A review by monicalaurette
Faith: Taking Flight by Julie Murphy

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

3.0

I really wanted to like this book more than I did. A bisexual (possibly pansexual), plus-size girl who loves animals has superpowers? That’s right up my alley, however, I just couldn’t get myself to love it. Perhaps the book was too young for me, causing me to cringe at the fandom-talk and not connecting with the characters that much as a 25-year old.

“You can’t save them all, Faith.”

Faith as a character is too trusting as a character, like immediately trusting people she meets in one day and not even really caring about other intentions. I found myself reading the prologue rolling my eyes at how eager she was to believe this man who essentially lied to her and confessed that he and others were watching her. If I was her, first I wouldn’t have been alone with him, and second I would have left so quickly.

Most of the book, in my opinion, was just Faith being a teenager and focused very little on her powers and the issues happening in the town. All the issues and the “big bad” really only came in the last few pages.

Also, I didn’t like how Faith’s plus-size-ness was brought up with Miss Ella making a comment that she can’t run. But perhaps that is because I have my own issues with my weight and have had people say that to me before. Then when Whitney comes into the fold and mentions Dakota having a “type” of bigger girls, I was really put off because it made me think of like, chubby chasers and how when I was younger I thought that was sweet, but instead it’s more like fetishizing plus-size people.

But still, I think it would be nice to have a YA book where there’s a plus-size girl that doesn’t have to deal with that. Again, this comes from my own life being plus-size so if you’re plus-size and you liked how the rep was done, I’m honestly so happy for you because we need all the good rep that we can get.

Overall, I give this 3 stars because it was a plus-size rep that wasn’t bad, it just didn’t make me feel good as a plus-size person. I do have another book by this author, but it’s an adult story so perhaps I’ll like that one more. But in the end, I am content with leaving Faith’s story where it left off here and not picking up the next one.

I feel that the situation with Chelsea was so damn quick for them to notice her not being around and then her arrested. Part of the issue with being in only Faith’s head I guess. Matt being so angry at Faith as well about it after knowing about Lou was also really rude of him.
With Chelsea as well, Matt constantly making rude comments about her practice was not the type of behavior a best friend would do. If he were my friend and did that to me, he wouldn’t be my friend for much longer.
Poor Grant honestly, yeah he was dealing but also like, he didn’t have to die.
Johnny was my favorite of the romantic options, Dakota rubbed me the wrong way from the very beginning. I felt very vindicated at the end when it was revealed she knew what was going on.
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