Review: The Tree of Everlasting Knowledge by Christine Nolfi

The Tree of Everlasting Knowledge by Christine Nolfi
Pages: 378
Published: March 15, 2012
Source: E-book from the author in exchange for an honest review
Rating: Squee-worthy
Add it/Purchase: Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble
Connect with the author: Twitter | Website

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A savage rape on hallowed ground. Secrets buried for decades by the town’s most influential family.

Now Ourania D’Andre will learn the Great Oak’s secrets as construction begins at the Fagan mansion. She can’t afford to turn down a job that promises to stir up the long-buried guilt—and the passion—she shares with powerful Troy Fagan.

She’s already juggling the most important job of her career with her new responsibilities as a foster mother for young Walt and Emma Korchek. And there’s a hard, older man on the construction crew with eyes void of emotion—cold and killing. The secrets of his brutal past will pose a grave threat to the children in her care. Will she find the courage to face him?

My Review

Christine Nolfi was the very first author to ever request a review from me when I started this blog; after I read and loved her debut, Treasure Me, I immediately agreed to read and review her second novel, The Tree of Everlasting Knowledge, when she approached me about it.  Although a good year passed in between when I read her first novel, and when I eagerly read this one, the effect was the same once I started Tree: I immediately fell all over again for Christine's writing and her way of creating characters that feel at once familiar, like old friends.  

Main characters Ourania and Troy crackled with their own individual personalities, as well as their barely contained sexual tension.  It was at once clear that there was something unresolved between these two, and as I read more, and began to like and care for both of these tormented characters, their pasts became clearer, and my heart went out to each of them.  Throughout Tree, we're given glimpses through a dual POV into both Troy and Ourania's thoughts and motivations, and we see both sides of their tangled story.  Still dealing - poorly - with their shared loss of a loved one, both Troy and Ourania have taken equally dangerous paths in their life, which has led them both to become deeply unhappy.  I wanted to alternately hug and shake each of them for being so dense at times, yet so intuitive at others. 

Nolfi effortlessly built layer after layer upon the foundation she laid early on in Tree; with her easy to follow, easy to love writing style, she weaves several character's stories into one another, yet does so in a way that never feels too tangled.  The Tree of Everlasting Knowledge is many things: a romance, a mystery, a social commentary on the foster system and how it works and does not work at times, a mystery, and a moral lesson.  What I loved best were the relationships: Ourania and Troy, Troy and his parents, Ourania and her foster children, sweet Walt and broken Emma, Ourania and Troy's sister.  All of the characters, even the minor ones, were definitely well developed and stood out strongly in my mind, even after finishing Tree! 

Christine Nolfi kept me guessing at various plot twists, which I applaud.  Tree had so much going on, but not in a cluttered way - it was definitely a well-rounded mystery, thriller, and romance all at once.   As the pages grew numbered, my heartbeat increased, and I found myself genuinely scared for the characters, as past secrets came to life to threaten them in present day.  And at Tree's end, although everything was wrapped up a bit too neatly for my taste (my only real complaint), this novel is still emotionally satisfying in many ways!  

Other books by this author:

Treasure Me

You're sure to fall for:

The Memory of Water by Karen White

Author Interview: Christine Nolfi

{ ++ } Today I have the privilege of sharing with everyone a short interview author Christine Nolfi was kind enough to participate in with me!  I recently got the chance to read and review Christine's debut novel, Treasure Me, and found it to be engaging and absolutely charming, with enough twists to keep me breathlessly reading!  I hope everyone enjoys this interview as much as I have enjoyed getting to know Christine.  Then please consider checking out my review of Treasure Me, or taking a look at the book yourself.  Many thanks again to Christine for being so generous with her time!

Author Bio

Christine Nolfi owned a small public relations firm in Cleveland, Ohio. Her articles and press releases have appeared regionally in northeast Ohio. Her short story, Night Hour, appeared in Working Mother magazine.


She closed the firm fifteen years ago after traveling to the Philippines and adopting a sibling group of four children. She has been writing novels full time since 2004. Treasure Me is the first book of the Liberty, Ohio series, available at Amazon.  The second book in the Liberty series, Second Chance Grill, will be released summer, 2011.

Christine loves to hear from readers!  Find her here at her blog, or on her Twitter.  E-mail her at christinenolfi@gmail.com.

Molli: What is your best memory of writing Treasure Me?

Christine: The unanticipated arrival of the beautiful thief, Birdie, and the general plot. I’d written 100 pages of another novel when I awoke one morning with an amusing image of a young woman dangling from a window ledge. There was no planning involved, no preparation. Birdie simply arrived.

The rest of the plot quickly fell into place. I knew immediately that her relationship with Liberty’s elderly matriarch, the gun-toting Theodora, was a central theme. Birdie’s romance with Hugh was secondary, a plot point that would balance against his personal evolution in the story. Through it all, I tried to make the secondary characters just as vivid in the reader’s mind—an important consideration because the supporting cast develops and evolves throughout the series.

Molli: Which character was the most challenging for you to flesh out and write?

Christine: Birdie, hands down. My critique partners sent me back to the drawing board with page after page. I try not to think of the number of revisions involved in bringing the novel to market. It makes me shudder.

The problem? How do you create a realistic thief, complete with her jaundiced view of the world and her loathsome habit of stealing, and expect readers to like her? I hope I solved the puzzle in subtle ways through her interactions with other characters, like the Chens. Remember the stolen wheelchair in scene one? It arrived in the third or fourth draft as an indication of the soft heart hidden beneath Birdie’s tough exterior.

Molli: Do you enjoy writing for female or male characters more?

