Joanna Anderson Campbell lived the perfect life ... loving daughter and sister, loyal friend, faithful wife, and devoted mother. She was happy and content. What more could she have asked for? Life could not have been better. At least ... that's what she believed. Until she died. Can death teach the most valuable lessons about life? Jo Campbell is about to find out.
**My thoughts**
I'll be honest. The first chapter devastated me and I had to put the book down for a day or two. It wasn't because it was bad. It was because it was so familiar and rang so true. This isn't a spoiler: Jo dies. The first chapter is about her final moments in the Hospice room, as she and her family say goodbye to each other. The descriptions of their interactions were just like those I had with my father when he was dying. Jo's descriptions of what she saw and how she felt were precisely the way I imagined my father felt in those final moments. I was a sobbing mess and did take a peek into Chapter 2.
After a day or two, when I had time where I knew I could read completely in the privacy in my own home (as I also often read out in public), I tackled the book again. A full box of Kleenex wasn't as necessary, but my brain got a ton of exercise. Jo is now reflecting on her life, guided by her subconscious soul. As she undergoes this journey, she finds that she made some good decisions and some bad decisions. She misinterpreted many situations, yet was spot-on for others. Now, in the afterlife, hindsight and memories from a different point-of-view help her to finally sort through everything, realize what was important, and to find the value in her life.
It's a book that makes you think. I was reminded of Cognitive Behavior Therapy, where you take a situation and have to analyze it from different perspectives, to change and to challenge your immediate reactions and interpretations. It makes you take a look at your own life. How did you react in similar circumstances? Which of your memories of life are totally distorted? What was really important? What wasn't worth losing sleep over? You could be inspired to do a true inner search of your own soul. It takes a special book to connect with the reader in this way.
Autographed Copy: http://www.kathimorehead.com/
Buy on Amazon (Paperback) | Kindle
About the author:
Kathi Haacke Morehead makes her fiction debut with WHITE NIGHT. She is the author of HEART BLEED: Letting go and stanching the flow, and THE BEST FROM THE CHEAP SEATS. She has also written numerous articles for Mind Body Green, and Boomeon. She also blogs daily at A View From the Cheap Seats Today. Kathi lives in Brunswick with her husband Dave and their four finicky felines. Her motto is "love and laugh!"
Facebook | Twitter | Website | Blog | YouTube | Literary Addicts
Follow the tour here
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Thank you so much Andi! I'm so glad you liked it. For the record, I drew on the same experience that you speak of when writing that first chapter. Sitting with my father .. most difficult thing I ever had to do. What makes me so happy is that the message conveyed: that life is never what we think it is, so take time to look carefully before making judgments. Love really is the answer. Thank you again :)
ReplyDelete