The Language of Flowers

The Language of Flowers – Vanessa Diffenbaugh

(Random House, £6.99)

This novel is based around the romantic Victorian language of flowers – the symbolic meanings people placed on specific plants to convey emotion to loved ones. It’s a beautiful story about Victoria, a girl given into care, and the profound difference a foster mother made to her life. It is told in alternating chapters at the beginning of her twenties and the parallel of ten years past.

Her foster mother teaches her the floral symbolism as a way of conveying the locked-up emotion she holds inside. Through this process she researches and begins to create her own dialect. Once emancipated at 18, this becomes a way for her to communicate with the world and create a livelihood while learning to cope in a complex society.

As the author’s debut novel, it’s exceedingly hard to put down and is written in a very compelling voice, with no silly embellishments. It’s a gorgeous read and reels you in – one to curl up with in front of a fire and let yourself become totally absorbed.

Emma Creese, Residential Secretary, Howard de Walden Estates