and Kara once again has to make significant decisions on how to rebuild her life. This is the first book in a new series. I can’t wait to read the next book. I appreciate that the author discusses, loss, love, emotional support, family and friends. I would recommend this novel to readers who enjoy a thought-provoking book. I received this ARC from NetGalley for my honest review.
The characters had a real unexpected depth. A place where a heart definitely grows. Looking forward to I hope the next installment of what happens to Kara and Seth
Another wonderful read set in magical Cub Creek. Grace Greene never disappoints. Her books take readers on a journey that allows them to discover new places and an abundance of different emotions within the journey. Her writing allows us to be there next to those she is writing about in each story. The story of Kara and watching her unfurl as the wildflowers she so loves was both heartbreaking and wonderful at the same time.
A story filled with loss, grief and heartbreaking loneliness but also filled with love and finding true friends. This is a story that draws you in to feel the rejection and the aching grief that Kara experience and you can feel the breeze, see the wildflowers dance…
Wildflower Heart was an emotional novel! I enjoyed the way that Kara’s challenges are portrayed throughout the story. Kara was injured in a car accident where her husband dies. This is made worse because of what happened right before the accident occurred. When Kara leaves the hospital, she goes to stay with her father at his house. Kara fights through her recovery and her emotions as she confronts the past and her future life. At the same time, her father is beginning to start changes in his own life as he embarks on a new life that includes the purchase of an old Victorian mansion. The two of them begin to work through some tough emotions from the past together as well, as they experience all the new changes of moving into the new house. There are moments of happiness and joy as they both struggle through the difficult days.
A STORY OF RESILIENCE!
WILDFLOWER HEART (The Wildflower House # 1) by Grace Greene is a story of RESILIENCE. One of my favorite quotes is: “Never trust a (wo)man without a limp.” In other words, people without “imperfections” (i.e. real life experiences) don’t always see things clearly. They feel as though they have ideal families, careers and relationships. These are the people who tend to compartmentalize. They lead orderly lives but in reality are they really living?
Kara Hart has been one of those “compartmentalizers” all her life. It’s a trait she learned well from her successful Tire/Automotive Magnate – her Dad. She’s suffered several devastating losses and a real limp from a devastating car accident but remains stoic through it all. She finds solace in doing needlework of flowers as part of her rehabilitation.
It takes her Dad making major unexpected changes to get her attention that life is passing her by. Who would have thought that a field of beautiful wildflowers could begin to bring peace to such a troubled heart! It takes meeting a new group of genuine people who accept her just as she is and seeing someone who reminds her of a reflection of who she was to shake her to her soul. Her future is a blank canvas. What will she choose to fill it with? Who will she choose to spend her time with? I was provided an ARC of this novel by NetGalley and Lake Union Publishers. The opinions expressed here are completely my own and without influence.
This book was not at all what I expected, but I still very much enjoyed it. At first, I thought it would be a typical story of heartache, healing, and love. However, the author doesn’t follow a standard outline; even though all three are featured in the story, they are not presented in the usual fashion. This took some getting used to, but I appreciate the difference. I don’t want to say too much about the plot, because I think that readers should be able to discover it on their own. I liked that the heroine, Kara, was prickly and very rough; that was refreshing, and fit the story very well. The writing was very poetic, and some passages did actually bring me to tears. 4.5 stars. I certainly look forward to reading more from this author.
This is an emotional & heartfelt story.
Kara, has suffered great losses, in her life. After being in a tragic car accident,
her father cares for Kara, durning her
recovery. A year later, her father decides
to retire, & buy an old Victorian home.
Kara moves with him, to help out with
the restorations. While looking over the grounds, she comes across a beautiful field of wildflowers. Kara makes friends with her handsome & helpful neighbor, Seth.
As Kara is trying to figure out where to live
& work, tragedy sticks again.
Kara deserves happiness. Will she do what
she knows, or give herself chance, for a
fresh start in life?
Wildflower Heart by Grace Greene is a story about family, disappointments, love gained and love lost. Kara has had to deal with heartaches and disappointments since her mother left home when she was young. Her father loved and cared for her, but he was not a person given to outward emotional expressions of love. When Kara marries Niles she feels she has finally found a love which she has been missing in her life. After a tragic accident, Kara is left a widow and physically broken in the care of her father. Kara becomes content to be reclusive. One day her father takes her to see a house with several acres in the country he is planning to purchase. Kara only sees the huge old house in need of repair until she catches glimpses of the field of wildflowers in bloom. Follow along with Kara and the discovery of who she has become and what her choices are in a new season of life. She feels she has been left behind by those who loved her time after time. How will she cope and what choices will she make? A story about healing and self-discovery during the hardest times and seasons of life.
Publication Date January 22, 2019
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book.
I really enjoyed Wildflower Heart by Grace Greene. The story of Kara and her dad, the opportunity for a second chance for them brought about by her accident and their move gave a lot of heart and meaning to this story.
The author’s characters and descriptions made me rapidly want to know much more about what was going to happen, ensuring that I was pulled into the story from the very beginning. I am excited that there’s going to be a sequel to this book because there is so much more I want to know about the characters. I really became invested in their lives!
If you like second chance stories, family sagas, or stories filled with lush scenery and great descriptions, this is your book.
Thanks to the author, publishers and Netgalley for approving my request for an ARC. My thoughts are my own.
Wildflower Heart is a bittersweet story full of pathos and sometimes desolation. It will touch a reader’s heart with a lingering sense of sorrow and yet not without hope. I was drawn into Kara’s story immediately as the first chapters find her a young teen dealing with the abandonment and subsequent loss of her mother. As the story continues, Kara finds life continues to bring challenges, challenges that may just break her spirit and yet, as her father reminds her, she is resilient and will find the strength to triumph. Beautifully written with the image of an amazing, almost magical field of wildflowers scattered throughout the story, Kara’s journey through grief is unexpected, and yet one in which she finds value. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and am looking forward to the second in the Wildflower House series. I was given a complimentary copy of the book and was not required to write a review. The opinions are my own.