The Tea Rose

I have always been a sucker for a good epic saga.  The Tea Rose is the first in a series of three books.  I stayed up nights, bleary-eyed reading this book because I enjoyed it so much.  I skipped sleeping on two flights in order to read this book (and I'm usually that person that immediately puts on headphones and takes a nap on a plane). So it's safe to say I really got into it. While there is a fair amount of sappiness, that is to be expected when you set a book in late 19th century London and New York and have two young people torn apart by a string of events, yet still so in love with each other.  It's a given that there will be forlorn looks and sweet caresses so just give in and enjoy it.  I also found it refreshing to finally have a heroine with some gusto.  I often lament to my friends about the lack of a good strong heroine in current fiction.  Well the main protagonist in The Tea Rose (Fiona) may be grieving over her poor schmuck of an ex-boyfriend, however she channels those feelings of betrayal, sadness, and anger into a life full of success instead of laying around the rest of her life whining. I think that's what kept me going. Fiona is strong-willed and takes on the world. This is a good winter book, because at 545 pages you can settle down with a cup of tea, get cozy and enjoy losing yourself in late 19th century London and New York.