Chosen as a Richard and Judy Book Club selection Autumn 2015.
An exotically intense, vibrant and memorable tale, set in Ceylon from 1925 and covering a period of eleven years. Nineteen year old Gwen discovers an unfamiliar world both physically and emotionally when she leaves England to be with her new husband. Gwen enters a testing arena, conflict comes in many forms and destructive secrets convulse corrosively just out of reach. Dinah Jefferies opens up Ceylon for our viewing, tasting and touching pleasure, she describes this vivid land and customs quite beautifully, while settling the story gently within its midst. The characters are portrayed realistically, mistakes are made and hidden, guilt and suspicion become damaging companions. Written with true eloquence and compassion The Tea Planter’s Wife is a profoundly moving and engaging novel. ~ Liz Robinson
Dinah Jefferies' unforgettable new novel, The Tea Planter's Wife is a haunting, tender portrait of a woman forced to choose between her duty as a wife and her instinct as a mother...Nineteen-year-old Gwendolyn Hooper steps off a steamer in Ceylon full of optimism, eager to join her new husband. But the man who greets her at the tea plantation is not the same one she fell in love with in London. Distant and brooding, Laurence spends long days wrapped up in his work, leaving his young bride to explore the plantation alone. It's a place filled with clues to the past - locked doors, a yellowed wedding dress in a dusty trunk, an overgrown grave hidden in the grounds, far too small for an adult...Gwen soon falls pregnant and her husband is overjoyed, but she has little time to celebrate. In the delivery room the new mother is faced with a terrible choice, one she knows no one in her upper class set will understand - least of all Laurence. Forced to bury a secret at the heart of her marriage, Gwen is more isolated than ever. When the time comes, how will her husband ever understand what she has done? The Tea Planter's Wife is a story of guilt, betrayal and untold secrets vividly and entrancingly set in colonial era Ceylon. Captivating, powerful and passionate. (Deborah Rodriguez on The Separation). A richly detailed story...as intimate as a kiss and as sharp as the blade of a knife. (David Gilham on The Separation). I simply didn't want to put it down. Vivid and atmospheric - you can smell the tropics, feel the drenching heat... (Isabel Wolff on The Separation).
'Beautifully written and heart rending, this has a magical setting with a real sense of period.' -- Katie Fforde, bestselling author of A French Affair
Captivating, powerful and passionate -- Deborah Rodriguez on The Separation
'A richly detailed story... as intimate as a kiss and as sharp as the blade of a knife' -- David Gilham on The Separation
Author
About Dinah Jefferies
Dinah Jefferies was born in Malaysia and moved to England at the age of nine. She has worked in education, lived in a commune and exhibited work as an artist. Dinah's first novel,The Separation, was published by Viking in 2014; The Tea Planter's Wife is her second novel. She is a contributor to the Guardian and other newspapers and lives in Gloucestershire with her husband.
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