Best-selling author Glendy Vanderah (Where the Forest Meets the Stars) quickly pulls readers into this heart-breaking yet redemptive tale about love, loss, and the healing power of nature.
Dealing with devastating news and distracted by her two young sons, Ellis Bauhammer leaves her baby daughter in a parking lot. When Ellis comes back, the baby is gone. Ellis’s world falls apart. To protect her family from herself, she disappears into the mountains, succumbing to depression, addiction, and a suffocating layer of grief.
Meanwhile, in rural Washington we find Raven, a young girl whose sheltered childhood with her spiritual, miracle-making mother has given her all she could want: communion with the earth spirits, a mysterious father figure she’s never seen, and a connection with the natural world. But Raven is lonely. Longing for more, she begins to question her mother’s secrecy and their life of isolation.
As Ellis and Raven each acknowledge their yearnings, their lives intertwine amidst a siren call of hope, healing and forgiveness. Vanderah deftly switches between Ellis’s and Raven’s viewpoints, exploring the beauty of nature alongside the fragility and struggle of relationships, most notably that of family.
I liked the book overall, although it was too dialogue-heavy in places. If the editors had cut about 30% of the dialogue, it would’ve made for a much smoother read. It kept my attention, though, and the writing was superb.
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