My five star review of Finding Eden by Mia Sheridan

“The writing of a novel is taking life as it already exists, not to report it but to make an object, toward the end that the finished work might contain this life inside it and offer it to the reader. The essence will not be, of course, the same thing as the raw material; it is not even of the same family of things. The novel is something that never was before and will not be again.”
—Eudora Welty, WD

How do you take such a fantastically written body of work, and condense it down, strip it raw, and write a review worthy of its goodness? Long story short, you can’t- so don’t even try. Finding Eden, to me, is a story of second chances, redemption, hope, and finding out who you truly are, and what place you have in the world. And I will try to do it justice.

I was GUTTED to say the least, after Becoming Calder. I wasn’t sure what was going to happen to the characters that I so desperately loved. Were they going to find each other, were they going to be made whole again? There were so many questions that were left opened and unanswered- I was so absolutely happy to find out, that I got the answers. Some I may not have wanted exactly, because they were hurtful to the characters in the story. But I got those answers I so desperately needed.

“I dreamed of morning glories, I dreamed of him, my love, wispy images that twisted and turned and washed away under a wave of water so big that I was crushed beneath it. There was no breath in my lungs to call his name, to whisper the words that I needed him to know in the end- that I loved him, that I’d always love him, that he was my strength and my weakness, my endless joy, and my greatest sorrow.”

That writing is so damn poetic, it makes me tear up to think of this quote being thought of. Having to actually think this thought, shatters my heart into pieces. Mia’s characters are so real- I want to breathe them in. I want to hold them close to my heart- and never let them go.

“This life feels so damn long,” I said after a minute.

“That’s because you’re hurting, and it seems like it won’t ever get better.”

“It doesn’t get better. It never gets better.”

“It will. You have to try.”

And the moment of redemption- of love lost and found again, is a moment I will treasure forever in a book. Typically when I read, it’s always tears of sadness I cry. A main character gets offed, someone is diagnosed with cancer, and the list goes on and on. Rarely, but on occasion, I cry happy tears. And this moment, my heart was full, my eyes were damp, my hands over my mouth, I was so excited for this- you have absolutely no idea how much these WORDS touched me. I felt what they were feeling- almost a little panicky, like I might throw up- but SO freaking grateful for the outcome. So JOYFUL.

“He’s here. I can feel him. Oh God, oh God, oh God.”

“There’s a spring. I’ll wait for you. I’ll be there.”

What a roller coaster of emotions I felt. And obviously some steam was included.

“And then we were nothing but a tangled, gasping, moaning blur of skin and heat and mouths and thrusting pleasure.”

Well alright… J

 And what a super fantastical book to conclude this duet of novels. So perfect in every way. This writing is something other worldly. You have to read it, to know it exists. Kind of like a mythical creature- you have to see it to believe it. Who writes like that? For me, it’s Mia Sheridan. No one can take that away from her, the gift that she has. She has taken it and turned it into a morning glory, and the beauty took over. If I were you- I would purchase both books, you can’t just read the first without reading the conclusion, and you can’t just read the second one- to understand the back story.

I’ve never read two books like this, and I don’t think I ever will again. I can’t wait for everyone to join the bandwagon, and share the love for these books that I have. Trust me when I say you won’t regret it.  

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