Okay, okay, I get it. I get the hype. This was such a great read. My heart broke for Kya during the *entirety* of this novel, and I just loved her so much. I also LOVED Tate, and I seriously was rooting for them the whole time. I loved Jumpin's character, and I love her brother, Jodie as well. As a birder, I thoroughly enjoyed the many bird references throughout the book and was able to resonate with Kya's love for birds and nature.

This one didn't hit five stars for me for the following reasons:

1) I refuse to give any white author who uses the n-word a 5 star review. We know it was the segregated racist south. We can use our imagination for the words they would have used. A white woman writing the n-word in her novel is unnecessary and uncalled for. It's crossing a line.

2) The "whodunit" reveal left me... empty. Like, what? If you've read the book, you probably understand what I'm trying to say here. But since I always leave my reviews spoiler-free, I can't articulate exactly what I'm thinking about the ending. I'll just say this: I NEEDED MORE THAN A PARAGRAPH EXPLAINING WHAT HAPPENED!

3) The author is low-key under investigation for a murder??? I know she hasn't been proven guilty and is still mingling about in her community, but that just doesn't sit right with me, tbh.

 

→ Things I Liked: Short chapters, Fast paced (for me), Powerful FMC

 

→ Things I Disliked: Jumpin + Mabel's dialogue (very chopped up and hard to read, tbh. I know it's to show how the characters were likely uneducated, but it really messed with me), Ending felt *very* rushed, Unnecessary use of n-word