History Manga / GoodbyeMyRoseGarden

* BenevolentBoss: Alice is not only kind to Hanako, but to the rest of her maids.

* DeliberateValuesDissonance:The story features Victorian attitudes toward homosexuality and women's rights. Alice, who doesn't share either of those values, comes off as an AudienceSurrogate when she's surprised and upset to hear of how things work in Britain.

* VagueAge: Hanako is a young adult [[OlderThanTheyLook who looks like she's 17]], Alice and Edward are old enough to marry(and thus most likely in their early twenties), Alice's younger sisters Margaret and Jane are young children, Eliza is probably 10-15 years older than Alice, and Mrs. Smith seems to be in her late middle age at youngest. However, none of the characters' ages are explicitly stated.

* InternalReveal: In chapter 11, [[spoiler:Alice revealed to Hanako that she is the author, Victor Franks, that Hanako wished to meet]], something that was previously shown to the reader when [[spoiler:Alice signs a book with "Victor Franks" and thinks it will be her last tale].

* PracticallyDifferentGenerations: Alice is an older teenager or young adult, while her youngest sister Mary is young enough to be under the care of a nanny.

* SugarAndIcePersonality: Susanne is initially rather cold to Hanako, treating her with professional respect at best and chiding her for her belief that masters and servants can be friends. However, she does sympathize with Hanako, and

* VictorianLondon: Several scenes take place in London, such as Alice and Hanako's first meeting.
* YouCantGoHomeAgain: [[spoiler:It is implied that Alice can never return home after publicly rejecting her arranged marriage to Edward, publicly declaring her love for her maid, and running off with Hanako.]]

** Giselle asks Alice, her former employer, to call her by her first name as she always has, rather than "Lady Ashton."

* InternalReveal: In chapter 11, [[spoiler:Alice revealed to Hanako that she is the author, Victor Franks, that Hanako wished to meet.]] The person in question had thought about that revelation for some time, but only chose that moment to reveal it.

* MoodWhiplash: Late in the series, Hanako asks Victor([[spoiler:or rather, Alice]]) whether one scene in the latter's books, in which the protagonist breaks free of her mansion to save the one she loves from a murder charge, was based on [[spoiler:herself and Ms. Eliza]]. Victor denies it, saying the main character "is who I wish I was." It's a heartfelt moment that turns comedic when Victor adds, "Also, [[spoiler:Ms. Eliza]] never murdered anyone," prompting Hanako to sheepishly reply, "Yes, of course." The tone turns serious again when Victor [[spoiler:tells Hanako how much she admires Hanako for coming halfway around the world to meet her]], then turns comedic again when Victor is about to spoil the ending, only for Alice to protest that she's still reading it.

* CoolBigSis: Alice is a loving older sister to her younger sisters Jane, Margaret and Mary, all of whom adore her in their own ways.

** During the Victorian era, homosexuality was not only looked down upon, but considered illegal. Alice's reputation is damaged simply for rumors of her orientation.

* EnglishRose: Alice is a pretty young noblewoman from England in the beginning of the twentieth century [[spoiler: but it's revealed she's actually a repressed lesbian during a time where any sort of deviation from the norm was social devastation. Alice has become so self-loathing and so fearful of the idea of ruining her family's image that she has become suicidal. Her acting the part of a ProperLady is more of a mask than anything.]]

* {{Gayngst}}: Several years ago [[spoiler: Alice fell in love with her governess, and while the relationship never evolved beyond that of teacher and pupil her parents realized what Alice's feelings for Eliza truly were. They sent Eliza away, but unfortunately word still managed to spread, and it soon became well-known in the rumor mill that Alice preferred the company of other women. This all also happened in the shadow of the (real life) scandal of Oscar Wilde, so Alice fully came to realize how Victorian society looked at same-sex attraction. The knowledge that her sexuality will not only have her bear the ire of society, but also affect her family and their reputation, is what drives her to the despair of asking Hanako to become her accomplice and kill her.]]
* GorgeousPeriodDress: There's ample examples of both maid dresses and high society fashion appropriate to the period.

* TheTragicRose: Alice explains to Hanako how her titular rose garden is a sanctuary for her as a place where she doesn't have to think about society's expectations, but that simultaneously highlights how Alice is constantly forced to hide her true self. Other rose-centric metaphors and similes frequently pop up throughout the story, particularly the one of black spot, a fungus that frequently affects roses. Because her sexuality could not only ruin her own reputation but that of her beloved family, Alice compares herself to an infected rose: something that must be "excised from the garden" before it ruins the other roses. In the very end of the story, [[spoiler: Alice's TitleDrop signifies her not only leaving Rosebarrow House to travel with Hanako, but also her decision to stop suppressing herself and live as she wants with the woman she loves to no matter the difficulty.]]

** A lesbian version of this trope: Alice is the rich noblewoman, while Hanako is the working class girl hired as her maid. They fall in love.

* SecretKeeper: Ms. Smith notices how strangely close Hanako and Alice are and puts two-and-two together. [[spoiler:She helps distract the other maids when they start getting curious]].

* BigWhat: Hanako lets off one, along with a comically shocked facial expression, when Alice buys her a sapphire accessory.

* HiddenDepths: While Susanne comes off as stern and a bit classist, it turns out that she was betrayed by someone she loved in the past. It turns out that she sees a little of her younger self in Hanako, and thus cares more for Hanako than she lets on.

* UsefulNotes/JapaneseHonorifics: Japanese honorifics like "-san" and "-sensei" are used in the scenes that take place in Japan.

* ThatCameOutWrong: When the book seller mentions that Oscar Wilde was imprisoned for "laying hands on a nobleman," Hanako thinks Wilde attacked the man until the bookseller corrects himself.

* HaveAGayOldTime: Hanako hears that Creator/OscarWilde was imprisoned for "laying hands on a nobleman," and assumes he was a violent man.

* DeliberateValuesDissonance: As noted in SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome, the story features Victorian attitudes toward homosexuality and women's rights. Alice, who doesn't share either of those values, comes off as an AudienceSurrogate when she's surprised and upset to hear of how things work in Britain.

* SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome: The author researched the time period this took place to give a grounded series on what certain attitudes were like.
** In the first flashback scene, Hanako was barred from even being able to hand in a manuscript because she was a woman.
** During the Victorian era, homosexuality was not only looked down upon, but considered illegal. Alice's reputation is damaged simply for rumors of her orientation.
** [[spoiler: Alice]] writes [[spoiler: her]] book Gloriana under the pen name Victor Franks, because during that time, women often faced prejudice for wanting to write fictional stories.

* TheCynic: Zig-zagged with Jane. On the one hand, she doesn't care at all for FamilyHonor and tells Margaret that people aren't always as virtuous as they seem. On the other hand, she supports the women's suffrage movement, implying that she wants to see some change for good in the world.

* StepfordSmiler: Alice is good at keeping up a cheerful facade, but hides her {{Gayngst}} and suicidal depression. Only Hanako, whom she's confided in, and Jane, who's perceptive enough to see through her, have some idea of the pain she's going through.

** In the first scene, Hanako was barred from even being able to hand in a manuscript because she was a woman.
** During the Victorian era, homosexuality was looked down upon at best, but considered illegal. Alice's reputation is damaged simply for rumors of her orientation.