Customer Reviews

Leaving Winter

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Heroine: plump/voluptuous

Cordelia Brown is certain she is having the worst Christmas ever. Her loving parents have passed away and her beautiful but unkind sisters can't forgive her for inheriting the family home. So she escapes to Rome as per her father's final wishes in the hopes that she'll find some happiness there. Perhaps while in Italy, away from the glares of her sisters, her plumpness will magically transform into voluptuousness and she'll be able to hold her head up high and even appear graceful now and then.

But Cordelia's lack of self-confidence and grief over the loss of her parents follow her to Rome, as do hurtful emails from her sisters. The distraught young woman wanders around the city and happens across a tiny, ancient church that looks like the perfect place to lick her wounds. While weeping in one of the pews she meets a kind but mysterious stranger, an attractive man who hides half his face from her, but she catches a glimpse of it and sees that it is horribly disfigured.

Suddenly Cordelia finds she is not as alone in the world as she thought, or as unattractive as her sisters insisted. But her new friend's scars are more than skin deep and threaten to keep Cordelia from ever growing closer to him.

Can Cordelia win the trust and love of this lonely kindred spirit and turn her worst Christmas into one she'll cherish forever?

What worked for me:

The author described Rome so beautifully that I find I want to go there and see it for myself now.

Aside from a spot or two which could have been polished to an even higher sheen, this story just sang for me! Such wonderful attention paid to minutiae, and what beautiful dialogue was shared between the struggling lovers.

The jump from the narrative about Cordelia and Frank to letters written by their relatives was a bit of a shock, but the e-mail exchanges certainly were a unique way to paint the family portraits.

Size-wise Cordelia thought she was large and ungainly but Frank didn't agree in the least.

What didn't work for me:

Those sisters! Thank heavens I was blessed with a brother instead. (I could go for having a niece like Pam, though.)

Overall:
"Leaving Winter" is a delightful, darling story. Don't miss it!

Warning: This book has some sensual moments and coarse language within its pages. Also, you'll want to have a box of tissues handy.

If you liked "Leaving Winter" you might also enjoy "Lady Blue", "Teacher's Pet", "Etta Mae's Little Theory", "A Worthy Heir", "The Legacy Tree", "The Bridesmaid's Reward", "More to Love", "His Seductive Revenge", "Truth and Lies", "Carried Away", "The Independent Bride", "His Email-Order Wife", or "The Librarian's Passionate Knight".

This book was a bit of a surprise to me. I didn't know what to expect, but I am happy to say that I loved it! It's a charming little story of two people who have gone through life feeling isolated, yet are finally able to chip away at their "walls" together.

I liked it so much I even ordered several extra copies to give as Christmas gifts!

Cordelia Brown had a life filled with hardships. She took care of her sick mother before cancer took her as well as cared for her father before he passed. Before he died, her father gifted her with a trip to Rome; something he had wanted to do with her mother but never got the chance. Now, Cordelia was off to take a break from life not sure what she was going to do next. She prayed for a dream, having not a clue that it was just a few yards from where she was standing. But would she be able to accept it?

Frank McCarthy also lived a life filled with hardships. Frank had to suffer the loss of a brother with no one to help him get through his darkness. His face scared for life. He prayed for a miracle, also not knowing how close it was to him. Would he be able to thaw out his heart for another?

Kathleen Quinn is an amazing story weaver. I found this story to be heart warming, letting you know that there is still true love out there. Quinn's writing flowed naturally, no matter what characters voice she was using. I loved how the book went between Cordelia, her niece Pam, Frank, and his sister Claire, whether it was seen through their eyes or written down like reading a journal. The voice changes in the storyline kept the book flowing, giving the reader a taste of all the characters involved in the story. I really felt like I knew these characters and hated seeing the end of the book. Even though I loved the ending and was very happy with it. I was unhappy to see the characters be done and no more to tell.

I loved Cordelia most of all cause she was of plus size. She was never able to accept her size around her sisters until Frank entered the picture and showed her the beauty within herself. Once she became confident with herself, nothing stood in her way. She was no longer intimidated by her sisters' rude and childish comments. The only thing that mattered to her was how Frank felt about her.

