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The Weight of Feathers
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For twenty years, the Palomas and the Corbeaus have been rivals and enemies, locked in an escalating feud for over a generation. Both families make their living as traveling performers in competing shows—the Palomas swimming in mermaid exhibitions, the Corbeaus, former tightrope walkers, performing in the tallest trees they can find.
Lace Paloma may be new to her family’s ...more
Lace Paloma may be new to her family’s ...more
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Kindle Edition, 320 pages
Published
September 15th 2015
by Thomas Dunne
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Start your review of The Weight of Feathers
He held a wet palm to her cheek. "I don't want you getting hurt."
"Everybody gets hurt," she said. "You know that."
this isn't the most "me" of all books, but i can definitely see its appeal for people who enjoyed books like Beautiful Creatures or The Night Circus or other stories featuring star-crossed lovers from feuding families with a fantasy/magical slant.
i snagged this one from netgalley because i liked the cover, i'd been hearing good things about it, and i've had good luck with circussy b ...more
"Everybody gets hurt," she said. "You know that."
this isn't the most "me" of all books, but i can definitely see its appeal for people who enjoyed books like Beautiful Creatures or The Night Circus or other stories featuring star-crossed lovers from feuding families with a fantasy/magical slant.
i snagged this one from netgalley because i liked the cover, i'd been hearing good things about it, and i've had good luck with circussy b ...more
I have a feeling I'm gonna get trolled for giving this one two stars.
I'm going to admit I am not cool enough for this book.
Shut up little Emo boy. I'm the cool mom. I bribe my kids to say so.
So you have Palomas and the Corbeaus families. They are both traveling performing families. They hate each other. I mean loathe each other.
The Paloma's act is the women are the mermaids in the show and they best do their jobs or Abuela will get them. You just don't cross that woman.
The Corbeaus ...more
I'm going to admit I am not cool enough for this book.
Shut up little Emo boy. I'm the cool mom. I bribe my kids to say so.
So you have Palomas and the Corbeaus families. They are both traveling performing families. They hate each other. I mean loathe each other.
The Paloma's act is the women are the mermaids in the show and they best do their jobs or Abuela will get them. You just don't cross that woman.
The Corbeaus ...more
Jan 31, 2018
❄️BooksofRadiance❄️
rated it
it was ok
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
ya-fantasy-sci-fi
2.75⭐️
I was initially sold on this when someone compared it to The Night Circus. It was nothing like the Night Circus. Aside from the fact that both are magical realism and involve a travelling circus crew, they couldn't be further apart.
I'm having trouble understanding my own feelings on this book so I’ll try my best to come across… understandable.
So, the story is about two rival families, the Palomas and the Corbeaus, who have been rivals and enemies locked in an escalating feud for over a g ...more
I was initially sold on this when someone compared it to The Night Circus. It was nothing like the Night Circus. Aside from the fact that both are magical realism and involve a travelling circus crew, they couldn't be further apart.
I'm having trouble understanding my own feelings on this book so I’ll try my best to come across… understandable.
So, the story is about two rival families, the Palomas and the Corbeaus, who have been rivals and enemies locked in an escalating feud for over a g ...more
more by anna-marie mclemore:
♥ when the moon was ours
5 Words to Describe The Weight of Feathers
1.) Engaging (adj.): very attractive or pleasing in a way that holds your attention.
"One does not wed hens with foxes."
You all know how much I hate flowery prose, but Anna-Marie McLemore made me fall in love with it. This book just had the perfect blend of easy-to-read and elegant writing. I mean, you could tell that the author writes some kick-ass prose that's still totally comprehensible and engaging. ...more
Jul 04, 2017
Elle (ellexamines)
rated it
really liked it
Recommends it for:
fans of The Scorpio Races or the Accident Season
Recommended to Elle by:
C.G. Drews
Why her?
Because it was hard to make her laugh, and harder to scare her.
