The Tea Rose [Import] [Paperback]

Jennifer Donnelly (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers Ltd (March 1, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0007161166
• ISBN-13: 978-0007161164
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (216 customer reviews)

More About the Author

My first childhood memories are of dad trying to get me to eat lima beans, and my mom telling me stories. I still won't eat lima beans, but the stories have stuck with me, and these days, I'm telling a few of my own.

I've written three novels so far: A Northern Light, The Tea Rose, The Winter Rose, and Humble Pie, a picture book for children.

My first novel, The Tea Rose, an epic set in London and New York in the late 19th century, was called 'exquisite' by Booklist, 'so much fun' by the Washington Post, a 'guilty pleasure' by People and was named a Top Pick by the Romantic Times.

My second novel, A Northern Light, set in the Adirondack Mountains of 1906, against the backdrop of an infamous murder, won the Carnegie Medal, the Los Angeles Times Book Prize, the Borders Original Voices Award, and was named a Printz Honor book. Described as 'rich and true' by The New York Times, the book was named to the Best Book lists of The Times (London), The Irish Times, The Financial Times, Publishers Weekly, Booklist and the School Library Journal.

The Winter Rose, my third novel and the second book in the The Tea Rose trilogy, is out now in the United Kingdom and will be published in the United States in January 2008.

Humble Pie, illustrated by Caldecott Medalist Stephen Gammell, tells the story of a selfish little boy named Theo who ultimately gets his just desserts.

I live in New York's Hudson Valley with my husband, our daughter, and Hannibal Lecter, our snapping turtle, whom we love dearly, but from a distance.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

176 of 185 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Definitely my cup of tea!, February 11, 2003

By 

Dianna Johnston "Compulsive Reader" (Joplin, MO) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Tea Rose: A Novel (Hardcover)

Wow! Finishing this book was the one thing I dreaded. The Tea Rose was a captivating, heartfelt, and engaging read. I was lost in this fascinating, atmospheric world of 19th century London, and would love to go back sometime and revisit the wonderful characters that Jennifer Donnelly created.

The Tea Rose tells the story of 17-year-old Fiona Finnegan and her beau, Joe Bristow. Fiona, a worker in a tea factory, and Joe, a coster in his family's produce business, have big dreams of opening their own tea shop one day. Saving money from every paycheck into an old cocoa tin, Fiona and Joe slowly get closer to realizing their dream. But things don't always work out they way they're planned -- the unionization of labor workers, a serial murderer on the loose, and a scheming buxom blonde play their part in destroying everything Fiona and Joe has worked for.

There is so much more to this novel, however, but I don't want to ruin the fun for readers to discover for themselves. There are many supporting characters that add complexity and texture to this story, and Jennifer Donnelly has done an exceptional job of bringing them all to life. The writing is concise and the perfect balance of dialogue and description. I loved every page, especially since there was always something new and exciting happening. The best book I've read so far this year, and most likely one that will be hard to top.

49 of 52 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Put this 'Tea' on ice..., September 12, 2009

By 

Eliza Bennet (The Ozarks) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Tea Rose: A Novel (Paperback)

After a promising beginning, author Jennifer Donnelly slowly moves this saga into the land of soap opera. The first portion, introducing characters and setting, are very well done. The hard-scrabble lives of the underprivileged in London in the 1880's come alive. I didn't even mind the Jack the Ripper plot, until the author stretches believability by bringing that subplot into the limelight. Part Two of the book begins a section that should be labeled "Part Too" because everything is too overdone. Fiona is too lucky, too ambitious, too beautiful. There are too many coincidences. Part Three is also too much. Fiona invents iced tea. Her sexless marriage is a "pure" love. Fiona invents tea bags. Really. Then the author descends into quintessential soap opera land, pitting Fiona against pure evil. The denouement of the love story between Joe and Fiona is overshadowed by the extreme melodrama. Donnelly has a pleasant writing style that cannot overcome the predictable. She allows action to overtake characterization. When all 544 pages were finished, I was left feeling like the time invested had paid no dividends.

38 of 40 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A FAT JUICY READ........AND A TOUCHING STORY, May 2, 2003

By 

Heather Marshall Negahdar "Haze" (Bridgetown, Barbados) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Tea Rose: A Novel (Hardcover)

There is something for everyone reading The Tea Rose. There is romance, action, murder, destruction, greed, ambition and even revenge. There are great characters in this story that you will not forget easily, especially Fiona Finnegan who is the central figure with great strength and fierce ambition.

From Whitechapel in East London in 1988 to New York City in all it elegance and glory, and the a return back to East London ten years later, we see Fiona Finnegan grow from a young girl into womanhood and we root for her, for she touches our lives, and we hold her close to our hearts as she faces a mixture of disappointments, stumbling blocks and successes, meeting each the only way she knows how.......with an enduringly tough spirit.

This is the first of Jennifer Donnelly's work that I have read and may I say it was extremely pleasurable for me. I hope there will be more from Ms. Donnelly for us readers who also have enjoyed the Tea Rose to the hilt. This book deserves more than five stars. Highly recommended!!!

Heather P Marshall