Winter, by Keven Newsome
Reviewed by: Amber McCallister
Genre: Fiction, Thriller
Publisher: Splashdown Darkwater
Publication Date: 2011
Winter is a story about a teenager who has lost her heart, her rosy outlook on life, and any faith she had in God. With the death of her mother, she lost her heart and her reason to love. With the twisted version of friends that she made after moving to a new school in order to live with her dad, she lost her ability to trust people. In light of the mistakes she made with those friends, she has come to hate everything about herself. To fill the yearning for some type of comfort she wraps herself in the Goth lifestyle and hides within herself trying to block out the pain and help her walk through life with a numbing sense of fulfillment.
Despite herself, God sees her and loves her through it all. He has a purpose for her life that she could never dream of or even see for herself. He desires to take her broken life and remake her into the beautiful woman that He has always meant for her to be. The question is then laid out before Winter if she will trust Him and let Him transform her into what she was created to be. The answer that Winter seeks comes only through the hardships and struggles that she faces during her first year of college. As with all things worth fighting for, these journeys cannot be taken without experiencing pain and growth.
Few stories have gripped my heart and soul as this one has. I walked besides Winter as she went through the most horrible moments in her life. I watched her agonize over the mistakes she made. I wanted to reach out and comfort her when she was at her lowest points. I experienced her emptiness and my heart cried out for her to feel the love she so desperately needed.
I can’t count the number of tears that poured from my eyes as I walked in Winter’s footsteps. My heart ached for her every step of the way. I cheered her on and watched with bated breath as her story unfolded before my eyes. It was as if I watched one of my own daughters go through her time of decision and change.
This story arrested my heart, destroyed it, and then remade it into a much better version of itself. I could say that it took my breath away, but that would not be giving it the justice it so deserves. The limited words in our human vocabulary seem to fall disappointingly short of what is earned by this magnificently talented author who has birthed this unbelievably amazing story into life. Dare I say that his burgeoning talent could place him on the same level as some of my all-time favorite authors such as Ted Dekker or Frank Peretti. The potential of witting craftsmanship shown in this beautifully captivating story is limitless. I am so excited to hear that a sequel is being written, and to say that I am very excited to read it does not give my eagerness justice. I am confident that we can expect more masterful stories from this author in the years to come and I can’t wait to read them!
Rated PG-13: I chose the PG-13 rating due to the adult themes touched on in this book.
Review copy provided by publisher. Thank you!