When I finish a magical realism book, I always feel as if I enjoyed it, but I can never quite articulate why. If I struggled to push through a book, can I even say I enjoyed it? I've had the same experience with books like Maggie Stiefvater's The Scorpio Races and Moira Fowley-Doyle's The Accident Season. and I think I've come to the conclusion that this genre requires a certain mood out of its readers. While you ...more
DNF @ page 100
The Weight of Distracting Purple Prose
This book is nothing like The Night Circus!!! Stahp comparing it.
So we have 2 warring family of traveling performers. One swims in fake fish tails and pretends to be mermaids, while the other wears wings and does some tightrope act. Here's the twist: the "mermaid" family actually has some scales on their skin and the other family has feathers growing out of theirs.
There's supposedly some dark magic here but what it really just seems ...more
The Weight of Distracting Purple Prose
This book is nothing like The Night Circus!!! Stahp comparing it.
So we have 2 warring family of traveling performers. One swims in fake fish tails and pretends to be mermaids, while the other wears wings and does some tightrope act. Here's the twist: the "mermaid" family actually has some scales on their skin and the other family has feathers growing out of theirs.
There's supposedly some dark magic here but what it really just seems ...more
We are not small enough that you can pull us where you want us to go.
I only have one word for you, Anna-Marie McLemore: THANKS.
This novel is everything I've ever wanted in a book, and way more.
Fantastic writing (that kinda reminded me of All the Crooked Saints by my goddess in leather bracelets Maggie Stiefvater...or is it the other way around?), beautiful and original magical realism and amazing characters.
I'll forever cherish this tiny gem and keep it close to my heart for coming ...more
WOW... A Fantastical Tale!!!!! Just yesterday, I was high as a kite reading "Haroun and the Sea of Stories", by Salman Rushdie...(a Children's magical fairy tale), and
today, I'm swooning over "The Weight of Feathers, ( debut by Anna-Marie LeLemore).
This novel has a tribal feeling such as in "The Round House", by Louise Erdrich, to me with
and inventive cast of characters and scenes. It has a Romeo and Juliet feeling to it also by the
fact that two teens fall in love - but their families hate ea ...more
today, I'm swooning over "The Weight of Feathers, ( debut by Anna-Marie LeLemore).
This novel has a tribal feeling such as in "The Round House", by Louise Erdrich, to me with
and inventive cast of characters and scenes. It has a Romeo and Juliet feeling to it also by the
fact that two teens fall in love - but their families hate ea ...more
3.5 stars. Review first posted on www.fantasyliterature.com:
The Romeo and Juliet story is updated with a few twists in Anna-Marie McLemore’s debut young adult fantasy novel, The Weight of Feathers, published September 15, 2015. Two rival families travel between small towns in California in a nostalgic setting that seems to be approximately the 1960s, performing their Cirque du Soleil-type acts for the townspeople.
The French Romani Corbeaus (“Ravens”) attach wings made of wire and feathers to the ...more
The Romeo and Juliet story is updated with a few twists in Anna-Marie McLemore’s debut young adult fantasy novel, The Weight of Feathers, published September 15, 2015. Two rival families travel between small towns in California in a nostalgic setting that seems to be approximately the 1960s, performing their Cirque du Soleil-type acts for the townspeople.
The French Romani Corbeaus (“Ravens”) attach wings made of wire and feathers to the ...more
Utterly brilliant. This is a book to be savoured in bits. I'm glad I had the chance to read this slowly, burning the beautiful lines in my mind. Anna-Marie McLemore is right up there among the writers who truly create art and movement out of their sentences. If you like Leigh Bardugo, Maggie Stiefvater or Laini Taylor, and you haven't read any books by Anna-Marie McLemore, I urge you to pick one up. You won't regret it.
