Thorns of Truth

In this long-awaited sequel to Garden of Lies, read and loved by millions around the world, Rachel and Rose, now women with grown children of their own, find themselves face to face at last with the destiny that has haunted them for nearly half a century, since the two were switched at birth in a hospital fire on the night they were born.

What they are confronted with now threatens to uproot a lifetime of deeply buried secrets: the impending marriage of Rose's capable and caring son to Rachel's emotionally troubled daughter. Once again the two women and their families are pitted against one another... just as Rachel learns that her mother, Sylvie, is dying.

Only Rose knows that Sylvie is in reality her mother - and she yearns to be recognized as Sylvie's own before it's too late. A widow coping with the loss of her husband - yet powerfully attracted to an engaging talk-show host who is recovering from wounds of his own - Rose turns to her mother for help. In frail health, but still strong in spirit, Sylvie must choose between the intricate web of lies behind which she shields her loved ones... and a truth that will shatter the lives of both her daughters - as well as that of her fragile granddaughter - before it can begin to heal them.

On her deathbed, Sylvie once again makes an impossible choice... one that profoundly affects her family in ways even she could not have anticipated. It will ultimately thrust Rose and Rachel into the heart of a blaze that is on the verge of consuming everything they hold dearest as they are brought full circle by a fate more powerful than blood, marriage, even love.

Rich with all the passion and drama that first launched Eileen Goudge's first novel, Garden of Lies, onto the New York Times list - and into the hearts of readers - Thorns of Truth brings this captivating tale of love and family to full bloom at last... and is sure to leave bedside lamps everywhere burning long into the night.

Copyright (c) 1998 Eileen Goudge.