Rosebuds

Tally and Flora meet on the way to boarding school and their vast differences somehow bring them together in unexpected closeness. Tally is actually Lady Atalanta, whose family is rich yet not close. Flora's father was killed in the war and her family struggles to make do, yet they are loving and supportive. The two girls forge a friendship that defies both class and situation, even when Tally leaves school to attend first finishing school, then gourmet cooking school, and finally deciding on modeling. Flora finishes school and works hard to become a secretary making her own way, though she does allow herself to partake of Tally's generosity in sharing a house rent-free. The paths the lives of the girls take are predictable yet still valid. Margaret Mayhew has a gift for storytelling that pulls you into the story and makes you feel as though you are breathing the air of the characters. This one, however, moves along a bit choppily at times, with large chunks of time being glossed over. While we can understand the motivations of the characters, Tally does not seem to be sympathetic at all and I found myself wondering how Flora reconciled her upbringing against Tally's. While the storyline is a good example of a coming of age tale, it's not Mayhew's best. That being said, however, Mayhew's works are still better than most out today and she compares very favorably with Rosamund Pilcher.

Tally Ashby and Flora Middleton meet in on a train on their way boarding school. Even though they come from different worlds they become life long friends. After school they share a flat in London experences new things. But do change, Tally begins to fall in love with her stepbrother Nichlos, a man that Flora has always love. This is a different book for Margaret Mayhew, this book focus on postwar England. This is a real coming age book. While it is different for Ms. Mayhew it was enjoyment to read.