Wildflower Hill by Kimberley Freeman
A few years ago I read and enjoyed Kimberley Freeman’s Duet so I was thrilled to see Wildflower Hill available as an ebook.
In 1929 Beattie Blaxland has big ambitions. She is a talented dressmaker in Glasgow and when she lands her dream job she hopes to move up the ranks and make a name for herself. However, she finds herself pregnant to her married lover who is a notorious gambler…
In 2009 Emma Blaxland-hunter was living her dream in London as a prima ballerina until her world came crashing down around her. She returns to Australia and finds herself sorting through boxes that reveal her grandmother’s secrets.
First Impressions: A great start to this novel. I was drawn into the story and could barely bring myself to put it down when I heard my son wake up from his nap!
Highlights: I usually shun books about fashion designers and dancers (and cupcakes, and book groups, and chocolate shops, and …) but this novel just worked for me. It is well written with a lot of warmth and I enjoyed all the characters. It also made a comment about Australian society prior to WW2.
If I was an editor: I would be delighted at how this book really is a wonderful example of the genre. The dastardly original owner of Wildflower Hill is rather one dimensional and the way Beattie moves her way into the property is rather preposterous but you expect elements of this in such a novel. I really enjoyed the story until a series of calamitous events occur within a few pages, a standard of the genre. It’s the reason I don’t often read such novels as I find a fair amount of the critical plot a bit too convenient but this said, it is what I was expecting.
Overall: A gripping romantic page turner.
Wildflower Hill: 4 stars
Orange Pekoe Reviews 
Like you I found some elements of the book too convenient as well as finding Emma’s character development a little heavy-handed.
Absolutely. It felt like every conceivable personal tragedy struck Beattie within 10 pages. Emma’s involvement with the dance troupe was predictable and the sister’s (forget her name) righteousness about the blossoming romance was a little over the top.
However, I thought it was an enjoyable read for this sort of book which I read from time to time to break up some heavier reads.