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The Winter Mothers
In a nineteenth-century Canadian settlement where winter defines daily life, the women know how to endure when the world turns hard. They mend, bake, haul water, tend children, and hold one another upright through the long dark, guided by routine, memory, and the old rules no one admits they still follow.
With the men away at the logging camps, the women hold the settlement together. Days blur. Sleep comes thin. Worry settles into the walls of the cabins, and exhaustion sharpens every sound and shadow. Winter begins to press inward, wearing at tempers, sleep, and patience.
As a storm descends, the women begin to notice what winter carries. The sense of being watched. Sounds that do not belong to wind or settling wood. The feeling that something moves just beyond the reach of firelight.
The Winter Mothers is an atmospheric historical novella about women’s lives, winter folklore, and the quiet power of community, where endurance is not found in escape, but in staying, witnessing, and carrying one another through the dark.
For readers who love the atmospheric historical fiction of Geraldine Brooks and Hannah Kent
With the men away at the logging camps, the women hold the settlement together. Days blur. Sleep comes thin. Worry settles into the walls of the cabins, and exhaustion sharpens every sound and shadow. Winter begins to press inward, wearing at tempers, sleep, and patience.
As a storm descends, the women begin to notice what winter carries. The sense of being watched. Sounds that do not belong to wind or settling wood. The feeling that something moves just beyond the reach of firelight.
The Winter Mothers is an atmospheric historical novella about women’s lives, winter folklore, and the quiet power of community, where endurance is not found in escape, but in staying, witnessing, and carrying one another through the dark.
For readers who love the atmospheric historical fiction of Geraldine Brooks and Hannah Kent
182 pages, Kindle Edition
Published December 20, 2025
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
January 19, 2026
I don't read many books that make me cry, but this novella certainly did. This was a quiet, winter atmospheric read. The quiet determined strength of these women were evident in every page. I grew to care about each character. Each character's personality was unique and made up the weave of this tight little settlement. This book will stick with me a long time.
December 31, 2025
Sarah Colleen is commended for her ability to depict women struggling to make lives for their loved ones. She captures the emotional reality of how women connect.
December 23, 2025
I love this story so much. The author is gifted with the ability to make you feel and understand what it would be like to live in the past. The characters are relatable and real in a way I’ve not seen before. I enjoy the rhythm and cadence of the writing and can’t wait to see where the story goes next. This is a great read for all ages.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews