The Ethical Echo

A Haunting Exploration of Family, Secrets, and Survival

Abigail Rose-Marie’s The Moonflowers is a powerful and intricately woven story that grips the reader with its haunting portrayal of family, resilience, and the deeply buried truths that shape generations. Set against the evocative backdrop of rural Appalachia, this novel intertwines the past and present, painting a vivid portrait of the bonds and betrayals that define a family’s history.

At the heart of the story is Tig Costello, an artist searching for answers about her enigmatic grandfather, Benjamin, whose legacy as a war hero and community leader conceals a far more complex reality. Tig’s investigation leads her to Eloise Price, the woman who murdered him decades ago, and it is through Eloise’s heartbreaking revelations that Rose-Marie unravels the lives of the women who survived and endured within Benjamin’s orbit

The Moonflowers explores the nuances of reproductive freedoms and the quiet courage of the women forced to make impossible choices. Through the revelations about Whitmore Halls—a mansion that became both a sanctuary and a site of unimaginable pain—Rose-Marie tackles themes of abortion, bodily autonomy, and the silent struggles endured by women in a society that often failed them.

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