Review - The Color of Heaven (The Color of Heaven Series #1) by Julianne MacLean

Title: The Color of Heaven

Author: Juliane MacLean

Pages: 316

Published: January 23rd 2011 by Julianne MacLean

ISBN: 9780986842221

Source: Sent for honest review

Description: Sophie Duncan is a successful columnist whose world falls apart after her daughter's unexpected illness and her husband's shocking affair. When it seems nothing else could possibly go wrong, her car skids off an icy road and plunges into a frozen lake. There, in the cold, dark depths of the water, Sophie experiences something profound and extraordinary--something that unlocks the secrets from her past, and teaches her what it means to truly live.

I Give This ...

I was contacted by another author wondering if I would be interested in reviewing a fellow author's friends work.  It seems she already had a few books under her built but was trying a different genre under a pseudonym.  I'm not usually one for chick lit, but the titles and descriptions intrigued me.  I decided to give the first in the series a shot.

First off, this was a surprisingly light book despite the topic.  Yes there are some moments of doom and gloom, but the overall tone if the book was uplifting.  It was almost to a fault because at times the book didn't feel very adult like.  But, I think that's because grief has torn Sophie down so far she's a shell of herself.  So we see a side of Sophie that is not necessarily the true Sophie.

The death of Sophie's daughter is heartbreaking.  I can't imagine what this mother went through and maybe that's what I identified with the most.  Her idiotic husband drove me nuts.  It sounds like he wrote of his daughter long before she was gone.  His way of dealing with his grief I"m sure.  But, by acting this way he managed to make his wife feel even worse.

I wasn't surprised by the events at the bottom of the lake.   It didn't take me long to pin down what was actually happening.  But, I found it very sweet.  It helped Sophie deal with things in her past, not just her daughter's death.  From that, she was able to move forward.  And maybe...she'll also be able to truly live again.