Consumed by a Season

by Kelleen Goerlitz

With love in their eyes and hope in their hearts, a couple begins the joyous journey of parenthood and finds themselves drawn into the tumultuous waves of postpartum. People live within the ebb and flow of life - among the changing seasons of circumstances and identity. But what happens when the flow stops and the seasons cease to turn? Consumed by a Season is the fictional story of a couple who finds themselves taken over by a postpartum disorder during what is often glamorized as one of the happiest times in a person's life. The emotional struggle they experience while trying to hold onto each other, let alone themselves, provides a glimpse into the raw truth of parenthood the way numerous people experience it. As mental health slowly fades, one begins to wonder what happens when happiness is overcome by the unexpected and unknown? What happens when a person is consumed by a season?

Genres: Fiction

224 pages, Paperback

Published March 4, 2022

About the author

Kelleen Goerlitz is a writer, poet, playwright and author of The Complete Works of a Lost Girl and Consumed by a Season. Growing up, she had storylines and streams of words flowing through her mind before she could even put pencil to paper legibly. Her writing over the past fifteen years has focused on observations of the human experience - capturing the beauty of truth, and the struggle to find it, through playlets, poems, and fictional stories. The theme of her writing continues to grow with her, but stays true to her own struggles and triumphs while experiencing the fullness of life. Out of a passion for writing and a desire to let her work be shared with others, Kelleen Goerlitz recently began her journey as a self-published author with further work of different varieties yet to come.

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Reviews

[Kylie Bernal · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am crushed. Devastating and beautiful.

[Isidro Botello · Rating 5 out of 5]

Once I picked up this book, it was difficult for me to put it down. The writing is most excellent, and I love how the author purposefully left the two main characters without names or much physical description. It allowed me to easily experience their experiences, and definitely brought out all the feels.

This book shines a light on postpartum depression, a topic that isn't really talked about, even though many experience it. I could so relate with those around us avoiding discussing the subject, pushing the sufferer further into that feeling of loneliness. The difficulties parents face when they are just starting on this journey needs to be shared with others, so parents can see that they are not alone.

I would highly recommend anyone to read this book.

[Carlee Belt · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book pulled me in right away. It's a beautifully written and heartbreaking story that brings an important and ever-present issue into the light. Definitely recommend it!!

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was definitely a book that needed to be written. Discussing postpartum depression openly is something that isn't normally done. This novel breaks down all of the barriers and plainly gives insight to the mental health of someone going through it. I applaude the author for handling this topic with grace and having the courage to tackle this topic.
The only thing that I didn't care for was the author's writing style. This is her first novel as she is usually a poet / playwright. Her dedication to the structure of those styles shines throughout the book. While I may not have cared for the novelist style, I am sure that if I read her poetry or script I would enjoy it. But this isn't really what matters with this book.
The main thing was to show women who go through this that they are not alone. While what is considered to be one of the happiest times of a person's life can be mared by such issues. But it also goes into the reprecussions it can have on a family unit.
I highly recommend this book to anyone who is going through a situation similar to this. The author decided not to give names to the leading couple as she considers this not just their story but everyone's story. While the book is rather dark, it is still worth the read. Remember, you are not alone.

[Jennifer Finken · Rating 5 out of 5]

Truly excellent writing for a wonderfully powerful story about Post Partum depression. This book gave me all the good feelings from when I fell in love and then touched on some of the feelings I had after having my babies. It was a magnificent work of art and I would recommend this book to anyone who would like to see the inside of that condition.

[Rachel DiCerbo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sad, honest look at mental health of a mother after birth of child and the difficulties faced.
Author doesn't give name or details of the mother because it could be anyone. Shows the real truth of postpartum depression that sadly most moms do not have support for, especially in a society that wants to show everything as perfect.

[Cheryl · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you are a parent, if you know someone who is a parent, this book is valuable.

[Kaitrin · Rating 4 out of 5]

prob shouldnt have read 5 months postpartum

[Kelly Schuknecht · Rating 5 out of 5]

In Consumed by a Season we follow the main character (who isn’t given a name on purpose) through her early adult years, starting her career and dating. She meets a man, falls in love, and they begin a life together. They decide they want to have a child, eventually get pregnant, and start the next phase of their life, building a family. It’s what most people experience in life. And everything seems perfect. Except for one thing.

15% of women experience postpartum depression after childbirth. I wasn’t one of those women, but I could relate with some of the feelings the main character was experiencing after having a baby, just not at the same level. I wondered while reading this book if it would hit differently for someone who has.*

The story is relatable and incredibly sad. The book is a quick read (just 224 pages in a 5×7 format). I recommend it if you tend to enjoy women’s and/or psychological fiction.

[Nicole-Anne Keyton (Hint of Library) · Rating 4 out of 5]

*Disclaimer: I received an Advanced Review Copy (ARC) from Reedsy Discovery in exchange for an honest review.

Content warning: Postpartum depression, suicide

Feelings of unhappiness and loving...can coexist. They can live together in the same moment—in the same sentence. They don't negate each other.

I don't believe I have encountered such a brief story with an unnamed couple that moved me more than this one. Told across the intimate perspectives of mother, father, and daughter, Consumed by a Season unravels a tale deeply rooted in grief, postpartum depression, mental illness, and healing.

Kelleen Goerlitz's book is segmented into four seasons, chronicling a marriage that moves forward and back in time to reveal pieces of each character, little histories and vignettes of a family that inch gradually to the present day (around 2020, though the epilogue takes us even further). It is no spoiler that the mother experiences postpartum depression—her condition becomes the catalyst for everything that follows. As the father and Avery, their daughter, learn to grow as a family without the one person who knit them together, we witness a tableau of difficult conversations and emotions that unfold over the course of Avery's coming of age.

Goerlitz intentionally unnames the main couple in the book to invite an exercise of universality in the reading experience, which invites readers to focus more on the emotional journey of these characters and to stretch our cabin-cramped empathy muscles. My only quibble with the author is that I was yearning for more. I feel as if I could stay with this family for a hundred more pages. Goerlitz sheds light on the harmful societal image of the perfect pregnancy and the persistent, indebted love to raising children that is impossible to attain. I believe this author has a caring and intimate voice that will produce more great works of fiction to come that aim for that small spot near the heart that, when pressure is applied, leaves a lasting ache.

For fans of Celeste Ng's capturing of grief in Everything I Never Told You and Kazuo Ishiguro's confessions of fleeting friendship and loss in Never Let Me Go, Kelleen Goerlitz's Consumed by a Season is a novel that will stay with you long after you turn the last page.