The Rose Arbor: A Novel

It is 1968 and a young reporter, her detective roommate and a missing little girl are the beginnings of a story that began over twenty years ago. Four missing little girls, three from during the war in 1943 and one now that brings back memories of failure to a veteran policeman. The intricate weaving of past and present and the motives and lies uncovered will keep you intrigued till the last page. This is one I will read again because the unraveling of secrets and plot deserves it.

Rhys Bowen's latest standalone mystery spans time and space with story elements set in 1943 Tyneham (a village in Dorset) and 1968 London. Reporter Liz Houghton struggles to solve the mystery of a missing child in 1968 that might be connected to missing children who disappeared in 1943. Led by information from her policewoman roommate, Liz begins exploring Dorset for clues about Little Lucy that lead her to suspect the missing child might be held in the ruins of Tyneham, a village requisitioned and destroyed by the Army in 1943. What unfolds are parallel tales of villagers displaced from homes their families had lived in for generations, children displaced by the war, and displaced children lost in the wartime shuffle from city to country. During her investigation, Liz meets the son of the displaced Lord of the village manor and together they explore surprising yet believable clues that tie Liz to Tyneham.

The Tyneham-during-the-War part of this story really intrigued me. I've heard of noble families whose manor houses were requisitioned but I'd never really thought about ordinary people displaced by the war or how terrifying relocation must've been for children being sent away from the Blitz. They were put on a train by their parents and traveled without supervision. Many simply wore a name tag for identification, like Paddington Bear. At each stop, some children were claimed by local families and given shelter. Those who weren't taken in stayed on the train until the next stop. Imagine being a child in that situation, wondering who would take you in, what life with those strangers might be like, and not knowing if you'd ever see your parents again. Then there are the children who disappeared along the way. What happened to them? Bowen does a masterful job contrasting three disappearances.

Like Bowen's other books, the complex characters are realistic and interesting as they deal with unexpected challenges in their lives. The story is complete but leaves the reader hoping it’s the beginning of a new series so one can see what happens to the characters after the resolution of the mystery. The 1968 setting is interesting because from a 2024 perspective, it is a historical mystery. Even if the reader can't remember 1968, the descriptions of fashions and society leave the reader wanting to spend more time in 1968 England with those characters. It would be fun to watch Liz live through women's liberation the other huge cultural changes that were just starting in 1968. One can only hope that THIS will be the standalone that becomes the first in a new series.

I liked the war history with the descriptions about the impacts on and feelings of the folks affected by the war. People from all walks of life had their lives changed by government actions as well as from bombings and fears of attacks. The complexity of life during war times was well described as well as how love and need for love drives behaviors. The core love story was a feel-good part of the book. I really enjoyed the story.