...more
✔️ Book #6 for the Contemporary-A-Thon under the challenge,
"read a diverse contemporary"
"
i think i enjoyed the concept of this book more than the actual book itself
the characters are interesting and i love the diversity but my guys, the pacinggggg
it
was
so
slow
and thats just rude, im trying to do a readathon here.
okay but seriously, i adore the idea of enemies to lovers, especially when its done in the romeo/juliet format where the families hate each other bc then its enemies to lovers + FORB ...more
i think i enjoyed the concept of this book more than the actual book itself
the characters are interesting and i love the diversity but my guys, the pacinggggg
it
was
so
slow
and thats just rude, im trying to do a readathon here.
okay but seriously, i adore the idea of enemies to lovers, especially when its done in the romeo/juliet format where the families hate each other bc then its enemies to lovers + FORB ...more
Buddy Read with the lovelies Scrill and Ashlynn
AHH! I loved it!!
"He had taught her the language and the landscape, shown her this country’s trees, the secret thrill of almost falling."
"The sense of falling did not touch her, not as long as her body was between the hands of this boy who felt steadier in the air than on the ground."
We have all heard the story of Romeo and Juliette a thousand different ways, and we all fall in love just to have our hearts ripped out in the end. But what abou ...more
AHH! I loved it!!
"He had taught her the language and the landscape, shown her this country’s trees, the secret thrill of almost falling."
"The sense of falling did not touch her, not as long as her body was between the hands of this boy who felt steadier in the air than on the ground."
We have all heard the story of Romeo and Juliette a thousand different ways, and we all fall in love just to have our hearts ripped out in the end. But what abou ...more
Very very cute. Just not...dazzling...in the way I wanted it to be. Don't get me wrong-it was beautiful. Just not for me. It wasn't a matter of the characters-because I adored them and was very invested and got lots of butterflies. It was the history. So. Much. History. And for someone who doesn't mind a little background information, this is perfect for you. The story was amazing. But, for me, when I'm as tired as I am, it took too much away from the romance I wanted to overtake the story. ...more
I just don't have words for this book. It was perfection.
Love love loved Lace and Cluck. They're so similar and so different and loyal to their families. I wanted to jump in the book and squeeze both of them.
It's lyrical and whimsical and swoony and strange and sad and I loved every single page of it.
**Huge thanks to Thomas Dunne Books and NetGalley for providing the arc in exchange for an honest review** ...more
Love love loved Lace and Cluck. They're so similar and so different and loyal to their families. I wanted to jump in the book and squeeze both of them.
It's lyrical and whimsical and swoony and strange and sad and I loved every single page of it.
**Huge thanks to Thomas Dunne Books and NetGalley for providing the arc in exchange for an honest review** ...more
"The sense of falling did not touch her, not as long as her body was between the hands of this boy who felt steadier in the air than on the ground."
Long before their fateful encounter, Lace Paloma and Luc Corbeau’s families have rivaled. With a history that involves death, these two families live and breathe hatred for each other. As traveling showman, both families couldn’t be more different; the Paloma’s performing with fins in the water and the Corbeau’s with wings on the backs up in the ...more
Long before their fateful encounter, Lace Paloma and Luc Corbeau’s families have rivaled. With a history that involves death, these two families live and breathe hatred for each other. As traveling showman, both families couldn’t be more different; the Paloma’s performing with fins in the water and the Corbeau’s with wings on the backs up in the ...more
4 of 5 stars at The BiblioSanctum http://bibliosanctum.com/2016/01/09/y...
Lately, most of my audio listens have been on the darker and heavier side, so when I was given the opportunity to review the audiobook of The Weight of Feathers, it didn’t take much convincing to give this lighter, more romantic title a try. Magical realism can be hit or miss with me, but even though I hesitated over some of the mixed reviews I’ve seen for this book, ultimately the theme of forbidden love won me over.
With ...more
Lately, most of my audio listens have been on the darker and heavier side, so when I was given the opportunity to review the audiobook of The Weight of Feathers, it didn’t take much convincing to give this lighter, more romantic title a try. Magical realism can be hit or miss with me, but even though I hesitated over some of the mixed reviews I’ve seen for this book, ultimately the theme of forbidden love won me over.
