The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah

Cover Art Courtesy of St. Martin's Press

I've been reading so many good books lately, and this was no exception! Kristin Hannah is a very well known and phenomenal author so I jumped at the chance to read her newest release, The Great Alone. I do want to put in a trigger warning for PTSD and spousal abuse, because those topics are very prevalent in this story. It follows thirteen year old Leni Allbright and her parents, Cora and Ernt. When Ernt returns from being held captive in Vietnam, he has severe PTSD, often being unable to hold a job (or his temper), and he gets stir crazy very easily. The family soon finds out that one of Ernt's war buddies has left them his home and land...in Alaska. So off they go to start a new life for what Leni hopes is the last time. 

They soon come to realize that they are ill-prepared for the life that awaits them: danger around every corner, no power, and the threat of freezing or starvation being very real. But the Allbrights are survivors, so they do their best to adapt with the help of their new neighbors. As winter starts to set in; however, Ernt's temper gets worse, and he starts getting explosively angry and hurting Cora. Leni and her mom must figure out how to survive, not only the Alaskan winter, but also the danger now lurking in their own home.

This book was outright fantastic. Even though this was a longer read (the physical ARC was over 400 pages), I flew through it in less than 24 hours. The story was engaging, moving, and a little emotionally stressing. I loved Leni's character, especially how she loved books and used reading as a coping mechanism for what was going on around her. Seeing her grow up and fall in love, despite all the challenges she faced was an inspiration. The topics of spousal abuse and PTSD are difficult ones to swallow, but the more we acknowledge that these are real issues that need addressed, the better things will become. I'm glad that Leni was able to acknowledge these issues even as an adolescent and understand that what was happening was not okay.

The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah releases on February 6, 2018!

Overall Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

Thanks so much for St. Martin's Press for sending me this ARC! This was a very highly anticipated release for me so I'm excited to have had the opportunity to read it early.