My mother put up with various things in my childhood, and a wide variety of animals....lizards, rats, a duck, and even a crow.  Fortunately for my mother I, unlike Briella, was not a super genius so my interaction with these animals was limited to feeding and admiring.   The Briella in Black Wings is "super smart" as her mother Marian says.    Marian loves Briella totally, but feels like a failure as a mother because there's times that Briella, frankly, gives her the creeps in some intangible way.    When Briella takes in an injured Raven those creepy feelings grow more and more and come more often.  That Raven...it disgusts her and scares her.  The relationship between Briella and the Raven terrifies her and worries her.   What is the "secret project" her super-smark, genius daughter is working on?  Why is Briella so interested in the human soul?   Why are strange tragedies happening at school and around the neighborhood?
This book takes you on a journey through motherhood hell.    I enjoyed this book and found that I had to be read the last 40% in one sitting.  I kept saying, "one more chapter, then I'll go accomplish something".  Nope.  I had to keep going until the end.  A true page turner!
#BlackWings #netgalley

Review Copy

BLACK WINGS by Megan Hart was an interesting read and I enjoyed it for several reasons.  To begin with it was a novel concept - no rehash of the same ol' same ol'.  Nice.  The characters were distinct and well developed.  I didn't like all of them, but I appreciated that Hart attempted to make them real.  I think she may have succeeded.  The writing was good, but I felt some ends were left undone, still not enough to detract from the story - just dropped bits here and there.

This is a book I would recommend to anyone who has a child or is themselves different.  You will have empathy after reading this, I hope.

What is horror? Sometimes it's things that go bump in the night, and sometimes it's having a child that is so scarily smart... But also a sociopath. And it's that dawning realisation for the mother in this tale that truly gave me the creeps. The child cannot be other than who she is. Be it amoral or not. But reading the mother slowly gaining the conviction that there is something very wrong with her child is true horror!
Also, I really enjoyed the vague preternatural aspects - is the child really taking to a bird? Is it real, or the overworked mind of mum as she struggles to keep check in a daughter that, like some A.I's, feel that sometimes for their own good, people ought to be culled.