Author(s): Leah Fleming

Fiction

AD 912: Fritha--she sows her plot with the seeds of tragedy and waters it with bitter tears. But there is comfort in the nurturing of her plants and herbs and Fritha is rewarded by new life and new hope. 1998: Iris--more than 1,000 years later, Iris Bagshott strolls round the ancient garden at Friddy's Piece Cottage, deciding whether to sell her land or stay on. Each corner of the plot harbors myriad secrets: this garden in the heart of England has offered solace and refuge to many. The generations of women that come between these years offer a view of English history from a uniquely female perspective. The terror of the Plague Years, the Reformation, the cruel divisions of the Civil War, the heartbreak of the Great War--all are seen anew through the eyes of the Bagshott and the Salt women who have found sorrow and joy, inspiration and courage down the garden path.