Coming Up Roses

Very adventurous book . Many stories in one .

With many books, once I turn the last page, the story's image disappears. Within a few days, I have forgotten the book's foundation. This is not so in Catherine Anderson's "Coming Up Roses." I think the child in this harrowing tale will live in my memory forever. Kate Blakely and her daughter, Miranda, endured personal hell for five long years. An agonizing world controlled by a heinous man - a perverted man to whom Kate Blakely had regrettably married. A man unsoundly motivated -- by his own interpretation of the Bible. Joseph Blakely perceived his wife and daughter as `Handmaidens to Satan' - sent by the evil one to tempt him into sin. Zachariah McGovern is the neighbor around whom Miranda builds a castle of dreams. In Miranda's eyes, this man is her hero. A man who ranks right up there with the fairies, the elves, and the mystical unicorns from her mother's fairytales -- he is the stuff of magical wishes. Zachariah McGovern is a god sent.Through the pages, the author has drawn striking character sketches. Kate Blakely is a gentle, loving woman -- the victim of a life mistake. Anderson drafts Zachariah McGovern from her masculine template - brawny men who are everything wonderful. And little Miranda Blakely is divine, the star of the story. This cast and their lives make remarkable reading material.What are the problems? The conclusion wrapped up too nicely, too methodically. These are two wounded souls who would not come back from the brink of destruction so easily -- no matter who the hero is. Secondly, Zachariah's tragic past was an unnecessary side story. Still, this is a forceful well-written story.Grace Atkinson, Ontario - Canada.

This book will touch from the beginning until the end. I have read it several times, and when anyone asks me if I have a book they can read, this is the one I suggest. Hopefully you can find a copy somewhere, I loan mine, but it is a permanent part of my library.