A review by cora_hreads
Starling by Isabel Strychacz

adventurous emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Starling was a read that I didn't expect to love as much as I did. I started reading it as per usual, a bit bored with the pacing and the miscommunication trope, but once Starling arrived and the risks became more intense, I ate the book up. Delta, Bee, Starling (of course), and Tag were deep, heart-aching characters who all seemed so real as I read on. The character growth in Starling is palpable and like an energy you can feel. The prose was beautiful, although physical descriptions repeated a lot. Yes, Starling is tall. Yes, Delta and Bee have bright, exciting green eyes. Yes, Tag is supposed to always be put together. Anyway, I absolutely loved this book. It had all of the depth that I've been missing lately and a wonderful, tasteful mix of a character-driven and plot-driven story. You're disconnected from reality while reading Starling, and not just because it relates to magic and interstellar commotions. The intensity of the Wildings' father missing is not as striking as I thought it'd be, which I actually appreciated. We were able to focus on the effects of missing a father, not just his presence being gone. The abuse that Delta and Bee suffer from the town is so telling of our own society, and that was a consistent thought I had throughout the book. God, I absolutely loved this book - it's hard to say everything I want to. Please, just read this.