Book Review of This Is Where It Ends by Cindy Sproles

This is Where It Ends took me by surprise.

I thought I knew what was going to happen by the time I finished the first few chapters. But Cindy K Sproles writes masterfully, slowly revealing the personality, past, and hurts of the main character, Minerva Jane Jenkins, as the story progresses. I did not expect that I would grow to love a cranky old woman and be completely rooting for her by the end of the story, but that is exactly what happened.

Minerva is 95 years old and has been holding a secret close to her chest for decades. A secret she doesn’t even understand.

Minerva is 95 years old and knows her time in the world is coming to a close. She wants just one thing—not to die alone.

Then a young reporter comes knocking, curious about the very secret she has kept hidden all this time. But she made a promise to a dying man and she intends on keeping her word.

Time and again, Minerva hits against the question, how long does a body have to keep a promise? Time and again, she hits against deep hurts that rise to the surface more and more as the reporter’s presence allows her to understand just how alone she has been.

“It isn’t about the gold,” he tells her. “It’s about the story … It’s the challenge of seeking out the truth. But it’s the mystery that makes a good story. It’s the people along the way. Their thoughts, wants, desires. That’s what makes a good story with meaning.”

Minerva must decide whether she believes the reporter has good intentions, and whether she should break her long-kept promise.

This Is Where It Ends is a story about family, about aging, about trust. It is about letting go and letting love come in unexpected ways. It is also a story about forgiveness.

I didn’t expect to be as moved and as buoyed by the story as I was when I reached the end. Cindy Sproles’ characterization of Minerva Jane Jenkins was remarkable, and I appreciated the deepening and development of the character as the story progresses.

I also love Cindy Sproles’ note at the end, encouraging the reader:

“Take time to enjoy the elderly. They are your history. If you let that history slip past without acknowledgment, then something valuable is lots, for a life, a family, a country without history has no future. Talk with the elderly. Walk with them. Get their stories and store them in your heart. You will never find any greater riches than that of lives well lived.”

There are some terrific takeaways in This is Where It Ends and I highly recommend it.

I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher and was not required to leave a review. The opinion is my own.