On The Wings of la Noche

Seventeen-year-old Noche is grieving the death of her girlfriend Dante. Noche also has a secret-she's a lechuza, a shape-shifting owl who carries the dead to the afterlife. Only she refuses to take Dante to the other side. There's further complications when Jax, a new boy, shows up to be her lab partner. There's a connection between the two of them, and Noche wonders if she can move on from Dante. But Noche can't help but feel guilty whenever she's around Jax. Is it too soon to move on from Dante, or is it? Noche then finds out there are consequences to not delivering the dead. Consequences that involve not only her staying an owl, but also losing Dante's spirit forever.

What worked: I love this twist on a Mexican urban legend. Noche's nocturnal life is one she still can't make sense of. What is beyond painful is losing her girlfriend, Dante. Noche can't take Dante's spirit to the other side, as life without her means nothing. The rawness of that emotion is intensified when others like Noche's friend Julian and her family try to help, but she pushes them all away. The descriptions of the pain are very realistic. So are the emotions of moving on and the guilt that tears at someone.

I also liked when Noche meets Evie, another Lechuza, who shows Noche she isn't alone. The idea of the Lechuza trading cards was really cool too!

The trio of friends has their own secrets, even after Dante's death. Secrets that are crushing and difficult for Noche.

The pacing is slow at times, especially when Noche meets the recently deceased. There is no description of what the afterlife is, which in a way makes sense, as I'm sure it's different for every individual. The ending is beautiful and shows that life does go on.

Haunting, magical tale of La Lechuza, a shape-shifting owl responsible for carrying the dead to the afterlife, but mostly a story of grief and moving on.