Review by Booklist Review
A woman returns home and confronts her past trauma in Shipman's latest (after The Clover Girls, 2021). Sonny Dunes has spent years running from her tragic past, even going so far as to change her name to establish herself as a meteorologist in Palm Springs. But when she has a breakdown on air after being replaced by an AI meteorologist, the only place she has to go is back home to Michigan. As a 50-year-old moving back in with her mother, Sonny feels like a complete failure, but that hurts less than the memories of her deceased younger sister that continue to linger. As Sonny reestablishes her career at her hometown news station, she must confront her guilt and grief surrounding her sister's death, while also learning to let love melt her frozen heart. The Secret of Snow is a contemporary novel on grief and the way it can keep you frozen from living life to the fullest. While some plot points seemed contrived, the overall themes and tone will touch readers.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Shipman (Clover Girls) delivers a beautifully written story about second chances. After 50-year-old meteorologist Sonny Dunes is fired from her Palm Springs, Calif., TV station and replaced by an artificial intelligence system, she gets drunk with a former colleague, then heads back to the station to voice her opinions, live and uncensored. In the aftermath, she agrees to return to her northern Michigan hometown and serve as chief meteorologist for the local station. In addition to working for a college acquaintance, Sonny is immediately targeted by local mean girl Polly Sue Van Kampen, who makes it clear that she blames Sonny for taking the job she expected to get and does everything she can to sabotage her. Sonny also finds love with a local man, Mason Carrier, and when an unprecedented career opportunity arises, Sonny is confronted with the choice of whether to stay with Mason or take the job. The author adds emotional gravitas with a subplot about Sonny's deceased younger sister, and perfectly sketches Sonny's mother, while also sensitively handling the topic of mental health, with one character having obsessive-compulsive disorder and another having lost a loved one to suicide. Fans of women's fiction won't be able to put this down. Agent: Wendy Sherman, Wendy Sherman Assoc. (Oct.)
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Review by Library Journal Review
In Shipman's first holiday novel, 50-year-old Southern California-based meteorologist Sonny Dunes throws an on-air tantrum when she learns that she is about to be replaced by an AI meteorologist, and the only job she can now land is in her very chilly northern Michigan hometown. Despite painful family memories and a fake-friendly boss from her past, Sonny commits herself wholly to Michigan winters, and meeting the director of the Winter Ice Sculpture Contest could deliver the love and warmth she needs. With a 100,000-copy first printing.
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