Cracks in the Ice
Selah Award Finalist 2013
YA novel from Progressive Rising Phoenix Press:
Gina Mangalli, niece of a mafia don, has dreams of Olympic gold as a figure skater. When tragedy strikes, Gina plunges into despair. This book tells the truth about teen alcoholism. Hope is restored and Gina learns a new kind of victory.
6th grade through adult
Available wherever books are sold.
Progressive Rising Phoenix Press
ISBN 978-1-946329-30-1
EPub ISBN 978-1-946329-27-1
Book: $14.99 Kindle $4.99
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Seal of Approval: Catholic Writers Guild
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Amazon.com
Cracks in the Ice: What Readers are Saying ...
Anne Mulligan McNesby says...
Just finished reading Cracks in the Ice. It is one of the best novels I've read in a long time! I read it straight through from start to finish. I couldn't put it down bc the suspense never eased up. I don't want it to be finished yet! I'll write a review for it. I have a feeling your characters are going to be living in my head for a few days! Please keep writing because I'm a loyal, hardcore, serial reader!
Anne Mulligan McNesby says...
Just finished reading Cracks in the Ice. It is one of the best novels I've read in a long time! I read it straight through from start to finish. I couldn't put it down bc the suspense never eased up. I don't want it to be finished yet! I'll write a review for it. I have a feeling your characters are going to be living in my head for a few days! Please keep writing because I'm a loyal, hardcore, serial reader!
Barb: Cracks in the Ice
Not many books pull you in as quickly as this one. The description of Gina's life as a Mafia princess, her surroundings, her experiences are so vivid that you feel you are right there with her. The twists and turns keep your attention all along the way. Well done and a definite must read.
ChrisGA
Cracks in the Ice
This is a young adult book addressing serious issues of alcoholism, the crippling effect of family secrets, and loss of dreams. It explores the world of figure skating and the mafia through the eyes of a mother and daughter. There is plenty of action, but the book is mostly about relationships and what happens to a person when life deals them a bad hand.
The book carefully examines the steps that led up to Marian's drinking and drug use, but the cold and hostile manner in which she brought up her daughter was inexcusable. I could easily feel Sienna's pain and loneliness and rooted for her to find happiness. I wonder how many kids out there with alcoholic or addicted parents might find solace in knowing that they aren't the only ones in their situation.
God and religion play little part in the characters' lives for most of the book. Perhaps this is why they felt so alone. Faith could have brought comfort and hope. Only when AA and Al anon enter the picture do prayer and hope make the triumphant ending possible. Secrets are revealed and healing comes. The cracks in the ice of their lives are smoothed over by a metaphorical Zamboni machine, and a new start begins.
Debbie: Cracks in the Ice
This story is very unique and unexpected. Mafia Princess/Olympic skater/alcoholism.... I could not put it down and cried thru the second half! Well written and keeps you enthralled!
Jennifer Fromke (Concord, NC United States)
Cracks in the Ice
A naïve mafia princess skates into trouble and finds that what she doesn't know can hurt her. Immersed in the world of skating, Gina is oblivious to her family's mafia connections. When the truth comes crashing down all around her, she is forced to face who she is and who she plans to become. But life doesn't always go according to plan.
Growing up, the mafia always intrigued me, and ice skating captivated me every winter, so this book hit the spot! A Michigander from birth, I loved all the locations in the Detroit area and throughout the Midwest.
Ms Klingel writes a delightful young voice in a world many know little about. I learned much about the world of skating in the 60s-70s and also about the Detroit mob. I had no idea the mafia reached so close to my hometown!
Lovers of YA will adore this new young heroine and her secrets.
quiltermom: Cracks in the Ice
We all have to go through difficult times in our lives, whether it is because of mistakes we have made or through no fault of our own. Sometimes the people we are surrounded by make mistakes that affect us. That is the way Gina's life has been. Life is going seemingly well for her. She is working hard to become an Olympic skater. Then there is the one summer when her entire life as she knows it is suddenly changed. Only when people start making comments to her about the mafia and mob bosses does she delve a little further into the family history, even then she is afraid of what she will learn. Her life will never be the same as she knew it before and history will repeat itself in the life of her daughter.
When we do make mistakes in life, there is no reset button. We can't go back and change what we've done. However, God loves us and He often gives us a second chance. In the life of Gina, He even gives her a third.
While this book did take a little bit for me to get into (perhaps it's because life kept interrupting my reading time!) I eventually did get hooked. If you are interested in the mafia or figure skating, this might be a book for you.
Not many books pull you in as quickly as this one. The description of Gina's life as a Mafia princess, her surroundings, her experiences are so vivid that you feel you are right there with her. The twists and turns keep your attention all along the way. Well done and a definite must read.
ChrisGA
Cracks in the Ice
This is a young adult book addressing serious issues of alcoholism, the crippling effect of family secrets, and loss of dreams. It explores the world of figure skating and the mafia through the eyes of a mother and daughter. There is plenty of action, but the book is mostly about relationships and what happens to a person when life deals them a bad hand.
The book carefully examines the steps that led up to Marian's drinking and drug use, but the cold and hostile manner in which she brought up her daughter was inexcusable. I could easily feel Sienna's pain and loneliness and rooted for her to find happiness. I wonder how many kids out there with alcoholic or addicted parents might find solace in knowing that they aren't the only ones in their situation.
God and religion play little part in the characters' lives for most of the book. Perhaps this is why they felt so alone. Faith could have brought comfort and hope. Only when AA and Al anon enter the picture do prayer and hope make the triumphant ending possible. Secrets are revealed and healing comes. The cracks in the ice of their lives are smoothed over by a metaphorical Zamboni machine, and a new start begins.
Debbie: Cracks in the Ice
This story is very unique and unexpected. Mafia Princess/Olympic skater/alcoholism.... I could not put it down and cried thru the second half! Well written and keeps you enthralled!
Jennifer Fromke (Concord, NC United States)
Cracks in the Ice
A naïve mafia princess skates into trouble and finds that what she doesn't know can hurt her. Immersed in the world of skating, Gina is oblivious to her family's mafia connections. When the truth comes crashing down all around her, she is forced to face who she is and who she plans to become. But life doesn't always go according to plan.
Growing up, the mafia always intrigued me, and ice skating captivated me every winter, so this book hit the spot! A Michigander from birth, I loved all the locations in the Detroit area and throughout the Midwest.
Ms Klingel writes a delightful young voice in a world many know little about. I learned much about the world of skating in the 60s-70s and also about the Detroit mob. I had no idea the mafia reached so close to my hometown!
Lovers of YA will adore this new young heroine and her secrets.
quiltermom: Cracks in the Ice
We all have to go through difficult times in our lives, whether it is because of mistakes we have made or through no fault of our own. Sometimes the people we are surrounded by make mistakes that affect us. That is the way Gina's life has been. Life is going seemingly well for her. She is working hard to become an Olympic skater. Then there is the one summer when her entire life as she knows it is suddenly changed. Only when people start making comments to her about the mafia and mob bosses does she delve a little further into the family history, even then she is afraid of what she will learn. Her life will never be the same as she knew it before and history will repeat itself in the life of her daughter.
When we do make mistakes in life, there is no reset button. We can't go back and change what we've done. However, God loves us and He often gives us a second chance. In the life of Gina, He even gives her a third.
While this book did take a little bit for me to get into (perhaps it's because life kept interrupting my reading time!) I eventually did get hooked. If you are interested in the mafia or figure skating, this might be a book for you.