When I read the description of this book I thought I would enjoy it. I could not. I tried on several attempts to become connected with the book and I could not. I am not sure what it was maybe the POV but I could not connect.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.

I enjoyed this historical romance story with the two main that were Lady Lily Derby and Henry Pembroke. And also the rest of the characters to.

Lady Lily Derby is very shy and also has a wonderful talent for gardening. She is quite different that most ladies of the ton. She would rather play in her family garden then do things that other lady's do. So when her father falls critically ill she is suddenly face with the possibility of becoming very penniless. So her sisters take her to London for her fifth Season in hope that she can find a husband.

Henry Pembroke is the second son of an earl. His father want him to look for a wife this season to secure the family future. But he not sure that any lady of the ton will marry him because of his cripple ness. He had an accident while he was in India.

This story was fun to read. It had a lot of different types of emotion through out it that I was feeling. It was neat how the author had a squirrel as a pet for Henry.

I received a complimentary copy via Booksprout. This is my honest unbiased opinion.

Lily’s parents and siblings, were pretentious, prejudice, and too controlling. Although she had her strange ways, she and Henry were the only two people who were not biased and presumptuous. They had their differences, but together they complemented each other. This story showed that love knew no boundaries, and Lily and Henry were no exception to its machinations. A tender, loving, caring, and romantic read.

This was a clean romance about two outcasts who need to marry. I found it interesting to read a story about the difficulties for people with a disability facing the marriage mart of the ton. I had a lot of empathy for the challenges that Lily and Henry faced.

This was a very enjoyable story to read. Take one unique heroine and one wounded hero. Mix them together to get a sweet, clean and engrossing romance. I will definitely recommend this book.
Thank you Daphne Bloom, BooksGoSocial and NetGalley for allowing me an advance copy for my honest feedback.

This was a sweet clean romance with a heroine who was seen as an odd duck and a hero who was physically damaged. It was a nicely written story, but I just could not get into it as much as I would have liked to. Something that I can't quite put my hands on was off for me, and I found myself skimming through the story more than I would have liked. It might be just fine for someone else, but for me it just did not work.

I received a complimentary copy of this book and I am voluntarily reviewing it.

This was a charming story about two people who must marry. They are basically social outcast of the peerage though so it was enchanting to see how these two imperfect protagonists could possibly overcome and find their HEA.

Henry Pembroke is the second son of an Earl. His older brother has a son to inherit the title but Henry's father himself was a second son that inherited when his older brother and family were lost at sea. Henry is being forced to marry to secure the family lineage on the off-chance of some tragedy happening again like that. Henry though was injured while in service to the Crown in India. He is in constant pain and agony. No lady of the peer wants anything to do with Henry as his is considered "cripple". Henry meets Lady Lily Derby, she is different from most ladies of the peer. She is shy, has a wonderful talent for gardening but speaks her mind, she lacks social graces and has problems with learning the "proper ways of a lady". She is the youngest daughter of an Earl and has not attended a Season in several years. She is well on her way to being a spinster, which makes her happy but her father's will states that if she isn't married, her dowry will go back to the estate and she will be penniless. She will be forced to live with one of her married sisters and be at the mercy of the husband. Most consider her peculiar and not marriageable as she may pass her peculiarity to any of her children.

Reading about these two from both of their POV was so wonderful. That chance to really get to know them and understand them better really brought them to life. I was totally enthralled to see how they could possibly come together as they were always being thrown a curve.

I would highly recommend this to anyone who loves historical romances especially if it involves imperfect protagonists!

A beautifully written romance. Lily and Henry are deemed flawed by society but are determined to follow their own paths to happiness instead of meekly following everyone else's agenda.
I couldn't help but feel for Lily, A sweet girl on the spectrum who finds peace and solitude in her garden. To find herself being thrust into the social demands of the season could only have been torturous, not to mention the added indignity of gossip and the impression people had of her that she was an oddity and bit of a loon. It was obvious from the beginning that she and Henry would be perfect for one another and I couldn't help but hope that things would work out for them. They both have their insecurities but they had a few sweet scenes. In the garden during the ball springs to mind and when Lily sent Henry a thoughtful gift at the same time he was sending one to her. I thought it was adorable the way his servants gave him encouragement.
This was a quick and very enjoyable read and certainly put a smile on my face.
I'm really looking forward to the next book in the series. I'm also wondering if Lord Astley will make an appearance in one of the future titles.

