Lo and Rita's story is a challenging one to read. Two sisters who love each other wholly and their life at the circus until a boy comes along and captures Lo's attention. Fighting herself to decide whether she would like a life away from the circus becomes too much for Lo and the tragedy of her untimely death unfolds in a heartbreaking way.

Lo and Rita are two sisters who grew up in a circus and spend their all lives performing and moving between cities but everything will be uncertain when Lo meets Dean and discovers hidden truths.
We get chapters from both Lo and Rita, and lots of circus-based scenes. I've never been a fan of the circus or carnivals (I blame an incident with a clown and Stephen King equally) but with the rise in popularity of the circus as a YA setting, I've become intrigued by the magic and performance side. I would have liked a tiny bit more of that - I felt that there were too many characters at the start to keep track of.
This was, honestly, slow but it did make you empathise with Lo.
Thanks to NetGalley for the advance copy in exchange for my review

This should have been a really good book - the idea was fine, the writing was good, and there were some good ideas. Unfortunately, the ending was revealed at the beginning, so there was no twist or surprise, and knowing the outcome, this made for quite depressing reading.
For teens and young adults, I guess it makes a salutary story.

I fell in love with Lisa Heathfield's writing when I discovered Paper Butterflies, and I was eager to read Flight of a Starling. Lisa continues to be drawn to exploring the other within society, telling the story of Lo and Rina, two sisters in a small circus community. Her prose does not disappoint, painting a picture of familial ties and the draw of teenage exploration and rebellion outside a tight knit family unit. If you enjoy characters who become friends and high stakes, definitely check this one out.

This was okay nothing special infact I don’t really remember what happened but I remember getting through it

Unfortunately, I have not been able to read and review this book.

After losing and replacing my broken Kindle and getting a new phone I was unable to download the title again for review as it was no longer available on Netgalley.

I’m really sorry about this and hope that it won’t affect you allowing me to read and review your titles in the future.

Thank you so much for giving me this opportunity.
Natalie.

Having heard great things about Lisa Heathfield’s writing in novels such as Seed and Paper Butterflies, the fact that her new release was set in a circus community held a certain level of appeal. I haven’t read either of her other two books but Flight Of A Starling suggested a beautiful lyrical family drama that I knew I’d enjoy.

Rita and Lo are two sisters who are the stars of a death-defying trapeze act in their travelling circus community. Having been born into the world of showcases and travelling, the sisters have never known any other kind of life. Their close-knit relationships with their fellow performers are all they’ve ever had and for the most part, they are content with this. At least, Rita is. Lo is more of a free spirit. She longs to see what else is out there. So when she meets the handsome, cute Dean at one of their stop-offs, she starts to wonder whether the constantly moving circus life is really for her. But Dean is a ‘flattie’ (non traveller) and their relationship would be frowned upon by her parents and fellow travellers. However, she discovers a life-altering secret in the community and suddenly the idea of a different life becomes more and more appealing.

There seems to be a trend for circus themes in YA fiction at the moment and I wholeheartedly welcome it. I’ve yet to read another one that depicts the circus life in as touching a manner as Flight Of A Starling does. The circus is normally shown to be full of mystery, secrets and uncertain danger and although there is some of that in this book, it’s actually the kind of darkness, secrecy and danger that is very much present in everyday conventional life.

There is a strong sense of family meaning everything. Indeed, their world is incredibly small and they know little of what goes on in the conventional lives within the towns they visit. However, their idea of home is a beautiful eternal one. The idea that it’s not a place or a lump of bricks and mortar -it’s the people you love. With this notion of what home is lodged in her heart, Lo longs to venture out and broaden her world. Her romance with Dean appears to be her ticket to getting there.

Heathfield’s writing is gorgeous. It’s often quite dreamy and poetic but it makes for a very lovely read. The way Dean is described from Lo’s perspective immediately suggests that he will be her love interest. Yes, as soon as we meet him, the romance is predictable. There is even a little bit of insta-love as it does happen quite quickly but we need to remember that Lo hasn’t met many people. She hasn’t been scared into cynicism from past experiences and so her instant crush and trust in Dean rings true for someone as pure and innocent as her.

As the life that Lo has always known becomes more uncertain, she is pushed closer to Dean and towards a different lifestyle. Suddenly a world where nothing changes is highly appealing and she becomes determined to seek it. However, this appears to be at the detriment to her mental health and the relationship with her sister. She starts keeping secrets from Rita, who she has previously shared everything with but there’s nothing malicious in it. In fact, she is trying to protect her family’s honour and happiness but the pressure comes at a tremendous cost.

Rita is smart and observant. She knows that her fierce brave sister is falling into a hole that she’ll struggle to climb out of but she feels powerless to stop it. For years, it has been assumed that Rita will marry Ash, a fellow circus boy who she loves dearly but is not immediately enthusiastic to end up with. She is harbouring feelings for another member of their group and she is conflicted about what to do. Like her sister, Rita seems determined to act on what she believes to be real love rather than follow tradition and the expectations of her family. This plays very much into why Rita doesn’t do an awful lot to discourage her sister’s forbidden relationship. Both sisters are wildly curious about true love and watching them discover what that is was really beautiful and powerful to read.

