The Ghost of Briar Rose by Anna Romer

A haunted garden. A lost love. And a crime that will trap her forever.

Australia, 1914. Rose is locked away in a back room, considered a monster by her father. But when the new gardener arrives and glimpses the girl Rose believes herself to be on the inside, she decides to take a chance on love—with devastating consequences.

A hundred years later, Rose is now haunting the beautiful old mountainside garden, keeping the world at bay to protect her dark secrets. For ghost hunter Cleary Branchwood, getting rid of her seems like just another easy payday. But Rose is determined to unravel the mystery of her death and clear her name of a horrifying crime.

As they join forces to unearth Rose's tragic past and set her free, they must also confront their growing feelings for each other. Could Cleary and his young daughter be the family Rose has always yearned for?

But with each step closer to the truth, Rose fears that the monster lying dormant inside her will destroy not only her chance at love, but also the lives of those she cares for most.

A heart-wrenching enemies to lovers mystery from bestseller Anna Romer

Kindle Edition, 385 pages

Published July 25, 2024

by Ravensong Books

4.5/5 stars

It’s 1914 and Rose is stuck in time, she is a ghost that lingers around her family estate.

Current day we have Cleary, a ghost hunter who buys the haunted property with hopes of sending her onto the beyond, doing a quick reno and moving on to his next project. Both Rose and Cleary are haunted by the past and struggling to move forward. As a friendship forms, the past is revealed, the hurts are brought out into the open and a love story emerges that can never be satisfied. Because one is a ghost and one isn’t.

Anna Romer is one of my favourite go-to authors. I have read everything she’s written and loved each and every one of them. She’s Australian and her books are hard to come by here in Canada. Though I have print copies of her previous books this one I grabbed the Kindle copy (couldn't wait for the print copy).

The Ghost of Briar Rose is a haunting, slow paced and well written story. I was captivated with the plot line and how the story slowly unveiled its secrets and a past that was emotional.  The ending was great and again Anna Romer checked all the boxes for what I love in a good ghost story.  

My copy obtained through Amazon, kindle versions of all her books are readily available and in some cases the audiobook also.  Give her a try, I'd love to hear your thoughts.