The Winter People

One of my great loves is reading. It's a hobby that has been put aside in the throes of raising babies and when I do read, it's usually desperate studying of scriptures or scholarly reading of nonfiction. It's rare that I pick up a book of fiction and actually finish it. When I grabbed The Winter People by Jennifer McMahon, I believed it to be no different. Actually, I started it months ago and put it down a few chapters in because I wanted to read a book that would help me understand Abel's latest diagnosis a little better. It's not that I prefer nonfiction. It's more of a time/benefit analysis. One day, my husband came home from work and I put on my running shoes and practically sprinted to the local walmart for a reprieve. I just wanted a breath of air, of sanity to cling to. I know, I know. Walmart a reprieve does not make, but I was desperate and I live in a small town with few options. Before long, I found myself surrounded by the crisp smell of new books and many alluring titles. Intriguing covers were beckoning to me to open them and I soon found myself in my happy place--reading summary after summary, imagining I was one of those moms who still had time to read. I finally settled on this story, a dark one set in the woods of old Vermont, a place I could easily envision because I visited there a few years ago (Vermont trip Part 1, 2, and 3). 

In my advanced age (ha), I've become much more of a wimp. As a child, I loved scary movies, daring roller coasters, and ghost stories. Now, I think my boys will be lucky if I ever let them step foot in the line for one of those anything-could-go-wrong-man-made-and-not-to-be-trusted-with-my-precious-kids roller coasters. And ghostly mentionings and horror movies? Not so much my thing these days. I legitimately feel uneasy when watching them unfold on screen and this book was no different. Jordan was traveling a lot of the time I was reading this and there were a few nights that I put the book down and turned on a funny tv show instead to take my thoughts away from the story that unfolded in the book.

It was good, though. It tells the tale of Sara Harrison Shea and the tragic happenings that occurred back in her day in the early 1900's. She suffered through the loss of her daughter and while doing so she kept a journal that would survive her and provide a useful tool in uncovering secrets and old legends to a family living in her old house in present day. Ruthie, the nineteen year old daughter of the owner of the farmhouse, finds a copy of the diary and is sucked into Sara's story. What she finds is that she isn't the only person interested in uncovering what happened to Sara Harrison Shea all those years before.

"McMahon has developed a subgenre of psychological mysteries...in creepily seductive settings." 

-Booklist

I love some psychological suspense! When paired with creepy "sleepers", it makes for a perfect book to conclude on Friday the 13th! What I also found is that if I quit reading the mindless articles I read on social media, I have lots more time for fiction in my life. Here's to reading and writing more!

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