See How They Fall

The Turner family meet to spend Easter together at the family property, Yallambee, in New South Wales. Sir Campbell Turner, who had created a family business that traded worldwide, had recently died and part of the reason for the family get-together is for his three sons, Jamie, Duncan and Hugo, to discuss the distribution of the family fortune. But before the weekend ends one person will be dead and a six year old girl will be seriously ill in hospital.

Initially See How They Fall by Rachel Parks reads as a mystery novel with the need to discover who committed the crime, but it soon becomes obvious that it is much more than that. The story is narrated by Skye, the wife of Duncan Turner, and Mei O'Connor who is investigating the case. The corruption that has occurred within the Turner family is gradually revealed along with the extent that family members will go to cover up the family's crime activities.

As the novel develops into a psychological thriller it is difficult to stop reading as the reader encounters another twist or turn as the exploits of this dysfunctional family are revealed. The Turner family is used being above the law. Skye and Mei are determined that this time the truth will be revealed.

See How They Fall is a debut novel for New Zealand writer, Rachel Paris. I look forward to reading her next book. 

 This was the Monash University Alumni Book Club book for October 2025. 

Review: See How They Fall - Debbishdotcom  

Review:See How They Fall - Aotearoa New Zealand Review of Books  

People absolutely hate me - The Spinoff  

See  How They Fall - Goodreads 

The Paris Cooking School

Having recently enjoyed reading A Secret Garden in Paris by Sophie Beaumont, I decided to read her previous novel set in Paris, The Paris Cooking School. I was not disappointed.

Sylvie Morel runs the Paris Cooking School where people from overseas countries can spend four weeks experiencing French cuisine. Eight people are in the class that Gabi Picabea and Kate Evans, two Australians, attend. The novel follows their experiences in France as they each endeavour to come to terms with other events in their lives as well as learning how to prepare French food. Sylvie has problems of her own as she discovers that someone is trying to sabotage the cooking school.

The stars of the book are Paris and the French food discussed in the book. As the cooking classes continue Gabi and Kate reassess their lives and how they want to live in the future. This is a book of friendship, love and hope as well as the magic of visiting the city of Paris, not to mention the mouth watering food.

A Secret Garden in Paris

Several days exploring Paris, including a number of the large public parks and gardens, in 2011 proved to us that Paris is a special place. A Secret Garden in Paris, by Sophie Beaumont has captured the beauty and significance of the gardens and parks, including some of the smaller, often hidden public and private gardens in the city, as the novel reveals the interweaving stories of three women as they resolve relationship issues. 

Emma Taylor has come to Paris from Sydney to visit her grandmother, Mattie. Emma believes that her mother, Corrine, was going to tell Emma about her father but Corinne died before the story could be revealed. All Emma has is a photograph of her mother in a field which she hopes may lead to the discovery of the identity of her father.

Charlotte Marigny has made the journey to Paris from London where she works as a garden designer. French born Charlotte seeks solace in Paris as she takes time to consider complications that have arisen in her marriage.

Arielle Lunel lives in Paris and enjoys working in the flower market. Her husband died several years earlier and she is now rebuilding her life and looking after her twins. Then her parents-in-law arrive with a proposal to take and educate her children.

As Emma's grandfather's garden had been neglected since his death three years earlier, Emma decides to make this secret garden her project while she is visiting Paris. In the process she meets Charlotte and Arielle who provide assistance and encouragement as she restores the garden. A mutual friendship develops through their love of flowers and also as they help Emma with her family history search.

In A Secret Garden in Paris, Sophie Beaumont has shown gardens not only to be places of beauty and tranquility for all to enjoy but uses them as the setting for the characters to come to terms with problems and situations they are facing. Their involvement with gardens and flowers helps each of the women to find peace and solutions to the challenges of life and also makes it an enjoyable book to read.

Many thanks to Better Reading and Ultimo Press for a preview copy of this book.

Josephine's Garden

When Rose de Beauharnais is released from prison at the end of the French Revolution in 1794 she little suspects that she will one day be Empress of France and known as Josephine. In the novel Josephine's Garden, Sephanie Parkyn continues her exploration of French history from the end of the eighteenth century to early nineteenth century by interweaving the story of Josephine Bonaparte with that of Anne, wife of the botanist Felix Lahaie, and Marthe, wife of savant Jacques de Labillardiere. 

When Josephine marries the soldier, Napoleon Boneparte, she discovers a dilapidated house by a lake with the sad name of Malmaison and decides there and then that the house should be restored and that the gardens will be her project. The plan is to make them the best gardens in France and include examples of the variety of exotic plants brought back to France by French explorers. She needs assistance to fulfill her plan so enlists the skills of Felix Lahaie who had recently returned from a four year voyage to New Holland and nearby islands. 

There are a number of themes in this book. One is the rivalry between the botanists and Josephine to be able to propagate plants from the other side of the world in France. Another theme is the quest for political power and also the need for political stability. The French Revolution did not remove the the political tensions in the country which increase as Napoleon rises to power and sets out to expand French territory in Europe and also makes himself Emperor. A third theme looks at the lives of women who have difficulty becoming pregnant for a variety of reasons.

Stephanie Parkyn has created another novel bringing to life the lives of individuals trying to survive firstly during the French Revolution and then the Napoleonic Wars. Her first novel was Into the World and the third novel is the recently published The Freedom of Birds.