Paper Roses on Stony Mountain by Diana Stevan

Paper Roses on Stony Mountain is the last novel in Stevan’s trilogy which is a biographical fiction account of her grandmother, Lukia Mazurec, and the struggles she and her family endured during the Great War, the Russian Revolution, their mistreatment by the Bolsheviks. The families emigration to Canada to start a safer and better life, only to arrive at the onset of the Great Depression. Like the two previous novels, the love of family and their safety drives Lukia to overcome her difficulties and carry on regardless of what life throws at her. 

Stevan is an award-winning author and a dedicated storyteller who makes Lukia’s journey real to the reader. You can feel Lukia’s pain, her loss, share in her hopes and relish the simple joys that family gatherings and luck sometimes bring. 

Paper Roses begins prior to World War 2 and even though Lukia’s worries are far from over, good news is on the horizon. Wheat prices continue to climb. The crops are healthy. The outlook is better than it has been for many years. Lukia longs for her own farm where her sons and their family will work and share, instead of renting. Lukia frets over her daughter, Dunya’s (Dolly) future and choice of suitor, a man who shows little promise. She worries about the relationship between her two sons who have remained on the farm. The oldest has a family and a strong work ethic. The other is more carefree and his cavalier attitude brings nothing but trouble. 

Not all goes according to Lukia’s plans for the future but Dolly shows resilience and her mother’s fortitude in striving for better days. She’s the mover and shaker in her small family. 

When new problems or barriers arise, Lukia reminds them. 

“Look what our family’s been through. War, hunger, typhus, dust storms. We never gave up. You’ll get through this. We always have.” 

This is historical fiction at its best. I enjoyed reading about Lukia’s journey and I highly recommend this series. 


Diana Stevan likes to joke she’s a Jill of all trades as she’s worked as a family therapist, teacher, librarian, model, actress and sports reporter for CBC television. She’s the author of five novels and a novelette.

Her novels cross genres: A Cry from the Deep, a romantic mystery/adventure; The Rubber Fence, women’s fiction; and Lukia’s Family Saga series, historical/biographical fiction. Based on her Ukrainian grandmother’s family’s life in Russia and in Canada, the series is a trilogy covering the years 1915-1943: Sunflowers Under Fire, Lilacs in the Dust Bowl, and Paper Roses on Stony Mountain.

When Diana isn’t writing, she loves to garden, travel, and read. With their two daughters grown, she lives with her husband Robert on Vancouver Island and West Vancouver, British Columbia.

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Island House Publishing (Oct. 15 2022)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 364 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1988180090
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1988180090

Growing up in South Branch, Allan Hudson was encouraged to read from an early age by his mother who was a schoolteacher. He lives in Dieppe, NB, with his wife Gloria. He has enjoyed a lifetime of adventure, and travel and uses the many experiences as ideas for his writing. He is an author of action/adventure novels, historical fiction and a short story collection. His short stories – The Ship Breakers & In the Abyss – received Honourable Mention in the New Brunswick Writer’s Federation competition. He has stories published on commuterlit.com, The Golden Ratio and his blog - South Branch Scribbler.