The Winter People

A Novel

By: Jennifer McMahon

Narrated by: Cassandra Campbell, Kathe Mazur

The New York Times best-selling author of Promise Not to Tell returns with a simmering literary thriller about ghostly secrets, dark choices, and the unbreakable bond between mothers and daughters...sometimes too unbreakable.

West Hall, Vermont, has always been a town of strange disappearances and old legends. The most mysterious is that of Sara Harrison Shea, who, in 1908, was found dead in the field behind her house just months after the tragic death of her daughter, Gertie. Now, in present day, 19-year-old Ruthie lives in Sara's farmhouse with her mother, Alice, and her younger sister, Fawn. Alice has always insisted that they live off the grid, a decision that suddenly proves perilous when Ruthie wakes up one morning to find that Alice has vanished without a trace. Searching for clues, she is startled to find a copy of Sara Harrison Shea's diary hidden beneath the floorboards of her mother's bedroom. As Ruthie gets sucked deeper into the mystery of Sara's fate, she discovers that she's not the only person who's desperately looking for someone that they've lost. But she may be the only one who can stop history from repeating itself.

©2014 Jennifer McMahon (P)2014 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

"Jennifer McMahon is a writer of exceptional talent, and The Winter People is a hypnotic, gripping, and deeply moving thriller. With her beautifully drawn characters and complex, layered, and suspenseful story, McMahon has woven a dream from which I didn't want to wake - and couldn't have even if I wanted to." (Lisa Unger, author of In the Blood)

"In an edge-of-your-seat scary ghost story, Jennifer McMahon’s The Winter People yanks you from one page to the next by expertly weaving the past and present. I will never look at the woods behind my home in the same way again!" (Heather Gudenkauf, author of The Weight of Silence )

mcmahon's latest and greatest success

this book was a horror story and a mystery story and a story of family and love and regret and desperation all wrapped up into a wonderfully written and quite engaging novel.

the characters of ruthy and fawn were easy to root for...easy to love. sara and gertie were both mysterious and a tragic.

i'm a fan of jennifer mcmahon. i think she writes a tightly wound thrilling story with extremely well thought out characters. she knows how to weave in the magical element where it's not hokey or over the top...it's actually believable and really draws you in as a reader.

i will excitedly devour anything she writes until she stops writing.

Okay, but just okay

An interesting premise.
Characters that weren’t terribly believable, and I’m hot referring to the supernatural elements of the story.
I kept rooting for the story, but ultimately it was just okayish.

A good scare

Though it’s definitely not a great story it was good enough to keep me hanging on. The plot is a bit involved because the story covers several time periods. But it’s a scary story for a dark December night.

Just Okay

I was fairly disappointed. The characters never caught my interest, the lore was underdeveloped and didn’t spook me at all, and the dialogue was bland and unrealistic. Maybe I’m just too used to Stephen King’s style and came in expecting something more like his work, but in general I wouldn’t recommend this one.

SPOOKY!!!

This is one of those books that while listening, you are discretely looking around the room, making sure you are still alone. I listened to this back when it first came out but decided to revisit. My favorite kind of stories so i don't mind doing a reread. SPOOKY!!! EERILY spooky!! Highly recommended and the narrator is excellent!

Creeptastically good!

This was wonderfully creepy and engaging. A mix of horror and mystery, it kept me enthralled. The narrator did an excellent job of delivering the story in an engaging and thoughtful manner. Highly recommend!

Enthralling Listen!

This book kept me on the edge of my seat the entire way through. Just when I thought I knew what was coming, a plot twist threw the book an entirely different direction. For anyone who likes mysteries, thrillers and/or family sagas, this is the book for you! Loved it.

Quite entertaining

This was my first audible book and I was skeptical but I really enjoyed it to my surprise. The performance was very good and the story line very intriguing. I listened mainly when I was on the treadmill or cycle but it helped pass time very well. I will definitely try another one

creepy

a great epic tale going back and forth in time bringing multiple characters together with this spine tingling story and ghosts and bringing the dead back.

Very much enjoyed. Agree ending was too soft.

The story is a very well done mix of mystery and ghost story. I recommend it to anyone. I think the ending could have been stronger. I also did not like how the Auntie character was so important but underdeveloped. I had trouble understanding the choices made by her character because she was not fully fleshed out.