Roses

by Leila Meacham

Book Overview

Spanning the 20th century, the story ofRosestakes place in a small East Texas town against the backdrop of the powerful timber and cotton industries, industries controlled by the scions of the town's founding families. Cotton tycoon Mary Toliver and timber magnate Percy Warwick should have married but unwisely did not, and now must deal with the deceit, secrets, and tragedies of their choice and the loss of what might have been--not just for themselves...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0446550000
• ISBN13: 9780446550000
• Release Date: January 2010
• Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
• Length: 609 Pages
• Weight: 1.89 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.9" x 6.1" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

Another Great Leila Meacham Book

This is a great historical novel.

Best Saga since Gone with the Wind!!!

Wonderful Saga that I did not want to end. I loved it so much I read it in 2 night on my kindle. Page after page of drama. I love how the book starts in the "present time" then moves backward. This book has everything a southern saga should be - love of the land, money, power, love and rage. Three powerful families - intertwined by love and loyalty. Sometimes that loyalty costs each one of them more than they ever bargained for. One of the best southern saga's since Gone with the Wind. I fully expect a movie version if this book within the next few years.

A Beautiful, Sweeping Saga

What a fabulous book! To say I loved it doesn't do it justice. This is a saga that will remind you of The Thorn Birds and Gone With the Wind. Would be a fabulous book club choice as the characters are all so multi-dimensional.

Beautiful Southern Historical Fiction

This is the first book I have read by this author, and I loved every chapter! It is a quite volumnous book though it turned out to be a quick, enjoyable read. It tells a story of the history of the DuMont, the Tolliver and Warwick families, who started their empire in small town in Texas, and it spanned over a century. It detailed their tragedies, their conquests, their romances and their heartache. A lot of the book focused on each family's professions, and while I know nothing about farming, I truly enjoyed the information and came to understand it in a way I had never before imagined. The author's descriptions of the characters, the time period, and overall her attention to detail just swept me away to a magical era in a way that was not cumbersome or boring, and I did not feel the need to skim or pass over this book at all. Instead, I savored every word. It had the feel of Gone With The Wind, in that it was an epic love story, yet bittersweet. I highly recommend this book to anyone that likes a good old fashioned saga.

An Epic Tale of a Texas Family

Roses is a book in the tradition of Gone With the Wind, Giant, The Thorn Birds, any Rosamund Pilcher book--thick, hefty novels that tell a TALE. This was definitely a hard-to-put-down novel. Once the story got rolling along, which was fairly quickly, this was a satisfying, enjoyable read. It is the story of two star-crossed lovers in the early 1920's-1920's thru the present, and the decisions they made that ultimately kept them apart. Mary Tolliver and Percy Warwick love each other thru their entire long lives and their regrettable choices may be duplicated by their grandchildren if changes are not made. This is a well-written, solid tale which takes the reader through the lives of these two very likable, stubborn and independent characters. A good, solid, read!!

Could not put this book down!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book! I started it one snowy evening and had to stay up and finish. I was totally enthralled with Mary's life and what had happened to lead up to the opening moments in the first chapter. The book sets the stage for flashbacks and the is divided into three parts: Mary's Story, another main character's story (no spoilers from me!) and then the present when everything wraps up. Even though I knew how Mary's life had ended up, I was so captivated by her and the other characters that I kept hoping that she would make different decisions, change her life, etc. This book was a wonderful guilty pleasure....kind of like 'The Thorn Birds" lite. I did think that the third section dragged a bit. Maybe because I was so wrapped up in the past and Mary's life, I did not care as much about her great-niece Rachel, or maybe I was just tired. But things started to seem a bit redundant, especially the symbolism of the red and white roses. But all in all, I HIGHLY recommend this book!