The Songbird's Call was just an ok read for me. The story was enjoyable but the author used her voice to start pushing politics & I turn to books to get away from all that junk.

This book is the second in the series but can be read as a stand alone.

I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book.

Fabulous heart warming story, another brilliant novel by Herron.

Though I really enjoyed this author’s writing style, if I could relay one message to Molly Darling, the heroine, it would definitely be, “Good golly, Miss Molly, get over yourself!” The repeating mantra of her insecurities about past/present perceived criticism about her weight got old, folks. For someone who claimed she didn’t like attention, she somehow always seemed to make everything about her, especially if she was arguing with someone. With supposedly rehearsed stage presence, she should have learned by now just to give the piranha media or any annoying stranger the mental middle finger all while smiling graciously.

It was implied repeatedly Molly was the voice of this trio of sister singers, on and off the stage, when they were famous a decade or so ago, but she sure seemed to lack the voice of reason here. Speaking of which, as I am not a fan of celebrities using their stardom as a platform to launch their personal tirades/promoting their own political agendas/views, I wasn’t pleased this author choose to do the same. Using flashbacks of some of Molly’s previous media appearances, that is exactly how it came across to me. I do not appreciate authors who do the same, especially in my romantic reads.

What was the passion meter on this one? It isn’t until around 50% before Molly and Colin kiss. Then at 53%, they make it to off the charts smexy, folks. Misunderstandings, jumping to conclusions, and poor decisions/illogical thinking (mostly on Molly’s part) ultimately get in the way of them becoming the town’s next top hit #1 new couple. Yeah, angst sits in, and it will be quite a while before they make beautiful music together again.

To better make my point regarding my on and off again Molly dismay, let me give you an example. How many times have you read a romance novel where the hero sneaks out, under the cloak of darkness after an amazing night together, and the heroine wakes up feeling used/rejected? Well, it is role reversal time, folks. Molly did just that but somehow felt justified and didn’t feel she really owed him any explanation. Sure, she claimed she left a note by the coffee pot, but he didn’t see it and was genuinely worried something had happened to her. You see, they were out in the boonies, near cliffs by the ocean, and she didn’t have a car to head back into town. What is a sweet, caring sheriff, who is used to dealing with worst case scenarios, supposed to think? That is when I seriously started questioning her rationale and habit of making everything about her.

Then how dare he track her down to make sure she was OK and offer to buy her breakfast! Well, that’s just horrible, now isn’t it? No, what is terrible is she turns this generous offer into making him sound like a villian.

At 70% her paranoid phobia of someone ordering her to do something had me shaking my head in frustration. A close second was her weight paranoia. It’s never a good thing in a romantic read when you realize one of the main characters would be better off without the other. In this case, the hero deserved better than her. Instead, he finds himself questioning himself and wanting to be a better person. Seriously, it made no sense. Folks, he was pretty freaking amazing already.

At 76% she helps out a woman who has been abused and lies to the police, ultimately making the situation worse. When caught in this deception, she still manages to turn the blame back on the hero. What does he do? He stops enforcing the law and hands out coffee and doughnuts instead. Again, because the heroine wants him to be a better person. She’s the one who needs fixing, my friend. What a shame Dr. Phil wasn’t part of her TV media tour years ago.

With a cheesy, overly played out theme on birds singing/migrating, these sisters end up singing poorly written lyrics, all for a good cause, that were meant to be heart-melting, but for me induced eye-rolling instead, near the very end.

I know...I know. I’m sounding overly critically. I did enjoy many aspects of this book, mainly when the main couple were dancing around each and finally got together. Molly just made things difficult each and every time she become overly defensive.

Lana, the third supposedly artistic sister, will be the focal point of the next book. As she comes across as carrying a grudge/antagonistic/self-centered on the brief cameo phone calls to Molly, I’m not sure whether to welcome her return to this nest of songbird sisters. Here’s to hoping she won’t come across as a vulture and will be singing a new song that won’t be more of the “can’t ever make this girl happy” familiar family tune.

Title: The Songbird’s Call, Series: The Songbirds of Darling Bay (Book 2), Author: Rachael Herron, Pages: 297, stand-alone but part of a series, sweet/alpha/good guy hero who deserved better, HEA, no cheating, no love triangle, no OM/OW drama, oversensitive/irrational/sweet heroine, sub-character endures domestic abuse.

Book 1 - The Darling Songbirds (Adele & Nate), Pages: 395, 3/1/16
Book 2 - The Songbird’s Call (Molly & Colin), Pages: 297, 8/29/16
Book 3 - The Songbird’s Home (Lana & Taft), Pages: NL, 4/3/17

(This review is based on advanced reader copy provided via NetGalley in exchange for an unbiased, fair review. No compensation was provided to this reviewer, nor is there any affiliation between the reviewer and author/publisher/NetGalley. It will be posted on Amazon, Goodreads, NetGalley, and Barnes & Noble.)