Black Winter by Beauregard and Nicoli Neville

An eternal winter has blanketed the world in ice and snow. Alec Winter, a soldier trained by the military, does everything to protect those he loves. Until one day when survivors from the Layton Hills Mall turn up. They threaten to corrupt the small community Alec is a part of inside a hidden base in the mountains. Along with his best friend Brian and dog Mya, Alec tries to dispose of this threat which ultimately changes him. Maybe not for the better. Secrets, betrayal, and twists promise a story full of survival.

I dove into this book excitedly. It takes place in Utah. Very few books take place in Utah or show the state in a positive light. However, the first few pages crushed my hopes. There is a part on page three where Alec makes a remark to his friend Brian.

“I don’t know Alec. I’ve heard stranger noises out here lately. It’s actually kind of creepy.”

“It’s probably just some animal starving. You guys are seriously a bunch of little girls.” Alec says.

Now, normally, that wouldn’t bother me. But as I thought about it more and more, something about it bothered me. It had a “good ole boy” vibe to it, just like the outdated phrase “boys will be boys”. This sentence implies that all young girls fear noises. Which sometimes is true.

It gives the impression that only girls experience fear in the dark. Fear can affect boys as well. They have as much right to feel scared. So stereotypes like the one in the book only reinforce negativity instead of being more open about feeling your emotions.

As I went on, that scene moved into the back of my mind and I got to know the characters more. The pacing was good and would keep a reader engaged. I didn’t become invested until chapter 11 when things got good and took a twist. I applaud the authors for creating a character to relate to. Nearing the end of the book, I realized the lack of strong female characters.

Emily may have some strength, but it seems like the authors wrote her to be passive and wait for someone to rescue her. The novel included a few rape scenes, not too explicit, but I wished there were more instances of women fighting back against their attackers or women defending each other. The purpose of the book was for the man to be the hero and save everyone. It would have been refreshing for at least one woman soldier or police officer who is female to fight alongside Alec. I dislike writing negative reviews because I know how hard the author or authors have worked and I don’t want to discourage them from writing future books.

I post my reviews to help the authors become better in their writings. Unfortunately, many spelling errors and grammar mistakes riddle the book. The one that kept leaping out at me was “peak”. The authors would use this word in a sentence as follows.

“He peaks around a corner.” Peak is the point of a summit or mountain. Peek would have been more appropriate. I can’t tell if it’s an accident or deliberate.

The storyline was solid and original. The book kept evolving like a Pokemon! I loved that. Character development was excellent. Descriptions needed a bit of work.

All in all, a well-written and respectable story. For my Christian viewers, it is PG-13 for swearing, gore, and violence. No f-bombs or exclamations of God or Jesus.

8/10