With ...more
Full review to come!
This is my first finished book for #HispanicHeritageReads and it was a great start. I thought the right was constantly sweet and nice, if not always very sophisticated. The story was pretty simple, but I loved the underlying feeling that beneath this story of scales and wings and family feuds, there was subtle commentary about prejudice and the blindness of hate. I enjoyed it a lot and the highest compliment I can pay it is that I already miss the characters. I love Lace and ...more
i have no words. anna-marie mclemore has all the beautiful words. idk how to write reviews anymore. i just really really loved this! the atmosphere, the slow burn of it, it was just so good. it's a quiet book, it's not extremely plot driven (there is one but it's not what made me love this book), but the characters are interesting and every page reveals new layers of these characters to the reader in the lovliest way. i can't wait to read more from this author.4.5 stars
...more
This book was OUTSTANDING!!
I loved the writing, characters and the ending. No bad Romeo and Juliet juju here. I totally thought this book would not live up to the hype but I was WRONG. Excellent read!
I loved the writing, characters and the ending. No bad Romeo and Juliet juju here. I totally thought this book would not live up to the hype but I was WRONG. Excellent read!
4.2 stars
Anna-Marie McLemore has
bewitched me 🖤
Anna-Marie McLemore has
bewitched me 🖤
Apr 04, 2018
Alaina
rated it
really liked it
Shelves:
march-challenge-2018,
contemporary,
fantasy,
favorites,
fiction,
young-adult,
paranormal,
romance,
2018
After reading The Night Circus I have been wanting to dive into another circus related kind of book. So I was beyond happy that I found another book and then I fell in love because it was completely different from The Night Circus. Yes, The Weight of Feathers is about a travelling circus crew but it was such a good story and different from the other book. Again, I really enjoyed it!
The Weight of Feathers is about two rival families, the Palomas and the Corbeaus. Anyone thinking of Romeo and Juli ...more
The Weight of Feathers is about two rival families, the Palomas and the Corbeaus. Anyone thinking of Romeo and Juli ...more
Check out more reviews @ Perspective of a Writer...
The Buzz
I shelved this back in 2015 to read, probably due to an ARC review that I don't remember. I do remember that it was a retelling and this was before I became interested in the genre. So when I was cutting books left and right off my TBR I kept this one for my retelling pile. I'm so happy I did. Now I really understand the allure of a Anna-Marie McLemore book.
The Premise
As a Romeo and Juliet retelling I knew that I needed to adjust my bra ...more
I've done it! I've finally read all of Anna-Marie's published novels!
Upon having finished this, I could tell that this was her debut novel, it's a bit odd going into this after having read her following novels first instead of this book being my first read, because it's like going backwards, I know how well she writes now, but I could definitely pinpoint where her beginnings were. She's gotten so much better as a writer since writing this, her writing isn't nearly as poetic as it came to be many ...more
Upon having finished this, I could tell that this was her debut novel, it's a bit odd going into this after having read her following novels first instead of this book being my first read, because it's like going backwards, I know how well she writes now, but I could definitely pinpoint where her beginnings were. She's gotten so much better as a writer since writing this, her writing isn't nearly as poetic as it came to be many ...more
This book really surprised me and I am so glad that I decided to read it because it never was on my radar actually! I stumbled upon it coincidentally when I was watching one of Hannah's (A Clockwork Reader) videos on Youtube in which she raved about it. So, as someone who really trusts HAnnah and her recommendations I just had to give this one a try and it didn't disappoint though I had some minor issues with it at first it got better and better. Be aware that this one is a slow-paced book thoug ...more
I have mixed feelings about this novel, but overall it just didn't hit the mark for me. Need to stir over my feelings a little.
