Kristin Hannah is just my jam. I love her writing style and the brutal honesty of her narratives. This book is fantastic, but oh boy does it rip your heart into pieces.

The plot sucked me right in from the beginning and I loved Elsa as a character, even when I wanted to smack her upside the head. Same for Loreda. That girl is one heck of a troublesome, headstrong teenager. She is written brilliantly. I love the way Hannah's characters become so incredibly realistic. There are often times when I forget that I am reading fiction, everything is super tangible and reads like a biography.

I love the female-focused plot and the centering of the story on the dust bowl era. This was incredibly unique and interesting to read. I knew about the event in a peripheral historical way, but it was engrossing to read about the details of the hardships and to examine the ways that life then does incredibly parallel some of the issues we struggle with today. The writing was incredibly atmospheric and the narrative was immensely emotional. I ran the gamut with emotions on this one: disbelief, anger, frustration, love, fear, heartsickness, grief, pain, relief...the list goes on. This story is a gut-puncher.

I realize that I'm rambling about it, but really this is just a great book. It is hard-hitting and painful...don't go in expecting sunshine and roses...but it is beautiful too. One of my best reads of the year so far.