Mia McKenzie crafts a vivid narrative that pulls you into the life of Skye, a queer Black woman navigating the complexities of her relationships and her own sense of belonging.

Skye Falling by Mia McKenzie is a perfect fit for readers who appreciate stories about complex family dynamics, queer relationships, and community, and are looking for a humorous and heartwarming exploration of identity, belonging, and the power of human connection.

Skye Falling presented an interesting twist on the story of a donor meeting the kid they donated to conceive, but here it's the egg donor.

What a delight! Skye is a messy and super relatable protagonist, and watching her open herself to new things — maybe even good things — was completely lovely. I'll definitely follow whatever Mia McKenzie writes next.

DNF @ 52%

This story/plot was ok, if a bit basic and similar to what I've read in the past, but I could not get past the writing style. A lot of the dialogue felt forced and it was distracting from the story as a whole.

Not for me.

I loved this novel so much! It's a story that illustrates we can "come-of-age" in any phase of our lives. It's a story about love and connection. I couldn't put this one down following Skype and her journey to finding herself.

Skye has always lived free and owed no one. If she never feels an attachment to anyone, no one can ask anything of her. Then she meets one of 12 yr old "consequences". Feeling the pinch from a lack of money, Skye sold her "eggs" to a fertility clinic and one of them has hatched on her doorstep. This was a great story line and was executed in such a fun, entertaining way that I do believe I need to go check out other titles by Mia McKenzie.

I highlighted this book on my Booktube channel. The video can be found here: https://youtu.be/5291llNdboI

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me a free advanced copy of this book to read and review.

Skye doesn't trust anyone and has cultivated a nomad lifestyle where she can easily run away when things get tough -- and they often are. In between work trips, she's back in Philadelphia where she grew up and is confronted by something -- someone -- she never expected: A 12-year-old girl claiming to be her egg-donor daughter. Faced with the possibility of forging a new, more permanent connection with another person, Skye makes a choice she never expected -- to stay in Philly and bond with the girl, who is the result of Skye donating eggs to the girl's mother years before.

While in Philly, things get even tougher for Skye who is forced to reconcile with all of the bridges she's burned in the past -- her mother, her brother, her ex-best-friend and a new love interest that threatens to change the way Skye lives her life, forever.

In all honesty, it was pretty tough to get into this novel because of just how abrasive Skye is at the start -- she's rude to everyone and only looks out for herself. She even tries to escape through a window when her egg-daughter Vicky shows up. There is also a ton of crass language -- profanity and sexual in nature -- so if that's not your thing, then maybe steer clear! What makes this novel such a satisfying read, though, is seeing Skye warm up and melt (most of) the hard edges away as she gets closer to not only her egg-daughter, but her brother, friends, neighbors, and the entire city that she spent so long trying to run away from.

Skye feels very realistic in that she has past trauma that informs her behavior, and she's able to recognize it (at times) and correct herself as the story moves on and the stakes get higher. The more time I spent with her on the page, the more I was rooting for her and her whole community.

I also love that reading allows me to experience other cultures and communities, this one focusing heavily on the Black community of West Philadelphia and their struggles with police brutality, gentrification, queer acceptance and everyday racism. It also focuses a lot on queer characters, which adds another layer of complexity to the characters and the struggles (and joy!) they experience.

I loved the community and characters Mia McKenzie created and I appreciated the journey Skye took me on -- my only point of critique would be that the romance seemed to come too easily and while there were mentions of Skye's childhood friendships throughout, I wanted a deeper dive in her relationship with Tasha -- her ex-best friend.

Funny and illuminating with a cast of unforgettable characters, this book was such a wonderful read with so much heart -- I definitely recommend it to anyone who loves a relationship-focused narrative!

Sometimes books really surprise you! I received an ARC from Netgalley a while back and just never got to it. And then the reviews were mixed and I wasn’t sure if it was for me. I am so glad I gave it a go now. I loved it! I laughed; I cried.

Yes, Skye is a mess. She is emotionally immature. Like, really immature for a 38 year old woman. She runs from her problems by leaving town for extended periods of time via the travel company she owns. She has commitment issues, and possibly a slight drinking problem. She avoids her family. And then she meets a little girl who is the product of a donated egg. Soon Skye’s entire life changes.

I loved watching Skye grow and experience love. I never found her unlikeable as other reviewers described her character. I think she is just… honest. I also really enjoyed the activism aspect of this book. And Philly as the backdrop and essentially a character in the story was fantastic. I need a water ice and a soft pretzel now STAT!

Skye may be my favorite character of the year.

I picked this up expecting a romance based on the cover, which is not usually my genre but it came with a blurb from Torrey Peters and a Lambda nomination so I was willing to give it a shot. I was pleasantly surprised to find a delightful, fun contemporary fiction. The narrative voice is energetic, the characters are layered and multi-dimensional.

I read this at the perfect time. I needed something to remind me that books can be fun and also meaningful after a slog of awards books that were "objectively good" but also not enjoyable.

This book has everything in it, from being queer, to black culture, to racism, and everything in between. McKenzie does an amazing job weaving it all together in this incredible novel. Def a must read, and can’t wait for her next one!

I appreciate the idea of this story, but I just couldn't get into it. Unfortunately, the writing style just didn't work for me. I know there is an audience for this book, but it just didn't hook me.

I honestly just couldn't get into this book. I do hope to try again now that it's published. Hoping to be able to dive in a year later.

This one was just fun and thought provoking at the same time. Skye donated her eggs to a friend when she was in her 20s and now that she is almost 40 she is approached by a girl who claims to be her "egg" and she is spunky and sassy and even though Skye wants nothing to do with her Little Miss is not going away. She soon finds out she is being raised by the same woman she tried to pick up in the record store and is Vicky's aunt. This leads to more giggles. There is so much going on with social consciousness and awareness but all around goodness. Just settle in and enjoy this one!

When you think that past decisions have no consequences, it comes knocking on your doorstep. This is what happens to Skye and this book shows the intricacies of life, it consequences and how it effects other people.

Thank you #NetGalley and Random House for giving me the opportunity to read this.

Overall, I’d say Skye Falling is an interesting read. It’s a story full of potential but sadly it fizzles out during the second act.

I wish we could’ve seen more scenes with Vicky as she is the most interesting part of the story and I feel like she is kind of treated like an after thought, with every problem she has, told to the main character as a sidenote.

Also, the love story didn’t do anything for me, I understand why Skye falls in love with Faye, as she is a responsible and interesting woman. But Faye falling in love with woman child Skye is a little baffling to me. Not only because she keeps making a fool of herself in front of Faye (she literally showed up drunk to a spelling bee) but also because she doesn’t really evolve that much during the course of the story.

In conclusion, the story is an important one, quite funny at times because of Skye’s inner monologue, but it’s held back by storylines that could’ve taken the back seat in favor of adding more scenes to the main plot and to flesh out the romance that was a little underwhelming.

I’d like to thank Netgalley and Random House for the free e-copy in exchange of my honest opinion.

Really liked this book. Came along at the right time!! I needed something not so dark and dreary. This book delivered.

I wasn't a fan. It felt like it was written in a very juvenile style and I couldn't really get into it. It was a quick read but not a very interesting one, which was disappointing for me since it sounded really good.