Kyrie McCauley

This was an incredible sophomore YA novel. A story of three friends and the aftermath of a school shooting, two survived, one died at the hands of the shooter. This is the story of a friendship that is able to cross the boundaries of earth and heaven. Cassie is shot and killed by her abusive boyfriend, Vivian is hit in the crossfire. Beck was not there that day and blames herself for Cassie’s death and Vivian’s injury. When Cassie appears to them in Beck’s VW bus, the two friends begin show more a quest of vengeance and justice for Cassie. Told from multiple perspectives (Beck & Vivian, Cassie in novel in verse format & the We Can Be Heroes Podcast), this is a heart wrenching & uplifting story about justice and the bond of friendship.

TW: domestic abuse, gun violence, neglect show less

The strange thing about this ghost story is that it is actually irrelevant that it is a ghost story. The supernatural element to the plot could just as easily not be there and the story would still be the same. It's about two teenage girls whose best friend was murdered by her abusive boyfriend. Because he shot her and is the son of the owner of the gun manufacturer who basically owns the town, no one really cares. The girls paint some murals to bring attention to her story. It's often very show more sad, and it's a compelling story, emotionally, about domestic violence, gun control and empowering women. There's not that much to it from a plot perspective; it's more about character and feelings. show less

This review is going to be a bit shorter and more scattered than usual because normally when I review a book I write down my thoughts/feelings every time I put it down. However, with this book, I read it in three chunks so there were very few notes other than “I LOVE IT".

One big note I did take away from this book is that this is EXACTLY the kind of strong female character I want to read about more often. I think when young adult readers specifically are looking for the "strong female show more character" trope they lean towards pretty much everything other than contemporary because we want to see a powerful lady snap an elf's neck with a single glance or stand up to a dystopian dictator. This book is put under contemporary and magic realism but the main character herself is not really magical and it could not at all be considered a fantasy. Our main character, Leighton, is the most incredible example of a real-life strong female character. I'm going to try not to spoil things but she has the kind of story that needs to be told, and she took back power in her life in a way that was almost brutally realistic. I just love how she was written and how real she was without being bland or hard to read about. All of the characters were beautifully real, really. So many books that are tackling a strong issue become tunnel-visioned and none of the characters outside that problem get life in them or have any other problems, which is understandable because too many topics make writing hard, but it is also not how real life works. If These Wings Could Fly annihilated that! Domestic violence, abusers being victims, racial minorities, authority figures turning a blind eye, so many good things that all happen in real life at the same time got addressed.

The second thing is actually a big part of why I was interested in the book in the first place. Crows are my favourite animal. I've loved them pretty much my whole life (tiny me had a crow as my imaginary friend). So I was really interested to see just how they played into the book without it being a fantasy, and I was very pleased. Another topic that's a bit hard to describe without spoilers but I loved how clear it was that the author actually dug into in for about crows and didn't just look at some out her window and call it good.

Finally, I just want to say that this is my first five-star read of 2020, and already on my top books of the year list event though it's only February so if you enjoy contemporary books please go get a copy when it comes out! show less

In the beginning, there was Liv and her twin sister. Liv was a ticking time bomb, thanks to likely emotional and physical abuse resulting in ever stronger anger as she and her sister moved through a parade of foster homes. Each time she did something that got them removed. When her sister finally reaches a breaking point and tries to smother her, Liv realizes she needs an out.
It comes in the form of writing a winning entry that lands her money and an internship in remote Alaska where a show more famous producer is filming a movie.
Her first inkling that something might be off comes when she and five other girls, all very famous, are informed they're going by private yacht instead of flying directly.
The producer, a rather loathsome fellow, tells everyone they're taking a slight detour, but when a storm hits and all communication devices stop working, it's the beginning of a terribly strange experience.
They come to on a remote island with very few items remaining after the ship breaks in half on the rocks. Shortly after, the producer meets a horrible fate, Survival is scary, tricky and seems at times impossible. It's as if the island is hiding something, or several somethings that might be of the supernatural variety. The longer they're on the island, the stranger and more complex things get.
The story is addictive, takes some extremely interesting twists, and has quite the ending. It's a great read for horror fans as well as those who like strong female protagonists. show less