Louise Wyatt reviews Rosa by Jeanette Taylot Ford

Today Emma Powell reviews Rosa, the fabulous new release from Jeanette Taylor Ford. The author has kindly offered a paperback copy (signed if the winner is in the UK) as a giveaway. To be in with a chance of winning this fabulous story, simply leave a comment below of on our Facebook Page.

The winner will be drawn on 13th December 2017.
Good luck!

Elizabeth Rosa Fulton is leading a great life. The bright star in the sky of Lake Enterprises as its Business Manager, she is also the shining light in the life of Justin Lake, her boss and owner of Lake Enterprises. However, as the result of a certain event, all this suddenly changes, leaving Elizabeth broken hearted and without a job or a home.
When her grandfather, Lord Carrington, offers her the post of Estate Manager to the Longdene Estate, Elizabeth feels that this is the place to recover from her broken heart and be useful to the family at the same time. And indeed, she loves Longdene and the friends she makes there. But, as time goes on, as she learns about the mysterious disappearance, many years before, of her great grandmother and namesake Rosa, Elizabeth becomes a victim of a series of unexplained and scary ‘dreams’.
As the events escalate, Elizabeth has cause to doubt everyone around her, even her friends. And, as the culmination of experiences rises to something quite terrifying, Elizabeth has to ask herself if she is really being haunted by her dead great grandparents or is she going mad?

Well, this book certainly keeps the old brain matter ticking!  A storyline that is constant and focused, Jeanette writes with a flair for the psychological grip that keeps a reader reading and the pages turning.

In fact, I really am stumped at what genre to put this book in; a fabulous twisty, turning thriller that turns into a literary weave across thriller, mystery, paranormal and romance and it shows the gift of the author to be able to carry the story through.  What makes this book stand out is the fact it can’t actually be put in the usual boxes – it’s unique.

So, we have the main character of Lady Elizabeth Rosa Fulton but this is no high-brow aristocrat; she becomes known as Izzy throughout the book, whose ordered life goes all wrong and has to retreat to the family home and estate in Norfolk, a world away from her life and stress in London. She was a high-flyer, with a matching lifestyle and a lover who ends up turning her world upside down. Once she arrives at her family estate, she encounters the enigmatic estate manager Dan, who has an almost supernatural gift; his sister Gerry, who helps keep Izzy grounded, and then we have her grandfather.  What you see (read) of him isn’t necessarily what you get.  As her recuperation progresses, Izzy begins to learn of her great-grandmother’s disappearance which transpires to be a closely guarded family secret and once the doorway to a locked room is opened, Izzy starts having visions of Rosa, her great-grandmother and the lady whom she is named after.

Written in the first person, Rosa’s tragic story from the past begins to be told through Izzy’s present day. The author cleverly takes you through the emotional highs and lows, the fear, the unknown and the what-will-happen-next. Who do you trust, who do you not, who is helping you, who is against you?  With a character list kept quite limited, the story is intense and vibrant, never dulling for a moment and again, it is the gift of the author that the writing never falls flat, or bland but keeps the reader in the moment. 

With poor Izzy fearing for her sanity – and no wonder – plus the ex-boyfriend reappearing to stir things up a bit, the reader can fully empathise with Izzy and be left wondering if indeed, poor Izzy is going mad or there is something else going on.

It really is difficult to put down as each chapter builds the tension and the intrigue to an ending you cannot see coming – in fact, I guarantee you will not predict the twist! The prologue meaning becomes obvious as you progress through the book.  You get a taster for how delightfully addictive this book will be by that one-page prologue alone.

Bit difficult to go into anymore story as it would give the whole book away.  Needless to say, if you like an adventure, to be on the edge of your seat, with time to read a whole book in one day, as well as fall in love with the characters, like a shock and enjoy a bit of every genre going, this book should, at the very least, be on your To Be Read Pile.  It won’t stay there very long.  

About the author:
Jeanette Taylor-Ford is a retired Teaching Assistant. She grew up in Cromer, Norfolk, England and moved to Hereford with her parents when she was seventeen. An undiagnosed Coeliac, Jeanette was a poorly child but even when only nine or ten she had the ability to write good stories. When young her ambition was to be a journalist but life took her in another direction and her life’s work has been with children – firstly as a nursery assistant in a children’s home, and later in education. In between she raised her own six children and she now has seven grandchildren. Jeanette took up writing again in 2010; to date she has written three other books besides 'Rosa' and hopes to published them soon. Besides writing, Jeanette enjoys reading, sewing and other handicrafts. She lives with her husband Tony, a retired teacher and headmaster, in Derbyshire, England. 

Rosa is available from Amazon

About the reviewer: 

Louise realised her love of words and all things written when, at the tender age of five, she began devouring Ladybird books faster than her teacher could supply them. After winning various writing and poetry competitions throughout school, she ended up having her family then training to be a nurse, but always wrote for pleasure. Louise became a book reviewer and proof reader as well as starting a blog a few years ago for her love of history. Her first book, Secret Hayes by Amberley Publishing, is due for release 15^th February 2018 and Louise is currently writing Secret Chepstow and A History of Nursing, both also for Amberley.

Secret Hayes will be available in the UK from Amberley, W H Smith, Waterstones, Amazon and worldwide from Book Depository.

You can find Louise on Facebook and at her blog.