Bitter Winds: a story of family and sacrifice

Bitter Winds is the third book in The Scavenger’s Daughters series by Kay Bratt. Ever since the night her blind twin sister, Lily, almost burned alive in a fire and they were taken from their mother, Ivy appointed herself protector and guide for her. When Lily is snatched away and locked away in a mental hospital, Ivy will do whatever it takes to get Lily home, safe and sound. What lengths will she go to get her sister home? At the same time, Benfu and Calli’s long-lost daughter, Li Jin, has reunited with her birth parents and embraced her adopted sisters with joy. She opens a shelter for displaced people and pours herself into helping others who desperately need it. But when her friend Sami is consumed by bitterness and doesn't seem to understand that she is a welcome part of the family too, Li Jin must make a difficult choice between her friend and her new family. What choice will she make?

I think Bitter Winds is my favorite book in this series. Filled with drama, suspense, hope and love, the story kept me on the edge of my seat and waiting for what would happen next. I went through all the emotions while reading it. I was angry at certain characters’ behaviors and cried with the characters cried as they suffered and grieved. I was scared with the events in the mental hospital and held my breath in anticipation of what might happen next. And I smiled through my tears at the ending. I loved seeing the growth in the characters especially Li Jin as she works through the events of her past and her new hope for her future. I like the description of holding grudges as “eating bitterness” as grudges eat away at you. I also love to read how the title works itself in the story and that’s true for all the books in this family saga. I highly recommend Bitter Winds.

Bitter Winds is available in paperback, eBook and audiobook

Other books in the Zheng Family Saga

The Palest Ink (prequel)

The Scavenger’s Daughters (book 1)

Tangled Vines (book 2)

Red Skies (book 4, review coming soon)