Her mind is a bird that's trapped inside her skull, flapping and thrashing, never breaking free.

I used to have only one name; it used to mean something.

It's best to let her go," he says. No, no, that's wrong. It's never right to give up on someone.

My worries always lead to dungeons; I can't imagine a worse thing than to be imprisoned for the rest of one's life, especially with so few years to enjoy what little there is.

Words like 'unputdownable' and 'irresistible' are simply not enough for Cat Winters's In the Shadow of Blackbirds. Days after finishing this story, it remains the first thought I have in the morning, and the thing that haunts me until I sleep.

Vaughn is talking about the heat, and his voice is so excited that it breaks into whispers at times. He loves his madness the way a bird loves the sky.

And if I have to die trying, I will get out of here.