A Gift of Wings by Stephanie Stamm

Stephanie Stamm takes us on a whirlwind journey through mysticism, mythology, and religion ideology in A Gift of Wings. As I settled down to read A Gift of Wings, I soon discovered myself pulled into a world that was all at once familiar and completely foreign. Stamm took me soaring through the air and dragged me through the streets of Chicago. She teased my senses and tested my sense of reality. My heart ached for Lucky. Lucky must make sense of her beloved G-Ma's transition into an assisted living facility just as she begins to have experiences that force her to question her sanity. When she learns that what thinks are hallucinations are real, she struggles to accept her new reality. When the people around her fight over the role she must play in the battle between supernatural factions, Lucky finds herself struggling to figure out who is good and who is evil. The decision is made for her when her cousin, an innocent, is attacked in order to force the issue. Lucky learns of family secrets and the deceptions that have kept her safe. I feared for Lucky. I cheered for Lucky. I wanted to scream at Lucky a few times. Mostly, I just wanted to save Lucky from her destiny even as she embraced it. Stamm creates a world that feels all too real filled with a cast of characters the reader loves, hates, and most of all wants to know better. A Gift of Wings forced me to think about how gifts that come with strings rarely have the wings to give us flight...


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