Birdy by Jess Vallance

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

My thanks go to Hot Key Books for providing me with this review copy! 

Pages: 272

Publisher: Hot Key Books

Released: 2nd July 2015

Frances Bird has been a loner for so long that she’s given up on ever finding real friendship. But then she’s asked to show a new girl around school, and she begins to think her luck could finally be changing.

Eccentric, talkative and just a little bit posh, Alberta is not at all how Frances imagined a best friend could be. But the two girls click immediately, and it’s not long before they are inseparable. Frances could not be happier.

As the weeks go on, Frances finds out more about her new best friend – her past, her secrets, her plans for the future – and she starts to examine their friendship more closely.

Is it, perhaps, just too good to be true?

What I Have to Say 

I was left reeling by this book. The ending is just so wonderfully unexpected. Although I feel like I should have seen it coming really. It's all there when you think back on it. But it's set up in such a way that it leads you down the wrong path and makes you try to guess the twist. 

It was a beautifully written story. I really  like stories with unreliable narrator and Jess Vallance pulls off this one really well. The friendship is very well written. It shows how close the girls get to each other and the sadness Frances feels as Bert starts to draw away from her. 

Frances and Bert are very distinct characters. Bert is the bubbly, eccentric new girl, not used to a school environment and Frances, the quiet, loner type who's never had a real friend before. It was wonderful how quick it was to get to know them, how easy it was to think of them as real people. 

When you read this book, be prepared to hurt when Frances gets hurt and be happy when she gets happy.