BLOG TOUR Review: Silverbirds by Rocky Magaña

I received a review copy of this book for free from the author as part of the blog tour organised by TheWriteReads. This did not affect my opinion of the book in any way.

Published: January 2025
Pages: 356

Add to Goodreads | Add to The Storygraph

Synopsis

In a land ravaged by war and haunted by fire-breathing silverbirds, Kosha is the last thread in a bloodline unraveled by violence. His father was a man who believed in wisdom over weapons, his mother a woman who fought for a future that would never come, and his brother a boy who disappeared into the mountains, chasing a cause that would devour him whole. Now, Kosha walks alone, armed with nothing but a bow and the impossible weight of revenge pressing against his ribs.

As Kosha crosses the wasteland toward the land of the silverbirds, he carries more than his grief—he carries the ghosts of his father’s wisdom, his mother’s defiance, and his brother’s sins. He carries the weight of every choice that led him to this moment. And with each step, he must Is he the last survivor of his family’s story, or its final casualty?

A harrowing, lyrical journey through war, loss, and the brutal choices that shape a legacy, this novel asks what it means to inherit a fight—and whether a boy with nothing left to lose can change the course of his own history.

My Thoughts…

Every so often, I’ll decide to join a blog tour for no other reason than to read books I normally wouldn’t be aware of, knowing very little (or nothing at all) about them or their authors but simply because their blurb intrigues me and they somehow seem to call to me. Sometimes I’m lucky enough to discover some truly breathtaking books that make me feel so deeply grateful for having this space and for the opportunities it brings to read outside the beaten path. Silverbirds is one of those books.

There’s something deeply compelling about the way the author chose to narrate Kosha’s story and his struggles. The lyrical, almost poetic, writing style crashes against the brutality of the world, the consequences of war and the tragedies that unfold, in a contrast that somehow works against all odds. I was completely captivated right from the first few sentences, and I would have honestly read this in one sitting if only I had the time to do so.

The interweaving perspectives work wonderfully to highlight both Kosha’s struggles and the path that led his family to meet such senseless violence. I appreciated the thoughtful reflections on vengeance and the cycle of violence that were sprinkled throughout the book, as both Kosha and his parents in their flashbacks are faced with terrible choices – some of which will have devastating consequences. Although there is definitely a lot to chew on here, I won’t go into too much detail as part of the beauty of this book for me was going along as different backstories are slowly unveiled, gradually making sense of causes and effects and the way they can bleed into each other to breed resentments and pain.

I am their silverbird.
Everyone is someone else’s silverbird in one way or another.
Even if it’s just our passive silence to the tragedies around us.
We all have a part in someone dying every day.

One thing that kept this from being a perfect read for me was that it got slightly too didascalic for my taste towards the end. This is personal preference, of course, but one of the things that made this stand out for me was the nuance in the narrative and the use of silverbirds as a metaphorical element, and I felt this was missing a bit in the end as the messaging became much more overt and straightforward. The other element that slightly confused me was Kosha’s characterisation at times, as he sometimes behaved and talked as someone much older – almost an adult – rather than the way I would expect an eight-year-old boy to speak and act. Now, this is me nitpicking a bit, but it took me out of the narrative a few times and felt a bit odd compared to the otherwise extremely engaging and compelling prose.

Overall, Silverbirds was a fantastic surprise and one of those books I’m happy to have discovered, feeling especially timely given global news at the moment. Just be mindful that it tackles some pretty heavy themes, so make sure to check the content warnings before picking it up if that might be an issue for you.

CONTENT WARNINGS

This book contains depictions of death, including graphic scenes involving animal death, war, and violence; grief; religious bigotry and terrorism; sexual assault; and some swearing.