Winter People

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Gráinne has a natural skill for getting under the skin of a character and drawing out their emotions and personality so that the reader gets the sensation of knowing them on an almost personal level, making their stories even more dynamic. Beartown presents both the communal hope inspired by a winter sporting event and what can tear them apart. You will be completely immersed in the world of Beartown and its many community members. This is truly a modern “must-read” book about Winter, as well as one of the best books for men to read. The story is creepiest when you don't really know what's happening. In modern times, two sisters discover that they live in the same house as the legendary Sara Harrison Shea, a woman who lived at the turn of the century before rumored to have been driven mad by the death of her daughter. When their trustworthy mother goes missing with no explanation, and their investigations start to turn up very creepy clues in very scary hiding places, the story is riveting.

Sis Cotter has lived in her cottage by the beach for many many years. Alone now, with just her dog for company, her children are scattered through the world, her husband is dead. Sis had a long marriage, but the legacy of her husband's behaviour means that her twilight years will not be as she had hoped. Her children are abrupt and appear uncaring, with her daughters holding grudges about their childhood and her son is such a disappointment. Sis Cotter’s husband Frank died of cancer and her two daughters Doreen and Cathy have move away and have little concern for their mother, while her son Mike is also estranged from her. In three days she will be evicted from her home. She only has her loving canine companion, the elderly Laddie, and her memories, and her love of the sea, to sustain her. The Winter People by Jennifer McMahon (Author), Cassandra Campbell (Narrator), Käthe Mazur (Narrator) The Winter People by Jennifer McMahon was a great read and has me very interested in seeing what other books of hers I can get my hands on. Awesome setting, well drawn characters, and ghosts. GHOSTS I tell ya! What's not to love about that? West Hall, Vermont 1908. Sara Harrison Shea is found dead in the field behind her house just months after the tragic death of her daughter. She has been acted weirdly since then and her death is horrifying.He took me to see a lady with tangled hair who lives inside an old hollow tree. She's been dead a long time. She's one of the winter people." The Winter People blends the anguish of loss and the yearning for connection into one great story, well told.”—Kate Alcott, author of The Dressmaker

Mark Hodkinson affectionately documents Rochdale’s dire 1973/74 season – winning twice in 46 league games – with a team considered the worst to play in the Football League. But this book is as much a love letter to his hometown as to his hometown team. The subject seems niche but the writer stretches the story smartly. We are on the familiar terrain of strikes over pay and crippling inflation, troubled race-relations, irresponsible industrialists, and despicable politicians, like Rochadale’s Liberal MP, paedophile Cyril Smith. Hodkinson adds plenty of cultural colour too, and evokes what a game on a Saturday can mean to a town trudging through life’s grey travails. Through a story of inglorious losers on the pitch, he shows that ordinary, decent people will not be defeated off it. NJ McGARRIGLE THE WINTER PEOPLE is my favorite book thus far in 2023. I love books where the answers to a present day, supernatural mystery can be solved by finding hidden archives from the past. McMahon is an expert in this style of storytelling and THE WINTER PEOPLE is a perfect example. How did you react to Gertie’s hunger? What is its significance to the maternal women who must care for her? Ultimately, though, I was let down by the series of reveals at the end. I didn't buy who the killer ultimately turned out to be, and I really hated the way Ruthie was asked to give up her dreams and take care of this sleeper that her mother had decided to take responsibility for--it didn't feel like a satisfying conclusion. The trees were bent and twisted, the branches weighted down with snow. She felt the trees were watching her, a terrible army that stood in rows and reached for her with gnarled fingers.”

One day, in our present, Ruthie‘s and Fawn’s mother vanishes. The connection to Sarah? They live in her old farmhouse. While trying to find their mother, they uncover Sarah’s diary and some other peculiar objects that don’t bode well. An edge-of-your-seat scary ghost story. . . . I will never look at the woods behind my home in the same way again!”—Heather Gudenkauf, author of The Weight of Silence Each of the three protagonists is steadily plodding along through the banality of life while quietly battling against their troubles and traumas while using the sea as a soothing balm - Sis, in particular, almost has saltwater running through her veins as she is so dependent upon the beach for anchorage.

Woven within the mystery of the story is this quandary - what lengths would you go to for a little bit more time with the ones you’ve loved and lost? Would you make the decision in haste or would you seriously consider the consequences? It's a tough choice. One that's likely to be guided by selfish desires and heartache. I do still think the atmosphere in this is top-notch. Also, I love how McMahon formats her stories. The way she is able to blend historical perspectives with the present; chef's kiss. The author did a pretty good job of merging the past with the present, while building an incredibly sly and surprising link between the two, tapping me on the shoulder at just the right moment, giving me the shivers a time or two. Three wonderfully created characters with voices that are unique and realistic, in a setting that conjures up amazing imagery and adds such depth to the whole novel. I had a snow day off from work a few weeks ago, and I spent the entire day reading this novel. It's one of those books that had me completely mesmerized at the time, but now that many days have past, I keep wondering . . . was it really that good, or was the wintry, chilling atmosphere helped along by the fact that there were inches of white stuff piling up against my door as I read?A highly atmospheric tale about the bonds we form with others and of the price we are or aren’t willing to pay for that special person.

I enjoyed 'Winter People' and the quiet emotional resilience of the characters rang true. It's beautifully written as well, the Atlantic coast providing a strong sense of place, and the descriptions, the sea especially, are both sparse and atmospheric. There's a vein of sadness running through it, and to say too much would give away something of the slight plot, but I enjoyed spending time with these reflective characters. A tender and compassionate read. When it gets dark early, when it's cold, when the wind blows long and loud into the night. The atmosphere is richly developed and absolutely my favorite part of the story. The Half Moon is an atmospheric literary drama about a marriage in crisis, Malcolm is a bartender who finally buys the bar where he works but realizes he made a bad deal. Meanwhile, his wife is a successful attorney who realizes she may never become a mother. (Infertility is a big theme in this one.)

As the long and brutal winter approaches, trauma ensues and Leni and her mother are left to survive on their own. Then, one day, I was writing from the point of view of my turn-of-the century character, Sara. And I wrote down this line: The first time I saw a sleeper, I was nine years old.