Cold

by Alison Carpenter

"It's her." A picture, they say, is worth a thousand words. But Joanna Holbrook-Sutherland senses that the photograph she encounters at an exhibit in a trendy London gallery could change her life -- if only she can locate the homeless woman whose haunting face has been captured within it. A face that has also been haunting her dreams. Jo knows it's completely unrealistic to believe that she'll be able to find one beleaguered blonde among the thousands of men and women trying to stay alive on the cold, hard streets of London. It's also completely out of character for Jo to even try -- the spoiled socialite is noted for her bed hopping and bad behavior, not her good works. Unfortunately, dropping the search doesn't seem to be an option. With a compulsiveness that amazes her family and her friends and frightens herself, Jo painstakingly assembles the crumbs of information that eventually will lead her to a frigid park in Whitechapel and to Rocky, a young woman with fearful secrets. She has no idea that the hardest part is still ahead, dealing with the debilitating physical and mental consequences of living on the street for five years; and with the horrors that drove Rocky there in the first place.

Genres: Lesbian, Romance, Abuse

256 pages, Paperback

First published December 2, 2002

About the author

Alison Carpenter lives on the outskirts of the historical and beautiful City of Bath, England. Having failed on all levels at school, she developed an enjoyment of reading and then writing, and was happy to prove those final school reports wrong. She began writing online fan fiction about a certain female warrior and went on from there to original fiction. Alison made some wonderful friends online, all of whom are somehow involved in online fiction and publishing. Some of those friends, including Barbara Davies and Stephanie Solomon were a great help in the early attempts of a writer with little confidence. (from the publisher's website)

Reviews

[Pin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cold (the only published book by Alison Carpenter also known online as Midgit) is at last released as an ebook. I already read this story online and enjoyed it again just like the first time. With this story, the author has posted online two more short stories about Jo & Rocky: Remember Me and Winter’s Thaw.

[Doreen · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent book that I enjoyed reading.

It's a soulmate romance from the word -GO. I know that I've read this book more than once.

[Angie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautifully written, very sweet and touching, Cold is a gorgeous novel about true love. Its premise and scope may sound far-fetched to the cynical reader, but for anyone who adores a good romance with lots of heart, sensitivity and caring, this is for you! :)

[Anja · Rating 3 out of 5]

Too much drama for too little time in the book, but still an enjoyable story

[Sharon · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is about one of the reasons why kids end up homeless and on the streets quite often. They are nothing but prey at home and have no one to turn to because of who their predators are or who the people in power around them are. They then usually end up even worse prey to even more predators being homeless. It's even worse when they come across people who are supposed to protect their lives and keep them safe, only to find them the true predators.

This is also about love, about hope, about the two halves of a soul reuniting. It is sad, heartwrenching, heartbreaking, happy, heart mending, and soulbinding. A book about two people who believed that their souls have traveled through time and have always found each other. It is about the strength of someone who has hope. When you have hope, you never give up, you keep fighting.

[Suzi Vilkman (Hautaniemi) · Rating 5 out of 5]

I keep rereading this book over and over. I love the melodrama, I love the thriller, I love the whole book.

Recommended for anyone who loves good melodrama that keeps you on your toes til the very end.

[P Mac · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very schmaltzy but also enjoyable. Could have been fleshed out a bit more.

[wren4777 · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am *such* a sucker for a soulmate novel. Yes, it's cheesy, but this was so good.

[Rae · Rating 3 out of 5]

After seeing a picture of Rocky, Joanna knows she has to meet her. But being from two different walks of life makes it difficult to connect.

I enjoyed the read and thought the couple had good chemistry. At times it felt like too much was happening in a short span of time, i wished the book was spaced better.

[Daishua · Rating 5 out of 5]

I knew it!

I could clearly see the correlation between these characters and Dena and Gabrielle from Xena:Warrior Princess. I loved this book and I actually saw the hard copy somewhere.

[Caroline Chong · Rating 4 out of 5]

Perhaps a little too good to sound real but nevertheless a heart warming love story worth reading.