The ending is dramatic and tragic. I can already hear the critics accusing this book of romanticising incredibly serious topics but Flight Of A Starling has so much heart and dark terrible truth. It’s practically bleeding tears and heartache but it’s crushingly relatable to those who have ever loved someone they’ve been told they shouldn’t. It’s a harrowing, honest read about loving hard and looking after ourselves and each other. It’s a story about crazy passionate no-boundaries love, breaking tradition and taking flight.

I really liked this but it was nothing amazing. Very average, but I managed to read it very quickly. The characters were kinda one dimensional but the plot was good, kinda heartbreaking.

Lisa Heathfield never disappoints with a book giving us the heartbreak we didn't know we needed. This was my second book by this author and it was just as beautiful. The picture Lisa creates is just so beautiful making for an incredible story

I received a copy from Netgalley.

I have no idea if I liked this one or not to be perfectly honest. I didn’t dislike it, but I don’t know if I actually liked it. I snagged this one on a bit of cover lust more than anything reading. And I have a weakness for anything with a circus based theme.

It follows the story of twin sisters Rita and Lo who are the trapeze act in their family’s travelling circus. They move from town to town performing. Rita is the more responsible sister, while Lo is the more rebellious ones. They’ve known the other circus kids their whole lives and are a pretty close knit group.

I did find it totally fascinating how daily life within the circus group was portrayed, who was responsible for what, how the act was performed, the story behind it, was all really interesting. There was a deep sense of togetherness and family community.

However, when in one town, Lo makes friends with an outsider boy, things start changing. The girls are not supposed to have relationships with outsiders. The group moves all the time and the girls are essential to the act. Their father flat out forbids it. So Lo starts lying and sneaking about to be with this new boy she meets, Dean. Who’s nice enough and doesn’t judge her background. He presents a “normal” view of everyday life that she’s never experienced. And Dean’s life is not an easy one.

As they get to know each other more, the relationship changes and becomes something more romantic. Lo’s views start changing, her behaviour starts to change. Rita’s worried about her, and has her own drama when she starts falling for one of the much older men in the circus group, a very close family friend. Lo can’t understand it as Rita can’t get why Lo’s change in attitude. Then Lo discovers a shocking secret about the man Rita is convinced she’s now in love with.

Which adds a whole new element of secrets and family drama. There were some beautifully written passages as their girls struggle with their situation, thought provoking and emotional.

Then the novel takes an unexpected and quite devastating twist. It’s hinted at right at the beginning that something terrible happens and as I read a long I had sinking feelings I knew what was going to happen, but turned out it wasn’t anything like I thought it would be. And that made it all the more heart-breaking and surprising. A bitter sweet ending rounded the story off.

I wasn’t blown away by the novel, and as I said at the beginning I honestly don’t know if I liked it or not. It was…interesting to say the least.

Thank you to Netgalley and Egmont Publishing for approving my request to view the title.

Flight of a Starling was divine. From the relationship between the sisters, the circus environment and the romance all leading up to the climax with the burning question about the decision Lo will make in the end made this a real page turning and I couldn't be it down. I read this in one sitting and I went from laughing to crying repeatedly throughout, highly recommended.

I had found Paper Butterflies to be fantastic and a great improvement on Seed so I was disappointed by how boring this was. Knowing Lisa Heathfield a dark twist was inevitable but it took an awfully long time to arrive. I wonder if the tedium and lack of drama was deliberate as it made the final act more meaningless but for me that was too high a price to pay.

Another inevitably emotional tale from heart-breaker Lisa Heathfield. Perfectly setting the mood, you know that something devastating is going to happen right from the onset and the finale leaves you stunned.

A beautiful touching read. You know the ending from the off, but the journey is so worth it.

I don't know what it is about this book. I loved Paper Butterflies by the same author ...I was really excited to read this book. And I've sat down with it several times hoping to fall into the story and it just hasn't happened. I'm putting it down to bad timing and moving on.

Gorgeous, heartbreaking, thought provoking. Lived up to the hype and would highly recommend!

Why do Lisa Heathfield’s books make me cry every time? So emotive, wonderful characters and despite knowling the outcome for Lo at the beginning, it was still an emotional journey.

Teenage forbidden love; so far, so 'Romeo and Juliet'
But it's told anew through the sisters of the circus, the semi magical world they inhabit, and the unexpected events that end their story

Amazing coming of age novel - just wow, hit me in all the right places. Highly recommended if you feel like bawling your eyes out and feeling like all life is precious and every moment should be appreciated.

I read Paper Butterflies by Lisa Heathfield last year and it simply blew me away. Given this I couldn't wait to read Flight of a Starling. This author knows how to turn the simple into the extraordinary. The language is engaging, unusual and evocative, you won't find any padding or filler here. I raced through this book and the end came far to quickly. The characters are engaging and real, and the view of circus life was a nice touch. I read the last few chapters of this book in a state of appalled tension. I knew the ending would be devastating and beautiful in equal measure, and whilst I knew what was coming the reality of it made me shift in my seat and read through partially closed eyes. Then suddenly alongside the sadness comes the hope - this really is great writing. Recommended to anyone who enjoys YA books - it's great.