Lily was a shy peculiar girl at the beginning of the novel and it was fun to see her bloom like her flowers as the novel went on. This was a fun read but it took awhile for me to adjust to the first person view. I prefer my novels in third person omniscient. Other than that it was delightful.

This was a refreshing historical story!!!!! First by this author for me & I loved it!!!! Daphne & her story will stay with me for for a long time.

Lady Lily is the youngest daughter of the Earl of Derby. Her family is desperate to marry her off because she would be penniless after her father's death. The marriage mart is hard for her because she feels more at home with her plants and flowers than people. She has trouble understanding the nuances of social conversations, she blurts out inconvenient truths, she has trouble with eye contact and she was slow to learn to speak. Nowadays we would diagnose her with a neuropsychiatric condition, but everyone she knows just thinks that she is strange. She thinks she will never marry.

But then we are introduced to Henry's viewpoint and figure out that this is probably whom she ends up marrying. Henry is the younger son of the Earl of Pembroke. His family wants him to get married too, just in case something happens to his brother or his only son. Henry has been injured in India and is not sure he can make it as a husband. He feels most young ladies see only his injury, but he feels that Lily is different. His family doesn't want him to marry Lily, however, as they don't think she can raise a future earl or function as a countess, if the worst should happen to the other heirs.

I liked the imperfections and the insecurities of the characters but I didn't feel their connection. Henry jumps to loving Lily after just a couple of short conversations and it was too quick for me.

I read an ARC from Netgalley, and in that version there were a number of editing errors that hopefully didn't make it to the published book, such as missing words, and Henry telling Lily, "You're dress!" At one point Lily's cousin Albert is introduced as Mr. Derby", and in another, he calls himself, Crenshaw. A minor character's name is Haddington on one page and Harrington on the next. The earls of Pembroke and Derby got confused at some point. There is some historical confusion as well. The time period is a little unclear in the book but the Amazon page for this book as well as the Goodreads blurb describe Garden of Hope as" A Sweet and Clean Regency Romance". But the characters get messages in telegrams, and as far as I understand telegrams were not commercially available until after the Regency period. The usage of titles and addresses is messy, as Henry is referred to as Lord Henry but as a mere younger son of an earl he wouldn't be a lord. Somebody calls his brother George's wife Lady Pembroke but technically that would be Henry's mother. Henry talks to women he hasn't been introduced to and addresses Lily rather improperly in public. It is assumed that Lily's son would inherit her father's title if her cousin dies without male heirs but that is not usually how inherited titles worked.
These things may or may not have been corrected in the final edit.

Very cute story, read it all in one seating!

Both MCs are very likeable, with their flaws and everything. I usually do not like alternated POV, but on this particular case did not bother me. I loved being inside both of their minds, made me truly see their struggles. The secondary characters, though also flawed, were well rounded and with substance, something that sometimes lack in others books I read.

My only wish was that they spent more time together. Their encounters were few and quite briefs, and though I could see how they would be a nice match in the end, I missed seeing their courtship. They are apart for most of the book :(

Aside from that, it was a quite enjoyable read and I will be checking out other books by this author!

Sounded promising as a light Regency romance which it was, to a degree. Lily wants to garden not find herself an eligible young man; Henry was wounded in the Indian Wars and doesn't think he should marry, a bit coyly noting he may not be able to father children after a while. They meet and find companionship but families want other things for them. Chapters switch between Henry and Lily narrative which is annoying at times. More annoying are their attitudes - sometimes they feel very modern, too modern, at others they just need a shake (my modern point of view no doubt). A pleasant enough story. Thanks to NetGalley and Beyond the Page publishing for an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

This is a delightful story. Lily would rather spend her time gardening than engaged in the genteel pursuits of a noble young lady. She is indifferent to marriage, but her parents are determined to see her well settled.

