Can two lost causes find love in the arms of one another?

Lily, the peculiar youngest daughter of an earl, would rather spend her life as a spinster, tending to her garden–alone. But when her father falls critically ill, she suddenly faces the possibility of becoming a penniless relation living on the charity of her sisters unless she can find a husband–now. But facing her fifth Season and feeling unable to meet the requirements of a proper wife, Lily despairs of finding a kind and patient man she can trust enough to marry.

Henry, the war-wounded second son of an earl, needs to have a son to secure his family’s future. But worried about his condition worsening and leaving him crippled, he fears turning any future wife into a mere companion and nursemaid.

Both are unable to resist the pressure from their families to attend the Season and at least try to find a spouse. Can these two lost causes see past their own limitations and let love in?

Garden of Hope is a very sweet tale of a crippled man with a very uncertain future ahead of him and a woman who might be just a bit too odd to catch the eye of a future husband. Can they look past each other’s faults to the person they are beneath?

I loved the characters right off the bat. Henry struggling to come to grips with his disability and Lilly pushing through her own insecurities. Henry even owns a pet squirrel! What a unique pet. And Lilly’s love of flowers is wholly endearing. I found myself laughing on more than one occasion when Henry’s surly sense of humor reared its head.

I had assumed James Astley would make an appearance in the book, as he seemed pretty important in the first chapter, but he didn’t show up. The story also drags in a few places with repetition when it comes to Henry’s concerns for not wanting to find a wife and the reasons why Lilly thinks she is not marriage material.

Overall, I enjoyed the book. The author did a great job at showing how scary and uncertain life can be for someone who is autistic (though the term isn’t used in the book), as well as delivering the message that everyone deserves love, no matter how odd they might be.

My rating: 4 stars

Daphne Bloom is an author of romances and cozy mysteries. She lives in a quaint Southern town with her family that lets her imagination run free. When she’s not watching the latest historical drama on TV, she’s usually curled up with her dog and a good book.

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