Fiction Review: Light from Distant Stars by Shawn Smucker

Description:

When Cohen Marah steps over his father's body in the basement embalming room of the family's funeral home, he has no idea that he is stepping into a labyrinth of memory. As the last one to see his father, Cohen is the primary suspect.

Over the next week, Cohen's childhood memories come back in living color. The dramatic events that led to his father being asked to leave his pastoral position. The game of baseball that somehow kept them together. And the two children in the forest who became his friends--and enlisted him in a dark and dangerous undertaking. As the lines blur between what was real and what was imaginary, Cohen is faced with the question he's been avoiding: Did he kill his father?

My Review:
I found the premise of the story interesting, and Cohen's journey through doubt and pain difficult to follow at times. The supernatural elements of the story threw me off at times, or were they nightmares? I wasn't sure. I felt a tug of war while I tried to go back and forth with the author. The ending left me disappointed. Many people reviewed this book and loved it. I guess it's not my cup of tea. I received a complimentary copy of this book from Revell. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.