Author: Jillian Maria
LGBTQ+ Representation: Lesbians. More than one.
What it’s about (in 75 words or fewer): Elizabeth finds a flyer advertising a one-of-a-kind show appearing nearby. When she attends the show, she is fascinated by one of the acts: a woman, covered in feathers, with the same mysterious blue eyes that were on the flyer--trapped in a cage. When the woman dies, Elizabeth finds herself trapped in the cage, growing feathers, forced to sing nightly. Can she escape the power of the sadistic witch, the Mistress, who has trapped her?
What I think (in 250 words or fewer): I spent the first half of this book singing "I'm a Bluebird" from Follow that Bird. Remember? Big Bird is trapped in a cage and forced to sing by these two evil guys who kidnap him for the freakshow part of their fair, and why are there so many twins in that audience? I couldn't stop picturing poor Elizabeth as Big Bird.
It's safe to say that all resemblances to Sesame Street end there.
Songbird's Refrain is creepy, mysterious, and horrifying in all the best ways. I was frustrated for the first third of the book because I could not figure out what was happening; Elizabeth has prophetic dreams, or dreams of the past? I couldn't figure out which.
The answer is both--sort of.
Explaining the story without spoiling it is difficult, but I can say that the Mistress sure can hold a grudge over the past, and she is creatively evil in her torture methods.
The story is NOT predictable. Like, at all. This is definitely a compliment to the author because I have read a lot of mystery/fantasy/horror books in the past.
I could not help but think of songs Elizabeth could have sung to clue in the audience of her plight:
- "Help!"
- "Luka"
- "Trapped"
- "Folsom Prison Blues"
Although the time that Elizabeth did clue in the audience--well, that didn't end so well. For anyone.
Finally, I really liked a part at the end, when two characters are talking about soulmates, or rather the [spoiler deleted].
This book is too new to be on The Rainbow Books list--watch this space!
My final takeaway (in 75 words or fewer): You will like this story if you enjoy horror, mystery, suspense, fantasy--it kinds of hits all of those genres. It definitely includes the horror and suspense the most. You must be patient when you read it, however, because it takes quite some time for it all to make sense (at least it did for me).
I received an ARC from the to review and am still super excited about that, so thank you, Jillian Maria.
Memorable quotes/passages from the book (these are from an ARC so they might change in the published version):
- "'YOU AREN'T IMPORTANT' would probably never win the Most Optimistic Mantra award, but I found it comforting" (e-book, first line).
- "The future is not linear, my little songbird. It frays into a million possibilities" (e-book).
- "Names have power. . . . She had the power of magic. And if we share names . . ." (e-book).
- "She knocked me to the ground, wings powerful and impossible to escape, talons and beak searching and finding their target. They tore into my face, my neck, my shoulders" (e-book).
Other reviews: Margaret Adelle--Goodreads and Books! Books! Books!
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| This book is too new to be in the library! Request it here: https://library.greensboro-nc.gov/services/suggest-a-library-purchase. |
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| Learn more about the Rainbow Book List here: http://www.ala.org/rt/glbtrt |
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