Christine: I have no preference. I simply love writing about people, their foibles and embarrassments, their moments of courage and times of redemption. The goal is always to imbue each character with enough depth to make the reader laugh one moment and cry the next.

Molli: What is your favorite part of the writing process?

Christine: Nothing beats the experience of reaching the middle of a work-in-progress and becoming utterly immersed in the characters. They’re real by that point, flesh-and-blood people one might meet on the street. Yet I’m privy to their darkest fears and brightest hopes. It’s an exhilarating feeling.

Molli: Your character’s names—Birdie, Blossom, Wish—seem to hint at a bit of whimsy. How do you choose your character’s names, or do they choose their names?

Christine: There’s no set pattern for naming characters. Some, like Birdie, arrive fully formed. Others start with an archetype employed to aid in fleshing out the characters. In Blossom’s case, I wanted a name that conveyed “life” for a child facing death. Wish is another play on opposites. I think of her as a nefarious criminal who destroys the wishes held dear by others, a sort of death wish in human form.

Molli: If you could visit a “world” from another book or series, what would it be?

Christine: Hogwarts, of course! I’d dread running into Lord Voldemort, but Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry? Sign me up. My wand is already packed.

Molli: Do you have any writing rituals?

Christine: Working for many years in public relations gave me a love of constancy. No writer can create compelling fiction, book after book, without committing to a serious work schedule. Most days, I’m at my computer by five or six a.m. By noon, I need a break and head to the gym. Then I spend the afternoon editing the morning’s pages. That’s the first edit, mind you. I’ve never written anything that wasn’t submitted to an endless series of revisions.

{ ++ } Thanks again to Christine Nolfi for considering me to read and review Treasure Me.  I look forward reading many more novels from her.  I hope everyone will consider purchasing a copy (Kindle, or paperback - the paperback is due out soon!)

Review: Tresure Me

Treasure Me

Pages: 415

Published: Christine Nolfi - sold by Amazon digital services

The Author: Christine Nolfi (links to the author's Goodreads page)

Petty thief Birdie Kaminsky has arrived in Liberty, Ohio to steal a treasure hidden since the Civil War. She’s in possession of a charming clue passed down in her family for generations: Liberty safeguards the cherished heart.

The beautiful thief wants to go straight. She secretly admires the clue’s author, freedwoman Justice Postell, who rose above the horrors of slavery to build a new life in Ohio. According to family lore, Justice left South Carolina at the dawn of the Civil War. Heavy with child, she carried untold riches on her journey north. As Birdie searches for the treasure, she begins to believe a questionable part of the story: a tale of love between Justice and Lucas Postell, the French plantation owner who was Birdie’s ancestor.

If the stories are true, Justice bore a child with Lucas. Some of those black relatives might still live in town. Birdie can’t help but wonder if she’s found one—Liberty’s feisty matriarch, Theodora Hendricks, who packs a pistol and heartwarming stories about Justice. Birdie doesn’t know that an investigative reporter who has arrived in town will trip her up—as will her conscience when she begins to wonder if it’s possible to start a new life with stolen riches. Yet with each new clue she unearths, Birdie begins to discover a family history more precious than gems, a tradition of love richer than she could imagine.  (summary from Amazon.com - book page)

The long story short: Birdie Kaminsky is a petty thief who wistfully dreams of going straight.  A treasure hunt - hopefully her last heist - sends her to Liberty, Ohio, where while sifting through the clues to this treasure, Birdie meets a colorful and vivacious cast of characters - the townspeople of Liberty.  She also meets Hugh, a reporter who may be onto her - and onto her shady past. Overall I found this book to be engaging and lively, a fast-paced thriller and a leisurely stroll through the sleepy town of Liberty all in one. 

Final rating: 4 of 5 stars

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When author Christine Nolfi approached me requesting that I consider reading and reviewing her debut novel Treasure Me, I jumped on the chance after reading the summary.  I had a feeling the book (provided to me in exchange for an honest review) was right up my alley; however, it took a few chapters to meet the characters and settle in to the canvas Nolfi was painting. At first I was a little unsure if I had made the right choice - but around page 50 or so I fell heart and soul for the story.

Birdie's struggles between the aching wish to strike it big so that she can start - not just over, but a new life - felt poignant and real.  As she reluctantly waits tables while she waits out her time in Liberty, stealing money when she can from the patrons of the Second Chance Grill, they begin to weave themselves into her life so seamlessly that it was easy for me to tell Birdie had found where she belonged...even if she didn't.  Reporter Hugh Schaeffer (down on his luck and potentially unemployed) who comes to Liberty to write an expose on the family he profiled only a short time ago, throws her even further off her game. 

Hugh and Birdie's interaction crackled with unleashed sexual tension, which was humorous and a little tense!  What I liked best was what we saw in unexpected moments from both of them - the desire to comfort and care for one another.  Despite repeated jabs about their possible liaison being only a fling, it was clear early on that both Birdie and Hugh were starting to care deeply for one another, despite, or maybe because of, their own individual issues.

As the hunt for the treasure intensifies, so does Birdie's relationship with Hugh.  She wavers between opening her heart to him, and to the townspeople of Liberty (vivacious Delia, who waits tables at the Grill, bossy but lovable cook Finney, and crabby but utterly endearing Theodora, among others) and leaving as soon as she finds what she came for.  The end results were unexpected and pleasantly surprising and heart-warming on several levels, and by the time I finished the book, I can honestly say that I felt like - I - had just spent awhile in Liberty, meeting everyone, learning the local history and lore, and like they would all invite me - and Birdie - back any time.