The other character I liked was Pam, Cordelia's niece. Now I don't believe she was plus sized but she was Cordelia's cheerleader, always there for Cordelia even before she met Frank. Pam loved her aunt and stood up to her mom. Pam was a true free spirit. It was heartwarming to see the change in Pam throughout the story and to see how Frank and Cordelia's relationship made her realize what she needed to hold out for.

This book reflected that it doesn't matter what you look like as long as you believe in who you are as a human being, the inside is truly what counts. There should be more books that reflect this. Kathleen A. Quinn is an author I hope to read more of and hope others come to know her work. It is really good and clean. The love story is pure and should be an example of what people should wait for.

Reviewed by Krista
for BBW Reviews

Powerful, moving, funny and heart-rending, Kathleen Quinn's wonderfully written Leaving Winter held me enthralled to the very last word. This is a writer of substance, with much to say about the human condition. The story is that of the finely-drawn Cordelia and Frank, who find each other in the face of the injuries life has inflicted on them. A journey into the heart, that left me feeling uplifted and deeply moved. Can't wait for her next book!

Once I started reading this book, I couldn't put it down. The winter of the characters' isolation fades to the warmth of spring when Cordelia, overweight and painfully shy, meets Frank, who is severely scarred from a childhood accident.

The setting of Rome added to my interest. I felt as though I, too, were walking past the Trevi Fountain, seeing the Christmas Fair in Piazza Navona, or watching the rain fall through the roof opening in the Pantheon.

A lovely little book!

This book starts from an excellent premise, that regardless of size or other physical conditions people need love and affection just as much as anyone else and that emotional wounds of the past can keep us from responding positively to overtures of caring in the present no matter how sincere and honest they may be. But in my opinion Leaving Winter is very amateurishly written.

It spends too much time telling when it should be showing. It wanders a lot rather than having a direction. The premise that an essentially homebody would go off and spend weeks in one city in Italy (rather than touring the entire country) just because her deceased parents would have wanted her to does not seem plausible to me. The other side characters who narrate their own little sections merely to provide background information that would have been much better handled in flashbacks are annoying. The character of the niece who is described as being a very modern teen and yet who likes old fashioned things seems too great a contradiction and her nearly equal confidante relationship with her aunt needs a lot more support to be believable.

All that said it was an enjoyable book and it did have some very nice, poignant moments. But I found myself spending too much time thinking how I could have written it better to really endorse it.

I loved this book. It tells a great story. I read the book in one day. I would recommend this book to all of my friends!

Cordelia is grieving the lost of her parents when she was christmas in Rome. There she meet Frank McCarthy a man who is scar on the inside and outside. This these are two a drawn together, but there there time is limited.
"Leaving Winter" is very short novel by Kathleen A. Quinn, while does have have a lot of emotional impact,it did seem that Ms. Quinn could have taken the time to make the book longer.

Like other reviewers stated: this book has a good and uplifting message. The idea that a person's physical appearance doesn't deter them from wanting and finding a "soul connection" in our superficial world. And I enjoyed the author's narrative style of interjecting journal-like monologues from other character's point-of-view throughout the book. What I didn't like was the length of the story...around 100 pages...which I blame for the second disappointment, lack of character development and plot. There was a great plot outline in the story, but the actual tale was so linear and boring. It was like the framework of a great book was present, but wasn't "fleshed" out to my liking. The dialogue was a bit trite as well. No momentus revelations here folks. Nope, it's your plain and simple: "I like you" and "I like you too Frank" all the way to the end.

Leaving Winter is a wonderful little story. However, it lacks character and plot development. Would have been much better in an anthology rather than a book of its own. I felt quite cheated by the brevity of it. Also, fellow readers, if you are looking for any descriptive narration of the love scenes...don't bother with this book. If you can find the book in the library, which I couldn't, get it there. If you are a fast reader, you will be able to complete this book in an hour or less. Not worth the price of admission.