Book Review: To Fall for Winter

By Sara Steven

I’ve been called the Black Sheep. Troublemaker. And probably a dozen other words that are nowhere near that nice. My past is checkered. Full of questionable choices and even worse outcomes. But I’ve put it behind me. I’m on the straight and narrow now.

For two years, I've towed the line. Stayed out of trouble. Kept my head above water. And have not made even one reckless decision.

But then Snow came to River Canyon on the first day of winter.

Inked, pierced, and unafraid of speaking her mind, and going after what she wants, she made me an offer I couldn't refuse. Together, I knew we would make a mess.

I just couldn't keep myself from getting dirty. (Synopsis courtesy of Goodreads.)

Having read One Night to Fall (reviewed here), I was eagerly anticipating the next chapter in the Kinney Brother’s story. To Fall For Winter was well worth the wait. The push and pull between Ryan and Snow, the electrifying magnetism, it grabs hold and hooks you in from the very beginning of their story, to the very end.

Ryan is the quintessential bad boy that we all want to love. The way Kingsley describes him, I was practically salivating from the steamy scenes he finds himself in, with Snow. And Snow is so errantly flawed, a tough girl who has mushy insides that she doesn’t want to share with anyone, particularly Ryan- it made for a dynamic relationship, the pages oozing with their need. And while Ryan wants to remain within the realm of his own comforts, Snow pushes him outside of himself, in a way that no one else ever could.

I appreciate how we’re given insight into who they really are as their story progresses, as it delves deeper into past hurts and unwanted baggage. Ryan doesn’t have the inside scoop on what Snow has had to endure in her life, and I felt as though I got to learn more about it right along with him, instead of feeling left out of the loop. I can’t stress enough the moments of tension, in all manners, that made me want to continue reading until I could absorb every single word, imprinting the characters into my memory. They were that memorable.

In the end, this is a love story, but one that teaches us that there is so much more to a person than what meets the eye. It’s never easy to let yourself fall, to reduce the barriers around ourselves in order to let someone else in, and for these two, it’s amplified. I loved the opportunity to get to know Ryan and Snow at such an intimate level, and I look forward to reading about the third Kinney brother in Last Chance to Fall.

Thanks to Kelsey Kingsley for the book in exchange for an honest review.