If you are mindful of content warnings-assume “Last Winter” has absolutely all of them and please move along to read something better suited to you right now.

I love these characters, and their heartbreaking, gut wrenching story that’s set in a beautiful Canadian small town winter I know well. This story is for the reader who wants to meet a smart, complicated woman where she is at - which is in the middle of a very messy Bipolar crisis-, and watch her story unravel from there, in the midst of a tragedy that devastates the town and in a landscape that both captivates and threatens. This is not a book for the faint of heart, or for the people who only want “easy” mental health issues in their TBR pile. I wrote this story for me, so I could dive into the story of someone I can relate to in some ways, and discover how she navigates the world and her grief and the breakdown of her marriage. We’re not story-worthy just on our good days. Until people are willing to hear the difficult parts of our stories along with the easier parts, then they are not valuing the whole person, or the whole story. We do normal-people things too buy groceries and manage finances and work and childcare and relationships. We seek love, companionship, deal with loss, learn about and yearn for what is important to us. People who experience mental illness also have stories worth reading, watching, or listening to. It’s not insta-ready or easily packaged for a tweet or tik tok.ĭepression & anxiety are the only mental health poster children most people are willing to identify with and/or throw money, energy or support at. People are quick to claim their support badge for de-stigmatizing mental health, but less so for mental illness. Author Statement in advance of LAST WINTER’s upcoming release:

Storm by Carrie Mac