One Belief Away

CN Winters

Baycrest Books

Review by Olivia Flores Alvarez

It's the early 1970s, the end of flower power and peace-nics, when patrol officer Carol Johnson first meets activist Erin “Skylon” O’Fallon. The young police officer arrests the pretty blonde at a demonstration, not the typical start of a love affair. The two meet again at a second rally, but this time the protest becomes violent and the activist finds herself being saved by the police officer.

Their meeting sparks something in the two women. The police officer has been doing a very good job of keeping her emotions at arms length, and flower-child Erin has used her anger at the establishment to cover up her feelings as well. As the two struggle with conflicting feelings of desire and confusion, they stumble into a relationship neither is sure she can sustain.

This is CN Winters’s second book to be published this year. While One Belief Away isn't as engaging as Irrefutable Evidence, it is still a well-crafted story and an accurate look at a woman's sexual awakening. Like most journeys of self-discovery, One Belief is a sometimes-bumpy ride. The politics of the time and “groovy” clothes and slang sometimes overshadows the love story, but thankfully those diversions are short-lived. The central story of women on opposite sides of the political spectrum discovering themselves through their love for each other is much more interesting.

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