An evocative and absorbing tale of love, destiny, and the power of the past.
In Steidl’s novel set in a snow-covered Minnesota in the late 1980s, a chance encounter between two acquaintances develops into an intricate web of emotions, secrets, and unexpected connections.
On a cold night in 1989, Rowan McAllister collapses with a fever in a snowstorm while running through the St. Thomas campus in Saint Paul, Minnesota, where she works as a teaching assistant, directing a production of Macbeth. She’s rescued by the enigmatic Christian Atherton, a musician who’s the nephew of one of the college’s deans. They’ve met before, briefly, but they find that they now have an immediate connection. Later, she wonders if she imagined the spark, and she also wonders about his relationship with a man named Ashton Tate; as it turns out, Ashton’s supernatural secret makes Christian’s story far more complex. As Rowan finds out more about the man who saved her life, she’s drawn into a world where past traumas, fate, and love intertwine in ways she never anticipated. Steidl’s prose is rich and immersive, painting vivid images of the novel’s evocative setting. “The snow-shrouded campus of St. Thomas looked mystical, its buildings rising like an ancient abbey,” Rowan observes, setting the tone for a novel steeped in atmosphere. Later, the novel shifts to more intimate spaces, highlighting Steidl’s ability to blend grand, gothic visuals with deeply personal reflections. Rowan is shown to be intelligent and introspective, navigating the complexities of her relationships with a blend of caution and curiosity. Christian, with his quiet intensity and unspoken past, adds an air of mystery that keeps the reader engaged. Their interactions are filled with tension, as when Christian asks, “Do you believe in fate?”—a question that echoes throughout the story. Rowan’s relationship with Ian is particularly well drawn, with moments of tenderness and realism. The novel’s introspective nature allows for deep character exploration, particularly as Christian’s past comes to light: “There are things about me that would shock you more than what you saw last night,” he admits early, hinting at buried truths that unravel gradually.
An evocative and absorbing tale of love, destiny, and the power of the past.Pub Date: April 10, 2024
ISBN: 9798879984699
Page Count: 446
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: March 24, 2025
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
With captivating dialogue, angst-y characters, and a couple of steamy sex scenes, Hoover has done it again.
After being released from prison, a young woman tries to reconnect with her 5-year-old daughter despite having killed the girl’s father.
Kenna didn’t even know she was pregnant until after she was sent to prison for murdering her boyfriend, Scotty. When her baby girl, Diem, was born, she was forced to give custody to Scotty’s parents. Now that she’s been released, Kenna is intent on getting to know her daughter, but Scotty’s parents won’t give her a chance to tell them what really happened the night their son died. Instead, they file a restraining order preventing Kenna from so much as introducing herself to Diem. Handsome, self-assured Ledger, who was Scotty’s best friend, is another key adult in Diem’s life. He’s helping her grandparents raise her, and he too blames Kenna for Scotty’s death. Even so, there’s something about her that haunts him. Kenna feels the pull, too, and seems to be seeking Ledger out despite his judgmental behavior. As Ledger gets to know Kenna and acknowledges his attraction to her, he begins to wonder if maybe he and Scotty’s parents have judged her unfairly. Even so, Ledger is afraid that if he surrenders to his feelings, Scotty’s parents will kick him out of Diem’s life. As Kenna and Ledger continue to mourn for Scotty, they also grieve the future they cannot have with each other. Told alternatively from Kenna’s and Ledger’s perspectives, the story explores the myriad ways in which snap judgments based on partial information can derail people’s lives. Built on a foundation of death and grief, this story has an undercurrent of sadness. As usual, however, the author has created compelling characters who are magnetic and sympathetic enough to pull readers in. In addition to grief, the novel also deftly explores complex issues such as guilt, self-doubt, redemption, and forgiveness.
With captivating dialogue, angst-y characters, and a couple of steamy sex scenes, Hoover has done it again.Pub Date: Jan. 18, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-5420-2560-7
Page Count: 335
Publisher: Montlake Romance
Review Posted Online: Oct. 12, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2021
SEEN & HEARD
BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
A boarding-school fantasia, with Hilderbrand’s signature upgrades to the cuisine and decor. Sign us up for next term.
A year in the life of the No. 2 boarding school in America—up from No. 19 last year!
Rumors of Hilderbrand’s retirement were greatly exaggerated, it turns out, since not only has she not gone out to pasture, she’s started over in high school, with her daughter Shelby Cunningham as co-author. As their delicious new book opens, it’s Move-In Day at Tiffin Academy, and Head of School Audre Robinson is warmly welcoming the returning and new students to the New England campus, the latter group including a rare midstream addition to the junior class. Brainiac Charley Hicks is transferring from public school in Maryland to a spot that opened up when one of the school’s most beloved students died by suicide the preceding year. She will be joining a large, diverse cast of adult and teenage characters—queen bees, jealous second-stringers, boozehounds young and old, secret lesbians, people chasing the wrong people chasing other wrong people—all of them royally screwed when an app called Zip Zap appears and starts blasting everyone’s secrets all over campus. How the heck…? Meanwhile, it seems so unlikely that Tiffin has jumped up to the No. 2 spot in the boarding-school rankings that a high-profile magazine launches an investigation, and even the head is worried that there may have been payola involved. The school has a reputation for being more social than academic, and this quality gets an exciting new exclamation point when the resident millionaire bad boy opens a high-style secret speakeasy for select juniors in a forgotten basement. It’s called Priorities. Exactly. One problem: Cinnamon Peters’ mysterious suicide hangs over the book in an odd way, especially since the note she left for her closest male friend is not to be opened for another year—and isn’t. This is surely a setup for a sequel, but it’s a bit frustrating here, and bobs sort of shallowly along amid the general high spirits.
A boarding-school fantasia, with Hilderbrand’s signature upgrades to the cuisine and decor. Sign us up for next term.Pub Date: Sept. 16, 2025
ISBN: 9780316567855
Page Count: 432
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: July 4, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2025
SEEN & HEARD
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