In a beautifully portrayed setting with colorful and intriguing characters, The Tree of Everlasting Knowledge swept me into the warmth of its family-oriented story. In this tale about the Fagans, a rich and powerful family with secrets and pain, a loss of one of their own comes to light in the first few pages.
Troy Fagan seems harsh and rigid as we first meet him, but gradually we see the pain hidden behind this facade. Ourania D’Andre bursts on the page, as she rushes to get to her job on time; she has been hired as the electrician on a new project for the Fagans: renovating the mansion for Dianne, the pregnant youngest Fagan.
Slowly we realize that the tension between Troy and Ourania springs from secrets of the past between the two of them.
And gently hovering over the landscape and enfolding the characters is the Great Oak tree that contains its own secrets. Is it a blessed tree, or do curses follow those who go near?
Amidst the maelstrom of the family secrets and past horrors that unfold on the pages, we meet Lianna, head of Job and Family Services, who is also Ourania’s mother and is about to ask something huge of her daughter. She has two challenging foster children to place, and hopes Ourania, who is certified as a foster parent, will take them on. The timing couldn’t be worse, in Ourania’s mind, and she resists. But she does agree, and it doesn’t take long, despite the difficulties the children bring, for her to bond with them. Especially with the boy, Walt, whom she is teaching to pitch a baseball. Emma is more difficult, but her resistance also comes from the horror that lives in her mind.
How are the two children connected to some of the other characters? What unexpected past events will reveal something more about the Fagans and the D’Andres?
The mix of secrets, family bonds, and a budding romance grabbed me right away and kept me reading. The characters felt real, and as a former social worker, I could relate to the issues that came to light for Ourania as she worked with the children. I was not surprised to find that some of the secrets connected the characters in unique ways, but I enjoyed watching it all come to light for the reader. Five stars.
AN INTERIOR JOURNEY 
You really loved this one…it sounds wonderful…and I have not seen it anywhere!
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I read her first book, Treasure Me.
The author owned her own public relations firm, but then adopted a sibling group of four foster children…and started writing.
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Hi Patty. You haven’t seen my second release anywhere because TREE is independently published. Several years ago I gave up on working with literary agents after Random House then New American Library loved one then another of my novels. My books don’t easily fit a brand; they blend the genres of romance, women’s fiction, mystery and suspense. Currently TREE (eBook and paperback) is only available on Amazon; the paperback of my debut, TREASURE ME, is also available online at B & N and Books-A-Million.
This autumn, after releasing my third novel, I’ll stop writing long enough to don the marketing hat and place the paperbacks and eBooks in larger distribution. The Midwest Book Review features TREASURE ME on “Bookwatch” for libraries as “highly recommended”. I need to begin lobbying library acquisitions managers around the country, one postage stamp at a time!
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Laurel-Rain, your incredible patience while waiting for delivery of the paperback version of The Tree of Everlasting Knowledge is a lucky break for an Indie author. And I’m sure you can understand why I’ve waited with great anticipation for your review–I knew you were a retired social worker and would surely read the book with great understanding.
Despite all the books I’ve written, TREE is closest to my heart. “Write what you know” gains poignancy when an adoptive mother of four children does, indeed, put the truth down on paper.
A thousand thanks for your lovely review.
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You are so welcome, and I can totally relate to your subject matter, Christine…from the social work point of view. And toward the end of my career, I worked closely with foster parents, so the challenges they faced were very real to me. An authentic story such as this one is well worth the wait.
My five books currently available on Amazon tell the stories from the social worker and the child’s point of view; I know what you mean about the challenge of finding a niche for these topics. Not the usual kind of book.
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I just happened to finish Tree of Everlasting Knowledge and loved it, too! Such a great touch for dialogue, and a powerful ending that draws you in like a rip-tide. Kudos to the author, Christine Nolfi, and to you Laurel for posting your review.
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Good points, Fred, and I’m glad you liked my review. Thanks for stopping by….
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Fred, thanks for stopping by. I can’t wait to begin reading your second novel. Your debut, DOING MAX VINYL, had me laughing all the way through!
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