Blackberry Winter follows two main characters, and two different time periods. But the Seattle setting is the same for both stories -- and that's where they meld together.
Vera has a 3-year-old son, Daniel she is raising alone. It's 1933 and Vera is poor. She must leave her son home alone, while she works the night shift as a hotel maid. She still doesn't make enough money -- and is behind on her rent. They live in an apartment above a saloon. When a freak May snowstorm hits, Vera has trouble getting home from work and when she gets there, Daniel is gone. With no help from the authorities, Vera's desperation to find her son causes her to make some mistakes, but the reader can only keep hoping for the best for her.
Claire is a reporter for the Seattle Herald newspaper, and when a freak snowstorm hits in May of 2010, her editor wants her to do a feature article comparing this storm to the one that hit on the very same day in 1933. Claire finds an article about a little boy who went missing during the 1933 snowstorm, and decides this will be her angle. As Claire investigates, she feels a connection to these people from 1933. But, we also find out that Claire, herself, has suffered a huge loss, and she and her husband are drifting farther and farther apart.
There are a lot of coincidences that bring these two stories together. And, yes, some are a bit much. But it's a STORY, so just enjoy it. If you don't like contrived situations and happy endings that you may figure out early, then you should avoid Blackberry Winter. But if you enjoy a feel-good story with characters that you can root for and care about, then you shouldn't miss Blackberry Winter.
The narrator for the audio version is Tara Sands, and she did a good job. I would recommend the audio version if you like audio books.
Published by Plume, 2013. Audio by Brilliance Audio
Copy obtained from the library
320 pages
Rating: 3.5/5
Glad you enjoyed this one. This was the first Jio novel I tried, and as you hinted in your review, I found it a little too predictable for my taste. But, the characters and plotlines were pretty great. I'm going to give Jio another try with The Last Camellia soon I think.
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