When Mockingbirds Sing by Billy Coffey

★★★★★

What marks the boundary between a miracle from God and the imagination of a child?

Leah is a child from Away, isolated from her peers because of her stutter. But then she begins painting scenes that are epic in scope, brilliant in detail, and suffused with rich, prophetic imagery. When the event foreshadowed in the first painting dramatically comes true, the town of Mattingly takes notice.

Leah attributes her ability to foretell the future to an invisible friend she calls the Rainbow Man. Some of the townsfolk are enchanted with her. Others fear her. But there is one thing they all agree on – there is no such thing as the Rainbow Man.

Her father, the town psychologist, is falling apart over his inability to heal his daughter… or fix his marriage. And the town minister is unraveled by the notion that a mere child with no formal training may be hearing from God more clearly than he does.

While the town bickers over what to do with this strange child, the content of Leah's paintings grows darker. Still, Leah insists that the Rainbow Man's heart is pure. But then a dramatic and tragic turn of events leaves the town reeling and places everyone's lives in danger. Now the people of Mattingly face a single choice:

Will they cling to what they know… or embrace the things Leah believes in that cannot be seen?

Billy Coffey’s When Mockingbirds Sing contains an extraordinary story of belief and mystery. With a distinct small-town Southern style, this story that narratively spans a mere week uniquely captured my imagination and attention - I haven’t read a book quite like this one and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Each character moves through the storyline realistically and full of life in his or her own way, with individual circumstances of faith and doubt both heartbreaking and uplifting. An overall absorbing and page-turning read, When Mockingbirds Sing is one I heartily recommend for readers of contemporary fiction.

Thanks to BookLook Bloggers, I received a copy of When Mockingbirds Sing and the opportunity to honestly review it. I was not required to write a positive review, and all the opinions I have expressed are my own. (I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”)

About the Author

Billy Coffey's critically acclaimed books combine rural Southern charm with a vision far beyond the ordinary. He is a regular contributor to several publications, where he writes about faith and life. Billy lives with his wife and two children in Virginia's Blue Ridge Mountains. Visit him at his website, Facebook and Twitter.