Review to come! ...more
Review to come! ...more
2.5 STARS
This was a fairytale of sorts, a retelling one of Shakespeare's most famous manuscripts. Through vivid descriptions and many secrets and family drama, McLemore created this spiraling romance fit for those who enjoy love stories, magical realism, and pretty words.
The characters...
OH, MY STARS CLUCK. Cluck is a Corbeaus. He was unloved and rejected by his family, and for his entire life, he struggles with knowing why. His side of the story was VERY sad, and I got made multiple times, bu ...more
This was a fairytale of sorts, a retelling one of Shakespeare's most famous manuscripts. Through vivid descriptions and many secrets and family drama, McLemore created this spiraling romance fit for those who enjoy love stories, magical realism, and pretty words.
The characters...
OH, MY STARS CLUCK. Cluck is a Corbeaus. He was unloved and rejected by his family, and for his entire life, he struggles with knowing why. His side of the story was VERY sad, and I got made multiple times, bu ...more
I received a copy via Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.
"Each feather became ten more. They spread like a thousand red lacewings. They rose like every one was its own bird, full and winged. They turned the trees to autumn, all red-feathered boughs."
Beautiful. Completely different from what I expected, but for once in a positive way. The Weight of Feathers is delicate and yet powerful, one of those stories that probably won't impress you from the start but take root in your heart in the ...more
"Each feather became ten more. They spread like a thousand red lacewings. They rose like every one was its own bird, full and winged. They turned the trees to autumn, all red-feathered boughs."
Beautiful. Completely different from what I expected, but for once in a positive way. The Weight of Feathers is delicate and yet powerful, one of those stories that probably won't impress you from the start but take root in your heart in the ...more
I... I honestly still have no clue what I think of this book.
I hated the first half, and I loved the second half.
And I don't have the slightest clue what shifted.
Maybe I got used to the writing style. Because I sure wasn't liking it early on, but by the end I loved it. Maybe the characters grew on me. They started out very flat and... honestly I don't think they ever felt fully developed to me, but by the end I was so invested in them. Maybe the plot got more interesting.
I'm really not sure.
But ...more
I hated the first half, and I loved the second half.
And I don't have the slightest clue what shifted.
Maybe I got used to the writing style. Because I sure wasn't liking it early on, but by the end I loved it. Maybe the characters grew on me. They started out very flat and... honestly I don't think they ever felt fully developed to me, but by the end I was so invested in them. Maybe the plot got more interesting.
I'm really not sure.
But ...more
***3.75 stars***
This story was very interesting. It's a Romeo and Juliet retelling with magical-realism sprinkled on there. I really liked the slow burn romance. At a first glance, Cluck and Lace are pretty average characters, but once we get to know them they have many unique characteristics. I really liked the writing, but I didn't love it how I was expecting to. This book is barely 300 pages long, so I do wish the story would've been longer. Overall, this was definitely a lovely story. ...more
This story was very interesting. It's a Romeo and Juliet retelling with magical-realism sprinkled on there. I really liked the slow burn romance. At a first glance, Cluck and Lace are pretty average characters, but once we get to know them they have many unique characteristics. I really liked the writing, but I didn't love it how I was expecting to. This book is barely 300 pages long, so I do wish the story would've been longer. Overall, this was definitely a lovely story. ...more
3.75
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
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| Sirens Conference: The Weight of Feathers | 7 | 28 | Mar 25, 2016 09:28AM |
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Anna-Marie McLemore was born in the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains and taught by their family to hear la llorona in the Santa Ana winds. They are the author of THE WEIGHT OF FEATHERS, a finalist for the 2016 William C. Morris Debut Award; 2017 Stonewall Honor Book WHEN THE MOON WAS OURS, which was longlisted for the National Book Award in Young People’s Literature; WILD BEAUTY, a Kirkus Be
...more
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“He wore his loneliness like his scar.”
—
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“The sense of falling did not touch her, not as long as her body was between the hands of this boy who felt steadier in the air than on the ground.”
—
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