Thea Fenton’s life looks picture-perfect, but inside, she is falling apart. Wracked by anxiety no one seems to understand or care about, she resorts to self-harm to deflect the pain inside.
When a local teen commits suicide, Thea’s anxiety skyrockets. Unexplainable things happen, leaving her feeling trapped within her own chaotic mind. The lines between reality and another world start to blur, and her previously mundane issues seem more daunting and insurmountable than ever.
Then she meets Khi, a mysterious new boy from the coffee shop who seems to know her better than she knows herself—and doesn’t think she’s crazy. His quiet confidence and unfounded familiarity draw her into an unconventional friendship.
Khi journeys with her through grief, fear, and confusion to arrive at compassion for the one person Thea never thought she could love.
A deeply transformational novel from an authentic new voice in Christian young adult fiction.
Fade to White was one of my last reads of 2022 🤍
I don’t often find Christian YA books that touch on mental health so I immediately was interested when I came across Fade to White. There were a couple of things that seemed a tad disconnected, but I actually think that added to feeling like you were in Thea’s head. Thea isn’t a Christian but Christianity is brought in towards the end in a really organic way through a side character. I really enjoyed this book and recommend picking up a copy for yourself! I love seeing this subject tackled through a Christian lens.
*soapbox*
Mental health seems like a taboo subject in most circles, Christian circles included. Every week I see a Christian counselor. She’s amazing. But telling people that I see her can make others uncomfortable. I don’t know if it’s because I’m a pastor’s wife or what but I get a deer-in-the-headlights look a lot 😅 maybe they think I’m crazy, but the truth is simply that it’s good for me to go.
I started going because I didn’t know how to heal a family fracture. I kept going because of post-partum anxiety, then because I had a miscarriage, and now I’m post-partum again. I go because it’s good for my mental health.
Christian, hear me – your mental health is important and going to therapy does not diminish your faith. Casting your worries onto God is hard and having someone help you is not sin. If you need to, find a godly, Christian therapist/counselor. We’re not exempt from suffering because we have faith and believe; please don’t disregard your mental health because of popular prosperity gospel lies.
Buy Fade to White here and visit Tara here!
Storm Shultz 