Reviewed by Anne Boling for Readers' Favorite

The Stanley family are living the ideal life until one day Nate Stanley comes home and announces that he has accepted the position of deputy sheriff in Blaine, Oregon.  Oregon is a long way from Illinois and soon this family will learn just how truly far off it is.  Nate, Irene, and their two children Shep and Bliss are just settling into their new Oregon home when tragedy strikes.  15 year old Shep is shot to death.  The shock and horror tears this family apart.

As the years pass, Nate, Irene, and Bliss drift farther apart from each other and themselves.  They each try to cope with the loss of Shep and what happened that fateful day.  The hatred they feel towards Shep's killer grows till it is a blanket suffocating them all.  Finally, years after he has been in prison Irene makes the decision to write to him.  He unexpectedly writes back and they begin a correspondence of forgiveness and friendship.

This secret exchange of letters goes on for years until Irene receives notice that he is to be executed.  This sends Irene and her family on a path where all their secrets are exposed.  They must now find a way to forgive the past to begin their future.

I thought this was a really good book.  Naseem Rakha did a wonderful job on so many levels.  There were several "sensitive" issues in this story but I felt they were written in a well-thought out way.  Your heart will break for this family and what they go through.