Henry suffered an injury in India that may get progressively worse. His parents are eager for him to marry and secure the family line right away, in case that becomes impossible in the coming years. However, he has no desire to marry for money, nor to saddle a loving wife with an invalid husband and childless existence.

The storytelling is vibrant and immersed me immediately. The use of first person, present tense is unusual for historical romance, but that didn't harm the story in my opinion. The characters' predicaments touched my heart, and I really rooted for them to find the life they wanted, rather than the one that others expected of them.

I'm grateful to have received an ARC of this book from Netgalley, because I likely wouldn't have discovered it otherwise. This is my honest review.

Very nice book! Sweet with a great heroine who I adored! She loved nature and animals, which definitely appealed to me as an animal lover myself. This wasn’t by no means the perfect book, in my opinion, but it was still quite wonderful!

I have been reading Historical Romance for thirty-five years. I got an Advanced Reader copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I had a very hard time reading the book because it is written in first person POV. I absolutely HATE first person. To me, it lacks the depth of third person POV. I also think it has a total contemporary feel. I just could not finish this book which was sad. The blurb gave so much promise.

An utterly sweet love story.

I loved how the heroine is a different story of woman. Socially awkward and shy. This novel is very inclusive of suchlike people and I thoroughly enjoyed the book. The storytelling was masterful and the salvation of good over evil was brilliant.

An awesome read.

Absolutely the most beautiful romance! I loved the compassion for Lily and that Lily had for others. It does not take long to realize she is on the spectrum, making for a beautiful heroine! Her family knew what to do for her and how to help her. I loved that Ms. Bloom included those moments when Lily’s family ‘lost it’ keeping it real. More than anything Lily’s family loved, accepted her and protected her.

I, also, loved how very accepting Henry was of Lily. Henry had his own issues with his physical disability, which seemed to give him more compassion for Lily. He realized she saw him as a man, not as a man needing a cane. He, also, had to ‘fight’ his family to be allowed to make his own decisions.

Both Lily and Henry had hidden strengths that came out when needed most. Such a beautiful couple who belong together! The alternating of Lily and Henry added another dimension allowing us to really see into their thoughts without a lot of unnecessary dialogue and adding to Lily’s disability. I appreciate how Henry, very politely, stood up to Albert.

Albert – I still question Lily’s father’s sudden death following Lily’s conversation with Albert. Yes, Lily’s father may have helped there in the end.

SPOILER:

Right off the bat, I wondered about the supposed quirks of the female protagonist. Turns out the author confirms it after the story finishes by sharing a tidbit from her family's life.

I am not a fan of 1st person point of view stories. The strength of the plot was enough to keep me reading this one. It switched back and forth between the two main characters and the flow felt slightly broken.

The love and redemption of two "broken" people is what redeemed it for me. I cannot imagine what it would be like in those times when marriage was like a sale not a relationship. Having anything imperfect about you ended your chances and certain societal positions would require a certain level of appropriate spouse.

*spoiler*
My fave part of the story is how the author writes the quirks of autism. She explains later that her own child is autistic. She understands it better than most. It is because of her personal experiences that her writing shines so brightly.

I would recommend this story if you want a story of overcoming challenges. Some people will live the 1st person point of view, even if it isn't my personal fave.

I received an ARC via Netgalley but I freely give my honest review.

3.5 stars

An interesting story. The heroine, Lily is on the autistic spectrum and finds joy in her garden, the hero, Henry has suffered an injury in India and is unsure he will ever be fully recovered. It was a sweet clean romance with the added jeopady of an unpleasant cousin and worries over the succession. I'm pretty sure that a grandson, the progeny of a daughter, would not inherit the title. He could have the unentailed riches but not the title. Little details like that can often spoil a story. I'm also not that fond of alternate chapters being told be different characters.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own