From the highly acclaimed author of The Outcast and The Alliance comes an engrossing novel about marriage and motherhood, loss and moving on.
When Ruth Neufeld’s husband and father-in-law are killed working for a relief organization overseas, she travels to Wisconsin with her young daughters and mother-in-law Mabel to bury her husband. She hopes the Mennonite community will be a quiet place to grieve and piece together next steps.
Ruth and her family are welcomed by Elam, her husband’s cousin, who invites them to stay at his cranberry farm through the harvest. Sifting through fields of berries and memories of a marriage that was broken long before her husband died, Ruth finds solace in the beauty of the land and healing through hard work and budding friendship. She also encounters the possibility of new love with Elam, whose gentle encouragement awakens hopes and dreams she thought she’d lost forever.
But an unexpected twist threatens to unseat the happy ending Ruth is about to write for herself.
My Review:
published in 2019
When I was packing up to move, I set aside a basket full of books I wanted to re-read and, periodically, I browse through them and mood pick one. This is one of those gems and well worth the second read.
Well, I’m gobsmacked! Seriously speechless. This book was everything I didn’t expect it to be and that ending!!!! I’m still coasting on the shock waves and it’s been a week since I reached the end. A week of mulling over plot points and characters, wondering if I’d actually read what I…well, read! lol And how do I possibly compose a review without revealing spoilers? I’m stymied.
‘How the Light Gets In’ is profound and moving. A raw and honest exploration of grief. And Ruth’s grieving is all the more difficult because of her broken marriage. The agony of not being able to go back and change things or have the opportunity to go forward and fix things makes for a heart-wrenching read. But it’s also a story that embraces the wonder and hope of new beginnings; of learning from the past in order to build a better future.
But be forewarned — there are plot twists galore and Petersheim delivers them with the kind of impeccable pacing that left me reeling. Left hook after left hook until my head was spinning! So many rich layers — from setting to characters to that wicked pummel-me-senseless storyline. Phew! Prepare to be caffuzled and addlepated by the time you finish!
GIVEAWAY OPPORTUNITY:
US – paperback or ebook – winner’s choice
Canada – paperback, ebook or audio — winner’s choice
International – ebook if you have a US Kindle account
If you would like a chance to win a copy of How the Light Gets In, leave a comment below or email me at kavluvstoread AT yahoo DOT ca. If you add an email to your comment, remember to use AT and DOT instead of @ and . in order to protect yourself from spammers. If you enter the draw via email, please add the title to the subject line so it’s easy to spot your entry. Draw will be held and winner announced on Saturday November 7 2026.
