Miriam Black knows when you will die. She’s foreseen hundreds of car crashes, heart attacks, strokes, and suicides. But when Miriam hitches a ride with Louis Darling and shakes his hand, she sees that in thirty days Louis will be murdered while he calls her name. Louis will die because he met her, and she will be the next victim. No matter what she does she can’t save Louis. But if she wants to … to stay alive, she’ll have to try.
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What if you could see how people would die? Miriam Black is a one-of-a-kind protagonist. With her ability to see the death of anyone she touches, she is understandably pretty bitter and antisocial. Getting close to anyone, whether stranger or lover, means witnessing their death in vivid Technicolor. And not everyone dies easy.
Blackbirds is fast-paced and jumps around between past, present and dream sequences, but it serves the book well and works for the pacing. I zipped through this book in a blink, hungry for more. There are questions left unanswered at the end (where does Miriam’s ability come from, what happened to… certain characters?), but Blackbirds is the first book in the series so it’s to be expected that not everything will be revealed.
Chuck Wendig is a powerhouse of an author, immersing us in Miriam’s dark world where no one is to be trusted and death is just a touch away.
Hard-boiled paranormal? Had me at hello. Tough, foul-mouthed main character written to glorious perfection with razor-sharp prose. Simply to most fun I’ve had with a read in a long time.
The question was, “What’s a book you’ve been meaning to reread?” Well, according to me there is only one answer: “Blackbirds” by Chuck Wendig. It is the first novel in, what is now, a four book series. And the fact that a new episode, “Thunderbird,” has just hit the stores makes the question all the more timely.
It’s central character is Miriam Black. She is virgin, slut, victim, victimizer, abused, abuser, thief, killer, savior, and the right hand of fate. With one touch of her hand on your flesh she will know how, and when you will die. She is haunted by this ability. Can she alter the outcome of her visions? She will try and she will fail. But, perhaps there is a trick to be learned?
Let me be clear; I love this series and I love it’s enigmatic protagonist. Make time read this ripping good story.
I really enjoyed the thriller + urban fantasy combo, and the character of the protagonist. Very similar to my writing.
If you like hard-edged characters and noir action, check this one out!
As an old school Dead Like Me fan, I have a soft spot for grim-reaper-esque fiction. Miriam Black, ultra-foul-mouthed anti-heroine of Blackbirds, isn’t a reaper per se, but with skin-to-skin contact, she knows how people are going to die.
The skill is an uncomfortable one, but it serves a purpose in her scavenger life where she takes from the recently deceased what she needs to sustain. Until she meets Louis, a kind-hearted trucker on borrowed time… and maybe it’s her fault? His impending death tests her vow not to interfere with fate. Throw in a con, a drug dealer, a mysterious suitcase, a couple of thugs, and the ghosts of the departed (past and future) and you have an action-packed, irreverent ride to the edge of the afterlife.
Blackbirds is an addictive page-turner. Written in descriptive-but-efficient prose, the writing style reminds me a little of John Locke’s books, another reader whose books I burn through. Chuck Wendig gives just enough on every page, flowing seamlessly from one chapter to the next. I’ll definitely be reading the rest of the series.
Chuck Wendig is a wordsmith of the highest caliber! Blackbirds is the first of the Miriam Black series, which gets better with each book. It’s by turns hilarious, tragic, off-putting, but always compelling. Miriam will grab you by the throat and not let go until you hit “The End.”
I was afraid after I read the book blurb for Blackbirds that it was just a rip off of the Harper Connelly series. There are some similarities in the main characters’ superpowers, but they are not the same. I would definitely recommend it, but it is pretty dark and gritty especially when compared to Harper Connelly.
Miriam Black is a bit of a downer. Her view on life is realistic, which can make her and her biting sarcasm no fun to be around. But for some reason, you keep coming back to her. Just don’t get too close.
This book was a quick and rollicking read, full of action, snark,and original character quirks. Wendig has come under fire for not writing realistic women, but I found Miriam infinitely relatable, so apparently I’m not a realistic woman, either.
Not for the faint of heart due to violence and profanity, but definitely worth the shock.