kaleyash96's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Moderate: Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Terminal illness, Emotional abuse, Abandonment, Child abuse, Mental illness, Cancer, and Death of parent
Minor: Gun violence, Dementia, Sexual harassment, Violence, Alcoholism, Murder, Addiction, Animal death, Sexual assault, Alcohol, and Drug abuse
oceanxbluess's review against another edition
4.0
One evening after work, Jo returns home to a lone girl, called Ursa, on her doorstep claiming to be from another planet sent to Earth to witness 5 miracles before she can return home. Jo & her neighbour Gabe spend the summer trying to figure out how to help this mysterious child.
This book wasn’t anything like I expected it to be, but I was pleasantly surprised by the story and I didn’t want to stop reading! It’s very fast paced, with a lot going on pretty much the whole way through the book, and almost all of the characters were loveable and relatable.
Jo was my favourite character. Her ornithology work is perfectly intertwined with the story - I loved all of the details of her nest sites and surveys.
This was such a heartwarming read, filled with love, family and compassion, whilst also satisfying my thirst for nature/environmental fiction.
For fans of: Once Upon A River, Sharks In The Time Of Saviours, Where The Crawdads Sing.
There are quite a lot of heavy topics, so I would recommend checking the content warnings before reading.
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Murder, and Child abuse
Moderate: Animal death
Minor: Addiction, Sexual content, Alcoholism, Blood, Cancer, Death of parent, Dementia, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Infertility, Mental illness, Physical abuse, and Sexual harassment
lorees_reading_nook's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
I have to admit that I feel rather ambivalent about this book. Initially I was totally invested in the story about an alien being who is sent to Earth to witness five miracles. But although the narrative initially progressed at a relatively fast pace, I thought that it got bogged down in the middle with too much repetition and the ending was rather too abrupt and a bit of an anti-climax. I was expecting magic or at least something out of the ordinary but it's not what I got.
Jo is a likable character and Gabriel grows on you but the dynamics between the two felt rather predictable and strained. There is minimal character development and some things really jarred. A lot of the dialogue felt flat and, in the end, all the loose ends were tied up together so nicely and there were so many happy coincidences and changes of heart, that the whole story felt rather contrived.
I have to admit that I do have rather high expectations of books these days. I want them to move me, challenge me or blow me away. This book didn't do any of these things. However it's a great book to read if you're in the mood for something light and I think that it will be appreciated much more by young adult readers or mature teenagers.
Graphic: Mental illness and Cancer
Moderate: Medical trauma and Emotional abuse
Minor: Animal death and Child abuse
jenisha's review
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Moderate: Cancer, Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, and Grief
Minor: Addiction, Animal death, Pedophilia, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, and Terminal illness