Where the Wild Cherries Grow

Where the Wild Cherries Grow by Laura Madeleine is a historical novel that takes readers from 1969 to 1919. In 1969 William “Bill” Perch is a solicitor’s assistant at Hillbrand and Moffat Solicitors. Mrs. Mallory and her brother need the firm’s assistance in locating Emeline Vane. Emeline is one of the estate’s heirs, and she has been missing for fifty years. They are unable to sell the derelict manor house until they can prove that she is dead. It is up to Bill to locate Emeline or proof of her death. Bill travels to the family estate in Norfolk where he discovers an old diary of Emeline’s along with other papers. Through Emeline’s words, Bill feels a connection with this woman from the past. Bill knows that she disappeared at the train station in Paris and this is where he begins. The journey to uncover Emeline’s whereabouts starts Bill on a new path and a chance for rich, full life. Where the Wild Cherries Grow is a dual timeline novel. The story is told from Bill and Emeline’s point-of-views in alternating chapters. Ms. Madeleine has a nice descriptive writing style. The pace is a little slower than I normally like, but it does go with the story. The author provides vivid descriptions that allow the reader to visualize the scenes (brings the scenery of France alive). The food depictions will have your mouth watering. Emeline and Bill are well-developed characters. I found them to be real and fit into their time periods. I found the slang from 1969 to be entertaining (made me chuckle). Readers experience Emeline’s journey and I can certainly understand why she took off. Life was very different for women in 1919 especially if they were under the age of majority. Where the Wild Cherries Grow is a unique tale that will keep you reading to find out what happened to Emeline.

Emeline Vane was the only daughter, with two elder and one younger brother – she was always imaginative and curious, and prone to her own flights of imagination. Now with the death of her mother from the Spanish Flu, and her older brothers at war, she’s the only person in the family home, Hallerton House, in Norfolk. In need of repairs, maintenance and money, there isn’t enough to go around and Emeline’s uncle is negotiating the sale. She’s still grieving and lonely, and her family believes she is not ‘all there”. A dinner party goes awry, and arrangements are made for her to be committed to a sanitorium in Switzerland, leaving her uncle in charge of her youngest brother, her life and her future. Emeline has consistently been plagued by her memories – using her mother’s remaining morphine to escape, and drugged by her uncle as she travels with him to Paris, awaiting a transfer to Switzerland, she jumps off the train and is rescued by a young man, loaded onto a freight train to ride the rails south. Poor Bill, truly a fish out of water and far more conservative than the times and most of his friends, his first trip out of London faced with travel delays and hiccups and a decrepit house full of memories and strange noises, he’s befriended a distant relation of his boss – a “hippie’ who is both intriguing and scaring him. Piles of disorganized papers, holes and crows nesting and a strange sense that someone is watching have him all unsettled, and then he discovers Emeline’s diary – and starts to feel that she may actually have left for good reasons. When he returns to London, diary and photo in hand – and then leaves to meet the ailing brother that believes Emeline is alive – he’s off again – this time to Paris to track down her trail. Armed only with a letter and an address, he meets Puce, the man who rescued Emeline years ago – and is sent on a journey of discovery. From trains south to meeting a group of students intent on entering Spain via a little-known and less guarded crossing at the south of France – his story is one of a journey to being a ‘really good or horridly bad’ solicitor. Lushly evocative with wonderful moments of food, description and traditions, the story does take a bit of time to acclimate to: as we meet Emeline first and her narratives are very detailed yet dreamy – almost as if she is setting a screenplay. Bill is intriguing for his flexibility and willingness to step out of his comfort zone: enjoying the adventure and difference even as he can’t explain why he needs so badly to find Emeline. Then the magic of the region, the traditions and the voices take over as each character comes alive and shares moments, giving a sense of who they were, who they are, and just who they are meant to be. Another slow to develop but poignantly rich tale that will keep readers happy in their own little mystery escape. I received an eArc copy of the title from the publisher via NetGalley for purpose of honest review. I was not compensated for this review: all conclusions are my own responsibility.